Curriculum Expectations | Learning Goals | |
DramaB1.1 Creating and Presenting: engage actively in drama exploration and role play, with a focus on examining multiple perspectives related to current issues, themes, and relationships from a wide variety of sources and diverse communities | DramaI can:
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DanceA1.4 Creating and Presenting: use the elements of dance and choreographic forms to communicate a variety of themes or moods A2.1 Reflecting, Responding, and Analysing: construct personal interpretations of the messages in their own and others' dance pieces, including messages about issues relevant to their community and/or the world | DanceI can:
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LanguageOral Communication 1.5: develop and explain interpretations of oral texts using stated and implied ideas from the texts to support their interpretation Media Literacy 1.1: explain how various media texts address their intended purpose and audience Media Literacy 1.5: demonstrate understanding that different media texts reflect different points of view Media Literacy 2.1: explain how individual elements of various media forms combine to create, reinforce, and/or enhance meaning | LanguageI can:
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Materials | ||
Chart paper and/or blackboard | ||
Approximately 15 minutesMinds On | Notes/Assessment |
Whole Class > Viewing and Analysing a Media Text: PSAIn pairs, ask the students to share examples of television commercials that they consider to be highly effective. Ask them to identify the key elements that make the commercial effective in their view. Invite a few students to share their examples, and chart the key elements of effectiveness. Inform students that they are going to view another media text about bullying, in the form of a short public service announcement (PSA). Explain that a PSA is like a commercial; it aims to communicate or "sell" a message to its viewers. Invite students to view https://www.youtube.com "The Bully - Concerned Children's Advertisers" (32 seconds). Use the following questions to facilitate a class discussion: Key Questions for Discussion:What is the central message of this PSA? Whole class > 4 cornersWrite the following statement on the blackboard: "Bullies are not born, they're made." Ask students to individually consider this statement and decide the degree to which they agree or disagree. Invite students to go to the corner of the room that corresponds to their opinion and to discuss their point of view with peers. Ask each group to select a spokesperson to briefly summarize their groups' idea for the rest of the class. Prompt: Does anyone wish to move to a new corner after listening to these different perspectives? If so, what changed your mind? | Pre-lesson Preparation:Write one of four headings in large letters on 4 pieces of white paper (a different one on each sheet): STRONGLY AGREE, AGREE, DISAGREE, STRONGLY DISAGREE. Use masking tape to post one sheet on the wall in each corner of the room. Find and/or download "The Bully" and "Childnet" YouTube videos (in hyperlinks). Prepare chart papers for analysing the Childnet International video. Refer to the "Notes" for the "Minds On" section of Lesson 1 for the KeepVid video downloading instructions, if needed.
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Approximately 60 minutesAction! | Notes/Assessment |
Whole Class > Viewing and Analysing a Media Text :Childnet International Cyber Bullying Video(6.5 min) Advise students that they are now going to view another media text which tells the fictional story of Trey, a boy who is the target of cyber bullying. Explain that this text will be the source of a drama and dance exploration that will allow the class to gain a deeper understanding of causes, impacts and possible solutions related to cyber bullying. Prepare and post three charts with the following headings: 1) friends and allies; 2) bullies; 3) bystanders (those who observe and do not take action). Have students view the video, with a focus on identifying these three groups. After viewing the video, invite students to identify which characters were allies, bullies, or bystanders. Challenge students to provide evidence from the media text to support their opinion. Prompts: What behaviours did you observe in that character to suggest that he/she is an ally/bully/bystander? What did you notice about the character's body language and facial expression? How can Trey know who is sending these text messages or doctored images on line? Trios > Shifting Perspectives Dance: Bullies, Bystanders, Allies & TargetsExplain to the class that they are now going to explore the dynamics of the relationships between Trey, the bystanders, allies, and the bullies. Divide the students into groups of three, and have them identify who will be A, B, and C. Tell them that A is the Target - Trey; B is one of the bullies; and C is one of the bystanders who will act as an ally to Trey. Have half the groups sit to observe, while the others stay in the space, letting them know that you will switch roles eventually. This will give the each trio more space to perform, provide an audience for feedback, and let the students learn from one another's approaches to the activity. Have the performing groups each claim a corner or space in the room to begin. Tell them that only one partner will ever move at a time, in the order A, B, C. Ask all A's (Trey) to begin by entering the space and assuming a still pose. Direct the B's (bullies) to approach A and take a position that exerts power over A through posture, facial expression, level, and more. B may choose to touch A or keep a distance, but must convey a clear relationship and intention. The job of C, the bystander, is to intervene in this conflict on behalf of the target, thus becoming an ally to Trey. Explain that the C's can adopt any strategy they see fit, e.g., getting between the bully and target, taking the target elsewhere in space, confronting the bully, etc. Partner A then re-initiates the cycle by dancing into a new position in space. B responds in movement, followed by C. After you have walked through this structure, let the groups cycle through for a while, encouraging them to try new approaches each time, with attention to how they use movement to transition between poses. Increase the speed at which the students act and respond, until the groups are in continuous movement. Remind them that they can continue to draw on images from the video, and create their own scenarios. Give them a warning when you want them to freeze in their final scenario. When the first group has finished, allow the observers to give comments. Key Questions for Discussion:How would you describe the relationships you saw between the targets, bullies and bystanders/allies in the different groups? Have the two groups switch roles and repeat the exercise. When the performers freeze in their final scenario, ask one A and one B to remain in their frozen pose. Ask all of the other A's and B's to melt out of their freeze and quietly sit on their spots. Ask the C's to remain frozen and imagine what they would like to to say either to Trey or the bully. Prompt: Deep inside, what would you like Trey to know? Or if it was safe, what would you like to say to this bully if you could? Explain that you are going to safely bring those private thoughts into public for a moment. Circulate to each C, tap them on the shoulder, cuing them to make eye contact with either Trey or the bully as they speak aloud their inner thoughts. Explain that in drama and theatre, these inner thoughts are sometimes called interior monologues or subtext. Whole Class > Hot-seating/InterviewingHave the entire class sit in a semi-circle, in chairs or on the floor. Explain that you need four students to assume the roles of Trey, bully, bystander, and ally. Invite volunteers to come stand in the front, and answer questions from the rest of their peers, always acting "in role" as their character from the video. You may wish to have the four characters sit for comfort, or stand so they can articulate more with their bodies. Guide the rest of the class to ask questions of the four characters. Encourage them to ask deep thinking questions that will help them understand each character better. Allow time for the questioning to deepen, and model some questioning if necessary. e.g. Why do you think this bullying is happening? What is the one thing you wish you did differently? How has your relationship with _________ changed? Who can you rely on? What was your last thought before you went to sleep last night? After modelling with one group, you may wish to divide the class into pairs, A and B. Ask A to select one of the four roles for themselves, and ask B to ask questions that dig deeply into the character's thoughts and feelings. Then switch so that B takes on a role, and A asks questions. |
Assessment for Learning (AFL)Use Appendix B: Observation tracking sheet to record anecdotal observations. Use the Minds On activities to encourage critical thinking regarding what makes media texts effective, considering the message, medium, target audience and power dynamics at play. Through the 4 corners activities, gauge student attitudes and awareness of why and how behaviors are formed. The Shifting Perspectives Dances are a good opportunity to observe how students problem solve with their bodies to negotiate bullying scenarios. During the sharing of sentence stems in the Consolidation, assess emerging student understandings based on the unit. Assessment as Learning (AaL)The public display of student reflections at the end of the lesson will provide the entire class with a collective record of their emerging understandings. Differentiated Instruction (DI)Depending on student needs, you could have all or some groups perform the shifting perspectives dance with no physical contact, using body language and gestures to communicate. Critical Literacy Focus (CL)Critical literacy focuses on helping students develop a vocabulary for identifying types of power, and for examining how power operates and is negotiated in life and in texts. Thus, it is crucial to examine how bullying operates as a form of power and how resisting or challenging it, particularly as a bystander, can be empowering. Use the term target instead of victim, which is negative, implying powerlessness. Bullying prevention programs endeavour to empower students as allies providing them with strategies for dealing with bullies. The role of the ally: One can act in the role of an 'ally' to any oppressed person or group even if one does not belong to the latter. The concept of being an 'ally' in the struggle against oppression invites one to exercise power by speaking out against the oppression. The word suggests that by not speaking out or taking action you are allying with the oppressor. Both silence and action are ways of exercising power in a dynamic. See Appendix C. HyperlinksYouTube videos to download: "The Bully..." PSA (32sec) https://www.youtube.com Childnet International Cyber Bullying Video(6.5 min) Concerned Children's Advertisers is the name of a Canadian non-profit organization based in Toronto and founded in 1900. For more information on this organization and the videos it has produced, visit the See Think Literacy: Media, Grades 7-10 for an extensive explanation of and focus on examining and creating PSAs: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/student success/ thinkliteracy /files/ThinkLitMedia.pdf
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Approximately 15 minutesConsolidation | Notes/Assessment |
Whole class > 4 Corners ReflectionRepeat the 4 corners activity that was done in the minds on section of this lesson, but change the statement to: Targets are not born, they're made. As above, invite students to select a corner that reflects their opinion, discuss with peers, and then report back to the large group. Alternatively, you may wish to change the statement to : Allies are not born, they're made. (see Appendix C for background information on the role of the ally.) Personal ReflectionAsk the students to reflect on all of the activities of this lesson, and choose one of the following sentence stems to complete on a large blank strip of paper. Under what other circumstances might I be an ally to someone in need? | Challenge students to think critically and analytically. Probe and ask for clarification. Prompt: Can you say more about that? How did you arrive at that conclusion? You may wish to post these statements on a bulletin board as a record of the class's emerging understandings. |
