Lesson 4 - Poetry as Creation // Leçon 4 - La poésie comme création

Guiding Questions

• How can performance be used to heighten one's appreciation and understanding of a piece of poetry?
• How can the use of a director, actor, and designer help streamline creative work?
• How can group creation be aided through the use of props, costume and technology?

Questions directrices

• Comment la performance peut-elle être utilisée pour améliorer l'appréciation et la compréhension d'un morceau de poésie ?
• Comment l'utilisation d'un metteur en scène, d'un acteur et d'un concepteur peut-elle contribuer à rationaliser le travail de création ?
• Comment la création collective peut-elle être facilitée par l'utilisation d'accessoires, de costumes et de technologies ?

Learning Goals

At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

• Use the creative process to create and present a performance of a piece of poetry 
• Identify and work with specific roles such as director, actor and designer
• Use voice techniques to add meaning to a piece of poetry
• Use the performance space to add meaning to the performance of a piece of writing
• Use tableau and movement to add meaning to a piece of poetry
• Explore a variety of interpretations of a piece of poetry
• Make choices in the performance to highlight a variety of meanings in the piece of poetry

Buts d'apprentissage

A la fin de cette leçon, les élèves seront capables :

• d'utiliser le processus créatif pour créer et présenter un spectacle de poésie
• d'identifier et de travailler avec des rôles spécifiques tels que le metteur en scène, l'acteur et le concepteur
• d'utiliser des techniques vocales pour donner du sens à un morceau de poésie
• d'utiliser l'espace de représentation pour donner du sens à la représentation d'un texte écrit
• d'utiliser le tableau et le mouvement pour donner du sens à un texte poétique
• d'explorer une variété d'interprétations d'un morceau de poésie
• de faire des choix dans le spectacle pour mettre en évidence une variété de significations dans le morceau de poésie

Terminology

• Poetry
• Performance
• Movement
• Tableaux
• Chorus
• Echo
• Costume
• Set
• Director
• Actor
• Designer

Terminologie

• Poésie
• La performance
• Mouvement
• Tableaux
• Chœur
• Echo
• Costume
• Décor
• Metteur en scène
• Acteur
• Concepteur

Whole Class > Reflection on Previous Work

Ask students to share a summary of their thoughts on Journal Reflection #2. Focus discussion on how meaning can be developed using a variety of approaches.

Whole Class > Outlining the Coming Work

Engage students for the culminating task; hand out assignment sheet. Read over expectations and evaluation format (refer to PDF #2 - Activity Outline // PDF-FR #2 Schéma de l'activité and PDF #3 - Culminating Task Rubric(English Only)). Ask students for questions to help clarify requirements for the next two lessons. Focus students on combining the skills developed in the last three lessons to create a meaningful and entertaining final performance.

Whole Class > The Roles of the Production Company //
Classe entière > Les rôles de la société de production

Ask class to brainstorm the jobs they think each of these roles would have to do in this activity i.e. costume, tech. Create a job-list to post in the classroom. Focus student attention on the ways in which the various roles work together and how specific decision-making falls on different leaders in each area. Remind students that the creative process involves collaboration of all of these roles. 

Demandez à la classe de faire une remue-méninges sur les tâches que chacun de ces rôles devrait accomplir dans le cadre de cette activité, par exemple les costumes, les techniciens. Créez une liste de tâches à afficher dans la salle de classe. Attirez l'attention des élèves sur la façon dont les différents rôles travaillent ensemble et sur la manière dont la prise de décision incombe à différents responsables dans chaque domaine. Rappelez aux élèves que le processus créatif implique la collaboration de tous ces rôles.

Assessment for Learning (AfL)

Provide formative feedback to group discussion of Journal Reflection #2.

Reflect with class throughout the brainstorming process about directing, acting and designing. Expand and contextualize ideas of the students using analogies and examples from previous classroom work.

Assessment as Learning (AaL)

Provide opportunity to peer response and feedback to journals from lesson three. Encourage listening and self-reflection.

Provide formative feedback and allow for constructive debate in creation of the job chart. 

Circulate between groups throughout the creative process making notes on individual work strategies and providing formative feedback to each group as they prepare their artistic choices defence and their plans for performance. Use PDF #3 for peer and self-assessment during the rehearsal process.

Differentiation (DI)

Alter group sizes to accommodate classroom needs. Provide rehearsal time according to the needs of the class.

Explore alternate performance spaces throughout the school to enhance creative elements of performance.

Provide a variety of poems and have groups select their own pieces of poetry for performance. Have groups research and choose their poems either as homework or in a library/computer period.

Engage students seeking greater leadership roles to pre-research and present a list of responsibilities for each of the roles - director, actor, designer. Have students design the set for their performance piece.

Quick Tip

Engage with local writers using their work in performance. Connecting the writer by having her or him discuss the piece with the class prior to the creation of the performances and engaging with critical feedback from the writer post-performance.

Utilize a library research period or online research homework component exploring the various roles in the theatre to have students come to this lesson with a level of pre-knowledge prior to beginning their brainstorming.

Link and Layer

Connect the creative process back to the various elements explored throughout the unit. Focus student work on the integration of the individual elements.

Small Group > Creation and Development

Distribute a different poem to each of the groups and invite students to engage with the newly selected piece of poetry by first reading it together. Remind each group that they have different poems. Focus groups on using the first five minutes to identify who will take on the roles of directing, props, costumes, and tech. Remind students that all members of the group are to be included in the final performance. Ask groups to explore a variety of approaches to the piece and to be willing to "start again" or "throw away" approaches that are not working well.

Engage groups in the critical process by moving around to groups and asking them to justify each of their artistic choices. Suggest to groups that the end of the rehearsal time should yield final performance decisions and a move towards memorization of the piece. 

Small Group > Reflection and Planning //
Petit groupe > Réflexion et planification

Instruct each group to sit and reflect on the day's work. Ask each group to identify tasks to be completed out of class (rehearsal, memorization, gathering of props/costumes) and in class, if rehearsals are to continue next day (running of lines, costume parade). Remind each group to identify the specific choices they are making in performance and the reasons behind the choices.

Demandez à chaque groupe de s'asseoir et de réfléchir au travail de la journée. Demandez à chaque groupe d'identifier les tâches à accomplir en dehors de la classe (répétition, mémorisation, rassemblement des accessoires/costumes) et en classe, si les répétitions doivent se poursuivre le lendemain (répétition des répliques, défilé des costumes). Rappelez à chaque groupe d'identifier les choix spécifiques qu'ils font dans leur performance et les raisons de ces choix.

Individual > Journal Reflection #3 //
Individuel > Journal de réflexion n°3

Instruct students to respond to the following journal question:

• What have I done today to help develop the performance?
• What have I done today that may have been less-than-helpful to the creative process?

Ask students to consider their answers as they move into the final preparation time and performance.

Demandez aux élèves de répondre à la question suivante de leur journal :

• Qu'ai-je fait aujourd'hui pour contribuer à l'élaboration du spectacle ?
• Qu'est-ce que j'ai fait aujourd'hui qui n'a pas été très utile au processus créatif ?

Demandez aux élèves de réfléchir à leurs réponses alors qu'ils s'apprêtent à passer à la phase finale de préparation et à la représentation.