Colin Wells, [email protected]
0 Improvisation is an act of spontaneous
creation– a character, story, scene or
song.
0 Three types: Stories, Games & Skits
0 The beauty of improv is there are no
limits and no wrong answers!
0 “Yes” refers to
acceptance of an idea.
When a player offers an
idea it much be accepted
by all other players.
0 “And” refers to
enhancement– other
players must not only
accept the idea but add
something to it. Build!
0 By supporting and giving
your scene partner (or
student) ways to continue
engagement, you
continuously highlight
their strengths.
0 Imagine if every kid felt
like a million bucks every
time they spoke up!
0 Make one simple
statement or offer at a
time
In this exercise, a group of individuals tells a cohesive
story one word at a time. It starts when one person says
a single word and unfolds when someone else in the
group offers up another word. Groups can do this in
circles, so the participants know when it is their turn to
talk, or at the will of the teacher. From personal
experience, small groups are better. The improvising
continues until the group has created a story.
Participants form a line with the teacher
up front, who behaves like the conductor
of an orchestra– ‘cueing’ the next person
to speak.
When the conductor points to student,
the student begins to tell the story until
the conductor moves to another student.
The new student will pick up and add to
the story.
Conductors can pick storytellers in any
order they like.
A great first game for students who might not want to talk!
One student is the night watchman searching for moving museum
figures. The rest of the class pose and must remain still when the
night watchman is looking their way. If he turns his back, they can
switch positions.
The teacher or leader should initiate the shape of each new pose so
students are reinforcing the content.
For example, the psychology class might pose like each of the
developmental stages of a child.
Another great first game for students who might not want to talk!
In a circle, the leader opens a box for all to see. He or she removes
an object from the box, does something with it in pantomime and
then returns it to the box. Then he or she passes the imaginary box
to the next student who does the same.
-Objects in the box can be anything!
-Any class could apply this exercise by
allowing objects to represent key
vocabulary in their class
-Example: A statistics student might
choose to pull the term “variable” out
of the box and pretend to use a
measuring tape to analyze the term
The Host (Teacher) picks one person to be the Contestant
who steps outside. Three “eligible partners” are assigned.
The class decides who/what these partners are. Contestant
comes back in and ask three rounds of questions.
-Historical figures, characters in novels or plays, animals,
plants, athletes, tools needed to complete a task
-Remind students to think outside the box!
Like the Dating Game, a student leaves the room. They are
the host of a party. Any number of party guests enter in
character. The host must guess who they are.
-Historical figures, characters in novels or plays, animals,
plants, athletes, tools needed to complete a task
-Remind students to think outside the box!
Click the link below for a clip from
Party Quirks on Whose Line is it Anyway?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjc0dfYPvHY
Students create a scene in one minute. Then perform
again condensing to 30 seconds. Then 20 seconds. Then
10 seconds.
- Can be used for chapter reviews, subject-related
articles, concept re-caps, short stories and poetry
- Great for dramatizing any major process (Scientific
Method, Permutation, Differentiation, Process of
Speech, Photosynthesis, DNA Replication, Historical
Inquiry, Due Process of Law, etc)
A favorite short form game at
improv shows, this game gives
a group five minutes to
condense an entire movie into
a one minute performance.
- The movie can be replaced
with a chapter from a
textbook or novel
- It can be used to re-cap
concepts
- Reduce the amount of time
for presentation if needed
- Half-time Improv is a
variation of this game
0 Reinforces memory recall
0 Practices active listening
0 Builds students’ comfort level
0 Fosters teamwork and better brainstorming
0 Improves communication and presentation skills
0 Promotes creative problem solving
0 Helps you think on your feet
0 Creates willingness to take risks
0 Promote a supportive culture
0 The Alan Alda Center for
Communicating Science at Stony Brook
University offers a graduate course on
improv to help emerging scientists
convey their ideas without resorting to
textbook speak or one-sided lectures.
Kids learn a lot when we create structures in which
they can explore and they can experiment and they
can engage in critical thinking to solve a problem
which is much of what improvisation is about.
That’s what I really love about improv…at first it
may seem that it’s a bunch of simple exercises but
there’s a lot of complexity in and layers to those
simple exercises that force you to develop those
skills.
-- Dr. Katherine McKnight
The Second City Guide to Improv in the Classroom
References
Alda, Alan. [StonyBrookJournalism]. (2010, Mar. 23). Improvisation for
Scientists: Workshops by Alan Alda and the Center for Communicating
Science. [Video File]. Retrieved
fromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtdyA7SibG8
Lobman, C., & Lundquist, M. (2007). Unscripted learning: using improv
activities across the K-8 curriculum. New York: Teachers College,
Columbia University.
Whose Line. [Muggs8787]. (2010, Aug. 6). Party Quirks 2. [Video File].
Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjc0dfYPvHY