Seventh Visit! (November 20, 2018)
For this week's visit, I wanted to focus on developing drama techniques that can be easily translated into a context: memorization, listening, focus, and teamwork. We did this through three different activities.
The first activity that we did was called "Special Me: A Memorization Game." For this activity, students sat in a circle and took turns one-by-one, similar to the Name Game we have played. On their turn, the student would say their name and something that they were grateful (in connection to Thanksgiving being this week). After (or before, depending on what order they remembered) they said their own, the student would also repeat the name and the thing that the person before them was thankful for. I was impressed with how well the students listened to each other and were able to regurgitate the facts of one another. They were truly focused during this activity. I liked this game because it stretched the memory of the students and encouraged good listening skills.
The next activity that we did was called "Zing!". I was apprehensive about this game at first, but once the students got the hang of it, it went really well. To play this game, we all stood quietly in a circle. I started and passed the turn to someone in the circle by making eye contact with them and rubbing my hands in a forward motion while saying "Zing!". The person who I sent the turn to would then make eye contact with someone else and pass the turn in the same manner as me. The game would continue like this from student to student. Up until our last round, this game was confusing for some students. We were having trouble making direct eye contact and pointing at the person that we wanted to send the Zing to. Because of this, multiple people started taking turns at the same time. In the middle of the game, we had to stop and come up with some strategies that could help us play this game well. One of the students suggested that we mix up our circle, so everyone found a new spot standing by new people. We also talked about the importance of looking people in the eye when we passed the turn. Pausing the game and adjusting our efforts greatly improved the game. We were able to go for a couple of minutes without interruptions or error. These students stepped up their focus and delivered on what they were asked to do. They do not cease to amaze me with their capabilities!
The last activity that we did was "Machine." This activity was a little trickier for the students to grasp and for me to explain. The purpose of the game was for the students to work together to create a machine with their bodies. Each student would select a movement that corresponds with the movements of the other students already established in the machine to produce a predetermined product. I started our attempts at the machine by showing a video of a Rube Goldberg Machine. This showed the students that machines are made up of individual parts that work together to accomplish a task or make something. From there, we talked about action and reaction. Students paired up and practiced doing an action and having their partner react. This part was difficult for me to explain in simple terms. Miss Adair and I modeled a few examples to help clarify the idea. The students seemed to understand what I was trying to say and they did their partner work. We came together as a class after partners and decided on what kind of Thanksgiving machine we were going to make as a whole. The verdict was a turkey-making-machine. One-by-one, Miss Adair pulled sticks with students' names on them which determined the order that they would join the machine. One student started as the turkey. The students told me as they came up to our machine what they wanted to contribute. I helped them come up with actions that related the other actions already being performed. It got slightly chaotic at times, but it turned out alright in the end. We videoed the machine and showed it to the students so that they could see what they created. We talked about working together and class unity while watching the video to show them how each individual student had an important contribution to make in order to get our final product. If I were to do this activity again, I would spend more time scaffolding the expectations. I would spend time on what a machine is and acting/reacting. This could help avoid some of the confusion that we experienced as we made the machine.
This visit was a learning experience for me. I found places where I can focus my efforts of improvement. As I gain more experience, I will continue to get better at explaining things and building knowledge for students.
The first activity that we did was called "Special Me: A Memorization Game." For this activity, students sat in a circle and took turns one-by-one, similar to the Name Game we have played. On their turn, the student would say their name and something that they were grateful (in connection to Thanksgiving being this week). After (or before, depending on what order they remembered) they said their own, the student would also repeat the name and the thing that the person before them was thankful for. I was impressed with how well the students listened to each other and were able to regurgitate the facts of one another. They were truly focused during this activity. I liked this game because it stretched the memory of the students and encouraged good listening skills.
The next activity that we did was called "Zing!". I was apprehensive about this game at first, but once the students got the hang of it, it went really well. To play this game, we all stood quietly in a circle. I started and passed the turn to someone in the circle by making eye contact with them and rubbing my hands in a forward motion while saying "Zing!". The person who I sent the turn to would then make eye contact with someone else and pass the turn in the same manner as me. The game would continue like this from student to student. Up until our last round, this game was confusing for some students. We were having trouble making direct eye contact and pointing at the person that we wanted to send the Zing to. Because of this, multiple people started taking turns at the same time. In the middle of the game, we had to stop and come up with some strategies that could help us play this game well. One of the students suggested that we mix up our circle, so everyone found a new spot standing by new people. We also talked about the importance of looking people in the eye when we passed the turn. Pausing the game and adjusting our efforts greatly improved the game. We were able to go for a couple of minutes without interruptions or error. These students stepped up their focus and delivered on what they were asked to do. They do not cease to amaze me with their capabilities!
The last activity that we did was "Machine." This activity was a little trickier for the students to grasp and for me to explain. The purpose of the game was for the students to work together to create a machine with their bodies. Each student would select a movement that corresponds with the movements of the other students already established in the machine to produce a predetermined product. I started our attempts at the machine by showing a video of a Rube Goldberg Machine. This showed the students that machines are made up of individual parts that work together to accomplish a task or make something. From there, we talked about action and reaction. Students paired up and practiced doing an action and having their partner react. This part was difficult for me to explain in simple terms. Miss Adair and I modeled a few examples to help clarify the idea. The students seemed to understand what I was trying to say and they did their partner work. We came together as a class after partners and decided on what kind of Thanksgiving machine we were going to make as a whole. The verdict was a turkey-making-machine. One-by-one, Miss Adair pulled sticks with students' names on them which determined the order that they would join the machine. One student started as the turkey. The students told me as they came up to our machine what they wanted to contribute. I helped them come up with actions that related the other actions already being performed. It got slightly chaotic at times, but it turned out alright in the end. We videoed the machine and showed it to the students so that they could see what they created. We talked about working together and class unity while watching the video to show them how each individual student had an important contribution to make in order to get our final product. If I were to do this activity again, I would spend more time scaffolding the expectations. I would spend time on what a machine is and acting/reacting. This could help avoid some of the confusion that we experienced as we made the machine.
This visit was a learning experience for me. I found places where I can focus my efforts of improvement. As I gain more experience, I will continue to get better at explaining things and building knowledge for students.
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