The High School Theatre Teacher's Survival Guide


Book Description

A reference for high school theatre teachers covering both curricular and extracurricular problems – everything from how to craft a syllabus for a theatre class to what to say to parents about a student's participation in a school play.




The Drama Teacher's Survival Guide


Book Description

"This is a terrific and instructive book, and an essential reminder of how inspiring and empowering a good drama teacher can be. I hope it's read widely and that new generations of pupils and teachers benefit from its wisdom and its verve." Nick Hytner Drama teaching is at a critical juncture. With new qualifications in the market, changes in government approach to the arts in education and hundreds of thousands of students wanting to be part of the country's hugely successful performing arts industry, the pressures on drama teachers are enormous. Many don't have a specialist background in drama and theatre and end up taking on the role of drama teacher; others feel disconnected from current theatre practice because of the time-demands of teaching; plenty of drama teachers feel they could be serving their students better, if only they had the resources and the support. For all of those teachers, this book will come as welcome relief. The Drama Teacher's Survival Guide provides support, inspirational ideas and rock-solid guidance for secondary drama teachers. It outlines the fundamental principles of a creative drama curriculum, and looks at how teachers can facilitate this and deliver inspiring lessons to fulfill the potential of their learners. It addresses head-on the common and numerous challenges that drama teachers face, from having to design their own creative curriculum to understanding how students learn. The author's own advice and expertise is supplemented by case studies, thereby collating and offering up the best advice and experience available. Written by Matthew Nichols, drama teacher for 12 years, this book offers a range of strategies, case studies and methods that really work.




Making Your First Year a Success


Book Description

"Provides tools that give new teachers the confidence to face complex classroom challenges. When teachers have a successful first year, they are more likely to return and continue making a difference for children." —Catherine H. Payne, Principal W.R. Farrington High School, Honolulu, HI "Provides specific and practical advice, from how to create wonderful lessons to dealing with difficult parents, all geared to the needs of new secondary teachers." —Catherine Kilfoyle Duffy, English Department Chair Three Village Central School District, Stony Brook, NY A practical guide to overcoming the challenges of your first year. You′ve completed the course work, student teaching, and interviewing. The job is yours. Now what? The first weeks and months of a new teaching position can be the most demanding of your entire career. In this new edition of their bestseller, veteran educators Robert L. Wyatt III and J. Elaine White share a combined 50 years of teaching experience as well as insight and advice from hundreds of teachers in the field they have personally trained. Comprehensive yet concise, Making Your First Year a Success, Second Edition is expressly tailored to assist secondary teachers. Updated topics in this thoroughly revised second edition include: Integrating technology into classroom activities Connecting lesson planning and standards Incorporating differentiation into the secondary classroom Dealing with stress and nurturing yourself emotionally and physically Whether starting fresh with your first group of students or revitalizing your commitment to the profession you entered many years ago, this handbook will easily become the well-worn reference you turn to again and again for quick tips, practical applications, and words of encouragement.




The Art Teacher's Survival Guide for Elementary and Middle Schools


Book Description

The perennial bestseller—now in a new edition Authoritative and practical, this comprehensive guide offers everything a teacher needs to know for conducting an effective art instruction and appreciation program. The Third Edition of The Art Teacher's Survival Guide for Elementary and Middle Schools includes a complete update on public-relations guidelines, and reference material examples. The revised edition also features many new projects, an update on current projects and includes an explanation of the hot topic amongst art educators, Teaching Artistic Behavior (TAB/choice). Choice-based art education is reflected in the authors’ discussion of teaching in mixed-media, ceramics, photography, sculpture, and art history. More than 100 creative art projects, from drawing to digital media Offers teaching tools, tips, and multicultural curriculum resources Includes new material on logical ways to encourage individual and personal solutions to a problem Gives teachers more latitude as to how individuality is suggested in a lesson This is an invaluable compendium for art educators and classroom teachers alike.




The Playwright's Survival Guide


Book Description

The Playwright's Survival Guide is written for both aspiring and established writers looking for an emotional, spiritual, or just plain practical connection back to what's important - the writing. It's a "how-to-be" book - with thoughts, stories of inspiration, a few tricks of the trade, a few outlets for venting frustrations, and a reassuring voice that speaks to all the doubts with an "I know. I've been there. This is what you do . . ." Gary Garrison demystifies the playwriting process, speaking honestly, poignantly, and with humor about the lessons he's learned along the way. He explores the issues playwrights face every day, including: inspiration criticism self-doubt relationships with teachers and mentors the art of self-promotion writer's block staying healthy in the art after your fingers are off the keyboard.




Acting Alone


Book Description

Students trained to act alone are skilled at filling in the blanks on stage. These students understand character development and are able to apply their concepts to any role including those created in the spur of the moment during an improvised scene. Above all, these are students who own the stage they walk on, exuding confidence to the rafters and beyond. In reading Acting Alone, you'the drama teacher'will acquire a whole new way of looking at monologues and their multiplicity of uses in the classroom. You may choose to create a small unit devoted to monologue work in order to prepare your students for audition situations, or you may choose to use monologues to teach units on character development, movement, voice, acting, writing and directing. You will learn to teach your students how to write their own monologues and how to write monologues for your students. Or, use the author's?100 are included! At the end of each chapter, a Survival Kit gives a concise summary of the important points covered in that chapter. While lesson planning, refer to the Survival Kit for inspiration or make it your "to do" list for the unit. So why not get started!




The Musical Theatre Writer's Survival Guide


Book Description

Award-winning musical dramatist and teacher David Spencer provides a guide-to-the-game that helps you negotiate aspects of the musical theatre business and more.




The Classroom Teacher's Survival Guide


Book Description

An updated edition of the best-selling book for teacher success in the classroom Designed for new and experienced teachers alike, this thoroughly revised and updated edition offers a value-packed, practical source of ready-to-use tips and strategies for meeting the challenges teachers face everyday while organizing and managing a classroom. The third edition includes entirely new sections on teaching English language learners, inquiry-based learning, building positive teacher-student relationships, wrapping up the school year, and much more. The book also features many new forms, pre-written letters, checklists, and reproducibles, along with bonus forms and reproducibles that are available for free download from the web. Includes tools and techniques proven to help teachers succeed in the classroom Contains new sections on teaching English language learners, teacher-student relationships, inquiry-based learning, and more Many handy reproducible forms, handouts, and checklists Includes access to free downloadable bonus material on the web, including pre-written letters, reproducible forms, and worksheets




The Drama Book


Book Description

Everything you need to get dramatic in the classroom This easy-to-use, comprehensive teacher-resource book has lesson plans and practical activities that integrate theater into language learning. Plus ten original scripts so you can put the activities into action immediately! Drama and play scripts can be used to teach pronunciation, pragmatics, and other communication skills, as well as provide grammar and vocabulary practice! Conveniently organized into two parts, Part 1 includes pragmatics mini-lessons, community builders, drama games, and pronunciation activities. There are also lesson plans for producing a play (either fully-staged or as Reader's Theater), as well as guidelines and activities for writing plays to use with (or without students,) and suggestions for integrating academic content. You’ll even find rubrics and evaluation schemes for giving notes and feedback. Part 2 includes 10 original monologues and scripts of varying lengths that can be photocopied and used in the classroom. Specifically designed to feature everyday language and high frequency social interactions, these scenes and sketches follow engaging plot arcs in which characters face obstacles and strive to achieve objectives. With a foreword by Ken Wilson, this book is a must-have for anyone interested in using the performing arts to help students become more confident and fluent speakers.




The Tantrum Survival Guide


Book Description

"Most parents of toddlers and preschoolers know a thing or two about tantrums--those epic meltdowns that seem to come out of nowhere. Even though tantrums can be part of "normal" toddler behavior, they are maddening, stressful, and exhausting. What can parents do to help everyone step back and calm down? With candor and wit, Rebecca Schrag Hershberg, psychologist and mom of two, explains the science behind why tantrums occur and what parents might unintentionally be doing to encourage them. She offers a customizable plan for nipping blowups in the bud while fostering healthy development and deeper parent-child connections. Imagine family life with equal measures of love and limits--and less drama"--