Today I gave my demo lesson - EEK!
But first Kelsey gave her's.
While I have some complaints about the lesson itself, I think she delivered it very well. She calmly yet enthusiastically led the class through an introductory lesson that she had clearly thought a lot about. She had plans for an entire weeks lesson branching off from this broad, yet very contained preview. What I didn't like about her lesson, was how it felt like the dramatic elements were separate from the rest of the lesson, and didn't quite fit. To me it seemed that she had a great lesson, but she thrust in activities to fit the drama requirement. The activities don't need dropped completely, only adjusted and more thoughtfully considered to make them fit better. Had the drama activities supported each other better, they might have supported the lesson better.
Next came my lesson. Biggest problem? I have no sense of time. Add to that the fact that I talk faster when nervous. Within 5 minutes I realized what was going on. My lesson was was careening forward, and there was nothing I could do to slow it down.
Actually, there were probably things I could do. I tried one: Talk a lot. I talked a lot more than I intended to, and I got called out on it.
Hindsight is 20/20 though, and if I do this lesson again, I'll be prepared with more activities, talking points, and a basic understanding of seconds and minutes.
Shortness aside (let's just pretend it was an early out day), I think I gave a great lesson. I was glad to hear that I actually succeeded in teaching a complex scientific and philosophical topic. I've always felt like I've thought about these topics way too much that the only way I can describe a phenomenon only make sense to my extremely introspective brain. Even more exciting was that I can use a tool I love, improv games, to accomplish that goal.
My success in this lesson has sparked an interest in me, and I'm considering taking another two years of classes to get a teaching certificate.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Day 8/11 - A Guest
Today we had a guest, but in general we:
Next Jessica Lawson gave a demo lesson. She took the class with Vershawn in the past, and this was her final lesson. Her appearance was the first thing that interested me. Blue hair, tattoos, ass-kicking boots, not your typical teacher attire. She wasn't hurt by her appearance, however, her confidence and energy showed that she was comfortable leading the class, and that got us to follow her. The other thing that interested me was her genuine interest in literary analysis, a field of study I will never, ever, enter. While her enthusiasm didn't persuade me to reconsider my opinions on literary theory, it did allow me to tolerate, and even enjoy the lesson. I'll agree to take a literary course under the one condition that she teaches it. She's a great teacher, and upon reflection of the lesson it became apparent the intelligence that went into planning the lesson.
The article for today was a little hard to read, but I definately agree that truly great artistic performance doesn't sacrifice art to some educational or intellectual motive, but rather it accomplishes that objective in a purely artistic way.
- Review/Preview
- Yoga
- Guest Demo
- Debrief
- Break
- Article
- Assignment Discussion
- Work time
Next Jessica Lawson gave a demo lesson. She took the class with Vershawn in the past, and this was her final lesson. Her appearance was the first thing that interested me. Blue hair, tattoos, ass-kicking boots, not your typical teacher attire. She wasn't hurt by her appearance, however, her confidence and energy showed that she was comfortable leading the class, and that got us to follow her. The other thing that interested me was her genuine interest in literary analysis, a field of study I will never, ever, enter. While her enthusiasm didn't persuade me to reconsider my opinions on literary theory, it did allow me to tolerate, and even enjoy the lesson. I'll agree to take a literary course under the one condition that she teaches it. She's a great teacher, and upon reflection of the lesson it became apparent the intelligence that went into planning the lesson.
The article for today was a little hard to read, but I definately agree that truly great artistic performance doesn't sacrifice art to some educational or intellectual motive, but rather it accomplishes that objective in a purely artistic way.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Day 7/11 - The Children's Museum
Today we went to the Iowa Children's Museum in Coralville. It's a place for kids to have fun and learn interactively. The Museum has several permanent exhibits, and a rotating one. The permanent exhibits were City Works and Kuppet Kingdon, as well as physics, agriculture, and construction exhibits. Their current rotating exhibit is Children Just Like Me, a multicultural exhibit exploring children's lives around the world.
My preferred method of teaching/learning is to be immersed in an environment where everything necessary for learning is made available for discovery. In my opinion, the best way to learn is by making discoveries, therefore the best way to teach is to step back and let that happen, to guide rather than preach. At the Children's Museum, all the tools are there, through role playing kids teach each other, and assessment is easily accomplished by simply observing.
My preferred method of teaching/learning is to be immersed in an environment where everything necessary for learning is made available for discovery. In my opinion, the best way to learn is by making discoveries, therefore the best way to teach is to step back and let that happen, to guide rather than preach. At the Children's Museum, all the tools are there, through role playing kids teach each other, and assessment is easily accomplished by simply observing.
Day 6/11
Today we got the 2nd half of the demo lessons. I think doing so many lessons in two days began to take a toll on the class, especially doing the same activities in many of the lessons. What I did like about doing so many lessons, was amount of feedback we recieved. Each lesson served as an example for learning teaching techniques. I went second on the first day, so the feedback didn't help my lesson, but the things I learned will no doubt come in handy when preparing for my final lesson plan.
I really enjoyed Sara's dance lesson, because it was a glimpse at how you could apply these strategies to another area. I think I'm going to do my final lesson in something other than literature, getting an example was helpful. Not to mention a break from the repetitiveness of the other lessons.
I really enjoyed Sara's dance lesson, because it was a glimpse at how you could apply these strategies to another area. I think I'm going to do my final lesson in something other than literature, getting an example was helpful. Not to mention a break from the repetitiveness of the other lessons.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Day 5/11 - Demo Lesson
Today several of us gave our demo lessons. I went second, after being the cooperating teacher for Amanda's lesson on Character. I was glad to have the opportunity to do the teachbacks for her before I did my own lesson, because it warmed me up to teaching the whole lesson myself. I liked the way Amanda taught her lesson, because she did it calmly, but with energy. When it came time to teach my lesson, I wanted to carry on some of that same energy.
My lesson was on plot. I chose this lesson because of the final activity for the students. I read them a story, but stopped before the end. Then I had them, in groups, come up with alternate endings and perform them for the class. I was a little disappointed with the lack of creativity with the groups, but they're adults, what can you expect? I think that with younger kids, and more students, it would be a lot more fun. In hindsight I could have said something like, "The end of the story isn't something you would expect, so be creative when you try to come up with a resolution."
I'm not much for pedagogy, which is why I doubt I'll ever become a school teacher. There are two kinds of teachers, those who teach required courses, and those who teach elective courses. Most school teachers, especially K-8 school teachers are the first kind. Trying to teach to such a broad demographic as a required course forces you use specific techniques to reach all students. Teachers of elective courses have the luxury of not having to reach all students. My best teachers have been the ones who provided an environment for learning and discover, then stepped back. Rather than walk the class through every step, they would share their knowledge when asked a question. Often in those classes I would hear, "That's a good question. If anybody wants to know, you should come over here."
That's the way I teach my improv troup, because we only cast people who actually care about learning. That's also why I think my demo lesson lacked, because I didn't make myself accessable to 4th graders. Add to that the fact that I'm teaching 20-somethings, and you can see why I had a hard time imagining myself in a true classroom situation.
My lesson was on plot. I chose this lesson because of the final activity for the students. I read them a story, but stopped before the end. Then I had them, in groups, come up with alternate endings and perform them for the class. I was a little disappointed with the lack of creativity with the groups, but they're adults, what can you expect? I think that with younger kids, and more students, it would be a lot more fun. In hindsight I could have said something like, "The end of the story isn't something you would expect, so be creative when you try to come up with a resolution."
I'm not much for pedagogy, which is why I doubt I'll ever become a school teacher. There are two kinds of teachers, those who teach required courses, and those who teach elective courses. Most school teachers, especially K-8 school teachers are the first kind. Trying to teach to such a broad demographic as a required course forces you use specific techniques to reach all students. Teachers of elective courses have the luxury of not having to reach all students. My best teachers have been the ones who provided an environment for learning and discover, then stepped back. Rather than walk the class through every step, they would share their knowledge when asked a question. Often in those classes I would hear, "That's a good question. If anybody wants to know
That's the way I teach my improv troup, because we only cast people who actually care about learning. That's also why I think my demo lesson lacked, because I didn't make myself accessable to 4th graders. Add to that the fact that I'm teaching 20-somethings, and you can see why I had a hard time imagining myself in a true classroom situation.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Day 4/11 - Incorporate
It's the last day of week one, the agenda:
I was put in the opposite group as Amanda, who I've been performing with for almost a year. Being separate let me see how each of us affected the two groups. She's got a lot of experience in mime, and her group had some beautiful stage pictures and pantomime work. I've had more experience in improv, and I think our group did better in that aspect. We concentrated more on getting the story across in the tableau and mime, and didn't think as much about the visual appeal of the piece. When we prepared for our improv we discussed a few possible settings, as well as covering some basic improv rules. I reminded them that in an improvised scene, whatever anyone says is true, and you have to agree with it, or else the scene will go nowhere. I think that helped our group. Rather than arguing onstage, we were able to progress the story. My group did a great job of setting each other up and not arguing, no one tried to lead the scene and we got through the story.
- Read Articles
- Review/Preview
- Yoga
- Journal Sharing
- Stage Directions
- Incorporation Activity
- Incorporation Debrief
- Break
- Article Discussion
- Demo Lesson Discussion
Don't get too focused on what and how you're teaching that you forget why you're teaching.Next we brought together everything we've learned so far in an incorporation activity. We got into two groups and had to do three dramatic presentations of "Where the Wild Things Are". The first was a tableau, three stage pictures telling the story, next a pantomime with limited voice. Finally an improvised version in a different setting.
I was put in the opposite group as Amanda, who I've been performing with for almost a year. Being separate let me see how each of us affected the two groups. She's got a lot of experience in mime, and her group had some beautiful stage pictures and pantomime work. I've had more experience in improv, and I think our group did better in that aspect. We concentrated more on getting the story across in the tableau and mime, and didn't think as much about the visual appeal of the piece. When we prepared for our improv we discussed a few possible settings, as well as covering some basic improv rules. I reminded them that in an improvised scene, whatever anyone says is true, and you have to agree with it, or else the scene will go nowhere. I think that helped our group. Rather than arguing onstage, we were able to progress the story. My group did a great job of setting each other up and not arguing, no one tried to lead the scene and we got through the story.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Day 3/11 - Improv Mostly
Drama in the Classroom, day three, in brief:
- Review/Preview
- Yoga
- Journal Sharing
- Drama Lesson (Improv)
- Break
- Article Discussion
- Drama Lesson (More Improv)
Once again we began the day with Yoga.
>>>>>>>>>> Yoga <<<<<<<<<<
I'm getting more comfortable with beginning class with Yoga. I'm able to do all of the exercises to the best of my ability, and I'm learning more about yoga each day. I still look like a fool next to some people in the class though.<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>
Both of the drama lessons invoved Improv, and I learned several things which I can apply teaching improv. The first lesson was a 1st grade lesson. We learned about a few characters and then improvised in them. I think this is a good way to approach improvisation because a good scene depends heavily on characters. Having the characters given to you makes it easier to know your part, and to know everyone else's role as well. We also had the plot given to us. All we were really improvising were the lines. The lines weren't that complicated, so I focused instead on my characterization, playing my character with my body and voice. I felt like I did a good job with my character, and other people said I did too. The group I performed with helped a lot too, we were really comfortable with each other and that helped a lot.
The next exercise the main thing we did were short improvised scenes. These didn't go as well as the previous exercise. Most of the scenes descended into arguments, and lasted a lot longer than they should have. Being in the round didn't help, but I think if we had spend more time enforcing the idea of a beginning, middle, and end, then we woud have had better scenes. We didn't talk about Yes-anding, which was on the board. In my scene I was happy to have been given the low-status character. When I'm performing with less experienced actors I like to be in a lower status. If the other person doesn't take control, then I can take over while still keeping them in the spotlight. Our scene went a little long, I was trying to get her to arrest me without completely giving in, but eventually had to lead her off stage.
I'll probably be doing my drama lesson on improvisations, for 4th or 5th grade.
The next exercise the main thing we did were short improvised scenes. These didn't go as well as the previous exercise. Most of the scenes descended into arguments, and lasted a lot longer than they should have. Being in the round didn't help, but I think if we had spend more time enforcing the idea of a beginning, middle, and end, then we woud have had better scenes. We didn't talk about Yes-anding, which was on the board. In my scene I was happy to have been given the low-status character. When I'm performing with less experienced actors I like to be in a lower status. If the other person doesn't take control, then I can take over while still keeping them in the spotlight. Our scene went a little long, I was trying to get her to arrest me without completely giving in, but eventually had to lead her off stage.
I'll probably be doing my drama lesson on improvisations, for 4th or 5th grade.
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