2wk Playwriting Unit

Lesson Plans: Drama / Theatre
Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 1) Playwriting vs Improv

Jacob Noble | 03/01/2021 | Ball State Middle School
Middle School Lesson Plan- Grade Level: 6-8
Big Idea:
Art is necessary! Your Story is worth telling!
Indiana State Standards:
TH:Cr1.1.6c. Explore a scripted or improvised character by imagining the given circumstances in a theatrical work.
TH:Cr2-6.a. Use critical analysis to improve, refine, and evolve original ideas and artistic choices in a devised or scripted theatrical work.
TH:Cr2-7.b. Demonstrate mutual respect for self and others and their roles in preparing or devising theatrical work.
Objectives:
Students will be able to collaborate with peers to transform an improv scene into a scripted scene
Students will be able to identify the differences between scripted and improvised theatre
Students will be able to create a scene through instant playwriting
Materials:
Paper and pencil for students who don't have any
Whtie board
Opening:
1) Greet students and go over what we did yesterday and give an outline of today’s class
2) Go over and review our big idea and daily objectives
3) Have students stand up and lead them through a body stretch to get them in tune with their bodies
4) Remind students of the basic parts of a scene that have been implemented during the improvisation unit
a) Relationship of characters
b) Stakes
c) Location
d) Conflict
e) Solution
5) Divide students up into pairs
6) Lead students through writing a scene
a) Emphasize that the activity is silent, and the students should not converse with their partner during the
writing
b) Ask students to write as legibly as possible
c) Instruct students to stay school appropriate, the scenes should be silly and fun
d) Encourage students to follow their immediate instincts and not overthink to come up with a “perfect line”- it
is like improv and they should play off what their partner gives them
7) Students decide between themselves which student is A and which is B
o Instruct A to write at the top of the page- “are you going to tell?” and then hand the paper to B
o Instruct B to write a line of dialogue, something about the nature of the secret
o A- write a line of dialogue that reveals your relationship to B
o B- write a line of dialogue about the stakes
o A- write a line of dialogue about your objective, something you want
o B- add a negative or conflicting response
o A- propose a course of action
o B- say something shocking or surprising
o A- give a final response
8) The teacher collects the scripts, students do not write their names on the script. The teacher calls on a pair and give
them a scene they did not write. Instruct them to do a cold reading of the scene
9) Explain to the students that they all just become playwrights and have just written their first short plays, and that we
are rolling out our playwriting unit.
Lesson/Activity:
10) When the students are seated, name one student and ask them to come up to the front of the classroom with you. Let the
class and the student know that you are going to create a scene of something that happened while you were in college
and that you will be playing yourself and the other student will be the professor. Start the scene with no other
explanation.
11) Let the scene play out until you think it is at a good place to end the scene. Tell the students that the scene didn’t play
out the way that it actually happened in real life when you were in school.
12) Explain that they now need to think of an experience in their lives when there was an argument or problem between
them and another person, It should be a problem that was resolved pretty quickly.
13) Give them time to think
14) Partner off the students with one other partner and once they are in their pairs, have them choose one other group of
two to create a big group of four. Explain that within their groups that 4 short scenes are about to be performed. Each
person needs to perform that problem in their life with their partner for the other pair, but make sure that the students
know they are not allowed to tell their partner how their problem happened and what took place, just start the scene and
let it flow.
15) After the students have all performed ask some of the students if their scenes went the same in performance as it did in
real life. Pose this question: “Why was it do hard to make the events happen in the same exact way?”
16) Have the student who modeled with you in step 10 come up front again. Tell the students to plug their ears as you
whisper to your model student what actually happened with your professor. Perform the scene again and once it is over
explain that when you were able to tell the student how the story in your life went, the scene was a much accurate
portrayal.
17) Have everyone get back into their groups and take out a piece of paper. Explain to the students that now they are going
to write down the lines for their scene exactly as it happened to be able to give to their partner. This way, their
experience from their own lives can accurately be portrayed in the scene. Give them a few minutes to write their lines.
18) Have them perform their scripts in their groups.
Closing:
19) As the students finish and go back to their seats write the words “improv” and “playwriting” on the board. Questions to
pose to the students: “ What are the differences between the two words?” “What are the advantages and disadvantages
to both?” Explain that the activity they just did was improving a scene and morphed it into playwriting a scene. Explain
that playwriting can feel like something scary and daunting, but when you know what you are writing about and you
have learned the right elements, it’s not as scary as they think it may be
20) Hand out the rubric for the playwriting project. Have the students read it over and go over the main points of the project
with them
21) End with class mantra: May we wrap ourselves in the awareness that we are...more than enough. powerful beyond
measure. Worthy of love and belonging, and perfectly capable of holding, honoring, and sharing our stories.
Assessment:
Collect instant playwriting scenes to access where the students are
Performance of improv and scripted scene
Homework :
Read over the project description and rubric and come to class with any questions you have regarding the specifics.
“If Time” Activity:
Get back out the instant playwriting examples and cold read more of them.
Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 2) Intro to Playwriting
Big Idea:
TH:Pr4.1.6.a Identify the essential events in a story or script that make up the dramatic structure in a theatrical work.
TH:Cr2-8.b Share leadership and responsibilities to develop collaborative goals when preparing or devising theatrical work.
TH:Pr6.1.7.a Participate in rehearsals for a theatrical work that will be shared with an audience.
Objectives:
Students will be able to identify the elements of plot structure that makes up a story
Students will be able to collaborate with peers to depict elements of plot structure within a fairytale
Materials:
Google Slides(https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1aNHAsLFpwTPwl5jxk8s1cK-uIkCbCdryFSQLIc4toJc/edit?usp=sharing)
Paper for students to write on
Plot diagram signs
Opening:
4) Have students push desks to the sideshow of the room, and have them sit on the floor in the shape of a plot diagram
(you will need to place them in this)
5) Draw or pull up a picture of a blank plot diagram and ask students if they know what it is. Hopefully someone will say
“plot structure/diagram” if not explain that that's what it is. Show them that they are sitting in the plot diagram right
now.
a) A plot diagram is a graphical representation of the plot of the story. A story’s plot diagram is a line graph of
story's events, beginning with the story’s start on the left and continuing toward the right, ending with the
story’s conclusion.
Lesson/Activity:
6) Pull out five signs that have each of the 6 elements written on them (exposition, inciting incident, rising action, climax,
falling action, and resolution). Review each one by one in order and hand it to a person on the area of the line that
corresponds to the element. If a student knows what the element is before you explain it, then have the student explain
it!
a) Exposition - introduces the story’s setting, the main character, supporting characters, and time. Gives us the
background information we need to know about what happens before the story begins.
b) Inciting Incident - the event that sets the main character or characters on the journey
c) Rising Action- what happens after the inciting Incident that leads us towards the climax.
d) Climax- The point at which the main character in the story will succeed or fail. The “turning Point”.
e) Falling Action- all the plot points wrapping up, the consequences of the climax, and reflection on the changes
in the main character.
f) Resolution- the plot’s end, whether that resolution is a happy ending or sad ending, fun or frightening,
satisfying or unsatisfying. The resolution might tie up loose ends or leave important elements of the story
unresolved.
7) After doing this, ask why is this plot structure so important? What does it add to a scene? How, as the audience, does it
help?
8) Ask the students to think about their day yesterday. Do they see a plot structure within their day? What was the
exposition? The climax? Etc. Think about their past week? Is there a plot structure there as well? The month? Tell them
to turn to a partner, choose a time period within the last month and explain how their lives followed the plot structure.
Make sure they hit every element. After they have shared, tell the students that this is a very good jumping off point for
writing their 10 minute play. They should be able to label each part in their story with these elements in their final
presentation.
9) Divide students into four groups by having them count off. Have each group move to a designated place in the room.
Go around to each group and assign them one of the following: Exposition/Inciting Incident, Rising Action, Climax,
Falling Action/Resolution.
10) Explain the activity to the students like this:

You will be telling the story of Frozen as a class. Each group has a part of that story that they will tell. Write down your
group’s best storytelling of ONLY the part of the story you are assigned. For example, If this were the story of Pixar’s
Inside Out, the group that has Exposition might say something like, “Riley Anderson, an 11-year-old Midwestern girl,
leads a pretty amazing life with her loving parents, a hockey enthusiast and love for her home state Minnesota, best
friends with Meg, with the help of her emotions; joy, fear, sadness, disgust, and anger. They dictate how she behaves
and reacts to the world around her, from their cozy spot in the control center of her brain.
Emphasize that they can have fun with this and make it detailed like the example above.
11) Play some music from the musical Frozen while the work. Once students have had some time to plan and practice, have
them gather their groups in a line in the order they will be telling their story. Let them know that it’s okay if their
interpretation of the story or what parts of the story fit into their elements is different from everyone else’s. They don’t
have to change what they wrote, even if the pieces don’t fit together perfectly. Encourage them to just have fun and
enjoy moments where it doesn’t quite fit together right.
Closing: (5 Minutes)
12) While students move back their desk tot he original position, play Olaf’s recap of Frozen as a fun way to compare the
plot diagram they just made as a class to Olaf’s interpretation.
13) Explain to the class that as we move forward they should understand the following: Words are powerful. Words written
for the stage have an extra power to come to life that can teach us and inspire us. If we want to learn to share our voice
and say what the world needs to hear from us, we need to study a few things first. When we meet again, we will be
learning about how to generate ideas to write about, and by the end of next class they will have brainstormed several
topics to get started on their 10 minute plays.
Assessment:
In the activity listed above students will demonstrate mastery their given element and the plot points that fall into that element
In the closing section of class, students will be responsible for summarizing the elements of a plot diagram back to me.
Homework :
Students must record at least 40 seconds of a natural conversation. This can be at the dinner table, at the mall, at lunch at school.
They must then transcribe that dialogue into a written out script
One sentence at a time stories: Students will sit in a circle and they will come up with a topic or idea for their story to be about.
We will go around the circle and students will say one sentence about the story. Remind students that the story should progress
and hit all of the elements that we talked about in class.

Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 3) Generating Ideas
Big Idea:
TH:Cr.1.1.7.c. Envision and describe a scripted or improvised character’s inner thoughts and objectives in a theatrical work.
TH:Pr4.1.6.a. Identify the essential events in a story or script that make up the dramatic structure in a theatrical work.
TH:Re8.1.7.a. Identify the artistic choices made based on personal experience in a theatrical work.
Objective:
Students will be able to demonstrate their ability to brainstorm ideas relevant to their community, life, or things they witness in
the world by participating in the classroom activities
Materials:
“A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” by Georges Seura
Paper
Pencil
Opening:
4) Project the painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” by Georges Seurat. Ask the students to
write a short scene about the painting. They can pick any person in the painting. This can be a characters’ inner
monologue, dialogue between two people in the park, can be the perspective of the person looking onto the scene of the
park. Be creative and get inspired!
Lesson/Activity:
5) Have the students get into pairs and share what they were able to finish. After the students have shared with each other,
take some volunteers to share out to the whole class. Explain that if there are multiple characters that they can have a
dramatic reading. A dramatic reading means characters are assigned and the play is read with all the emotions of the
characters but not acted out. Explain that this is what they will be doing next week with their scripts.
6) After students have shared, bring the class back together for a discussion. Ask the students “What made these stories
interesting?” “have you ever seen a piece of art modeled after another piece of art?” *EX; book made into a movie*
7) Explain that this is one way that we can get ideas for the plays that we write. Explain that we can also look at important
issues our community is dealing with/dealt with and tell a story about it, and explain that they saw yesterday in our plot
talk that plays can be inspired from their own life events! Also explain that today we are going to be doing a few
activities that will help them come up with ideas for their final scripts.
8) Have everyone sit in a circle with a piece of paper and something to write with. Have the students write their name at
the top of the paper. Let them know not to think too hard about this activity. Each step should take about 30 seconds
○ Write a main idea or theme at the top of the paper. Fold part of your paper so that what you wrote can no
longer be seen. Pass the paper to your left.
○ Write a place. Fold the paper again so what you wrote can’t be seen. PAss the paper to you left.
○ Write two nouns. (Person, food, article of clothing, an animal, etc.) Fold the paper and pass it to the left
9) Have the students remind you what a plot summary is based off of yesterday's lesson. Have the students unfold the
piece of paper that they ended up with. HAve the students spend the next three to five minutes writing the plot
summary of a story using the things that were written on the paper they ended up with. Tell the students to really think
about how the things on their paper connect together and form an interesting story.
10) Have 2-3 students share out what they have come up with.
Closing:
11) Explain that another way we can brainstorm ideas for our story is by looking back and examining the event that have
happened in our own lives. Explain that until the end of class they need to write a list of everything you remember from
your own life from beginning to end. This could be the time you went tot he beach when you were 4, or the time when
you were 8 and got stranded in a store because you lost your guardian.
Assessment:
Collect the folding paper brainstorming stories
The homework will also be an assessment.
Homework :
Come to class tomorrow with 1-2 plot summaries of at least two different story ideas that you might use for your final script. Use
any of the methods of brainstorming that we used in class today. On top of that, I want you to write a short story (1-2 pages) of
one of the life events that you wrote about in class. It is helpful if the event is meaningful to you. It might be ebcuase it reminds
you of good memories or people you love. Maybe you learned something important that day. The story doesn't have to be about
you but you can draw inspiration from that real life event and maybe place characters ina similar situation.
<----- This is the painting for the opening activity

Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 4) Script Writing Essentials
Big Idea:
TH:Cr1.1.6a. Identify possible solutions to blocking challenges in a theatrical work.
TH:Cr2-6.b. Contribute ideas and accept and incorporate the ideas of others in preparing or devising a theatrical work.
TH:Cr3.1.7.b. Develop effective physical and vocal traits of characters in an improvised or scripted theatrical work
TH:Pr5.1.6.a. Recognize how acting exercises and techniques can be applied to a theatrical work.
TH:Re7.1.8.a. Apply criteria to the evaluation of artistic choices in a theatrical work.
Objectives:
Students will be able to format a script correctly
Students will be able to how emotion can effect the movement of the body
Students will be able to demonstrate how stage directions are used in a script
Materials:
Bowls
Slips of paper for stage directions
Script with mistakes
Opening:
4) Have the students clear the desk and tape the floor like a stage writing the word *Audience* on the white board upfront
so the students know which way is up and down stage.
5) As students walk in, have 6 buckets labeled “January + February” “March + April” “May + June” “July + August”
“September + October” , and “November + December”. Tell the students to draw out a piece of paper from the bucket
that has their birthday on it and follow the direction on the paper.
i) Jan + Feb: Jump C, Crawl DR, and Roll DL
ii) Mar + Apr: Creep DL, Dance C, and Quack as you tiptoe DC
iii) May + Jun: Sing as you skip UR, Float UC, hum as you run DC, and Strut UL
iv) Jul + Aug: Twirl DR, Crab walk UL, and Lunge to UR
v) Sept + Oct: Walk backwards DC, dab as you walk C, and Roar as you crawl DR
vi) Nov + Dec: Slide DR, Hula UL, and cry as you fly to C
Lesson/Activity:
6) Have the groups sit in their groups in whichever spot they ended up on the floor. Ask the students if they new what the
commands on the papers were called. If no one answers let them know it is stage directions. Explain that in their scripts
they are going to want to write stage directions because they don't want their characters just standing in the same place
the whole time. Let the students know that some of those decisions can be left up to the director or the actor and their
interpretation, but that there still needs to be stage directions in their scripts. Another thing that they need to do in their
scenes is to add emotions!
7) Ask the students to stand up and explain to them that you will be calling out emotions and that they need to walk
around the stage with that emotion. Start out with emotions like: mad, happy, sad. Then morph into: ashamed, hopeless,
humored, exhausted, etc. Encourage them to really get creative with how they are embodying the emotion.
8) Have the class come back together and explain that just by adding those little words of emotion to their stage directions
can completely morph and shape a character and the audience's perception of that character.
9) Pull up (http://playwrightscentersf.org/submissions/docs/PCSFPlayFormat2012.pdf) and have the students follow along
with you as you go over the correct way to format a play and explain that it is how their plays need to be formatted at
the end of the unit.
10) Hand out the one page frankenstein script that has many formatting mistakes on it. Have the students independently
correct the mistakes.
Closing:
11) Trade and grade with a partner while you go over the mistakes and what the correct formatting should be. Be sure you
are asking students for the correction before giving it to them.
12) With the time left, have students get into pairs and craft simple scenes that are in the correct formatting that use stage
directions to inform the characters movement.
Assessment:
Formatting quiz
Homework :
If they do not finish their scenes, each person needs to finish at home
Starting tomorrow students should have a good understanding of what they are writing about
Play more with the idea of emotion movement to plant a seed for when we begin out acting unit in a few weeks.

Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 5) Plot and Dialogue
Big Idea:
TH:Cr2-6.b. Contribute ideas and accept and incorporate the ideas of others in preparing or devising a theatrical work.
TH:Re7.1.6.a. Describe and record personal reactions to artistic choices in a theatrical work.
TH:Re9.1.6.a. Use supporting evidence and criteria to evaluate drama/theatrical work.
Objectives:
Students will be able to demonstrate how to fit a story within time constraints.
Students will be able to craft the beginning stages of their plays
Students will be able to revise the early stages of their plays based on peer feedback.
Materials:
None
Opening:
4) Ask the students to clear their desk tot eh side of the room and sit in a circle on the floor. One person will start with a
sentence about anything and the class must continue telling the story. Go around the circle and let each student continue
the story telling only one sentence at a time. Explain that by the time the story reaches the last person it should be
finished so if they are positioned in the middle they should be at the climax at the story so the last person can be the
resolution. Do this 2-3 times, and have the students change where they are in the circle each time.
Lesson/Activity:
5) Have the students stay in in the circle and ask these questions:
a) Was it frustrating to not be able to take the story where you wanted it to go?
b) Did you feel limited being able to only say one sentence or to only be able to do one thing like start or end the
story? Did you feel like you had a lot more pressure in the middle and end sections finding the highs and
lows of the story?
c) What did you change about your sentences as the story was progressing to make it fit within the constraints?
Explain that when we are writing any play, especially a 10 minute play, we have to be aware of the time restrictions.
The plays that you write can’t be 5 hours long or audiences will leave! We always need to take into account time, so we
know how much of it we have left to finish out our stories.
6) Have the students get into groups of 3 and share their brief summaries and stories from Lesson 3. They will be giving
each other feedback based on the following questions:
a) Does the story have each of the plot elements?
b) Does it have a strong start?
c) Can the story be told in ten minutes?
d) Does it have a strong ending?
e) Do the characters' relationships interest you?
f) Do you think the audience will remain interested throughout the story?
7) After getting feedback have the students start making revisions to their summaries and story. After 4-5 minutes ask the
students to pick one of the summaries or story they have written to be what their 10 minute play is about. Tell them to
begin writing their plays. Just start writing everything that comes to mind. Walk around while they are working and
provide assistance when needed.
8) After 10 or 15 minutes have the students say their lines of dialogue out loud. Remind them that their lines won’t be
perfect and we will be spending time working on dialogue next week and this is just our starting point. Ask the students
to think about how the line is sounding, and if it feels like something they would naturally say in their daily lives. After
2 minutes have the students make revisions and once they have finished to get with a partner.
9) Once they are in their partnerships, have them swap scripts and read lines of dialogue from their partners script out
loud. Once they have finished the partners should give feedback to each other on how easy the lines are to say, how
they sound, and if they feel “true to life”
Closing:
10) For the rest of class, have the students continue to work on their scripts individually. Have them come up to you and
sign up for a 1 on 1 meeting for next week to discuss their plays with them and how its going.
Assessment:
No assessment.
Homework :
Explain that over the weekend that they should have their first draft of their script done so that we can work and develop their
scripts next week as classes progress. They should also fill out a plot digram chart for their story, which can be found of the
classroom page.
There will be no “if time activity” as their script writing will take up the rest of the time.
Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 6) Characterization
Big Idea:
TH:Cr1.1.8.c. Develop a scripted or improvised character by articulating the character’s inner thoughts, objectives, and motivations in a
theatrical work.
TH:Pr4.1.8.b. Use various character objectives and tactics in a theatrical work to overcome an obstacle
Objectives:
Students will demonstrate their understanding of the importance of characterization in their plays by reviewing character
development, emotion, and objectives.
Materials:
Candy
Clear Bowl
Strips of Paper
Hat
Opening:
2) Go around and check that everyone has their first draft.
5) Once the students have sat back down, bring a desk or chair to the front of the class and put the bowl of candy on it. On
the white board write “Your objective is to get a piece of candy”. Sit there and wait until someone does something (uses
a tactic) to get a piece of the candy. The first person to do something gets the piece of candy and then you should write
on the board and write what they did (the tactic). Example: If the student just takes a piece of candy, write “by force”, if
the students make you feel bad for them, write ”pity”. The only twist is they can’t use the same tactic twice. Do this
until every student has a piece of candy.
Lesson/Activity:
6) Ask the students what the words on the board are. If no one says it tell them they are tactics.Tell them that tactics are
tools that people use to get past the obstacle to reach their goals (remind them of these from the improv unti). Explain
that these are in relationship to obstacles ( in our scenario, you were the obstacle they had to get around). Ask why do
the students think objectives and tactics are important to writing scripts. Explain that these two things are important
when developing and creating the characters they have in their first drafts of their scripts.
7) Explain that every character no matter how small needs to have an objective , even if it is the delivery man. Is their
objective to get the package to the customer? Or is their objective to deliver the package as fast as possible to get home
to their partner and the puppy they just adopted? Explain that the entire backstory of a character doesn't have to be
clearly stated by what they say, but that the emotions that come with that objective should be clear. Explain that
creating a backstory with your tactics and objectives will create more meaningful dialogue. Ask the students what else
they think is important for characters when writing plays. Write what the students say on the board. Affirm all of their
responses and ask if they think all of their characters are going to immediately be all fo these amazing things at the
beginning of their plays. The answer is not a simple yes or no! They may start with some of these but their characters
will develop most of these as the plays go on, this is called character development.
8) Hand out two strips of paper to every student. While passing these out, remind the students that you already have talked
about emotions when we were doing our stage directions activity. Ask them to think about the emotions that they used
in that activity. Tell everyone to write an emotion on each piece of paper and put it into a hat. Tell the students to be
creative and think outside of the box and try not to use simple emotions that we hear and used with the previous
activity.
9) Pick two students who are brave and are willing to be the first to perform and have them come up to the front of the
class. Ask the class for a suggestion of a location/relationship/genre for a scene. Then each student will draw out a
strip one at a time and announce it to the class. The first emotion they pull out is the emotion they will start as in the
scene and the second emotion they pull out is the emotion they must develop into and end the scene as. For example, if
a student pulls out “depressed” and “embarrassed,” he must start the scene acting depressed but slowly transition into
being embarrassed.
10) After 2-3 students have gone, ask the class what they noticed the performers do with their transition. Ask “why does
this kind of development make for an interesting scene?” explain that the characters within their plays should have an
example of development.
Closing:
11) For the rest of class have the students take out their scripts and begin making revisions to their scripts based on this idea
of tactics, objectives, and character development.
12) While students are working start having the 1 on 1 meetings to discuss the students plan and work with them providing
feedback and clarifications.
Assessment:
Piece of candy activity
Emotion activity
Homework :
Continue making revisions to the 10 minute plays. Use the time you have to really incorporate what was covered in class.
If there is still significant extra time after the emotions activity have more students do the activity.
Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 7) Character and Relationships
Big Idea:
TH:Cr3.1.7.b. Develop effective physical and vocal traits of characters in an improvised or scripted theatrical work
TH:Pr4.1.6.b. Experiment with various physical choices to communicate character in a theatrical work.
Objectives:
Students will be able to demonstrate character relationships through dialogue and stage directions
Students will be able to demonstrate their ability to establish relationships between characters by revising their scripts
Materials:
Paper
Opening:
4) Explain that the students will be playing the “Dating Game” that they learned and played during the improv unit
a) For students that don't exactly remember the game or instructions:
i) One player leaves the room while three others go “onstage” or to the front of the class. While the
fourth player is out of the room, the rest of the class comes up with strong personality traits, or even
specific famous characters that the other 3 players will adopt. Examples might be No. 1 is a robot,
No. 2 is Jack Sparrow and No. 3 thinks she’s in a live game of Monopoly. The fourth player comes
back in the room and is allowed to ask three questions to each of the contestants. This is best when
a question is asked to one contestant, then the other, then the other and then the second question is
asked to each, etc. After the questions player 4 should guess what the personality traits/characters
were.
Lesson/Activity:
5) Ask the students “how were the character traits or characters revealed throughout the questions?” “Did the characters
announce everything about themselves from the get go?” “Why or why not?” If they don't fully get there explain that it
is more interesting and more true to life to gradually reveal a character as the story progresses.
6) Have the students take out a piece of paper or something to write or type on. Tell them to start writing dialogue between
the characters Alex and Brenda. Detail that they must write 16 lines of dialogue (8 for each character). Explain that
Alex and Brenda had some sort of connection in the past, but in this moment they are ending whatever connection they
have with each other. Let them know that they have the power to make their relationship whatever they want it to be
they just need to show that relationship through what the characters are saying. Let them write for 3-5 minutes.
7) Have one student share what they wrote by choosing 2 people to play Alex and Brenda. After that student has shared,
ask another student to do the same that had a completely different relationship. Ask the class to make observations
about how the dialogue let them know the characters relationship.
8) Have the students write the scene again with the same situation and the same people. Let them know they can change
small details, but now they can only use 10 words of dialogue. Let the students know they can write stage directions for
the actors.
9) Have the original Alex and Brenda scenes share what they wrote with the same actors reading. Ask the class “If we
hadn’t already seen this played out before, would we understand what was going on?” (most likely we wouldn’t). Then
ask “what actions could we have Alex or Brenda do rather than say to establish their relationship to each other. Take the
students suggestions and ask the partners to perform the scene again.
10) Ask the students which version of the scene was more powerful. What our characters do can be even more powerful
and reveal who they are more than what they say and that is important to think about while revising our scripts to see
what we could possibly take out and replace with action.
Closing:
11) Have the students take out their scripts and work with a partner. Have each partner share a page from their script with
each other and go through the same process of trying to rewrite the scenes together using half the dialogue and adding
actions.
12) After students have done this with each other, the remainder of class time is to continue to revise their scripts.
13) While students are revising, continue 1 on 1 meetings with students.
Assessment:
Script revisions
Alex and Brenda Scenes
Homework :
Continue working on scripts as tomorrow we will be doing dramatic readings of the plays. Be sure you use what we discussed
and talked about today when making your revisions.
There shouldn’t be any left over time as students are revising their work.
Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 8) Dramatic Readings
Big Idea:
TH:Re8.1.8c Apply personal aesthetics, preferences, and beliefs to evaluate a drama/theatre work.
TH:Pr6.1.6.a. Adapt a theatrical work and present it informally for an audience.
Objectives:
Students will be able to identify what does not work and what does work in a piece of theatre by reading and evaluating their
peers' scripts as well as their own scripts through dramatic readings.
Materials:
None
Opening:
4) Watch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VUV2Yl8gsI) from 2:30 to the end.
Ask the students “Why do you think I have you write scripts? What’s the point” Explain the following:
Remember that you have a voice and what you have to say is powerful and important. Be respectful of everyone’s
individual voice as we read scripts today. If you’re not proud of what you turned in today, revise it. Change it. Turn it
in again and show me what you really have to say.

Lesson/Activity:
5) Have students sit in a circle. Explain that we will only get through about 5-6 scripts today. Explain that we will be
doing the rest tomorrow.
6) Explain that we are doing a dramatic reading. Writers may assign characters to read parts and readers can use emotion
and vocal variation. But they do not need to act out elaborate scenes or get up. Writers should also assign someone to
read stage directions.
Closing:
7) After all the dramatic readings, have students reflect on at least two scripts they heard today. Have them write about
what they liked and what they did not like and why. What about their beliefs or personal preferences have they learned?
8) Explain that they can take what they learned from having their script read today or listening to the other scripts read
and continue to make revisions before turning it in after their pitch.
Assessment:
Reflection time after dramatic readings
Homework :
Continue to revise scripts and start planning their pitches
If there is time left over have them all making revisions to thier scripts.
Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 9) Dramatic Readings
Big Idea:
TH:Re8.1.8c Apply personal aesthetics, preferences, and beliefs to evaluate a drama/theatre work.
TH:Pr6.1.6.a. Adapt a theatrical work and present it informally for an audience.
Objectives:
Students will be able to identify what does not work and what does work in a piece of theatre by reading and evaluating their
peers' scripts as well as their own scripts through dramatic readings.
Materials:
None
Opening:
Lesson/Activity:
4) Have students sit in a circle
5) Remind that we are doing a dramatic reading. Writers may assign characters to read parts and readers can use emotion
and vocal variation. But they do not need to act out elaborate scenes or get up. Writers should also assign someone to
read stage directions.
Closing:
6) After all the dramatic readings, have students reflect on at least two scripts they heard today. Have them write about
what they liked and what they did not like and why. What about their beliefs or personal preferences have they learned?
7) Explain that they can take what they learned from having their script read today or listening to the other scripts read
and continue to make revisions before turning it in after their pitch.
Assessment:
Reflection time after dramatic readings
Homework :
Continue to revise scripts and practice their pitches
If there is time left over have them all making revisions to their scripts and practice their pitch
Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 10) Pitch Day!
Big Idea:
TH:Cr2-8.a. Articulate and apply critical analysis, background knowledge, research, and historical and cultural context to the development of
original ideas for a theatrical work.
TH:Pr4.1.6.a. Identify the essential events in a story or script that make up the dramatic structure in a theatrical work.
TH:Re9.1.7.c. Identify how the intended purpose of a theatrical work appeals to a specific audience.
Objectives:
Students will be able to pitch their 10 minute plays outlining their process, their work, and the rationale as to why their play
should be produced.
Materials:
Projector if the students need one
Opening:
a) Spend a little extra time on these warmups to help get the nerves out that students might have about their
pitch
Lesson/Activity:
4) As students walked in their were slots listed on the board for them to sign up for the order they would be going in, so
the pitches will start with the first name and then work our way down the list
5) As students give their pitch, ask 1-2 questions about their process, their story, or the importance of their pieces to have
them give you a little more insight into either of those areas. You are not trying to stump them, just promoting a deeper
level of thinking.
6) As the pitches are going have the rubric out and fill out the “pitch” section
7) After all the presentations are done, make sure that all of the students’ plays have been turned in.
8) Let the students know that you will be grading their plays using the rubric over the weekend.
9) Let the class know that you were so excited to listen to all the stories they had written and were eager to tell, and
remind them how powerful their stories and their voices are
10) Explain that we are about to be moving forward to a new unit next week where they will be directing and acting in their
own 10 minute plays!
Closing:
11) Close out class with class mantra: May we wrap ourselves in the awareness that we are...more than enough. powerful
beyond measure. Worthy of love and belonging, and perfectly capable of holding, honoring, and sharing our stories.
Assessment:
Students pitch
Homework :
No homework!
If there is time play the improv game “Slide Show” to start planting the seed of what it means to be a director.

2wk Playwriting Unit

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Lesson Plans: Drama / Theatre

Drama 1: Playwriting (Day 1) Playwriting vs Improv

Indiana State Standards:

18) Have them perform their scripts in their groups.

Collect instant playwriting scenes to access where the students are

Performance of improv and scripted scene

“If Time” Activity:

Indiana State Standards:

10) Explain the activity to the students like this:

plot diagram they just made as a class to Olaf’s interpretation.

topics to get started on their 10 minute plays.

“If Time” Activity:

and hit all of the elements that we talked about in class.

Indiana State Standards:

longer be seen. Pass the paper to your left.

Collect the folding paper brainstorming stories

The homework will also be an assessment.

<----- This is the painting for the opening activity

Lesson Plans: Drama / Theatre

Indiana State Standards:

TH:Cr1.1.6a. Identify possible solutions to blocking challenges in a theatrical work.

TH:Re7.1.8.a. Apply criteria to the evaluation of artistic choices in a theatrical work.

“If Time” Activity:

Lesson Plans: Drama / Theatre

Indiana State Standards:

TH:Re9.1.6.a. Use supporting evidence and criteria to evaluate drama/theatrical work.

lows of the story?

know how much of it we have left to finish out our stories.

each other feedback based on the following questions:

a) Does the story have each of the plot elements?

b) Does it have a strong start?

c) Can the story be told in ten minutes?

d) Does it have a strong ending?

e) Do the characters' relationships interest you?

provide assistance when needed.

they sound, and if they feel “true to life”

“If Time” Activity:

Indiana State Standards:

of tactics, objectives, and character development.

feedback and clarifications.

Piece of candy activity

“If Time” Activity:

Indiana State Standards:

what we could possibly take out and replace with action.

13) While students are revising, continue 1 on 1 meetings with students.

Alex and Brenda Scenes

and talked about today when making your revisions.

“If Time” Activity:

Indiana State Standards:

TH:Pr6.1.6.a. Adapt a theatrical work and present it informally for an audience.

2) Go over and review our big idea and daily objectives

4) Watch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VUV2Yl8gsI) from 2:30 to the end.

in again and show me what you really have to say.

doing the rest tomorrow.

read stage directions.

and continue to make revisions before turning it in after their pitch.

Reflection time after dramatic readings

Continue to revise scripts and start planning their pitches

“If Time” Activity:

Indiana State Standards:

TH:Pr6.1.6.a. Adapt a theatrical work and present it informally for an audience.

2) Go over and review our big idea and daily objectives

4) Have students sit in a circle