Lesson Overview
Estimated Time: 150 minutes (2 periods)
This lesson consolidates the introductory work students have done in lessons one and two about the ways wealth, power and social location intersect.
Connections to Financial Literacy
Students use dramatic forms to develop a compassionate awareness of the world around them using a lens of Financial Literacy. The work develops critical thinking skills to increase student Financial Literacy.
Curriculum Expectations
Drama
A1. The Creative Process: use the creative process and a variety of sources and forms, both individually and collaboratively, to design and develop drama works.
ADA3M:
- A1.2: select and use appropriate drama forms to present a variety of adapted or original drama works
ADA3O:
- A1.2: select and use appropriate dramatic forms to present themes or ideas about diverse cultures, contexts, and perspectives
ADA4M:
- A1.2: select and use a variety of drama forms to present original drama works
A2. Elements and Conventions: use the elements and conventions of drama effectively in creating individual and ensemble drama works, including works based on a variety of sources.
ADA3M:
- A2.1: highlight selected elements of drama and subordinate others to achieve specific purposes
ADA3O:
- A2.2: use a variety of drama conventions to clarify roles, relationships, and themes in individual and ensemble drama works
ADA4M:
- A2.1: use the elements of drama to achieve specific purposes in drama works
B1. The Critical Analysis Process: use the critical analysis process to reflect on and evaluate their own and others’ drama works and activities.
ADA3M:
- B1.2: analyse drama works to determine how they communicate ideas about issues, culture, and society
- B1.3: analyse and evaluate the aesthetic and technical aspects of drama works of diverse genres and styles
ADA3O:
- B1.2: analyse drama works to determine how well they achieve their intended purpose
- B1.3: identify aesthetic and technical aspects of a variety of drama works, either completed or in progress, suggest reasons for their use, and assess their effectiveness
ADA4M:
- B1.1: use the critical analysis process to reflect on and justify or revise decisions in creating drama works
- B1.3: analyse and evaluate the aesthetic and technical aspects of a variety of drama works and/or theatrical productions
B2. Drama and Society: demonstrate an understanding of how societies present and past use or have used drama, and of how creating and viewing drama can benefit individuals, groups, and communities.
ADA3M:
- B2.2: identify ways in which drama can influence personal growth, relationships with others, and aesthetic judgement
ADA3O:
- B2.2: identify ways in which drama can promote self- and social awareness
ADA4M:
- B2.2: describe ways in which their personal experiences in drama have influenced their attitudes to others and their own world view
- B2.4: describe different approaches used to explore universal concepts and themes in the drama of diverse cultures
C1. Concepts and Terminology: demonstrate an understanding of the nature and functions of drama forms, elements, conventions, and techniques, including the correct terminology for the various components.
ADA3M:
- C1.2: use correct terminology for the various components and processes of their own and others’ drama works
ADA3O:
- C1.2: use correct terminology for the forms, elements, conventions, and techniques they learn about through viewing and creating drama works
ADA4M:
- C1.2: use correct terminology for the styles, components, processes, and techniques of drama in creating and critiquing drama works and theatre performances
C3. Responsible Practices: demonstrate an understanding of safe, ethical, and responsible personal and interpersonal practices in drama activities.
ADA3M:
- C3.1: identify and follow safe and ethical practices in all drama activities
- C3.3: demonstrate an understanding of correct theatre worker and audience etiquette in classroom drama work and formal performance contexts
ADA3O:
- C3.1: identify and follow safe and ethical practices in all drama activities
- C3.3: demonstrate an understanding of correct theatre worker and audience etiquette in classroom drama work and formal performance contexts
ADA4M:
- C3.1: identify and follow safe and ethical practices in all drama activities
- C3.3: demonstrate an understanding of correct theatre worker and audience etiquette in classroom drama work and formal performance contexts
Learning Goals
At the end of this lesson students will
- communicate an understanding of some financial factors over which they may have control and others that they may not
- understand that the diversity of wealth and poverty as concepts are not limited to financial wealth and poverty
- identify how working with dramatic improvisation can help us explore our futures and consider larger social concerns
- identify how working with the dramatic forms can help us reconfigure our assumptions, beliefs and biases about a topic
Instructional Components and Context
Readiness
Students consolidate their theoretical, conceptual and practical understandings of poverty and wealth in this lesson. By using their work in lessons one and two, students build prepared improvisation scenes. By revisiting their reflections from lessons one and two, students assess how using dramatic exploration has reconfigured their own assumptions, beliefs and biases about wealth and poverty.
Terminology
Forum theatre
Prepared improvisation
Writing in role
Thought tracking
Monologues
Materials
Reflection questions from lesson two
Journals (with responses from the end of lesson 2)
Exit cards from lesson one
Blank exit cards (optional, depending on size and space of original cards)
Lesson Plan
Minds On
Whole Class > Sharing
Invite students to look through their individual answers the recorded in their journals from lesson two’s Consolidation questions. Ask students to identify one or two of the answers they would be willing to share with the class. Solicit students to provide a summary of their answers.
Ask students to respond to the answers of their peers using a critical lens. Prompts: How does this answer mirror or challenge how you look at some of the answers you have provided? What is interesting or surprising about the answers of your peers? How have they allowed you to perhaps reconsider your own answers? What things did your peers consider that you had not?
Connections
Connections: Students use reflection, peer feedback and discussion to build on their understanding of power, economics and social location. By reviewing the themes from lesson one and two, students move to a deeper understanding of how societal constructs of wealth and power affect them and their plans for the future.
Assessment as learning: Students reflect on their own writing and on the ideas of their peers in order to encourage them to rethink and reconsider earlier assumptions. Group discussion creates open discourse on the topic.
Assessment for learning: The teacher dialogues with the class to deepen their answers to the questions and encourage more discourse if required, using criteria co-created with the class. The criteria will highlight what an effective discussion might look like.
Action!
Pairs/Whole Class > Image Theatre
As a class, ask students to brainstorm a list of words and ideas generated throughout the last two lessons (e.g.wealth, poverty, social location, capitalism etc.). Leave the brainstormed words up for reference. Pair students up, ask them to find a spot in the room and label themselves A and B. Ask all of the student As to select one word from the brainstorming list (e.g. power). Instruct them to "shape" their partner into a pose that represents that word. If pairs are comfortable with touch, Student A can physically manipulate their partner, if not they can model the movement of each body part and have their partner mirror their pose. Encourage students to work silently. When all of the As have finished, allow them to wander around the room and observe the other sculptures. Switch roles.
Extension: Image Theatre may be repeated as a whole class. As a class, select a word from the brainstorming as a stimulus and invite the students to stand in a circle. The whole class may respond to the stimulus or student may choose to step into the circle and create their image. Students may also add on to other students images, creating an abstract representation of the word or a tableau that could be brought to life through thought tracking. For different variations of Image Theatre see Augusto Boal's book The Rainbow of Desire.
Connections
Connections: If the teacher is trained in Theatre of the Oppressed, he or she may wish to use Forum Theatre as an alternative to Image Theatre as a way to play out some of these issues.
Differentiation:
- Use thought-tracking to expand the scene using more players to represent the inner voice of each character.
Assessment for/as learning: Teacher uses observation and feedback to push student learning forward.
Consolidation
Individual and Whole Group > Revisiting Personal Biases, Beliefs and Assumptions
Redistribute the Exit Cards to each student from lesson one. Ask students to reread their original answer to the questions:
How has your understanding of poverty and wealth developed through your work today?
What are some of your assumptions, beliefs and biases about poverty and wealth?
Invite students to reflect on the work they have done in the last two lessons and to reconsider their answers to these questions. Ask students to make changes or write new answers to the questions that reflect any changes in their biases, beliefs and assumptions about poverty and wealth. (Optional) Ask students to pair up and share some of the ways in which their own ideas on the topic have changed
Lead the full class in a discussion about the work and how using the dramatic form has helped them to explore a complex issue Prompts: How has our use of drama helped us explore the issues of poverty, wealth, economics and social location? How does using this kind of approach supports the examination of social issues and can sometimes alter our perceptions?
Extensions Ideas:.
- Have students write individual monologues reflecting one or two aspects explored in the unit (e.g., poverty, wealth, power, status, wants, needs, personal goals and happiness).
Connections:
- Students make a full-circle return to explore previous ideas from lesson one while reflecting on the use of the dramatic form.
Differentiation
-
Suggest students share one specific way their own personal perceptions have been altered by the work.
Assessment as learning: Student self-reflection heightens awareness of the learning that has taken place throughout the unit. Ask students to make an entry in their journals.