- STEP 1: Explain that students should be totally silent during this activity but should respond to the tasks being said through movement. Students should follow the directions immediately as they are being said aloud. In between tasks students should walk about the classroom, making sure to maintain personal space and not bump into anyone.
- STEP 2: Ask students to find their personal space in the room and draw their kinospheres (see dance warm-ups if you are unfamiliar with this term). Have students begin to move about the classroom using a basic walk.
- STEP 3: Call out the following directions as students move about the room:
- Make eye contact with the people you pass
- Do not make eye contact with the people you pass
- Smile and nod as you pass each person
- Do not smile as you pass people
- Begin hopping
- Now skip
- STEP 4: Instruct students to return to a basic walk around the room. Explain that you are about to give a series of tasks and that students should explore each task silently through movement as they stay in their own personal kinospheres.
- STEP 5: Direct students to act out the following tasks:
- Trying to catch a butterfly
- Becoming a melting snowman
- Climbing up a hill
- Following someone in the room
- Getting away from everyone in the room
- Carrying a huge basket
- Picking apples to put in your huge basket
- Laughing in silence- think about how to show laughing with just action and no sound.
LESSON IDEA:
Have students use a prompt from this warm up as the beginnings of a pick-your-own-ending story. Explore how directions play a key role in determining an outcome.
EXTENSION:
Improv can be applied universally to almost any lesson because of its applicability to real life expectations and direction following. This improv warm up allows students to explore communicating silently and collaboratively. Extend it through a variety of different scenes.
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