Uso del teatro en el aula de inglés (en Inglés)

I believe that using drama activities have clear advantages for language learning. It encourages children to speak and gives them the chance to communicate, even with limited language as some of my students have, because they can use non-verbal instruments such as body language. Firstly the activities will be more controlled and progressively become less guided, until eventually they will be more natural or realistic. I will also use other tools during the classes in order to enrich the lessons, and help not only the different language learning styles but also will relax them and include them in the activities, such as flashcards, songs, stretching, gym movements…

The activities can follow this plan:

- Introduction activities

- Dialogues (guided and original)

- Plays

- Improvisation.

I will focus all the activities with vocabulary from the topics they work in class, which will help their fluency. The vocabulary will be:

- Classroom objects.
- Feelings.
- Clothes.
- Animals.
- House furniture.
- Food.
- Daily routines.
- Jobs.

The words will be introduced with flashcards together. All these ‘word families’ are part of the topics they study in their classes. We will write down the words on posters around the class, so they have the information at hand, I will take them away once we work for some time with them.

ACTIVITIES

RELAXATION

• 10 to 1

The children have to close their eyes. The teacher counts slowly from 10 to 1 and they have to try to concentrate on each number, not thinking about anything else, only the numbers.
The countdown has to be very slowly, giving the children time to feel the resonance and associations of each number. By the time number one is reached, the children will be relaxed and ready to begin the next activity.
Time: around 10 minutes
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Stretch

All the children sit on the floor. They sit with the legs and knees close to their chests. They put their arms around their legs. They put their heads between their knees. They tighten the muscles of their legs, arms, back, neck, buttocks, feet, hands, and fingers – even the muscles of their faces!
They hold all their muscles tight for one minute and then slowly relax and loosen their muscles.
They should stand and slowly open out their arms, hands and fingers, and their legs. They should open their eyes and mouth as wide as possible.
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Pass the sound

The children stand in a circle of about eight children. The first child makes a short sound. The second child imitates the sound as closely as possible. The initiating child can correct any copying child. Each child in the circle copies each of the previous sounds before adding their own.
The children pass a word or short phrase round the circle.
The children pass round a word or a short phrase and try to imitate exactly the way it was spoken: intonation, stress… You might suggest that the first child should try to express an emotion, for example, anger, happiness, surprise.
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Class shout

All the class sits on the floor as close together as possible. One child acts as the leader and begins to make a low humming sound. Slowly other children begin to hum, and eventually everyone is humming, louder and louder.
As the humming gets louder the leader slowly begins to stand and others copy him or her. When everyone is on their feet (even if still crouching) everyone jumps in the air and shouts as loudly as possible.
This will continue until it works smoothly and everyone is humming, rising, jumping and shouting together. The class can choose a particular word or phrase to shout.
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Class Snake

All the children join hands in a long line. The first person (who must be strong, slow, considerate and inventive) leads the snake through itself: between bodies, legs over arms…
When the snake is in a complete knot, the teacher or a child direct what each child must do to sort it out.
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Songs
  

I will use different action songs, from a cassette called: Tumble Tots for Everyone, Song-a-long – Action Songs (Children Audio company). They are fun and make them act out, so they will be a good way to motivate them. They will be used as warmers or as cooler at the end of the class.

• Yes/No line
  

Children stand in a line. The teacher writes on the left side of the board ‘yes’ and on the right ‘no’. She stands on a chair between both words. She asks yes/no questions, if the answer is yes, children must jump to the left. If it’s no, they should jump to the right. They will be out of the game if they jump to the wrong side.

MIMING

• What’s in my box?

All the children sit in a circle around the teacher. The teacher mimes the following: Picking up a box.
Opening it
Finding something inside
Responding to it
Touching it, feeling it, showing it to the rest of the group
Pass it to the rest, so they can all touch it and feel it. Using their imagination.
Once they all have a go, they have to say what they thought it was. Then, another would ‘take out their own box’.
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Emotions
  

We write all the words for emotions and feelings the children know on the board (happy, sad, angry, surprised, interested, worried…)
The children take turns to mime different emotions the rest have to guess.
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Mime daily moments

We do a brainstorm of at least five moments from their everyday lives. I write them on the board. A volunteer mimes one of the actions and the rest have to guess. We finish when all of the students participate.
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Mime a monster
  

All stand in a circle. I divide the class in two groups of 5 each. The teacher describes a monster which the children make between them with bodies. Ex: make a monster with two heads, three arms, one leg and a tail.
We review the vocabulary of the different parts of the body.
Volunteers come out and describe a monster the rest have to make.
In their groups they have to invent their monsters and the other group describes it.
Activity taken from Sarah Phillips. 1999. “Getting Started” 13-27. Drama with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Statues
  

The teacher has to become a statue of one of the words we are working on, and the children have to guess it. After this example, volunteers have to become statues and the rest have to guess it. This can be practiced in pairs first and then with the whole group.
Activity taken from Sarah Phillips. 1999. “Getting Started” 13-27. Drama with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

SHORT GUIDED AND INVENTED DIALOGUES

• Listen/see and mime

The children listen to a story, and do actions as they hear certain words.
Example:

'The Enormous Elephant’
This is the story of Enormous Elephant, Magic Monkey and Crazy Crocodile. One day Enormous Elephant was bored, very very bored. Then he had an idea.
‘I know’, he said, ‘I’ll go to New York’.
So he started to walk, and he walked, and he walked, and he walked. On the way he met Magic Monkey.
‘Hello, Magic Monkey’, he said.
‘Hello’, said Magic Monkey.
‘What’s the matter?’ said Enormous Elephant.
‘I´m bored,’ said Magic Monkey, ‘very, very bored.’
‘I’ve got an idea’, said Enormous Elephant, ‘why don’t you come to New York with me?’
‘Ok’, said Magic Monkey.
So they started to walk, and they walked, and they walked, and they walked. On the way, they met the Crazy Crocodile.
‘Hello’, they said.
‘Hello’, said Crazy Crocodile.
‘What’s the matter‘?’ said Enormous Elephant.
‘I’m bored’, said Crazy Crocodile, ‘very, very bored’
‘I’ve got an idea’, said Enormous Elephant, ‘why don’t you come to New York with us?’
‘Ok’, said Crazy Crocodile.
So they started to walk, and they walked, and they walked, and they walked, and they walked, and they walked, walked, walked.
‘Oh, I´m tired,’ said Enormous Elephant.
‘Oh, I´m tired,’ said Magic Monkey.
‘Oh, I´m tired,’ said Crazy Crocodile.
So they all went to sleep.

Before telling the story, we will work out the vocabulary together, and elicit the actions. Once they all acquire the language and mimics, the story will be told.
While the story is being told, the teacher will mimic the actions and encourage the rest to join. This will be done on another lesson. When they are familiar to this, in pairs they will create their stories. Once they finish they will mimic them in front of the class, so the rest try to guess what it is about. After this the will tell the story the same way as the teacher did, eliciting with the rest the mimics before.
Activity taken from Sarah Phillips. 1999. “Getting Started” 13-27. Drama with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

SHORT GUIDED PLAYS

 The Non-scary ghost.
 The Gingerbread Man
 Mr. Men Stories

IMPROVISATION

• Create a story with flashcards

We all sit in a circle. In the middle of it, the teacher will put flashcards of the topic desired, of situations also. The teacher will take the flash card she wants and starts the story. The student sitting next to her will get the flashcard they want and continue the story. Another way of developing the activity is that the person describing the story chooses a flashcard and gives it to the person he/she wants to continue.

• Fortunately-unfortunately
  

We all sit in a circle. The teacher starts describing a situation. The child next to the teacher must carry on the story, beginning with the word ‘fortunately’. The next child continues with the story, beginning with the word ‘unfortunately’. Each child must listen to what the previous child has said in order to make the relevant contrast.
Example:
Teacher: This story is about a boy and his mother and father. The boy’s name is Tom. Tom is not happy. He wants a pet.
Child A: Fortunately, his mother gives him a pet.
Child B: Unfortunately, the pet is a crocodile.
Child C: Fortunately, it is a nice crocodile.
Child D: Unfortunately, it eats children
Activity taken from Andrew Wright. 1997. “Story Warmers” 14- 23. In: Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Multi-purpose spoon

Children sit in a circle and pass the spoon around. Each child uses the spoon to represent an action. The others guess what they are doing.
Example: I’m going to use this spoon to tell you what I did yesterday/last weekend… I ate a banana (this will be done with mimic not speaking, pretending the spoon is a banana) the rest have to guess. They can all use any word they want, but the vocabulary posters will give them chance to have a basis to act out the words.
Activity taken from Sarah Phillips. 1999. “ Getting Started” 13-27. Drama with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Andrew Wright. 1997. Creating Stories with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Cohen, L., and Manion, L. 1994. Research Methods in Education. London: Routledge
Madariaga, Magali.2006. ‘The Little Non-Scary Ghost’. The Teacher’s Magazine,34:25
Peter Watcyn Jones. 2000. Top Class Activities 2. Essex: Penguin English.
Sarah Phillips. 1999. Drama with Children. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Wallace, Michael J. 1999. Action Research for Language Teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University.
Internet links:
http://www.sasklearning.gov.sk.ca/docs/ela/e_literacy/supp_role.html
http://www.mrmen.com/
http://www.readingonline.org/editorial/august2000/sanchez.htm