Lights, Camera, Action! Pupils read Little Women and create, act, and direct a melodrama that Jo March and her sisters would enjoy. The lesson plan comes complete with resources for the educator on melodrama as well as examples...

Do figures of speech enhance a play or story? In small groups, learners locate and describe figures of speech they find while reading a reader's theater play. After making predictions, they describe how the figures of speech make the...

Students explain how individual elements (e.g., plot, theme, character, conflict, etc.) comprise the structure of a play. They write an original one-act play with developed characters, specific setting, conflict, and resolution.

An exciting twist on the study of the classical hero and the heroic quest! Using film to explore modern-day tales of heroes, the resource contains complete, ready-to-use lesson plans for as many as twelve days of instruction. Throughout...

Young citizens construct an understanding of urban planning in this cross-curricular unit. Covering every aspect of city development from the political, economic, and social influences to sustainable building practices, this...

Students read "The Golden Ball" and discuss plot and story elements. In this drama lesson, students review script vs. story writing and presentation. Students take turns reading parts of the play and discuss, make paper crowns and...

Have your class conduct research to learn all they can about simple machines. They use the web, take notes from a video, write a script, then make a film describing various simple machines found in real life. These videos are then...

Students investigate the Middle Ages and it's relation to the theater.  In this acting lesson, students read Arthurian stories form the Middle Ages and practice using vocabulary words from the Medieval Times.  Students write a...

Comparing the more modern film Ten Things I Hate About You to The Taming of the Shrew leads to an understanding of how Shakespearean plots can be applied to modern-day situations and characters. As a culminating activity, groups select a...

Read then role-play the characters from story of If You Give A Pig a Pancake. Young actors use improvisation and characterization to create the characters from the story. They will also write and role play original version of the...

Students encounter the format of a podcast and plan what content they will include. They work in small groups or with the whole class to develop an outline. Students practice reading their scripts to other students.

How do people form their opinions about certain social issues? Scholars research current global issues to find out how psychology plays a role in swaying thoughts. Using blogs, writings, and presentations, they uncover why people think...

How can we create a more fair world? Chances are, class members have some ideas! After reading a text about fairness, individuals create skits around the ideas of fairness. Extend the learning and make their presentations a...

High schoolers examine Shakespeare's language. They select and explore death scenes from plays that they're familiar with and practice delivering famous death lines to one another. They should attempt to recreate the emotions that they...

Interpret Shakespearian scenes with your middle and high school classes. Groups select scenes from plays that they are familiar with to perform for their classmates. They should attempt to recreate the emotions they think the characters...

Students research why immigrants came to America and the processes involved in the settlement. They write a script for a short play explaining the causes for immigration and situations that immigrants found themselves in.

Young scholars edit scenes from Shakespeare's The Tempest in documentary fashion and perform their edited scripts. In this play analysis lesson, students read through Act 2 and 3 and discuss how and why to cut lines in a play. Young...

Students discuss areas of ambiguity in Julius Caesar and analyze the language as a tool to illustrate complex desires. In this Shakespeare lesson, students define subtext and use a neutral scene to act out subtext. Students create their...

Students explore the Russian Revolution through dramatization. In this Russian Revolution instructional activity, students participate in drama workshops prior to writing and presenting one-act plays featuring figures of the revolution.

Students read and discuss the literary elements of "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis. They explore the elements of dramatic performance and create a TV news program based on life in Narnia. They videotape their...

Students discover characterization techniques and methods. In this characterization lesson, students choose favorite fiction characters and discuss what makes a character come alive. Students then describe a family member or a friend and...

Students improve their reading and speaking skills. They experiment with language, tone of voice, body language as they write a play. They write a script to a play. They act out roles of the play.

Students learn a story and turn it into a puppet show using puppets they make out of craft materials. In this puppet show lesson plan, students make the puppets and perform a story that is already published in small groups.

Students participate in a play. In this historical figures lesson, students choose a person from history and take on their role. Students research the character, create historically accurate costumes and work in groups to prepare a...