Drama 6/7/8

CLASS CONTENT:

Drama for sixth graders is a quarter long class. Drama for seventh and eighth graders is a year-long class. Students are going to participate in a collaborative classroom, which means they will be working with other students to effectively learn and demonstrate a variety of skills through the theater arts. This class will focus on many different aspects of drama including theater history, understanding text, theater terminology/vocabulary, improvisation, group initiatives, drama games, and performance.

MATERIALS

Students will be provided a working folder, which will stay in the classroom. It may go home but must be at school on a daily basis.  

EFFORT EXPECTATIONS

Drama is dependent on students working together to learn skills, to take risks, to overcome fears, and to develop confidence in working with and performing in front of other students. Students are expected to bring a positive and focused attitude to class every day. There will be a lot of physical activities in this class and students are encouraged to wear clothing that allows them to move freely.

           

COMMUNICATION

Planner: Time will be provided in class to record assignments and due dates. Planners can be checked at home and at school daily.

Class web page: You may access assignment information on my web page by going to the link on Marshall’s home page or by using the following address (I am in the process of creating a different class webpage so the link below may change in the next week or two):

https://sites.google.com/a/students.osd.wednet.edu/mr-haws-humanities/

Progress information: Students and parents may check grades online via Skyward Family Access. You may expect grades to be updated at least once a week or contact me for more frequent updates. I will contact you if your student’s grades fall below a C- standard. Grades for this drama class will include written work, but will mostly focus on participation, effort, and performance.

E-mail:  jhaws@osd.wednet.edu Please note: I am most quickly reached by email.

Voice mail: 360-596-7659

6^th Grade Drama (quarter)

In this class, students will be introduced to the basic concepts of theatre arts.  Students will use various creative drama techniques to build confidence and trust, stimulate imagination, movement, and role-play.  Through theatre games and activities students will learn to lose inhibitions and will gain trust in themselves as well as others in their groups.  Students will learn and use drama and theatre vocabulary in class discussions and the activities will specifically address the promotion and reinforcement of students' literacy skills.  Students will exhibit and reinforce their skills through individual and group presentations and performances.

7th Grade Drama (year long)

In this class, students will continue their study of the basic concepts and begin to refine their presentational skills.  Students will use various creative drama techniques to build ensemble, stimulate imagination, movement, and role-play with an emphasis on believability and sensory awareness.  Students will use observation and emotional memory to reveal thoughts and feelings and to build believable characters and situations.  Students will learn and use drama and theatre vocabulary in class discussions and the activities will address the promotion and reinforcement of students' literacy skills. This class will focus on many different aspects of drama including theater history, understanding text, theater terminology/vocabulary, improvisation, group initiatives, drama games, and performance.

8^th Grade Advanced Drama (year long)

In this class, students will build upon previously learned skills to portray more compelling characters and complex scenes.  Students will use various creative drama techniques to build ensemble, stimulate imagination, movement, and role-play with an emphasis on movement and stage presence.  Students will focus on realistic acting, commanding audience attention, and developing a stage presence.  They will understand and follow stage directions, and use proper techniques for body and voice control.  Students will learn and discuss the basic elements of drama to better understand and analyze characters and scripted material.  Students will learn and use drama and theatre vocabulary in class discussions and the activities will address the promotion and reinforcement of students' literacy skills.  Students will exhibit and reinforce their skills through individual and group presentations, performances, and script and journal writing. A major focus of this class will be the use contemporary texts as well as classical texts, especially Shakespeare. This class will be a part of the Washington State Thespians, and will potentially participate in the Jr. Thespian Festival.