Movement/Pantomime UnitLesson 1 - Image TheatreEducational Objective: Students will understand the importance of their body in storytelling by participating in various image theatre activities and follow-up discussions.Materials Needed: “I Am” Poem (either on a handout for them to fill out, or a journal prompt on the projector).Hook:The Martha Game:Invite students to join me, standing in a circle, in the front of the room, after putting their books down at their seats.Explain the rules of the game. (One person starts an image by freezing, like a statue, in a pose - ex. I am laying out at the beach (student lays down and poses like he is sunbathing) - other students join the image, freezing in their poses as they announce what they are - ex. I am a seagull, I am drowning in the ocean, I am the lifeguard, I am a shark, etc. Once everyone has joined, and the picture is completed, I will choose one student who is in a very interesting pose to stay in that pose but choose a new scene. Everyone will then join that scene. So on and so on maybe four or five times — or more — depending on how long it takes. If needed, I will participate in the first one (by starting it) and then I will let them take over. I will also be side coaching to make sure that they are all participating and that no one is thinking about it too hard.Transition:Instruct students to move from the circle back to their seats, picking up their journals on the way.Journal Entry:Fill in the blanks in this “I Am” Poem: (some students might need you to explain what you mean by characteristics - give examples if you need to)I am ____________ and _______________ (two special characteristics)I wonder ____________________________ (something you are really curious about)I feel _______________________________ (what are you feeling right now?)I worry _____________________________ (something that really bothers you)I try ________________________________ (something you make an effort to do)I dream _____________________________ (something you actually dream about)I am ____________ and ________________ (first line of the poem repeated)Transition:Ask students to place their journals under their chairs, explaining that we will come back to these later.Activity:Ask for a reminder of what “soft focus” means.Instruct students to walk around the room in soft focus. Tell them that I will call out a word (emotion, feeling), and that when I say “freeze,” they need to make a statue (a silent statue) that shows that emotion.Have them walk, give them a countdown to freeze. (ex: Make a statue that shows happy in 3…2…1… Freeze!) (ex: Make a statue that shows me what you would look like if something just gave you the worst news of your life in 3…2…1… Freeze!)Walk around the frozen statues, observing. After a few different emotions, and students are feeling a little more comfortable with this activity, walk through and find interesting or unique poses and have them continue freezing while other students unfreeze and look (gallery walk, sort of). Look for different ways that students are showing the same emotion — have students notice that there are different ways to show the same emotion.Take note of both body language and facial expressions. Ask the students what sorts of things they are noticing when they look around at other people.Activity:Instruct students to grab a partner.Ask them to show, with their bodies only (frozen statues again) what two people who are friends, who like each other, might look like. What about if they don’t like each other?They are going to choose, with their partner, a relationship to show (two people that “go together”) like a parent/child, teacher/student, monster in closet/child hiding under the covers.They have 30 seconds to choose their relationship, and when I say freeze they need to make statues together that show that relationship. (ask for some students to tell what they did).Do this two more times. On the third time, have the students find another partnership near them to show their statues to. Have the other group guess what it is. Then switch.Activity:Emphasize that for this activity, the goal is to communicate silently as a group to create images together.As a class, everyone needs to create these pictures together. Give them the object or image they need to create, give them ten seconds to create it — “When I turn back around, I want to see a triangle…” and count out loud 1-10. Ask if there are any other ways they would show that image (let them try some of them a second time).Use shapes, group objects, scenes, and abstract things.Activity:Divide the class, based just on where they are standing, into four different groups. Give each group a (secret) abstract image that they need to create a frozen image for. Give the groups two minutes to decide what they are doing. Have each group show their image to the class, like a performance (so being good audience members), and then let students guess what they think it is based on what they are seeing.Transition:Ask students to grab their journals and come make a circle, sitting, on the floor.Activity: Tableau GiftsAsk students for a volunteer to read one line of their “I Am” poems. Tell everyone that we are going to make a gift for that student, we are going to make an image just for them based on the line they read. Have that student close their eyes, and invite anyone who feels “inspired” by that line to come create a picture for it. Invite as many students as would like to join. When the image is “done” (when people stop coming up) the student can open their eyes and receive their gift. “Say thank you.”I may need to help students think of things, or pick certain students to join the picture is no one is.Transition:Go sit back down in your seats, open to today’s journal entry for part 2.Reflection:What is body language? How do you use body language to express emotions or feelings?