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The Peace Journey: Using Process Drama in the Classroom

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The Peace Journey: Using Process Drama in the Classroom

Grade Levels

10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade, 9th Grade

Course, Subject

Arts and Humanities, Dance, Music, Theatre, Visual Arts
Related Academic Standards
9.1.12.A 9.1.12.A

Know and use the elements and principles of each art form to create works in the arts and humanities.
 

Elements

  • Dance: • energy/force • space • time
  • Music: • duration • intensity • pitch • timbre 
  • Theatre: • scenario • script/text • set design 
  • Visual Arts: • color • form/shape • line • space • texture • value  

Principles

  • Dance: • choreography • form • genre • improvisation • style • technique  
  • Music: • composition • form • genre • harmony • rhythm • texture  
  • Theatre: • balance • collaboration • discipline • emphasis • focus • intention • movement • rhythm • style • voice  
  • Visual Arts: • balance • contrast • emphasis/focal point • movement/rhythm • proportion/scale • repetition • unity/harmony
9.1.12.F 9.1.12.F
Analyze works of arts influenced by experiences or historical and cultural events through production, performance or exhibition.
9.2.12.A 9.2.12.A
Explain the historical, cultural and social context of an individual work in the arts.
9.2.12.B 9.2.12.B
Relate works in the arts chronologically to historical events (e.g., 10,000 B.C. to present).
9.2.12.F 9.2.12.F
Know and apply appropriate vocabulary used between social studies and the arts and humanities.
Expand
  • Big Ideas
    Artists use tools and resources as well as their own experiences and skills to create art.
    Humans have expressed experiences and ideas through the arts throughout time and across cultures.
    People have expressed experiences and ideas through the arts throughout time and across cultures.
    People use both aesthetic and critical processes to assess quality, interpret meaning and determine value.
    The arts provide a medium to understand and exchange ideas.
    The skills, techniques, elements and principles of the arts can be learned, studied, refined and practiced.
    There are formal and informal processes used to assess the quality of works in the arts.
  • Concepts
    A play’s theme may not always be explicit or easy to put into words, but all plays imply certain philosophical attitudes and convey certain values or beliefs about living.
    Actors and directors depend on research skills to gain insights into a play’s themes and characters.
    Actors use in-depth script analysis to reveal emotional, social and intellectual dimensions of a role which enables them to create and sustain characters.
    Artist refine skills and techniques to carry out their intentions in their artworks.
    Artistic teams may introduce new creative elements or place a play outside of its cultural or historical context to communicate a particular perspective.
    Artists and designers use the elements of arts and principles of design in strategic ways to convey meaning.
    Artists and students of art frequently engage together in formal critiques of artwork as part of the process of developing their practice.
    Artists assess the quality of their work using evaluation criteria that is specific to the media, material, or technique.
    Artists can influence change.
    Artists create works of art in response to significant events.
    Artists often address social issues or concerns in their artwork.
    Artists use various techniques to create strong reactions to their work.
    Artists work to develop skills, techniques, and ideas in a sketchbook or visual journal to document and refine their process.
    Beliefs about acting and stage conventions have changed over time and throughout history.
    Choreographers and dancers can use works in dance to communicate ideas that challenge cultural norms.
    Contemporary actors and directors apply ideas and techniques from many schools of thought to explore character actions and create a performance.
    Dancers and choreographers use a variety of styles to choreograph, stage and perform original works in dance.
    Eastern theatre traditions value forms, symbols and practices differently than Western theatre.
    Modern technological advances have increased communication between cultures, allowing elements of dance from different cultures to be used by people all over the world.
    Modern technologies have expanded the tools that dancers and choreographers use to create, perform, archive and respond to dance.
    Musicians use both aesthetic and critical processes to assess their own work and compare it to the works of others.
    People use analytic processes to understand and evaluate works of art.
    The study of aesthetics includes the examination of the nature and value of art.
    Theatre artists participate in philosophical discussions to help inform their practice.
    Theatre artists use both aesthetic and critical processes to assess their own work and compare it to the works of others.
    Theatre artists use improvisation to explore characters, relationships and motivations.
    Viewers of art often respond to a work intuitively, using subjective insight.
    When assessing quality, interpreting meaning, and determining value, one might consider the artist’s intent and/or the viewer’s interpretation.
    While much of the school-based musical experience happens within a group, it is also important for people to be able to create, recreate, rehearse and perform music independently.
    Artists create works of art that communicate their personal vision, concerns and life experiences.
    The relationship between artists and news media can affect the way people perceive artists’ work.
  • Competencies
    Analyze and create dance that attempts to question cultural norms.
    Analyze and interpret the work of a contemporary artist who addresses social issues or concerns.
    Analyze filmed examples of Eastern theatre traditions, e.g. kabuki or Chinese Opera, to explore cultural philosophical beliefs about beauty.
    Analyze text and subtext in scripts to identify character relationships, as well as physical, emotional, and social characteristics of an assigned role, and apply this knowledge to deduce motivation.
    Analyze the techniques used by a controversial artist and explain how the techniques affect audience response.
    Analyze their own performances and compositions and make judgments about their own works as compared with those of other performers and composers.
    Compare a variety of formal acting techniques (e.g. Meisner, Stanislavski, The Method) through theatre exercises and scene work and reflect on the elements of each in a journal.
    Construct a critical analysis that compares an interpretation of two works art: one that relies heavily on the artist’s intent for interpretation, and one that relies solely an individual interpretation.
    Construct an intuitive critical response to a work of art based on subjective insight.
    Create a logo in which elements and principles work together to enhance the meaning of the image and represent the personality of a company or organization.
    Create a multimedia presentation designed to guide the viewer through analysis of a work using formal, contextual and intuitive criticism.
    Create a work of art in response to a historical event that has personal significance.
    Create a work of art that is intended to influence change.
    Create an artist statement that explains the intent of their artworks.
    Demonstrate the ability to independently create, recreate, rehearse and perform musical works and explain why this is important.
    Describe how a contemporary artist’s current work is presented by news media and explain how the media coverage affects audience perception of the work.
    Describe the nature and value of a particular work of art using terms from aesthetics.
    Develop and present a personal body of work that documents personal vision, concerns and life experiences.
    Evaluate the quality of a finished print using criteria appropriate for a specific type of printmaking (engraving, intaglio, linocut, etc.).
    Generate a series of entries in a sketchbook or visual journal that demonstrates attention to skills, techniques, and ideas in process.
    Identify historical and cultural influences and distinct theatre conventions (acting styles) from historical time periods.
    Independently choreograph, stage and perform an original work in dance that synthesizes a variety of styles.
    Participate in a formal critique with peers to assess the developing qualities in their own artwork.
    Read a non-traditional or abstract play from a theatre movement such as the Theatre of the Absurd (Beckett, Genet, etc.) and describe the philosophical attitudes the play implies.
    Read, analyze and respond to philosophical thought concerning the role of theatre in contemporary society.
    Reconceptualize scenes or plays, placing them in other time periods or cultures or breaking conventions in order to shed light on human behavior, e.g. Taming of the Shrew conceived as an episode of The Honeymooners 1950’s sit-com.
    Research plays and scenes in context and analyze the plays’ historical and cultural connections to determine the author’s intent.
    Synthesize elements of different cultural dance forms to create new, original works in dance.
    Use contemporary web technologies to archive and analyze their own and others’ performances, then use formal models of criticism to make judgments and compare and contrast their work with the work of others.
    Use modern technology tools to create, perform, archive and respond to dance.
    Using prompts from poetry, abstract ideas and other sources, improvise and sustain characters and interact with each other in role.

Description

Process drama is a powerful and motivating teaching tool that engages students in writing for imaginative and functional purposes. In their lives, students have had a wide range of experiences with peace and conflict. In this lesson, they will participate in a simulation of a “Peace Journey” as they engage in a variety of literacy activities. Each student will respond to an imaginary advertisement, role play, work in small groups to develop a visual map, and create a skit that reflects his or her developing notions of peace. Students will then perform their skits for the class. After the class has performed, teachers may wish to lead a discussion about the students’ ideas and their interpretations of the idea of “peace.”

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The Peace Journey: Using Process Drama in the Classroom

Content Provider

Thinkfinity content is provided through a partnership between the Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications, and eleven of the nation's leading educational organizations, including: The American Association for the Advancement of Science; The International Reading Association; The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; National Center for Family Literacy; Council for Economic Education; National Endowment for the Humanities; National Council of Teachers of English; National Council of Teachers of Mathematics; National Geographic Society; ProLiteracy; and The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.

 

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