Lesson PlanThe Mysterious Giant of Barletta

Diane BiggsVista Academy of Visual and Performing Arts

Goals: Using theater and key vocabulary words students will be able to use their bodies to create and feel a position for each key vocabulary word. Students will be able to match their body position to the correct key vocabulary word and definition.

California State Standards English Language Arts: 1.0 Word Analysis, Fluency, and Systematic Vocabulary Development

Students understand the basic features of reading. They select letter patterns and know how to translate them into spoken language by using phonics, syllabication, and word parts. They apply this knowledge to achieve fluent oral and silent reading.

Decoding and Word Recognition 1.2 Decode regular multisyllabic words.

1.0 Listening and Speaking Strategies

Students listen critically and respond appropriately to oral communication. They speak in a manner that guides the listener to understand important ideas by using proper phrasing, pitch, and modulation.

1.7 Use clear and specific vocabulary to communicate ideas and establish the tone.

2.0 CREATIVE EXPRESSION Visual and Performing Arts: Theatre Content Standards

Creating, Performing, and Participating in Theatre

Students apply processes and skills in acting, directing, designing, and script writing to create formal and informal theatre, film/videos, and electronic media productions and to perform in them.

Development of Theatrical Skills2.1 Participate in cooperative script writing or improvisations that incorporate the Five Ws.

DURATION: Approximately 20 - 30 minutes. Students can continue to use the theater movement throughout the reading and retelling of the story.

Materials/ Preparation Needed: Teachers should have an idea of what type of movement or position will be needed to symbolize each vocabulary word. Pictures of each vocabulary word are needed.

Vocabulary: giant, statue, weakling, pedestal mysterious, square

Body of Lesson Plan:Introduction/Activation of Prior Knowledge To introduce this lesson, I began with a picture of each vocabulary word. Pictures from the Internet or pictures related to the story, The Mysterious Giant of Barletta are fine. Each student visually looked at the vocabulary word and picture.

Teaching the Lesson: For each vocabulary word, students created a movement and froze in that position to represent or symbolize each key word. Students created each movement while sitting down. Since many students had different suggested positions for the vocabulary word, I selected the position from the student suggestions that would most convey the meaning of the vocabulary word.

Here are the examples I used in class with words and pictures to give concrete examples.

Giant: Students raised their hands and arms high overhead to symbolize and feel the large size of the giant.

Statue: Students raised their right arm high and held their left arm bent with a small fist. This position was modeled after The Statue of Liberty. (I used a picture of The Statue of Liberty to introduce this word.)

Pedestal: Students placed their elbows on their desks, locked their fingers together and placed their wrists at a 90-degree angle to show the base or pedestal of the statue.

Mysterious: Students placed their hands (palms facing out) in front of their face to created a mysterious persona.

Square: Students placed their forefinger and thumb on top of each other and spread their remaining fingers wide. The thumbs and forefingers represented the town square and the additional fingers represented the buildings around the open square.

Weakling: Students hung their head down, bent their arms at the elbow and hung their arms down in a position of weakness.

Guided Practice: After each key vocabulary position was decided we reviewed each word with the correct position. Example: I said statue; students stated the word and showed the statue position.

Conclusion: We concluded by using our key vocabulary position each time students heard a key vocabulary word when we read pages 290 -291 Get Set to Read in the Houghton Mifflin text. In addition, before reading the story, students completed the Transparency 3-9 to review vocabulary words with movement and definitions.

Extension Activities: This activity is perfect for extension. Each vocabulary word and movement can be used for review and can be used as you read the story. I used each movement position and key vocabulary word for review the next day. The students recalled each position and we held the statue position for 1 – 2 minutes to feel what it is like to be a statue and to convey that statues do not move.

In addition to the above extension, we made 3 drama movements to show the directions that Zia Concetta gives the townspeople. The students were able to recall the directions when they put their body in each of the three positions.

Assessment: Informal student assessment occurred as each vocabulary word was read and selected. It was easy to identify if students understood the position and could match it with the correct vocabulary word. A second assessment was completed as students read the word and drew the correct picture of each vocabulary word in the HM Practice Book. Students were also able to complete Giant Words (Transparency 3 -9) with accuracy.

Students understood the related terms of fantasy and realism when they realized that the statue moved. Since we had practiced stillness with our statue position, students understand that statues are frozen on a pedestal and do not move. When the Mysterious Giant moved, students commented that statues do not move and understood the fantasy aspects of the story.

Research Reference: Wilhelm, Jeffrey D. 2002. Action Strategies for Deepening Comprehension. Scholastic Professional Books

Lin Wright Theory into Practice Vol. 24, No. 3, Educating through Drama (Summer, 1985), pp. 205-210.

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