The Little Red Hen Unit - Weebly

1 SAMANTHA SPANGLER The Little Red Hen unit unit Goal: A student will cooperate, imagine and assume roles, explore personal preferences and meanings, and interact in classroom dramatizations. (Drama Core Standard 2). unit Partnered: 2nd Grade Core Standards and Objectives; 3rd Grade Drama Core, Visual Arts Core, and Language Arts Core. Week One Preparations: a. 2nd Grade Core i. Standard 2 Students will develop a sense of self in relation to families and community. 1. Objective 1 Describe behaviors that influence relationships with family and friends. a. Identify benefits of cooperating and sharing.

2 2. Objective 2 Examine important aspects of the community and culture that strengthen relationships Materials: The Little Red Hen storybook, a costume that resembles the red hen, a white board to write down main ideas. Time: 20 minutes (5 minutes of engagement into story, 15 minute discussion time) Procedures: Hook: Teacher dresses up as The Little Red Hen and comes into the classroom asking questions ( who will help me gather the wheat, who will help me plant the seeds, etc). Than she/he gathers students into reader s circle to read The Little Red Hen to them. Challenge students to listen very carefully and find out who is in the story, what the conflict is and how the problem could be solved.

3 Show illustrations in book. After finishing story, teacher leads analytical discussion about the story. Indicators of success: Students remain engaged Students share ideas and examples from story Students are able to identify main characters and conflicts Students make attempt to connect back to their lives Preparations: a. 3rd Grade Theatre Core ii. Objective 3 Develop body sensory awareness and sensory recall. 1. Use the senses to listen, observe, and discriminate. Materials: Room big enough for students to lie down, a script for the teacher of the journey you will take them on. Time: 25-30 minutes total.

4 (10-15 minutes for journey, 10 minute class reflection, 5 minute reflection in journal.) Procedures: Teacher leads the students through a character building process using sensory awareness and visualization skill building activity. Activity: Imaginary Journey. Hook: After recess or lunch when the students come back into the room, have all of the desks put aside and the teacher is sitting on the floor in a meditating pose, she whispers for those that hear her to join her, do this until everyone is sitting down ready to go. Have students spread out on floor and lye on their backs. Teacher will guide the entire visualization in a slow, relaxed, and calm voice.

5 (Full verbatim instructions at end of unit ) After guiding them through a sequential relaxation, begin with the Floating in the Clouds journey than adapt to fit The Little Red Hen set. End with a class reflection on journey. Ask: What did you see? Smell? Hear? Touch? Taste? How does your mind/body feel? Have them write down these observations in their journals. Indicators of Success: Students were engaged and not sleeping Students kept body straight and skill making no sounds. Inhale in the out the mouth. Students participated in class reflection, providing insight to what they experienced Students are able to communicate in their journal what they saw, smelt, heard, touched, etc.

6 Week 2 Preparations: a. 3rd Grade Theatre Core i. Objective 2 Develop expressive use of the voice. 2. Use clear diction. 3. Use pitch, tempo, and tone quality to create unique voice qualities. Materials: Outside area that has grass, strips of paper that have phrases from The Little Red Hen Time: 35-40 minutes total (5-10 minutes transition and instructional time, 20 minutes of active game, 5 minutes of discussion, 5 minutes journal reflection). Procedures: Teacher leads the students through a character building process through voice expression exploration skill building activities. Hook: Tell students to line up!

7 Don t tell them where they are going as you lead them outside onto the grass, tell them to get into a circle and sit down. Explain that you will be playing a game but it is very important for them to be quiet for this game, than further explain instructions. Play Game: Mystery Voice or Color the Phrase (full instructions at end of unit ). Teacher takes students outside for Mystery Voice. Students stand in a circle holding hands with one student chosen to stand in the middle. This person is blindfolded and the goal of the activity is for this one person to guess the other student s disguised voices. The students will use phrases of their own than progress into phrases from The Little Red Hen or have them disguise their voices like the characters in the story.

8 Close with having the students sit in the circle again, lead a discussion about voice expression. Have them return to the classroom and reflect on the activity in their journals. Indicators of Success: Students were engaged and held hands while moving in circle Students avoided talking, touching, or distracting others Students explored a variety of voice expressions Students attempted to provide insights regarding voice expression in closing discussion. Preparations: a. 3rd Grade Theatre Core iii. Objective 4 Develop cooperation and patience when working with others in classroom dramatizations.

9 1. Demonstrate cooperation while staying in the scene. 2. Demonstrate patience in-role. Materials: Copies of The Little Red Hen for every student, area s set aside for groups. Time: 40-50 minutes total (5-10 minutes instructional and transitional time, 25 minutes of Reader s Theater, 10-15 minutes closing reflection and character assignments.) Procedures: Teacher begins by reviewing discussion of meaning of The Little Red Hen and the discussion about voice expression done in the activity earlier in the week. Then the teacher separates students into 2-3 groups depending on class size. Hook: Have set aside areas for groups to meet in, in each area they have their own copy of The Little Red Hen.

10 Also have a parent helper or aide already at the group areas to help guide the students. Each group should meet in a circle, or on round tables if available. Tell students that they are going to be doing Reader s Theater in which they get to practice the voice expression skills they ve been building. And that they should spilt up the characters among themselves and read through the script. Have them do it several times so everyone gets a chance to play different parts. After they are through with this activity, go to each group individually and explain that they are going to get a chance to perform this play!