Lana’s Blog

Well we have created, presented, packed up and evaluated our piece. We also filmed the work and had every intention of putting our 20 minutes on the blog. However no matter how much fun we had, how much we learned about putting on a performance in 3 weeks I still can’t cope with how to upload information in the form of pictures and video.  My group of kids has now moved on to semester 2 and we are concentrating on our next task.

I think that the great learning from this project has been that our group had a focus which was also the focus that other people were directing their energy to. They enjoyed reading some of the other blogs, but some were reluctant to do the actual blog themselves. They would rather have spent the time doing. It was a struggle. However, I have enjoyed reading other folk’s blogs and have gained many new interesting ideas and perspectives.

My students have been divided in their approach to the actual blogging task. They all embraced the project, worked hard in class, created good work, performed well and then produced interesting evaluations (some of which I will try and post…. soon). I find that I don’t have enough time to blog as I would like. I enjoyed our evening. The parents enjoyed their outing. We pieced together small ideas to create a large idea, our small 1 minute pieces grew to a 35 minute performance which included audience partcipation and some very wierd chicken impersonations. The set was simple, clever and very effective.  the students spent time thinking about the significance of each item and how it would be useful and extend the meaning of the work.

It was a fun journey. Looking forward to the next installment.

I have had such fun with my Theatre Class recently. We have created a process for our performance. Who knows how long or short it will be? The group agreed that we should include a ladder on which to hang relevant words, an oversized top hat from which to extract words and a large book from which we will include names of members of the audience . When instructed,the audience members who are named will collect a word from the hat and then give the word to a puppet who will stick the word onto a specified point on the ladder. Slowly the words will form a sentence.

As the words are drawn out of the oversized hat, the relevant piece is performed.  We do not know the oder of the performance as it will be determined by the word from the hat. The class has worked out which word connects with each piece we have improvised. Our task now is to turn ten improvised pieces into rehearsed works of worth.

The students worked on their set pieces today and will complete them tomorrow, which leaves us 2 double lessons to rehearse and finalise our performance work.  Then we’ll blog. I am always interested in how students will problem solve when creating oversized set pieces. They are always happiest when painting, phoning spotlight to research where we can purchase dye, creating props, and causing general havoc.

I am extremely comfortable with the variety of pieces which have been chosen and the way in which the group is performing.

The history of this group is that at the end of 2005 three local schools amalgamated to produce 2 schools. One is a Senior Secondary College for students from Years 10 - 12 and the other is a Middle Years School for Years 7-9 on two campuses. This meant that the kids in my Theatre class have not grown up together at school but are from 3 different schools.  Walking into my Year 11 Theatre class this is not evident. I am very happy with the way the group includes each member of the class and respects eachothers differences.  There is a healthy sense of belonging and wellbeing.  I hope this continues as we add students next semester.  Five lessons left…….

Lana

I have written many times and never been able to create a blog that “works”.  Hopefully I have now been taught successfully by my students…namely Sunny!!!

Jade and Seraya just taught me that I need to copy my blog before I post it..in case I get lost in the ether like Braidee. I’m on a huge learning curve.

 There is much confusion about this project. I think that when we are in class doing the work it makes sense to the students, yet when we have our single lesson on a Friday period 5 I am against….Friday afternoons, the impending weekend, lethargy, students perceptions that some other blogs seem to be focussed on feelings rather than work and confusion with the task of “blogging”.  This is not quite what I expected.  I am also not sure what I expected.

Our Process so far……

*  I gave the students the line “planting the seeds…with our thoughts we make the world”.

* The students sat together in samll groups and brainstormeed using a lotus diagram which I collected and will use their ideas as springboards and stimulii in forthcoming lessons.

* I asked the students to close their eyes and imagine the opening image of their ‘performance’ which we shared.

* They then had to imangine the closing image, which they shared.

* We then created short pieces which we performed to eachother after a short period of development which included a beginning image an ending image and building the middle.

* When we saw each piece we discussed what elements we would like to keep that had potential and could be developed further. Of course a list was kept and became part of our resource file.

* Next lesson I played Bach’s “Air on a G String” and the student lay down and listened, went to sleep or imagined lots of stuff.  They were then asked to communicate their ideas to another person through movement and sound only.  Some of the best work happens when words are not used. The students then joined ideas and choreographed pieces which they performed to the music.  Again we shared ideas, useful moments and kept a list of things which can be explored further.

* I gave the class the word “UBUNTU - A person is a person through other persons; I am because we are.”  I discovered this at a Professional Development about community. It complements our seeds growing.

It’s interesting that the kids are now a little bit antsy about what their performance may look like. Some folk are doing Drama Ensembles, Music Performances and have outside committments with work and Fruit Fly. So whatever we do it needs to be doable.  I don’t know what it will look like, but I do know that there is heaps of talent and ideas in this room and that this is supposed to be FUN.

I’m looking forward to the next session. 10 lessons to go.

Lana

 

Today marks the beginning of  my initiation into the world of Blogging. My Unit 1 Theatre Studies class is spending a period on the computers checking out the other blogs and then on Thursday we will begin the task.   We are using the “stem” - Planting ideas..with our thoughts we make the world” as our stimulus for a performance piece as yet to be determined.  Yes it’s very exciting…but at the same time for me who is a tad computer challenged it’s quite scarey.

I’m used to letting the kids do everything and only guide, mould and suggest. Most of my work with kids occurs this way. In fact every production and probably class….What I’m not used to is total handover on a “global level” where I don’t really know what I am doing.  What fun!! It’s either sink or swim…or dog paddle….

I’m hoping that i have in my Theatre class a group of brilliant computer heads who will gently guide, suggest and mould me into an understanding of what exactly we are doing.  I’m not worried about the production side…the kids will be great, whatever and where ever the process takes them…..it’s this contraption…It’s 12.30pm now…..1.45pm is when we sit down and start….no turning back….2 double sessions of prac…1 single of blog for the next 3 and a half weeks.  A performance on 25th May and then a few more blogs and we’re done.  Can’t be that hard…..or can it. 

OK World….we’re here.  Lana

 

24/4/2006

Well I have now had my first lesson with the dreaded computers and the kids have all done the initial blog.  I have teed up a student who will document our work in photos and video digital ..of course…so that we can post these little suckers on our blogs.  I am amazed at how my troups had very mixed reactions to others’ blogs.  The mundane caused riotous reactions and the simple and earnest created much interest. It is extremely useful as a teacher to have the process that you are undertaking described in the blogs as it means that we can learn, steal, pilfer from eachother. I found a couple of blogs fabulous that way. I am not going to be school on Thursday as I have wellbeing PD to attend. It will be of great interest to me to see how my kids cope with the instructions I leave them. I hope they will be clear enough. I’m thinking of using a lotus diagram to help with brainstorming, and then bring some of the squares “to life”. If you want a copy of a lotus diagram.. they’re really useful in English, Drama, Theatre…anywhere one needs to oder one’s thoughts.  I need them all the time… Just drop me a line and I will try and include one in the next blog??? Let’s hope posting this works…Till next time,   Lana

 

2/5/2006

I haven’t worked out how to add a blog in acending order onto the site. I have written and attempted to upload the work..to have all my words magically fly into the ether. What a bummer.  So this is a test blog…again.  Lana