Lessons Plans for 4th - 7th Grade CAC // Aubrey Slaterpryce

Monday - 7/29

9 am

Students will introduce themselves and answer a question: ​Describe your summer with a

fruit. ​After, I will outline what rules and expectations I have for them, then I will let them create

community rules that everyone agrees on and can follow. If a student breaks a rule I will talk to

them in a scenario where they aren’t singled out, and if it continues, further discipline will occur.

1. Please listen when others are talking and don’t interrupt.

2. Support others and don’t make fun of or hurt someone else.

3. Be present and prepared to engage in activities.

I will briefly talk about how it’s important to warm up our body for physical activity and

lead the students in sun salutations. Then we will participate in a circular game of mimicking

expressive movement. Each person will make a unique movement and each of us will copy it. On

a second round we will each say our name along with a movement, with the rest of us copying

the person. Then we will first engage our bodies out of the three tools. I will demonstrate the first

half of the eight movements, float/punch-glide/slash, and we will practice these and utilize

activities to reinforce the movement in their minds.

10:30 am

Ask the students what they know about theatre, transition into explaining the basics of

theatre. The ​definition of theatre​ is: the activity or profession of acting in, producing, directing,

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or writing plays. The ​definition of theater​ is: a building or outdoor area in which plays and other

dramatic performances are given. Theatre is the art, and theater is the place.

I will explain a brief layout of how the two weeks are going to go. During the first week,

we’re going to learn how our bodies move, how our voices work, and how our brains create: our

three main tools of performance. We’re going to engage these with different theatre and improv

games and warm ups. The second week, while we continue to practice and study our three tools,

we will also begin to look into other aspects of theatre: set design and stage work, lighting and

sound, and costumes. I will answer questions if needed.

11 am

We will transition into vocal warm ups and I will introduce them to the tongue twister

that we’ll practice everyday to warm up our vocality and diction. [​To sit in solemn silence on a

dull, dark, dock, in a pestilential prison with a life long lock,​]​ awaiting the sensation of a short,

sharp shock, from a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block. ​I will introduce the first half

of this to them and practice it many times over with increasing speed. We will do this while

walking around to get the knowledge in our bones. After around fifteen minutes of practicing

these I will lead the kids on a short tour of the PAC.

11:30 am -- Lunch ​(Cast the Roles)

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

I will explain that I’ve cast them and ask them to give their parts a chance. I will hand out

scripts to each person along with a page detailing different ways to memorize lines. We will read

through the play and discuss our thoughts and opinions about it.

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2 pm

I will hand out journals and explain how they work to the kids. I will have put brown

paper covers on the journals prior and I will provide markers so they may decorate them. The

first journal question will be: ​Have you ever been to a play or a musical? If so, which one? Did

you like it? ​After they have answered the question I will collect the journals to respond to that

night. If we have extra time I will introduce them to the woosh, woah, wow game. Woosh

continues the energy, woah stops and reverses it, wow sends it across the circle.

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ talk about the basics of theatre and warm up their bodies and voices.

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Tuesday - 7/30

9 am

We will all introduce ourselves once again and answer a question: ​If you could be an

animal, which one would you be? ​I will lead the kids in sun salutations and then we will

transition into the circular expressive body movement mimicking game. We will do this once

through, then add in sounds to mimic as well. We will then review the first part of the tongue

twister and then I will introduce them to the second half: [​awaiting the sensation of a short,

sharp shock, from a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block.​] We will practice the full

thing while moving around at different speeds and volumes.

10 am

We will review the eight movements and go over some of the games once more to

practice what it means to do those movements. Then I will showcase the second half of the eight

movements, dot/wring-flick/press, and engage in games surrounding those.

11 am

We will play the theater game ​Park Bench​. One person sits on a chair. Another person

comes up and must try to get the other person to leave the bench. This can be as ridiculous as the

student wants, but campers cannot physically touch or remove the other person from the bench.

The person who is trying to get the other one off the bench can be annoying, talk too much,

fidget too much, spill props all over, etc. Once the first person is convinced to leave, another

person must go up to try to claim the bench. This is cycled through until everyone has been on

the bench.

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11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will read through the play again while standing up and moving around. This will start

getting the students used to moving and speaking their lines. We will go over certain important

parts and begin to talk about how the characters interact and their relationships.

2:00 pm

We will play the ​Woosh, Woah, Wow​ game. After a time I will introduce the wonky,

and wahoo aspects of it. Wonky sets everyone to different spots, wahoo creates two opposite

traveling energy paths. At 2:30, at the latest, I will hand out the journals and the students can

answer the question for the day. ​What’s your favorite movie or tv show? Why? [​ If extra time…]

Who are your favorite characters?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ perform the 8 movements and begin to feel comfortable expressing

themselves through their bodies and voices.

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Wednesday - 7/31

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​What is your favorite food and why? ​Then I

will lead the students in their daily sun salutations and a body check in (shake down, vocal and

face wake up, pounding on chest and back, etc.) We will briefly review the eight movements and

the tongue twister.

9:30 am

We will engage in space exploration games as the students learn what it means to exist in

a physical area. The first activity we will do will be a trust building and reactionary activity. I

will split the students into groups of two and we will make the room cluttered and messy. One

person will stand on each side and call to their partner with their eyes closed to get across the

space. This will make them better in communicating and putting trust in one another. If the

studio isn’t big enough, maybe we can do this in the PAC lobby.

The next activity we will engage in is energy levels while walking around a space. The

energy levels are:

[1 - Low, slime, jellyfish] [2 - Relaxed, normal walking around, no eye contact] [3 -

Neutral, a wave or acknowledgement of others] [4 - Alert, verbal engagement, a hello] [5 -

Discovery] [6 - Unbridled Emotion, either positive or negative] [7 - Complete Awe, frozen,

overcome with feeling]. After this we will regroup and discuss what each level meant and felt for

us to exist in. ​What level should characters naturally be in?

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11 am

Until lunch we will participate in the ​Walk the World​ game. The students will walk

around the space in different settings and environments: on a ledge, on a tightrope, on an icy

road, across sand dunes, through mud, through molasses, in a blizzard, during a heatwave, etc.

To avoid the circular whirlpool that students gravitate towards when moving in a room, I will

have them walk in straight lines, changing direction at 90 degree angles. The students have to

change direction before running into someone.

11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will read the play through once more and start to think about blocking and

movement. We will stop and talk about emotions, actions, beats, etc. and further discuss the

relationships of the characters. We will go back and focus on the blocking for the first section of

the play.

2:15 pm

I will hand out the journals and the students will answer the next question: ​How do you

like the camp so far? What has been your favorite activity and why?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To ​engage with theatre on a deeper level and begin to make choices for

their performance and character.

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Thursday - 8/1

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​If your sleep was like a weather condition

what would it be?​ I will lead the kids in their daily sun salutations and then we will transition

into the circular expressive body movement mimicking game. We will do this once through, then

add in sounds to mimic as well. We will practice the tongue twister.

9:30 am

I will split the students into groups of 3 or 4. Each group will receive a prompt and must

create and practice scene based around that part. Complete creativity and imagination is

encouraged. After 15-20 minutes of preparation, each group will perform the scenes for the other

groups. After each one we will discuss them and how they operated.

11 am

We will participate in the ​Zip Zap​ game. The students stand in a circle. One person is

chosen to stand in the middle. They will randomly “Zip” someone (finger gun points) or calls out

someone’s name. That person must duck and the people on either side of him or her must point

at each other and say “Zap” at the same time. If any of the three is off / hit with the zap, they’re

out and must sit in the circle.

If there is time after everyone gets out the students will stand in a circle and I will have

them count up to 100 without using any 7’s. This means any number that has 7 in it can’t be said.

If a student says one or has any hesitation they are out. Once 100 is reached, I will start over with

outlawing other numbers: 5, 3, etc.

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11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will focus on blocking the next section of play. We will go over this a few times and

get the words into our bones. We will go back and review previous blocking. Any students that

are not on scene are encouraged to practice their lines with each other.

2 pm

We will engage in a closing game, the students can pick any of the previous games

played: Zip Zap, Walk the World, Park Bench, Woosh Woah Wow. After playing one round of

those, or at 2:30, I will hand out journals and they will answer the day’s question: ​How did you

like creating scenes? How was working together as a team to perform something? What would

you change in the scene?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ use their imagination to make choices and follow through, as well as

work as a team to create something.

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Friday - 8/2

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​What’s one thing you would take on a trip to

​ hen I will lead the students in their daily sun salutations and a body check in (shake
the moon? T

down, vocal and face wake up, pounding on chest and back, etc.) We will review the tongue

twister, and if there is time the eight movements.

9:30 am

I will talk about character and how it’s important that a character has complete existence

in this world. Students will select two adjectives from a hat and will be tasked with creating a

unique character with a distinct voice and movement placement and an appropriate life story.

Questions to consider while creating these characters are “Where does the movement live in the

body?” “Where does the voice live in the head?” “How does this character interact with others?”

After a few minutes of creating this character, the students can walk around and casually interact

with each other, a simple hello.

After doing this for a bit, the students will gather and one by one present who their

characters are and their life story. Each student will get to go, and afterwards the audience can

ask the characters questions about them.

11 am

We will partake in the ​Directing Game​. One student is picked to be the director and sits

in the director’s chair. Everyone else creates a scene with a setting (shopping store, library,

school, etc), characters, and a basic plot. When they are ready they will perform it for the

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director as they watch. After a few moments, the director calls cut! and adds a direction for

something the group should do (do it while sad, do it without saying anything, do it on all fours,

etc.) The director then chooses to switch with someone in the scene, the new person is the

director and repeat.

11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will block the next section of pages and go over what has already been blocked. If

there is extra time, run through the play. Check in to see how memorization is going and see if

anyone is having any trouble. Any students that are not on scene are encouraged to practice their

lines with each other.

2:15 pm

I will hand out the journals and they will answer the day’s question: ​How did you like the

first week of camp? Do you have any plans for the weekend?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ create and execute a distinct character, utilizing their tools to do that.

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Monday - 8/5

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​What was a high and a low for your weekend?

I will lead the kids in their daily sun salutations and then we will transition into the circular

expressive body movement mimicking game. We will do this once through, then add in sounds

to mimic as well. We will practice the tongue twister.

9:30 am

Everyone will get a partner and I will hand out the script for the open scene. The partners

will decide who is A and B, then they will read the script with no emotions, just the lines. On a

second read through they will add feeling, and change it on the third read through. The students

will have some time to make some decisions about who they are and what scene they’re in.

Once they are ready we will have each group perform their open scenes and have the

audience guess what the setting is and what’s happening. It’s better if the audience can figure out

what’s going on and isn’t confused.

10:30 am ​(Or 11 am, depending on the length of the open scene performances)

We will discuss the production values of theater, costumes, sets, lights, etc. and how

they’re important to the performance. I will explain the historical context of the costumes within

the play and put up some reference images as to what they might look like. I will hand out body

outlines and markers and have the kids design their own costumes. The students will also have to

come up with ideas on materials they could use to create these costumes.

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11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will run through the play and review blocking. We will finish any blocking and go

back and focus on specific parts that need work. Any students that are not on scene are

encouraged to practice their lines with each other.

2:15 am

I will hand out the journals and the kids will answer the question for the day: ​What’s your

dream job? Is there anyway you could use creativity and imagination to succeed at it?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ further practice and engage with their toolset as an actor and

performer, while also understanding how scenes can change depending on context.

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Tuesday - 8/6

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​Do you have a pet? If so what is it? If not what

would you want as a pet?​ Then I will lead the students in their daily sun salutations and a body

check in (shake down, vocal and face wake up, pounding on chest and back, etc.) We will review

the tongue twister, and if there is time the eight movements.

9:30 am

I will talk about improvisation and how it helps our brain create and exercise

imagination. It’s also a good thing to practice making something sound believable even if it

hasn’t happened to you.

Everyone will go around in a circle and draw a prompt out of a hat (you got a new cat

today, you bought a frozen pizza, the moon landed in your back yard, etc.) They must start the

story and improvise a story for at least 2-3 minutes, or until naturally ended. Each student will do

this.

Variant: One student starts an improv story and after a minute or two of talking they stop

mid story and the next person continues it. This continues around the circle. Another variant is to

do this on paper and pass papers along, thus creating ten unique stories.

10:30 am

The students will finish making costumes and begin to think about what kind of set

pieces they want in their performance. They must be realistic and easy to obtain or create (a

bench, some wooden blocks, a table.)

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11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will run through will all blocking, scripts if needed. We will go back and review

certain blocking if its rough or clunky. The students should begin to recite lines without needing

the script.

2:15 pm

I will hand out the journals and the kids will answer the question for the day: ​What aspect

of theater have you enjoyed exploring the most? If you could design a costume for yourself what

would it look like?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ express confidence in their ability to perform theatre.

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Wednesday - 8/7

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​What’s your favorite weather occurrence?​ I

will lead the kids in their daily sun salutations and then we will transition into the circular

expressive body movement mimicking game. We will do this once through, then add in sounds

to mimic as well. We will practice the tongue twister.

9:30 am

The students will split into partners. One of them will close their eyes and the other will

grab them by the elbow/hand and waste. The seeing one will guide the blind one around,

avoiding others and not running into walls. After a few minutes of moving them around they will

place them somewhere in the room, and sit down off to the side. The blind group will try

counting to 50 with nobody saying a number at the same time and each person saying a number

before someone speaks for the second time. Once they reach it, have them switch with their

partners. Now the seeing people are blind and vice versa, the activity is repeated. Afterwards we

will talk about it and how they had to work together as an ensemble and also trust each other.

10 am

The students will be given some prompts to choose from and tasked to write their own

monologues. If any student would like to perform it they can and have the audience give

feedback. Then the students will be split into small groups (of three if possible) and they will

choose one of the members monologues to expand and turn into a multiple person scene. Each

group will perform their scene after having some time to write and create it.

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11 am

The students will begin working on gathering pieces for the set. I will talk about light and

sound design and how they’re important for theatre.

11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will review certain blocking scenes if its rough or clunky. If we have time we will

run through will all blocking, scripts if needed. The students should begin to recite lines without

needing the script.

2:00 pm

The kids will be given a choice of any of the games we’ve done to play: Zip Zap, Walk

the World, Park Bench, Woosh Woah Wow, Directing Game, Improv Story, Numbers Outlaw,

or the Power Clap Circle.

I will hand out the journals and the kids will answer the question for the day: ​If you

worked in a theater what job would you want to have? How did you like the improv stories and

the costume building?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ work together and communicate as a group to achieve a common goal

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Thursday - 8/8

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​How would you describe your favorite color

​ hen I will lead the students in their daily sun salutations and a body check in
with an emotion? T

(shake down, vocal and face wake up, pounding on chest and back, etc.) We will review the

tongue twister, and if there is time the eight movements.

9:30 am

We will play the ​Chasing Charades​ game. The students are split into two groups, one of

them performs a charade in the middle of the room while the other group tries to guess from the

end of the room. Once they guess it correctly, the charade group must race away from the

audience to their side. If the audience tags anyone they join their group. This continues until the

charade group has no members left or we decide to switch the groups.

10:30 am

The students will finish gathering set pieces and preparing props and the stage for their

performance. We will work on certain scenes’ blocking if there is extra time.

11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will have a loose dress rehearsal and try to get through the performance without

needing the script. We will focus on specific scenes that need work. At this point, students who

are not on scene should be quiet “off stage.”

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2:00 pm

The kids will be given a choice of any of the games we’ve done to play: Zip Zap, Walk

the World, Park Bench, Woosh Woah Wow, Directing Game, Improv Story, Numbers Outlaw,

Chasing Charades, or the Power Clap Circle.

I will hand out the journals and the kids will answer the question for the day: ​Are you

excited to perform the play? Are you nervous about anything? Who are you inviting to come see

you perform?

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ use their imagination to create and execute ideas for set and props.

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Friday - 8/9

9 am

We will go around and answer a question: ​If you could combine two fruits or two

vegetables which ones would you choose?​ I will briefly talk about what will happen Saturday.

Before getting into the warm ups I will hand out small awards and good job bags to each camper.

I will lead the kids in their daily sun salutations and then we will transition into the circular

expressive body movement mimicking game. We will do this once through, then add in sounds

to mimic as well. When we’re finished, we'll talk about how we’ve progressed in movement and

expression. We will practice the tongue twister.

10 am

We will have a dress rehearsal showcase for the other groups and watch what they have

to perform as well. Depending on how long this is and when this occurs it will happen earlier and

cut off the body movement game.

11:30 am -- Lunch

12 pm -- Musical Theatre

12:45 pm

We will talk about the aspects of play and how everyone has grown, and how the story

has evolved and grown into a believable piece of theatre. Then we will run through and work on

specifics. The students need to be off book at this point. I will talk about what they need to do for

tomorrow and when to arrive.

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2 pm

The kids will be given a choice of any of the games we’ve done to play as a final closing

activity: Zip Zap, Walk the World, Park Bench, Woosh Woah Wow, Directing Game, Improv

Story, Numbers Outlaw, Chasing Charades, or the Power Clap Circle.

Then I’ll hand out journals and the students will answer the final question of the camp:

What was your favorite part of camp? What was your favorite game or activity we did? What

was the hardest part about the camp? ​I will hand back the journals on Saturday for them to keep.

2:45 pm

The students will check out.

Students Will Be Able To​ express complete confidence in their ability to perform and produce a

piece of theatre for an audience.

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List of Theater Games and Activities (if extra time or reference)

(taught during week)

- Zip Zap

- Walk the World

- Park Bench

- Woosh Woah Wow

- Directing Game

- Improv Story

- Numbers Outlaw

- Chasing Charades

- Power Clap Circle

(not taught)

- Fishbowl

- Human Knot

- Ninja

- Bus

- Party Quirks

- Freeze

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