THEA 315 Spring 2016 Syllabus
San Diego State University – Theatre for Young Audiences
Lecturer: Rachel Hoey
Email: rachelnicole.hoey@gmail.com
Class Meeting Time: Tuesday ’ s 3:30-6:10PM
Office Hours: Mondays Tuesdays 3:00-3:30PM and/or by appointment
Course Description
Students will examine current philosophies, principles, and techniques of children’s theatre.
Development of the individual through use of dramatic play, imagining, improvisation, and theatre games geared to K-8 curriculum. This course is applicable to classroom teaching, educational leadership, public speaking, and performers. Students will engage in age appropriate literary text adaptations as well as curriculum building for youth in a theatrical fashion.
1.
Course Objectives
Understand: the concept of creative as a teaching tool, goals and purpose behind activities, and the role of the teacher in this setting.
2.
Understanding basic skills through practice of acting, movement, pantomime, improvisation, story dramatization, scaffolding, positive feedback sessions, etc.
3.
Develop language and communication abilities, problem solving skills, storytelling skills, creativity, arts integration, social awareness, and interpersonal skills.
4.
Promote an understanding of the art of theatre and empathy in relating to other collaborators.
5.
Acquire skills for planning, leading, and evaluating creative drama sessions.
6.
Learn to create adapted stories through re-working existing texts into a play format.
Course Outcomes and Assessment Measures
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
1.
Utilize a variety of drama strategies throughout the curriculum through the analysis and
2.
discussion of assigned reading, in-class activities, and collaborative theatre practices.
Structure and teach a creative drama activity and complete lesson plan. Practice
3.
collaboration in creating a dramatic unit based on a novel or topic of study.
Demonstrate and effectively communicate the theories and importance behind Creative
4.
Drama in Education (K-12).
Respond in a scholarly way to college level performances, through theatrical lenses.
5.
Adapt a children’s book into a short one-act play script while going through the entire theatrical process from creation to product.

Course Readings
Required Texts o Theater Games for the Classroom, by Viola Spolin o The Performer’s Guide to the Collaborative Process, by Sheila Kerrigan (Blackboard) o Salting the Ocean, by Naomi Shihab Nye (Blackboard)
Suggested Text o Theatre for Community Conflict and Dialogue, by Michael Rohd o Games for Actors and Non-Actors, by Augusto Boal o Structuring Drama Work, by Jonathan Neelands o Drama Improvised, by Kenneth Pickering o Drama for Learning: Dorothy Heathcote’s Mantle of the Expert Approach to Education, by
G. Bolton and D.Heathcote o Drama Structures: a practical handbook for teachers, by Cecily O’Neill and Alan Lambert
Students with Disabilities
If you are a student with a disability and believe you will need accommodations for this class, it is your responsibility to contact Student Disability Services at (619) 594-6473. To avoid any delay in the receipt of your accommodations, you should contact Student Disability Services as soon as possible. Please note that accommodations are not retroactive, and that accommodations based upon disability cannot be provided until you have presented your instructor with an accommodation letter from Student Disability Services. Your cooperation is appreciated.
In-class Involvement
Attendance & Participation
This course is a practical introduction to Theatre for Young Audiences. The bulk of our work will be in-class, in a participatory and experiential fashion. Participation is graded apart from attendance, and is based on in-class involvement, this includes making an effort to engage and work harmoniously with classmates. Strive to be fair, considerate and aware of your fellow classmates.
Attendance is crucial! None of the in-class activities can be replicated outside the class session; therefore, no make-up assignments are possible if you are absent. Each absence results in a deduction of four points, equivalent to 4% of your overall grade. Every late arrival deducts two points, equivalent to 2% of your overall grade.
Please be prepared to present on due dates assigned to you and/or your group. One absence may not directly impact your grade, but two absences and/or excessive late arrivals will result in drastically lowering of your grade.
Assignments
Attending Performances
Goal: This task will develop competency in judging the quality of theatrical process and production based on elements, principles and concepts of the theatre.
Assignment: You will attend the SDSU TTF Season of Shows as well as one additional children’s theatre show produced by a local theatre company. See blackboard for further details.

Note: The School of Theatre, Television, and Film require that all students attend all performances taking place during the semester students are enrolled in a course within the school. This semester you will be required to purchase tickets and attend the SDSU season shows.
There is a direct link to purchase tickets on the website: http://theatre.sdsu.edu
How to proceed: Attend the shows and respond to the work. You will be asked to respond to two productions by writing a brief response paper. Ticket stubs and responses should be submitted on the due dates provided on the “course calendar” on blackboard. The response paper guidelines are available on blackboard under “assignments”
Performer’s Guide to the Collaborative Process & other selected readings
Goal: To deepen understanding of theatrical techniques, activities, and teaching methods through the content reviewed in Sheila Kerrigan ’ s The Performer’s Guide to the Collaborative Process.
Assignment: Respond to the reading via completion on blackboard discussion board.
How to proceed: As you read you should be looking for three key points (things that seem important, areas that interest you) to highlight for the class. See blackboard “assignments” for further detail. *Note: the same format will be used for “selected readings” outside of the Sheila
Kerrigan text (i.e. articles and one TED talk).
Lead Opening or Closing Circle
Due Date: Various
Goal: In this task you will gain competency in the skill of guiding a group through a warm-up process that includes physical, vocal, and articulation work.
Assignment: Students will lead an Opening or Closing Circle once during the semester. The
Circle should be no more than 12 minutes long and must include physical, vocal and/or articulation work through a warm-up and activity. You can include a short group game if you have time or you can consider games/activities that cover all three areas required by the circle activity. See blackboard for details and “Theatre Worksheet” to be filled out prior to leading.
How to proceed: Observe the first couple of classes while Instructor is leading Opening Circle.
Work to select your activities. You may use any activities and exercises that you have learned in other places or read about. It is often useful to create your activities around a particular theme or idea that interests you. You must fill out the “Theatre Activity Worksheet” found on Blackboard. The
Theatre Activity Worksheet is used to describe any longer and more detailed activities that you present.
On your date: Arrive a few minutes early to set up and turn in your lesson plan using the “Theatre
Activity Worksheet” template (a cover letter is encouraged). Email your lesson plan to the entire class (including instructor) via Blackboard within 24 hours. Be ready to begin and be clear with your instructions. Lead the group with enthusiasm and passion for what you are teaching.
Children ’ s Drama Lesson Plan
Due Date: Various assigned co-teaching pairs

Goal: This introductory project provides an opportunity to become familiar with drama activities and expanding ones repertoire. In addition, this project provides students with practice leading the class in creative drama activities and works with in the “project-based learning” concept being adopted by the National Core Arts Standards. This project allows you the chance to team-teach and support one another in shared teaching practices.
Assignment: Working in teams, you will be responsible for creating a drama lesson on one of the basic skills areas of creative drama. The group will be given 15-20 minutes of class to present their lesson. This project is intended to introduce the class to lesson plans and to the basic skills areas of drama geared toward age appropriate curriculum, grades K-8.
Theatrical Concentrations:
Sensitivity, Trust, Energy, Focus, Voice, Speech, Sound, Movement, Pantomime, Ensemble
Building, Characterization, and Improvisational Acting.
How to Proceed: o You will be given limited class time to collaborate with your group on designing a lesson plan for your assigned drama skill area. Some outside meeting time will be required. o Research your drama skill area in books or on the web, through your Spolin text, etc. o Bring research in the form of a theatre activity to your in-class group meeting. o Collaborate to finalize how you will co-teach. Consider the sequence of activities. Inclusion music, visuals, and other tool, can be used if needed. Recommended: 1-2 activities.
Group Responsibility Provide the Instructor with a hard copy of your lesson plan on the day of your co-teaching. Be sure to share with class via email thereafter.
Poetry in Motion
Goal: This assignment will develop performance and imaginative skills while focusing on storytelling through the acting out of poetry using the Composition Box technique.
Assignment: Select and become familiar with a short children’s poem from Salting the Ocean.
You will then work in small groups to create a 2-3 minute composition presentation using the poems as your text.
How to proceed: o Work together to create your piece using the “ Compostiion Box ” similar to a rehearsal check list. o Rehearse and refine your work
On your date: Each small group will present their poetry feedback sharing process after the presentations are complete. Hand a copy of your presentation as well as the poem.
Children’s Literature Read Aloud
Goal: To develop presentation and imaginative skills through Reader’s Theatre techniques.
Assignment: Students will select an excerpt from a children’s book to read aloud, as well as story-tell and add theatrical elements to give the class a glimpse or preview of the content. You will prepare/perform this selection for individual presentation in class, lasting 2-3 minutes in length.

How to proceed: Find a piece of children’s literature that interests you, holds substantial content within the text, and fitting into the basic guidelines for adapting story to stage. Be sure to pick an excerpt that is filled with lively characters and plenty of interesting action. Your task is to bring the story to life using the space, your body, voice and expression. You must add two of the following elements to your reading: music, props, sound effects, costumes and movement. Use the
“ Rehearsal Checklist ” as a guide as you prepare and rehearse. Don’t just read the book; find an interesting way to tell the story. The goal thereafter, is for the entire class to select the most interesting and useful children ’ s books to then use for final group projects - dually think of this assignment as a future play pitch.
On your date: Each student will have no more than 4 minutes to set up, perform, and strike.
Page to Stage – Children ’ s Book Adaptations
Goal: To develop fluency in storytelling, adaptive playwriting and actualized acting skills.
Assignment: Students will take their children’s literature selection and adapt it into a script that could be staged as a classroom play. In small groups, you will then select one of these scripts to fully stage for the class.
How to proceed: As a group create and adapt the piece of literature chosen from storybook into a script. The script should consist of 3-5 pages of dialogue. A copy of this script will be turned in, prior to performing. In these groups you will select one of the adapted story scripts to stage and fully present in the class. These presentations will require some outside rehearsal time and should include elements of costume, set, sound and movement.
On your date: You will meet at the SDSU Children ’ s Center to perform your group ’ s adaptation to the preschool and pre-k students in attendance. This will happen during class time, directly followed by returning to class for reflective discussions.
PORTFOLIO:(Journal, Theatre Activities, Scholarly Responses, and Reflection Paper)
Goal: To compile most important class notes and preferred activities gained from the course, to later use in teaching. Be creative! See Blackboard for the detailed assignment prompt.
Assignment:
To complete this assignment, include:
- 5 journal entries
- your opening circle
- your co-teaching lesson plan
- your “ poetry in motion ” performance piece
- one scholarly response TED Talk or Article featured on blackboard.
- favorite 5 favorite activities gained from THEA315
- a two-page reflection paper assessing what you have learned in class about drama (processes, experiences, insights, etc.), and describe how you think you will use it in your future.

Assessment
Assignments
Your course grade is based on your performance in the following:
Quiz on the Syllabus
Biography Blurb & Educator Core Value Statements (via BB Discussion)
Attendance
Participation
Attending Performance #1 & Paper Response
Attending Performance #2 & Paper Response
Performer’s Guide to the Collaborative Process Ch. 5 (via BB Discussion)
Performer’s Guide to the Collaborative Process Ch. 6 or 7 (via BB Discussion)
TED Talk and Scholarly Article Response on Theatre (via BB Discussion)
Opening Circle: Activity Plan and Leadership (individual teaching)
Children ’ s Drama Lesson Plan (co-teaching)
10%
Poetry in Motion (in-class exercise and group performance piece)
Children’s Read Aloud
Page to Stage – Final (script drafts, in-class rehearsal attendance, performance)
Final Portfolio
TOTAL: 100% (100 possible points)
B
B-
C+
C
C-
Standard Collegiate Grading Scale
A+ 98-100
A
A-
B+
94-97
91-93
88-90
D range
F range
84-87
80-83
78-80
74-77
70-73
60 - 69
> 59
5%
5%
12%
12%
Point
Values
2%
2%
12%
5%
5%
5%
5%
5%
5%
10%