Sample Lesson Plans
As an Early Childhood Educator with a NYS theater license, it is my unique responsibility to know and incorporate both the NY State Theatre Standards and the Early Childhood Standards for Teaching and Learning in everything I do and every lesson I plan. Take a peek below at some of my favorite lessons that address the core NYS Theatre Standards for Creating, Performing, Responding and Connecting in the appropriate age category as well as TSG Standards decided upon by my colleagues and I.
Not a Box/Not A Stick Companion Lessons
Two of my all-time favorite lesson plans include my Not a Box/Not A Stick companion lessons. I created these lessons during my very first year teaching as a way to best intertwine NYS Theater Standards with the current units of study. I wanted students to practice creating, performing, and responding every day, and these interdisciplinary lessons made space for every student to demonstrate each of these.
During the trees unit, I teach my Not A Stick lessons. I begin by reading the book Not A Stick by Antoinette Portis, in which a pig mimes using a stick as different things. As we read, students guess what the pig is thinking. After we finish reading, I present the students with a stick. Students have the opportunity to mime something in front of the class with the stick, and the students guess what the "stick" is.
I repeat this lesson in later weeks, instead switching the first stick with a very, very large stick! Students are challenged to mime new, fresh ideas, and we reflect on the difference between the two.
During the Buildings Study later in the year, I repeat this lesson with the book Not A Box by Antoinette Portis. I love challenging the students to use prior knowledge to deduce what kind of game we're going to play and guess correctly if I will repeat this lesson with an extra large box (I always do)!
I work collaboratively with the teachers to tailor these activities to meet the needs of their students and hit various TSG objectives. For example, both Not a Stick and Not a Box address standards in the cognitive, literacy, and science domains (recognizing and recalling, making connections, showing flexibility and inventiveness in thinking, thinking symbolically, interact during reading experiences, demonstrate knowledge of physical properties of objects and materials, etc).
I love how the lessons allow for every student to express their individual creativity, how the lessons give space for students to present their work in front of an audience of their peers, the organic ties to literacy (using Not a Box/Not a Stick by Antoinette Portis). Additionally, I spread these lessons out over many months, beginning with Not a Stick in the Trees unit and continuing with Not a Box in the Buildings unit later in the year. This allows students the opportunity to recall as we enter the second set of lessons. Most importantly, it's always a ton of fun to see what they come up with!
Mirroring
During my mirroring lesson, I challenge students to reflect on what a mirror is. I begin by showing students a mirror and defining the word, then asking them to change their face while looking in the mirror and explain what they see. I ask student "What do you think would happen if I replaced the mirror with myself?" "How do we act like a mirror?" Then, I challenge students to mirror me! After, I break students into small groups and, with the help of a Paraprofessional, allow students to practice mirroring each other, taking turns being the mirror and the person looking into the mirror. Finally, I ask one student to lead the class, asking everyone to follow the one.
This lesson came about after collaborating with my colleagues during common planning time. Teachers expressed interest in addressing the making connections standard understanding spatial relationships standard, and participating cooperatively in group situations standards after reflecting on TSG data. I combined those standards together as well as addressed NYState Theater Standards of Performing, Connecting, and Responding to create this special lesson.
