Rituals+Unit

Welcome to grade 10 Drama & the Rituals unit. The Rituals unit should ideally be held a ways into the semester - because of the nature of the unit - making abstract movements, gestures and sounds - students often aren't comfortable at the beginning; allow enough time for "ritual games" & warm ups to get students involved & enthusiastic.

DRAMA - Rituals Unit - E. Rundle
 * Click for a copy of the Rituals Unit Plan:**

The //Rituals Handout// should be provided to the class on day one. The teacher should work through the handout with the students - it is suggested that a variety of strategies should be used to do so. For example, a class discussion could be facilitated by the teacher regarding the 7 common elements of primitive rituals & 21st century theatre; students could complete a graffiti activity to brainstorm examples for each of the 6 purposes, etc.

Rituals Handout
 * Click for a copy of the student handout & teacher answer key of the rituals handout:**

A few clips of primitive rituals and/or movie clips should be used to introduce the ritual unit to the students. Often students don't realize they know what a ritual looks like, starting them off with some great clips can really get the ball rolling.
 * Introduction to the Ritual Unit:**

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For their ritual performance, students will have the opportunity to design, make and decorate their very own masks. Students should complete their mask sketches & upload them to the class wikispace. Once images are scanned & uploaded, students should provide constructive feedback of their peers' sketches.
 * Mask Sketch Designs:**







Final performances should be videotaped & uploaded onto the class wikispace. Post performance, students are required to complete a Peer & Self evaluation. Students may refer to their video performance in order to provide feeback on the actual performance, however Peer & Self Evaluations should also include the student's reflections of the individual's work ethic, willingness to take risks, attitude, collaboration and their role in the group throughout the creative process. A copy of the creative process should also be included on the class wikispace. It can be found here: Creative Process
 * Ritual Performances:**

The ritual unit is not an easy one for students to come into - especially if the students are quite ready to take some risks in the class. One simple class activity involved making a sound ritual. The class should start off by brainstorming noises they can make with their feet, hands, fingers, and voices. Be creative! What's around you that you can use? Keep in mind pacing! Pick one short & easy rhythm for each of the body parts (feet, hands, fingers, voice). Next divide students into equal groups, each group will take responsibility for one of the created sounds. At the call of the teacher, have each group join in at a different time. Continue to practice your sound ritual, have the teacher or the student conduct the class throughout the sound ritual. The BrockTec class performing their sound ritual - keep in mind there was very limited time to prep their ritual (and very limited space for any sort of decent filming): media type="custom" key="7649021" width="370" height="370"
 * Getting Started:**