Reading and performing a script based on 'The Iron Man'
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can read and respond to a play script based on 'The Iron Man' and perform it in front of an audience.
Key learning points
- Play scripts are written with certain conventions that help make a script organised, clear and easy to follow.
- Performance techniques are tools that actors use to connect with the audience.
- These techniques can be learnt, practised and developed.
- Deciding where to stand and how to move is an important part of the rehearsal process for the director and actors.
- Plays can have large or small casts - the number of actors who play the different characters in a play.
Keywords
Play script conventions - rules that are followed by playwrights to write play scripts that are clear and easy to follow
Performance techniques - the ways an actor uses their body, voice and facial expressions to bring a character to life in a play
Setting description - a brief description of where and when the action takes place at the beginning of a scene in a play
Common misconception
Pupils may think it is **always** easier to perform a play with a small number of characters.
The difficulty of a play is not just down to the number of characters in it. Often, the most difficult plays are the ones with the most troubling or complicated themes - central messages that the playwright wants the audience to think deeply about.
Teacher tip
You could show pupils in your class some films of small companies of actors performing scenes from plays with small casts. You could also show pupils images of sets on stage that are very sparse and empty so they can see that sometimes, directors choose to have a 'minimalist' approach.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Fill in the gap in the following sentence: 'Actors, a __________ and a stage crew are involved in preparing a play for a performance.'
Q2.Fill in the gap in the following sentence: 'The title of a play is the __________ of a play.'
Q3.What is a scene?
Q4.Which of these is the best definition of dialogue?
Q5.Fill in the gap in the following sentence: 'Stage directions are like __________ for actors to follow for how to speak or move in that part of the play.'
Q6.Put these steps for preparing a play for a performance in the correct order.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of these would be a suitable stage direction?
Q2.Which of these is a setting description from a play script?
Q3.True or false? Setting descriptions are only useful for creating a setting in a story.
Q4.Which of these are people who work as part of a stage crew?
Q5.Who gets the final say on how a scene should look: the director, the actors or the stage crew?
Q6.Fill in the gap in the following sentence: 'When a director first reads a script, they should look at the __________ of each scene to help create a vision for how each scene should look.'
To help you plan your 3 English lesson on: Reading and performing a script based on 'The Iron Man', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 3 English lesson on: Reading and performing a script based on 'The Iron Man', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 English lessons from the Reading and performing scripts unit, dive into the full primary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.