Why did I wait so long to take Drama? I can’t believe how incredible this course is! It’s more than an Additional Basic Qualifications (ABQ) so that I can officially be teaching the grades I have been teaching all these years. Taking Intermediate Drama is full of possibilities. The activities invite people to show up as themselves, create community, and become risk takers. Even if I never have the privilege of teaching Drama, I will use everything I have learned here in the courses that I do teach. Drama contains so many avenues to deep learning.
I was new to teaching Grade 6, 7 and 8 Social Studies/History/Geography (MYP 1, 2 and 3 Individuals and Societies) last year, and I am thrilled to get to do it again, but there is a catch. This year, I will be straddling two departments because I will also be teaching an elementary class. This Drama course is actually helping me work through some of the challenges I am having as I give up some of the roles that I have taken on that impact the whole school community in order to free up time for me to teach in more classrooms. Even more that working through change, taking this course has propelled me to develop a tri-BOB for Grade 8.
A tri-BOB is a three-part Building Outside the Blocks project. The goal is that it is both spiralling and iterative. Some skills are revisited and some are built upon. I really wanted to focus on collaboration, in particular, for the Grade 8's. My original plan, because I was privileged to have the 3-year perspective of Middle School, was to build from the What’s News in Grade 6 and What’s Up in Grade 7 (see previous post titled A Tale of Two Tri-BOBs). News and Shmooze would allow the Grade 8's to continue delving into current events while also building important learning skills. The ideas that Drama are giving me will allow me to build collaborative skills over the entire school year while also adding some flare at each revisit.
The News and Shmooze tri-BOB will focus on learning about the news, selecting one story and bringing it to the class in various forms. News and Shmooze, will be a round-table discussion where students investigate a news item of their group’s choice, and prepare to discuss the issues, biases, and (re)solutions in front of the class on their selected date. This will allow me to provide feedback on investigative skills, organization and communication. There is an individual preparation and accountability required, but there is also a collective responsibility to engage in the discussion. This will be an excellent way to gauge/diagnose their starting point for these skills.
The next phase will be News, Shmooze and Tableaus, Too. In the Drama ABQ, we had to choose a news story and create however many frozen scenes to tell the beginning, middle and end. It was amazing how much investigation we had to do. Then, we storyboarded each phase of the issue/event. Next, we blocked the tableaus, planned the costumes and prepared the props. Finally, we refined the transitions and added music. We were all deeply engaged, and the collaborative experience helped us to create something really unique. The investigation of a variety of sources was necessary because it was the most organic way to figure out which story to tell and how best to portray the big picture, while still adding nuance.
I just can’t wait to try this with my students! They will be evaluated on the same skills: collaboration, communication and organization while adding the use of class time and self-regulation to the points of assessment. While they will not be evaluated on creativity, it will certainly be an element of the teacher-provided feedback and student refection. While most BOBs don’t include class time, this cooperative learning experience requires time to be allotted in class in order to ensure real opportunities for students to employ and improve their teamwork skills.
The final phase of this tri-BOB will be titled News, Shmooze and Produce. By this latter third of the school year, students will have had multiple opportunities to revisit and build skill. The students will investigate a news story and employ the same skills as the other tasks, but this time, they will get to produce a newscast about it. This is a fun way to end the year as presentation will take place over the last month of school. The creation of a news broadcast will require media literacy skills, for which they will be assessed only formatively unless I provide other chances to explicitly teach and cultivate those skills. Mostly, I will listen while they work and evaluate their development after they submit their reflection on the process and product of their newscast. It will be a great way to celebrate all of their achievements and have fun with the news. Plus, it is a natural differentiator considering the various possible roles within each group.
I am so inspired by this course and the power that the dramatic arts can play in igniting creativity and personalizing education. I am grateful to Bruno Pileggi, Will Corno, my wonderful group (Sandra, Rena, Diana and Christina), and York University for providing this incredible learning opportunity. So many people are bringing so much of themselves to this. I am really looking forward to facilitating more of these types of experiences for my classes. This will be especially powerful for this year’s Grade 8’s who, in particular, will benefit from an infusion of the Arts in their learning.
