Understanding By Design Unit Template

Title of Unit
Subject
Developed By

Dramatic Elements And Identity

Grade Level

Drama

Time Frame

12 classes

Kourtney Fesser

Stage 1 - Identify Desired Results

Broad Areas of Learning
How are the BAL incorporated into this unit?
The students are being asked to be lifelong learners. I am pushing them to be curious and observant about different
aspects of drama. They have to reflective of their own work and their peers work. From observing a multitude of aspects
of drama this unit will push them to relate this form of art to a a real life issue in society. Students are also being asked
to understand the idea of identity. Looking at dramatic characters they will begin to reflect on what it means to embody
a different identity. The student's will learn all of this through discussions, stories and experiences just as the First
Nations People did.
Cross curricular Competencies
How will this unit promote the CCC?
This unit is made to make the students think and learn creatively by having the students be curious about the new
experience of acting in front of their peers. The students also need to think critically about the factors that influence
the their audiences perceptions of their performances and how to address these assumptions. Also students must be
able to use the appropriate technologies needed to understand the assignments within the unit. Finally this unit will
force students to express their understandings of drama using many different literacies. They must focus on what the
best way is to communicate their thoughts to the rest of the class. This includes deciding the language to use so that
the information can be useful and applicable for their peers.
Learning Outcomes
What relevant goals will this unit address?
(must come from curriculum; include the designations e.g. IN2.1)
CP8.4-Demonstrate how dramatic characters interact in relationships within the drama and/or collective creation.
CP8.5-Investigate how theatrical elements (e.g., story, character, design, space) are combined to achieve dramatic purpose.
CP8.7-Improvise, compose, and perform (e.g., with voice, instruments, and technologies) a selection of pieces in contrasting styles.

CP8.6-Express student perspectives on social issues (e.g., poverty, racism, homophobia, sustainability, gangs) in drama and/or collective creation
CP8.11-Select and use appropriate forms, technologies, images, and art-making processes to express student perspectives on social issues.
R8.1-Respond to professional dance, drama, music, and visual art works through the creation of own arts expressions.
Enduring Understandings
What understandings about the big ideas are desired? (what you
want students to understand & be able to use several years from
now)
What misunderstandings are predictable?
Students will understand the difficulty of being able to get up in
front of a class. The students need to practice being put outside
their comfort zones to gain confidence in uncomfortable situations.
In several years from now I want the students to feel comfortable
with public speaking. Allowing the activities to be fun will hopefully
push the students outside their comfort zone. Also I want the
students to understand the art in dramatic pieces of art. They
should understand all of the factors that make a dramatic piece of
art. The beauty of individuals being able to embody another
individuals identity is something that deserves to be appreciated.
A misconception I see from this unit is students believing they
are just performing fun and meaningless activities. The fun aspect
and creativity freedom might lead to students believing that drama
is not an art but is rather a game. Drama is often times viewed as a
free period that students do not need to work hard in to achieve the
desired outcomes. Having proper conclusion discussions at the end
of each lesson should combat this misunderstanding.
Knowledge:
What knowledge will student acquire as a result of this unit? This
content knowledge may come from the indicators, or might also
address pre-requisite knowledge that students will need for this
unit.
As a result of this unit the students will acquire the knowledge of
how to properly tell a story to an audience. They will be practicing
the art of telling stories to their peers throughout all of the
assignments. The students will also learn what it means to act out
an identity that is not your own. They will learn about the
confidence it takes to publicly go outside of your comfort zone in
front of many people.

Essential Questions
What provocative questions will foster inquiry into the content?
(open-ended questions that stimulate thought and inquiry linked
to the content of the enduring understanding)
-What makes some of your favorite movies your favorite?
( conversation to move towards the dramatic elements needed to
make the piece have purpose)
-What characteristics make your favorite characters in movies
your favorite? ( talk about body gestures, accents etc..)
-What was the hardest part of not having time to practice your
performance and perform on the spot?
- Was it difficult to tell a story without being able to talk?
-Why do dramatic performances succeed in telling stories so well
that often times just words can not do on their own? ( The
importance of visual representation to storytelling in Forst
Nations culture)

Skills
What skills will students acquire as a result of this unit? List the
skills and/or behaviours that students will be able to exhibit as a
result of their work in this unit. These will come from the
indicators.
-Demonstrate confidence and curiosity when assuming different kinds of roles in
drama work.
-Describe own roles and specific contributions to the collective drama work.
-Demonstrate awareness of how focus is maintained and shifts during pair, small,
and whole group drama work.
-Examine how contrasts among characters function within the drama.
-Identify how theatrical elements (e.g., story, role or character, technical design)
can be manipulated to achieve a creative purpose and consider how such
elements relate to own drama work.
-Consider and analyze how set, costumes, lighting, and sound/music design can
be manipulated to achieve different effects in own work.

-Demonstrate imagination when creating imaginary places and situations in own

drama work
-Analyze the use of movement, and the use of space and time in own work.
-Analyze and discuss how drama may be used to explore perspectives on social
issues and promote understanding of topics of personal significance.
-Improvise simple pieces around a given structure.
-Create own work (e.g., visual or performing arts) in response to a professional
arts expression, and describe how own work is inspired or influenced by the
original work.

Stage 2 Assessment Evidence

Performance Task
Through what authentic performance task will students demonstrate the desired understandings, knowledge, and skills? (describes the
learning activity in story form. Typically, the P.T. describes a scenario or situation that requires students to apply knowledge and skills
to demonstrate their understanding in a real life situation. Describe your performance task scenario below)
By what criteria will performances of understanding be judged?
GRASPS Elements of the Performance Task
G Goal
The students will finish the unit by completing a performance task of creating a video. The video
What should students accomplish by
will accomplish being able to create their own piece of dramatic art using technology as a means to
completing this task?
share it. The students will be taking on the roles of creator, director, talent and editor. They will be
R Role
having the perspective of being apart of every aspect of the dramatic process. The audience for
What role (perspective) will your
this assignment will be myself as the grader and their classroom. They should be aiming to get a
students be taking?
reaction out of their audience. The challenge to this assignment is being able to sensitively portray
A Audience
an identity issue through an artistic way. There are many identity issues in society including
Who is the relevant audience?
gender, cultural and religious identity. Students have to be conscious of knowing how to convey
these characteristics in a sensitive manner. IN the end they will create a short film for all of us to
S Situation
enjoy. The film will not be judged on the quality of film editing. Rather, the assignment will be
The context or challenge provided to
judged based on the content.
the student.
P Product, Performance

What product/performance will the

student
create?

S Standards & Criteria for

Success

Create the rubric for the Performance

Attached is a rubric for this Performance Task.

Task

Other Evidence
Through what other evidence (work samples, observations,
quizzes, tests, journals or other means) will students demonstrate
achievement of the desired results? Formative and summative
assessments used throughout the unit to arrive at the outcomes.
- take notes on student participation in class
-have written scripts for two lessons handed in for assessment
- make notes about the presentations made during the unit ( all of
the skits performed)

Student Self-Assessment
How will students reflect upon or self-assess their learning?

During the course of the unit students will be asked in the closing
discussions about how they thought their performance went. We
will have a dialogue in front of the class about how they could
improve and what could have gone better. Students will also
complete entries in their drama journals to reflect on the lessons.
Also students will complete a self assessment for their
Performance task.

Stage 3 Learning Plan

What teaching and learning experiences will you use to:
achieve the desired results identified in Stage 1?
equip students to complete the assessment tasks identified in Stage 2?
Where are your students headed? Where have they been? How will you make sure the students know where they are
going?
What experiences do the learners bring to the unit? How have the interests of the learners been ascertained? Have the
learners been part of the pre-planning in any way? What individual needs do you anticipate will need to be addressed?
Learning environment: Where can this learning best occur? How can the physical environment be arranged to enhance
learning?
The students are headed to understanding the difficulty and beauty if improvisation. In the process they will learn about all the elements of a dramatic
production with a focus on identity and characterization. This is many of the students first time performing drama in front of their classmates. They will all
be familiar with movies and television shows but unfamiliar with thinking about the elements that make up these dramatic productions. I will make it
clear that the students understand what they are learning and what the end goal is by having each lesson build on the one before it. I will introduce the
concepts slowly and one at a time. Also the subject matter ( people used and such) for the assignments will be drawn from student input. I have the
opportunity to teach the students in periods prior to drama so I can ask them their ideas then. Previously I had asked the students what they wanted to
do in drama and I got responses that they want the activities to be group work that deals with contemporary material. I anticipate the problem of Brecken
and Alice not wanting to participate coming up. To combat this I have included some ideas for accommodations. Also I will try to put them in groups with
their friends so they are motivated to complete the assignments. The learning will happen in the classroom and in the commons. The students will be
instructed and perform in the classroom but will be given the opportunity to leave the class the practice their performances. Many times the students
prefer to leave their performances to be a surprise and practice better when not being distracted by other students in the class.
How will you engage students at the beginning of the unit? (motivational set)
To engage the students I will make the first lesson of the unit a competition with a reward. Although this is not always the best idea, I believe that extrinsic
motivation can make activities fun for the students. This is a very competitive group that loves to have in class competitions. Also the beginning activities
will include student choices for subjects to study. Being able to study and perform scenes they are familiar and fond of will hopefully intrinsically motivate
the students. Also the use of group work will motivate the students. The fear of letting down their team/group will motivate the students to participate in
the activities in class.
What events will help students experience and explore the enduring understandings and essential questions in the unit?
How will you equip them with needed skills and knowledge?

Lesson Title

Lesson Activities

CCCs

Resources
Pen/paper

Introduction
to
Improvisation

Students will work together in two teams within the classroom. They will compete against
each other in a series of improvisation acting activities.

Listening
Skills

The students need to understand the importance of being a respectful audience member
while other students are performing. The two games ( alibi and two truths and a lie)
require the students to listen carefully to the performer if they want to win the game.

Movie Scene

After being split into small groups the students will be asked to reenact a scene from their
favorite movie so that their classmates can guess which movie they are acting out.

Character
Embodiment
Television
Show Script

Students will be asked to pick a character out of a hat and have to act out a scene where
they embody that individual. The rules are that they can not use any names in the skit and
also can not recite any lyrics. The point of this exercise is that the students must work on
embodying someone else.
Now that students have practiced acting in front of their peers the students will be asked
to create a script for a fictional or real television show. Using all the topic covered about
characters, plot an setting the students should be able to create a clear outline for a skit.
The students need to create clear enough instructions that a group of students could read
their page and be able to perform the skit. Students will be assigned another group's
script to perform.

Practice/Perfo
rmance

Students will be given half of the class to practice their performance that they are given
from the previous class. The second half of the class will be performances.

Silent Picture
Vacation

In groups the students will act out a fictional vacation using one narrator and silent acting.
The skit must include seven snapshots where the students freeze in a postcard for
specific parts of the vacation.
Again students will be asked to create a script for a scene they would like acted out. This
time they will be given creative freedom to create any kind of scene they want. When they
switch scripts with another group they will be given the opportunity to direct them.
The students will work with their own group and the group they switched scripts with the
previous day. They will practice their scripts they will perform taking pointers from the
group who wrote the script. In a sense, the two groups will be directing each other. Then
students will perform the skits in front of the entire class.
Having learned about the importance of different aspects of drama all unit, the students
will put this all together. The students will video a short film that deals with a social
identity issue. The need to have multiple characters and a plot that addresses the
particular social identity issue they choose. The ability to edit video will not be graded
since this is their first introduction to having to use technology in a dramatic creation.
The students will be given a work period for their unit final project.

7
8

Directors

Practice/
Performance

10

11

Final Project
Day 1

Work Period

Pen/paper
Pen/paper

Pen/paper

Pen/paper

N/A

Pen/paper
Pen/paper
N/A

Video
recording
device

12

Presentations

Students will present their final projects to the class and complete a self assessment.
Rubric, pen

Assess and Reflect (Stage 4)

Considerations

Comments

Required Areas of Study:

Is there alignment between outcomes,
performance assessment and learning
experiences?

There is a strong correlation between the outcomes and performance

assessment of the students. There is actual reports being handed in along with
a lot of assessment by myself on the student's progress. Drama is often times
hard to assess so it is important to watch and judge all the student's work
closely. The learning experience will be very fun and interactive for the
students. Drama is a class that is meant to be fun but also educational. The
activities I selected achieve this balance between fun and educational at the
same time.

Adaptive Dimension:
Have I made purposeful adjustments to the
curriculum content (not outcomes), instructional
practices, and/or the learning environment to meet
the learning needs and diversities of all my
students?

For struggling students:

Every lesson plan has possible adjustments listed for struggling students I know
will struggle with the assignments. Considerations have been made to
accommodate these students. The option of not working in the classroom is
also an option for the students as often times they are too shy to practice in
front of their peers.
For students who need a challenge:
The students who need a challenge I will give constant feedback of how to put
their performance over the edge. For example, the students who need a
challenge could incorporate music, props or costumes to their skits.

Instructional Approaches:
Do I use a variety of teacher directed and student
centered instructional approaches?

Resource Based Learning:

Do the students have access to various resources
on an ongoing basis?
FNM/I Content and Perspectives/Gender
Equity/Multicultural Education:
Have I nurtured and promoted diversity while

I usually instruct the students on guidelines of what their assignments should

include but then the students get creative freedom. The input of the students is
took into consideration when choosing the subjects for the assignments. The
students are instructed by myself of what to complete and what specific terms
mean, but they are the ones teaching the class through their own presentations
and comments.
Most of the resources the students need are found on line. All of the students
use their cellphones to access the Internet or the class has four computers in it
that can be used
The groups are often intermingled with genders. Also all of the assignments
center around the idea of group work to tell a story. This idea of storytelling to
teach is very prominent and important in the Indigenous culture. Each student

honoring each childs identity?

is given the opportunity to contribute to the presentations created in class to

showcase their thoughts and individual identities.

From: Wiggins, Grant and J. McTighe. (1998). Understanding by Design, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, ISBN # 0-87120313-8 (pbk)

Final Project
This unit has allowed you to look at the dramatic elements that go into a production. We discussed
everything including setting, plot and characters. We took an in depth look at the function of characters in
dramatic productions. Regularly you were asked to perform an improvisation piece where you had to embody
someone else's identity. This final project will deal with the topic of identity ( gender, social, cultural, economic
etc..). You will get into groups of between 3-4 and create a small video that deals with some sort of identity
issue. The video can be anything you want from a music video to a short skit. Try to incorporate the idea of
embodying another individual's identity. Remember the example video Ms. Fesser showed you in class. Please
ensure that your videos are at least three and a half minutes in length. Remember that you will not be judged on
your video editing skills, but rather on the content and the message your production has for the audience.
Attached is the rubric you will be marked on. Please have each group member fill out one of these rubrics for self
assessment when you hand in your assignment.
1-Poor

2-Sufficient

3-Good

Time

The video is one

minute or less in
length.

The video is
around two
minutes in length.

The video is around The video is three

three minutes in
and a half minutes or
length.
longer in length.

Identity
Issue

There is no identity
issue addressed in
the video.

There is a vague
identity issue
addressed in the
video.

There is an
apparent identity
issue addressed in
the video.

There is an identity
issue that is thought
provoking and easy
to identify in the
video.

Plot

There is no
There are a few
sequence of events sequence of
in the video.
events that link
together in the
video.

There is a plot that

flows continually
throughout the
video.

The video has an

extremely well
thought out and
clear plot that is easy
to follow throughout
the entire video.

At least two
characters in the
film embody
another individual's
identity.

All of the
actors/actresses in
the film show the
ability to embody
another individual's
identity.

Character
None of the group
Embodimen members embody
t
another individual's
identity.

One actor/actress
in the film
embodies another
individual's
identity.

4-Excellent