MESAARTS
ARTSCENTER
CENTERPRESENTS
PRESENTS
MESA
THEATER UNSPEAKABLE performing
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
Piper Theater | November 7-8 | 9:30AM & 11:45AM | Grades: 4-12
2016/2017 EDUCATOR RESOURCE GUIDE
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Welcome to the Educator …..……………......3
Teacher and Chaperone Information……......3
Curriculum Connections…………..……..…....4
Classroom Activities & Questions ….…….......6
Bus Loading Procedures ……...….…….……14
Contact Information……………………….....15
ABOUT THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION…..
History in 50 minutes--seven actors, two feet off the ground, share 21 square feet of space to recreate
the entire American fight for independence from Lexington to Yorktown. Using only the actor's bodies,
voices and (pantomimed) cannons, the show evokes an epic time period in American history. Combining tongue-in-cheek humor with a dash of derring-do, "The American Revolution" displays Theater Unspeakable's rowdy brand of bare-boned and imaginative physical theater.
FROM THEATER UNSPEAKABLE…..
When Marc Frost, director of Theater Unspeakable, was asked what message or feeling he hoped audiences would walk away with he responded with: Billy Lee once said of Washington, “When I think
about George, I think of our country. Not a perfect one, but a good one.” This is the same message I
would like people to take with them when they leave the theater. The country’s founding had an imperfect beginning, built upon the sacrifice, slaughter, and subjugation of many individuals and peoples, but I want them to leave feeling proud of their country’s founding, because it truly was the dawning of a new era for personal freedom. Even it its most beatified heroes, we see the flaws, the human
shortcomings, which to me, make the achievements all the more inspiring. We also hope they laugh.
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WELCOME!
Dear Educator,
Thank you for selecting a Performing Live for Students! field trip with the Mesa Arts Center. We have a
dynamic season planned and we look forward to connecting you to our many artists and performances.
With Performing Live, students are able to experience live theatre and make educational connections
well beyond the classroom.
We also recognize and appreciate the energy and time spent on your part in coordinating field trips. In
this guide we have provided information to help make this the best experience possible.
In addition, the Mesa Arts Center has many open and inviting spaces that make good places to hold a
brown bag lunch. Prior arrangements for lunch accommodations need to be made by either calling
(480) 644-6540 or emailing [email protected].
Please contact our offices should you have any additional questions (contact info on last pg.).
Enjoy the show!
TEACHER AND CHAPERONE INFORMATION
Chaperones

Assign each chaperone a designated group of students and provide him/her with a written list of the
students in that group.

Ask chaperones to stay with their assigned group throughout the field trip. Adult chaperones are
responsible for the students’ conduct and behavior throughout their visit to the Center.

Please review theater etiquette rules and responsibilities with all chaperones.

Have the phone numbers of every chaperone in your group to quickly access each other in case of
emergency.
Theater Etiquette

No Food or Drink inside the theatre (besides bottled water).

Students must be accompanied by chaperones at all times.

Cameras and recording devices may not be used during the performance.

Please silence cell phones and resist the urge to text message.

Listening and following the House Managers and Ushers will help the seating and dismissal process.

Feel free to laugh, clap and enjoy the show but also to be respectful of those around you.
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CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
The American Revolution
Arizona Academic Standards in the Arts
These standards can be achieved through discussion questions or activities included in the study
guide.
Theatre
TH.PR.5.4-HSa — Participate in a variety of acting
exercises and techniques.
TH.RE.7.4-HS — Respond to or evaluate artistic choices made in a guided theatrical experience.
TH.RE.9.K-2c — Respond or evaluate a theatrical
work using supporting evidence, personal aesthetics, and artistic criteria.
Arizona’s College and Career Ready Standards
These standards can be achieved by participating in the study guide.
Reading
Grades 4-12.RI.1 — Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn
from the text.
Grades 4-6.RI.7 —Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including
visually and quantitatively, as well as in words. In Grades 4-6, the focus is on looking at information in
different types of texts (like timelines) and explaining how that information helps to better understand
the topic or question posed.
Writing
Grades 4-12.W.2 — Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and
information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.
Grades 4-12.W.4 — Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and
style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
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CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS CONTINUED
The American Revolution
Arizona’s College and Career Ready Standards
These standards can be achieved by participating in the study guide
Speaking and Listening
Grades 4-12.SL.1 — Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with
diverse partners, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
Grades 4-12.SL.4 — Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line
of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
Grades 4-12.SL.6 — Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks, demonstrating command of
formal English when indicated or appropriate.
Arizona’s Academic Content Standards: Social Studies
These standards can be achieved by participating in the study guide.
SS04-05-S1C1-01 — Use the following to interpret historical data: timelines, graphs, tables, charts, and maps.
SSHS-S1C1-01 — Interpret historical data displayed in maps, graphs, tables, charts, and geologic time scales.
SS06-08-S1C1-02 — Interpret historical data displayed in graphs, tables, and charts.
SS05-S1C4-01 & SS08-S1C4-01 — Describe the significance of the following events leading to the American
Revolution: French and Indian War, Proclamation of 1763, Tea Act, Stamp Act, Boston Massacre, and Intolerable Acts.
SSHS-S1C4-01 — Assess the economic, political, and social reasons for the American Revolution: British attempts to tax and regulate colonial trade as a result of the
French and Indian War and the colonists’ reaction to British policy ideas expressed in the Declaration of Independence.
SS05-S1C4-02 & SS08-S1C4-02 — Describe the significance of
the following events in the Revolutionary War: Declaration of
Independence, the battles of Lexington and Concord, Saratoga,
aid from France, and surrender at Yorktown.
SSHS-S3C4-01 — Analyze basic individual rights and freedoms
guaranteed by Amendments and laws.
SS04-08-S3C4-02 — Identify traits of character (e.g., responsibility, respect, perseverance, loyalty, integrity, involvement, justice and tolerance) that are important to the preservation and
improvement of democracy.
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PRE-PERFORMANCE CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
Included in this resource guide are a variety of activities created to correspond with the
Arizona College and Career Readiness Standards to enhance the students’ growth,
reading skills, and overall comprehension.
Questions to Ponder….
Question 1 — What does freedom mean to you? What does it mean to be free? (Grades 4-12.SL.1)
Question 2 — When do you follow the rules and when do you break them? Is there a time when it is
okay to break the rules? (Grades 4-12.SL.1)
Activities to Explore….
Benjamin Franklin was a key player in the road to independence, but he was also a famous inventor.
An important component of physical theater is using your imagination and creativity to transform
ordinary objects. Play the creative drama game on page 8 to give your students a taste of physical
theater.
Standards Implemented: Grades 4-12.SL.6; TH.PR.5.4-HSa
Approximate time: 10-15 minutes
The Declaration of Independence was the colonists’ expression of the truths for which they were
willing to sacrifice everything. Try the activity on page 9 to explore with students the truths that they
hold to be self-evident in their lives.
Standards Implemented: Grades 4-12.W.4; SS04-08-S3C4-02, SSHS-S3C4-01
Approximate time: 30-45 minutes
There are many important events and milestones in the Revolutionary War. Use the timeline on
page 10 to introduce or review some of the main events with your students before seeing the performance.
Standards Implemented: Grades 4-6.RI.7; SS04-05-S1C1-01, SS06-08-S1C1-02, SSHS-S1C1-01
Approximate time: 15-20 minutes
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POST-PERFORMANCE CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
Questions to Discuss
Question 1 — Is everyone in America free? What are freedoms do we fight for today?
(Grades 4-12.SL.1; SS04-08.S3C4-02, SSHS-S3C4-01)
Question 2 — What did you think of the way the play was presented? Did you think the use of the
platform enhanced the ideas or distracted from them?
(Grades 4-12.SL.1; TH.RE.7.4-HS)
Question 3 — After seeing how famous historical figures were portrayed in the performance, did you
see any of them in a different way? (Grades 4-12.SL.1; TH.RE.9.4-HSa)
Activities for the Classroom
Revolutionary soldiers and spies placed themselves in danger for their cause. Forms of communication were limited in that time so one way spies would communicate important information to Revolutionary leaders was through encoded or disguised messages in letters to family members. Using the
activity on page 11, students can write their own secret messages with invisible ink.
Standards Implemented: Grades 4-12.W.4; SS05-S1C4-02, SS08-S1C4-02
Approximate time: 30-45 minutes
The colonists were especially upset by being taxed without representation. Every new tax or law
made by King George III fanned the flames of their anger with British rule. Help your students understand how the colonists felt by trying the King or Queen For a Day activity on page 12.
Standards Implemented: SS05-S1C4-01, SS08-S1C4-01, SSHS-S1C4-01
Approximate time: 30 minutes to introduce, then ongoing
Often we talk about the Founding Fathers of our country, but the Founding Mothers played an important role as well. Cokie Robert’s book Founding Mothers: Remembering the Ladies is an excellent
resource students can use to create a report or presentation on one of the important historical female figures in the Revolution. A research notes page is on page 13 to help students organize their
ideas.
Standards Implemented: Grades 4-12.SL.4, Grades 4-12.RI.1, Grades 4-12.W.2
Approximate time: 45-60 minutes or longer depending on report/presentation expectations
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YES, IT IS, MR. FRANKLIN!
Materials: Any assortment of everyday objects found
in the classroom (shoes, tissue boxes, rulers)
Procedure:
1. Gather students in a circle.
2. Present the first everyday item—a water bottle,
for example. Explain to the students that though
it may look like a water bottle, this is actually
Benjamin Franklin’s famous telescope invention.
3. Add a gesture or motion with the water bottle to
demonstrate the telescope’s function.
4. The whole group responds with “Yes, it is, Mr.
Franklin.”
5. Hand the object to the student next to you. Have them come up with a new invention
for the water bottle, along with a gesture. “This is a robot unicorn compass!”
6. Again the group will respond with “Yes, it is, Mr. Franklin!”
7. Hand the object to the next student. Have them come up with a new invention for
the water bottle, along with a gesture. “This is a trumpet that tells you the weather as
you play it!”
8. Rotate different objects each round.
Activity from the Theater Unspeakable Learning Guide.
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WE HOLD THESE TRUTHS ACTIVITY
Materials: Blank paper, pens, pencils, or markers, poster board for the additional activity.
Procedure:
1. Give each student a piece of paper and a writing utensil.
2. Ask each student to write at the top: “I hold these truths to be self-evident.”
3. Define self-evident for the students. Self-evident means clearly true and requiring no
proof or explanation.
4. The students, like Thomas Jefferson, will write their own Declaration of Independence. Have students consider what rights they think every person should have; what
rights are necessary for groups of people to live together peacefully.
5. Continuing conversations/extension activities:

Should different communities have different rights? Families, classrooms,
schools, cities, countries? Why or why not?

Make a class declaration! At the top of the poster write: ‘We Hold These Truths
To Be Self-evident”

Have each student write one of their
rights on the poster and then sign their
name.
Activity from the Theater Unspeakable Learning Guide.
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From the Theater Unspeakable Learning Guide.
REVOLUTIONARY WAR TIMELINE
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SPIES LIKE US ACTIVITY
Materials: Paper, pens/pencils, baking
soda, water, small cups, cotton swabs,
grape juice concentrate
Procedure:
1. In this activity students are spies for
the Continental Army. Each student
will write a secret message
“home” (although it is actually going
to Continental Congress). On the top layer of the letter students are to write their very
own top secret message with invisible ink.
2. Give each student a piece of paper, pen/pencil, a cotton swab, and a cup of equal
parts baking soda and water mixed together.
3. Using the baking soda/water mixture and the cotton swab, students can write a letter
revealing top secret information about the war.
4. Once the paper has dried completely, students will write their letters “home” using
the pen or pencil. The letter must be believable, or the British will know it is encoded
if they get their hands on it. Suggested questions to consider: Why are you fighting?
Is it scary? What do you miss about home? When do you think the war will be over?
5. Have each student give their letter to a classmate to decode. To decode the letter,
paint grape juice on the paper with a cotton swab.
Activity from the Theater Unspeakable Learning Guide.
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KING OR QUEEN FOR A DAY ACTIVITY
Materials: Small candies, tokens, or beads (enough for each student to have 15 to 20), small cups to
hold tokens, chart paper, optional crown for teacher
Procedure:
1. Tell students there is to be a change in procedure in class today. To really understand how the colonists felt, for today the students will be colonists and you, the teacher, will be the King or Queen.
Depending on the age of the students you can adjust the time frame as needed.
2. Pass out the candies or tokens and have each student write their name on their cup. Let them know
they are not to eat or touch their candies or tokens yet. Get a cup for yourself and write King or
Queen ___________ on it.
3. If you are adding a dramatic flair to the activity now would be the time to don your crown.
4. Label a piece of chart paper with King or Queen ______________’s Laws and another chart paper
with King or Queen ______________’s Taxes.
5. Tell students that from now on there will be some new laws and taxes in the classroom and that
they, as students in the classroom, will need to abide by them or they will be “punished” by having
to pay a candy or token to you.
6. Make at least one Law and one Tax to begin with and write them on the chart paper so they can be
referred back to. A helpful first law is that students may not play with or touch their candies/tokens
unless they are paying a law or tax. Possible first taxes might be a Classroom Tax or Furniture Tax
for use of the classroom materials and furniture. After writing the laws and taxes down they are enforceable and you can collect candy/tokens from the students as needed. If students complain you
can make a Complaining Tax and collect another candy for each complaint.
7. Continue on with your next lesson/day as normal but stop periodically to create new laws and taxes.
They do not have to be sensible or fair but do make sure they do not impede student safety or personal needs (ie laws/taxes about using the restroom or getting drinks) or call out a particular characteristic about students (blue-eyed students, etc).
8. After your time period is up or you feel students have gotten enough out of the experience, bring
the class together and discuss how they felt about being colonists. Did they feel the new laws and
taxes in the classroom were fair? Did they prefer that you were their teacher or their monarch? Did
they change their behavior during the activity? Would they want to come to school if every day was
like today?
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FOUNDING MOTHERS RESEARCH NOTES PAGE
Important information about
3 words to describe this person:
early life or family:
_______________________
Founding Mother
Most important accomplishments:
3 interesting facts about this person:
________ — ________
Birth — Death
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MESA ARTS CENTER MAP
PLEASE NOTE – We ask that buses arrive approximately 30 minutes before the
performance begins to allow ample time to unload and seat students.
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SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE!
We’d love to hear your students’ response to our shows.
We especially appreciate pictures and letters!
THANK YOU!
Mandy Tripoli
Renee Salazar
Director of Engagement
Engagement Coordinator
P 480-644-6609 | F 480-644-6503
P 480-644-6540 | F 480-644-6503
[email protected]
[email protected]
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