Movement Unit Plan

Junior High Drama-Grade 7

__________________ School
Ms. Falkenberg & Ms.Kenney
September 13th-September 30th

Unit Vision:Movement is all around us and it is such an important way that we

communicate to each other. This unit will have the students exploring the different ways
their bodies can move, how still they can stay, and how someone can communicate
messages and meanings without words.

Students will be evaluated throughout the unit on their participation, understanding of

terms, and implementation of the techniques that are learned. The students will have
frequent check-ins with the teacher to go over terms and display their understanding.
The culminating project, the movement piece to music, will be graded on
implementation of the techniques, and students understanding of overall body
movement.

Orientation is the only unit that has been covered so far.

Classes are all one hour.

Since this is an introductory course, most marks will come from displaying the
understanding of terms and techniques with marks coming from teacher
observations,and student self reflections in the classroom during activities, and one final
mark from the culminating project.

Skills:

Culminating Activity: The students will be working in groups to choreograph

movement to a piece of music. They will have two classes to make their groups and
practice their pieces. The goal of the project is to have the students display what they
have learned throughout the unit. They must use at least 4 of the techniques that have
been covered, and they will be reviewed when giving the explanation to the students.

Lessons:
Day 1
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up:Body Count.
○ Lesson: Jump, Turn, Twizzle, Walk Around
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Introduce students to movement in a way that makes them feel comfortable
with one another and the way they are moving their body.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1,2,3,4,6, 7,9, 11
Day 2
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Splat
○ Lesson: Family Portrait(Freeze), Flamingo, Machine
○ Closure: Cool Down
 ● Aim: Keep introducing movement in a way that makes students feel comfortable
with their bodies and in the space provided.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2,3, 4, 5, 16
Day 3
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Flamingo
○ Lesson: Still Waters, Barnyard, Teacher Powerpoint with necessary movement
terms; Level, Freeze, Tableau, Physical Warm-Up, Range. Use students to
demonstrate the meaning of each vocabulary word.
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Making sure that students feel comfortable in their bodies and are willing to
move in the presence of their classmates.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 4,7,15,16
Day 4
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Signs
○ Lesson: Story Tableau: Fairytale beginning, middle, end
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: To introduce tableau and have students present in front of classmates.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2, 4, 7, 14, 15, 16
Day 5
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Signs
○ Lesson: Have students write down activities they want to use for movement; “Pull
from Hat” activity, Charades, Shapes
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Students will be able to create movement with their body more on the
spot,an introduction to improvisation, and create different shapes with their
bodies.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1,2, 4, 7, 12, 14, 17
Day 6
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Mime
○ Lesson: Ninja, Walk Around, Use Teacher Powerpoint to finish off movement
terms with students. Again using students to demonstrate each term so they are
involved.
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Students will use their bodies more fully in Walk Around, learn the rest of the
movement terms, and observation skills while playing Mime.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 13
Day 7
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Pull from Hat that students created (backup:Jump, Turn, Twizzle)
○ Lesson: Guess Our Tableau, Hit the deck,
 ○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Students will create and perform small tableaus.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1,2,5, 11, 12, 16
Day 8
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Pull from Hat (backup Flamingo)
○ Lesson: Review all movement terms, Machine, Human Knot
○ Closure: Student self-reflections.
● Aim: Students will know all movement terms, and use movement to communicate
non-verbally.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2, 3, 4, 12, 13, 17
Day 9
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Pull from Hat (backup Hit the Deck)
○ Lesson: Replay, Walk Around (with music- not characters)
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Have students display ability to move at different speeds with control as well
as having them be able to interpret music into movement.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 18
Day 10
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Pull from Hat (backup Signs)
○ Lesson: Choreographer comes and teaches a lesson on dance; if a
choreographer/dance teacher cannot be found at an effective cost or within the
school, you as the teacher will teach a choreographed dance
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Students will learn different dance moves and then be able to use them in
their culminating project.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18, 19
Day 11
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Pull from Hat (backup Mime)
○ Lesson: Get into music movement groups and start putting together projects
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Students will start to pull from every lesson to create a movement piece that
they will perform in front of the class. The piece being a minimum of 2 minutes.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18, 19
Day 12
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Pull from Hat (backup Still Waters)
○ Lesson: Practice pieces
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim: Students will practise their movement pieces that they will be performing
next class.
 ● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 18, 19
Day 13
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up: Practising with groups for 10 mins
○ Lesson: Present movement pieces
○ Closure: Cool Down
● Aim:Present knowledge of what has been learned throughout the unit, such as
using levels, varying speeds, tableaus, moving through a space, etc. .
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High) 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19
Day 14
● Activities:
○ Warm-Up:
○ Lesson: Reflection. Start with class reflection, then group reflection, then end
with individual. Have class discussion with questions such as “What did you
enjoy about the unit?” “What can be done better?” “How do you think you did in
this unit?” etc. Have the students write down individually a self reflection of the
unit.
○ Closure: Introduce next unit (voice) through the game “Where’s my Mom?”
● Aim: Wrap up of the Unit, introduce next unit.
● Learner Expectations: Movement (Junior High)

Assessment/ Evaluation:
● Periodically students will be marked according to the performance and participation.
More formative assessment.
● Students will be marked according to how well they grasp the SLE’s each class,
attached is a Rubric.
● In the middle of the unit, and the end students will have a personal reflection
● Culminating Performance Rubric will be discussed with students before culminating
activity.

Rubric:

Formative Assessment
 Days: 1 2
SLE # 7, 9, 11 SLE # 4, 5, 16,

Students

1. Mckell Cutler

2. John Wright

3. Alex Torres

4. Kadee Simmons

5. Harrison Brown

E= Excellent G=Good I=Improving NW=Needs Work U=Unsatisfactory

Category 4 3 2 1

Preparedness Students feel Students are Students look Students do not

comfortable ready to uncomfortable want to perform,
presenting, and perform, minor with their and are not
are ready to mistakes are movements, ready the day of.
perform with made but still many mistakes
their whole continue. are made and
group the day of have trouble
presentations. continuing.

Presentation Students go the Students Students Students are not

extra mile for perform their perform their ready to
presenting. piece without piece without perform, many
Group costumes,move any added mistakes made.
costumes, ment is present extras,
different types of but movement is
music added, disorganized, confusing, and
working together but techniques noticeable
as a team. are present and mistakes are
an effort has made.
been made.

Techniques Students use 4 Students use 3 Students use 2 Students use

involved or more techniques. techniques. only 1 technique.
techniques.

Movement Movement Movement Movement Movement

matches the matches the mostly matches does not match
music perfectly. music, with the music. the music at all.
some
questions.

Bibliography: Teacher's Resource Manual-Junior High

List of SLEs:

Level I – Beginning
The student will be able to:
1. Demonstrate understanding of and apply appropriate safety procedures.
2. Demonstrate awareness of personal and shared space.
3. Use physical relaxation techniques effectively.
4. Recognize the need for and demonstrate warmup activities.
5. Move individual body parts.
6. Use proper posture.
7. Demonstrate awareness of his or her own body and its movement
potential.
8. Display increased freedom of movement.
9. Travel through space in a variety of ways; e.g., running, creeping and
jumping.
10. Use varying speed of movement.
11. Use directions and pathways.
12. Use levels.
13. Control focus and energy in movement and gesture.
14. Create shapes with the body.
15. Display increased balance and coordination.
16. Demonstrate freezing of movement.
17. Use movement to communicate nonverbally.
18. Create movement in response to music.
19. Translate sounds, words, images, and emotions into movement.