WEEK 1 - Setting the Stage
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On this page, you'll find the goals of the week, as well as a quick glance at each day
In this week, the first two days were used to 'set the stage' and start students thinking about comedy, things they find funny, and introduce them to improv games (which would be used as warm ups and for building background knowledge throughout the project). The remaining days were used to introduce students to storybuilding ideas, particularly character development. Students also built original characters which would be used in the following week to build their collaborative stories.
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Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Introduction (10 mins):
Unit introduction
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Introducing the unit
Activity (95 mins):
"What's So Funny?"
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Discussing media and
what students find funny
Improv Games
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Using drama games as
energizers and for practicing
relevant skills (e.g. character
development)
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Conclusion (15 mins):
Reflective Journal
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Students wrote a 1-page reflection based on the teacher prompt
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Introduction (30 mins):
Improv Games
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Monster Tag
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One Word Story
Activity (75 mins):
"What's So Funny?"
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In groups, students analyze media they find funny for its comedic elements
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Conclusion (15 mins):
Group Discussion
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Students brainstorm a list of comedic practices and ideas that they find funny as a whole class
Introduction (30 mins):
Movie Analysis
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Students view two animated Pixar shorts, looking for plot structure
Activity (75 mins):
Pixar Story Circles
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Students reviewed movie plot development and analyzed a popular movie using a story frame
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The class collaboratively built a story using the structure, with the teacher facilitating
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Students began writing their own stories using the story frame
Conclusion (15 mins):
Group Discussion
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Students share their experiences of character building - building an anchor chart of ideas related to character design
Introduction (30 mins):
Improv Games
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Character building games
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Activity (75 mins):
Character Building
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Student choose a character and experiment analysing them with the profile organizer
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Students had the option to begin building their own character using the organizer
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Conclusion (15 mins):
Reflective Journal
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Students reflect on their characters, as well as the challenges and successes of comedic story writing
Introduction (30 mins):
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Improv Games
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Warm up games
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Circular Stories
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​Students review a circular story framework
Activity (75 mins):
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Pixar Game
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In small groups, students play the Pixar Game aloud
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Character Profiles
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Students create/continue original characters using an organizer
Conclusion (15 mins):
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Reflective Journal
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Students reflect on their characters, as well as the challenges and successes of comedic story writing
