Drama+Based+Activities

= __**Drama Based Activities for an ESL classroom** __ =

=== This collection of activities are intended to compliment any ESL curriculum. They are developed to be practical and intended to be easily adaptable for different student and curriculum needs. ===

** __ 1.Meet and Greet __ ** 

=
This activity is ideal for beginning learners and intermediate learners alike; the activity remains the same, but the language targets are adapted to fit the needs of the class. It is a fantastic way to fortify prior learning, providing students an entertaining avenue to practice what they've learned.======

 __ Objectives: __

 * ======Students will practice target language in an improvisational setting. ======
 * ======Students will demonstrate knowledge about a specific individual*. ======
 * ======Students will share their 'specialty' knowledge with one another through their interactions. ======
 * ======Students will improvise and make character and situational decisions based on the language skills they have available and the information they have gathered. ======

__Materials:__

 * ======Target Language Points ======
 * ======Identity Cards- each card should include a variety of information, (name, birthday, hometown, job, favorites etc., plus other quirky facts,) for improvisational purposes in familiar terms. ======

=
 2. Students have a few minutes to read through the information on the card, and ask for clarification if needed. ======

 5. The 'Meet and Greet' begins:

 * ======Students circulate the room, mingling, as if at a party. ======
 * ======Students must try and meet as many people as they can, using the target language. ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> As they move from person to person, they are encouraged to introduce others as well, to help them retain the personal information. ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">The whole situation is improvised. ======

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> 6. Once the meet and greet is over, students return to their original spots for a class discussion/ reflection. ======

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> 7. Students are given a variety of questions, (suited to the language learners' needs,) to respond to on their own or in class discussion. ======
 * ======Who did you meet?======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">How many times did you use the target language? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Did the target language become easier to use over time? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Who was your favorite 'personality'? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> What did you learn about them? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Who would you like to learn more about? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Can you think of other situations that the target language would be useful? ======

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> *The content of this activity can vary greatly depending on the need of the learners. The 'identity cards' could easily be animals, historical figures, artists, sports stars, celebrities, or household objects--if you're really creative...the possibilities are endless! ======

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> The target language could vary from sentence structures, such as, "do you like...?" to verb tenses, to specific vocabulary usage. It is a very adaptable activity. ======

<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">

<span style="background-color: #f4f5db; color: #702963; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">**__ 2.Guess Who?! __** <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">

<span style="color: #702963; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">__Objective:__

 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will demonstrate knowledge about a specific individual. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will share their ‘specialty’ knowledge with one another through their interactions. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will practice the target language in an improvisational situation. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will improvise and make character and situational decisions based on information that they have gathered. ======

<span style="color: #4f27ce; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> __ Materials: __

 * 1) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Prepared name cards ======
 * 2) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Pre-introduced target language ======
 * 3) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Name check lists ======

__ Procedure ____ : __

 * 1) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">This activity is designed to follow after the ‘meet & greet’ activity. It relies on the knowledge that students gained through participation in the meet and greet. ======
 * 2) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Each student is given a secret (they can not show anyone!!) ‘name card’ at random. ======
 * 3) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students have a few minutes to brainstorm ideas related to their artist and get into character. ======
 * 4) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">The ‘Guess Who” begins: ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students circulate the room, mingling, as if at a party (this time, without the use of names). ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students must try and guess, through hints given by the characters, who ( from the previous activity) each person is portraying. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">As students discover their classmates’ identities, each ‘artist’, whose name has been guessed, will autograph the name sheet of the successful 'guesser'. ======


 * 1) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Once the 'Guess Who' is over, students return to their original spots for a 're-cap'. ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">How many signatures did you get? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Who was the easiest to guess? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Who was the most challenging? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Is there a person whose character you couldn't guess? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Who do you feel you know the most about? ======

<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> __ Follow Up: __

 * 1) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">The aim of this activity is to fortify students' prior knowledge of the content area as well as their use of the target language. ======

**__ 3. Emotional Echoe s__** <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">

<span style="color: #702963; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">__Objectives:__

 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will review and fortify their knowledge of emotional* terminology. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will demonstrate an awareness and understanding of another's feelings. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will interact with one another in a meaningful way. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will demonstrate empathy towards others and understanding of themselves. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will be ‘team players’. ======

__Materials:__

 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Journal for reflection ======

__Procedure:__

 * 1) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students are divided into two groups. ======
 * 2) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students quickly choose a team name. ======
 * 3) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Within their groups (secretly from the other team), students brainstorm the nature of feelings, and emotional reaction: ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">What is a feeling? ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Make a list of as many emotions as you can think of. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">What do your emotions, and the way in which you express them, say about you? ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">How does it make you feel when other people visibly express their emotions? ======


 * 1) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Teacher explains the activity: ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Team One chooses an emotion that everyone on the team is comfortable portraying. ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Team One and Team Two then form two lines facing each other, (it should look as though each team member has a ‘partner’, opposite them who is a member of the other team). ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Team One begins to act out their chosen team emotion, face to face with the other team. ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> Team Two begins to mimic the emotion displayed by Team One. ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">As both teams ‘emote’, Team Two must guess what is the emotion on display, (using the target English vocabulary, for example, "Are you feeling... today?") ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> In order to guess, a team member must raise their hand to get the attention of the full group. If Team Two is wrong, Team One gets to go again. If Team Two answers correctly, they get to choose the next emotion for team one to echo. ======


 * 1) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Once students have played a successful game of ‘emotional echoes’, there will be a simple class discussion on the same types of topics that students discussed beforehand independently in their groups. ======
 * 2) ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">After the discussion, students will respond to both the activity and the discussion in their journals. ======

<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">

<span style="background-color: #f4f5db; color: #702963; display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: left;">** 4. Story Teller ** <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; text-align: left;">

__Objectives:__

 * ====== Students will read a familiar story ======
 * ====== Students will discuss and respond to story ======
 * ====== Students will act out a familiar story, following cues from story teller, (narrator) ======

__Materials:__

 * ====== A story and any props available to go along with it. ======

4. Students perform.
<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">
 * ====== One student, who is comfortable reading or reciting, will act as storyteller ======
 * ====== As the story teller recites the story, the actors respond by acting it out for the rest of the class ======
 * ====== *This activity could be done with learners of many levels, but the complexity of the stories should vary. ======

<span style="background-color: #f4f5db; color: #702963; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">**__5.Give me a life…__** <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> This activity is aimed at creating a creative dialogue; it is intended to fun way to help improve students' writing skills, as well as their speaking skills. ======

<span style="color: #702963; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">__Objectives:__

 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will interact with an image or inanimate object. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will give the object a voice and script a monologue, or dialogue, with a background story. ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Students will expressively vocalize their dialogue. ======

<span style="color: #702963; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">__Materials:__

 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Graphic organizers and visual representations of prompting questions ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Dictionary ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Thesaurus ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Internet access ======
 * ======<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">an image or object to be used as inspiration for the dialogue. ======

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> 1. Students are divided into groups and given an image and a list of question(which will vary depending on their language ability). ======


 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">What sound do I make? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> What would you name me? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> What is my personality? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">What are my favorite things? ======
 * ======<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">What are my habits? ======

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> 3. Students use their graphic organizers and questions to set the stage for the creation of their “character” the cultural artifact. ======

=
<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;"> 4. Together students create a short script that includes a past (a story telling about the objects history,) details about the object and insights into its “personality”, as well as an incident, event or challenge involving the object. Everything is purely fantastical. ======