Convention or Strategy
Suggested Adaptations
Teacher in Role
If reading a storybook to students online, take on the role of a character from the story and invite the students to ask questions that are answered by the teacher in role. Or, pose a question or problem to the students and ask them for advice.
Group Role Play and Role Play
Ask students to imagine a fictional scenario or situation and pose a “problem to be solved”. Students can provide input on the direction of whole group role playing scenarios, both in and out of role, by responding with pictures, answering a simple prompt in writing or video journaling.
Elementary Hot Seating
Create or find a video (voice over narration and pictures from your chosen story) and post in your remote learning environment. Choose a character (or object) in or out of the story to “hotseat.” Post the question: What questions do we have for this character? Tailor this to the story. Students can relay their questions on the thread and submit them via video or in written form. Encourage students to respond in role on the thread, or as a writing exercise to submit. Summarize the ideas shared. End the lesson or continue/integrate as interest level dictates.
Elementary Dance Elements
Post a journal topic question and inform students that you will post ideas or single words from their responses for all students to explore. Post key words. Ask students to bodystorm three different ideas or words and guide them to create a movement phrase. Depending on the topic you may suggest students focus on particular elements. Decide if and how you want students to share. Create a simple reflection form.
Tableau
Invite students to create a still image with their family members or on their own to represent a situation, idea, or theme. Students can take a photo or sketch their tableau, or create a series of tableaux as a storyboard to illustrate a story. They can integrate thought tracking or voices in the head into this storyboard as well using thought bubbles.
Creating Characters
When exploring and creating characters, invite students to sketch their characters and include details such as their likes and dislikes, a costume design that shows their personality, or a playlist of songs that best illustrate that character.
Extensions might include writing in role as a character, being hot seated in role as that character, or creating/finding a series of images or descriptions that show a day in that character’s life from magazines, web images or drawings created by the students.
Thought Tracking and Voices in the Head
These strategies help give insight into what a character might be thinking and feeling. These inner thoughts could be written in role to accompany a series of tableau or a character sketch, or recorded with the student’s voice as a soundtrack.
Role on the Wall
When exploring a character from a story or drama, use an online writing or blackboard tool to create a visual representation (such as an outline) for that character and record students’ ideas of what the character might be thinking and feeling. Or, write details that we know about the character and questions we have about who they are that we would like answered.
Movement Phrase
Students can video record dance phrases and share with the teacher inspired by a chosen prompt.
