2nd Grade Educator’s Guide

2nd Grade Educator’s Guide

ByKaren Boettcher-Tate

2MCT Educational Guide for LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS

W E L C O M EWe are excited that you and your classroom will be attending LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS. Experiencing live theatre serves as a great launching point for students to explore theatre. With

This delightful tale of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD is told with modern lessons for today’s children. As the story goes, of course, Little Red is taking cookies to her grandmother when she encounters Harry Wolf. Harry works for the notorious gang leader, Ma Sugar Lump, and wants to steal the recipe to the cookies. The pack of meanies can then bake more cookies, sell them to others and become rich! Fortunately, their plot fails. This play teaches its young audiences about not judging people by their looks, how to protect themselves from strangers, and the importance of reading. With plenty of participation, this show is both fun and educational at the same time.

VARIATIONS OF

LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD

Our production of LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS is a modern twist on the fairytale LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD. To help your students understand adaptations, read aloud traditional versions of the fairytale and then an adaptation of the tale and see if they can identify similar themes and characters.

THEMES OF

LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS

Here are the central themes/elements used to tell the story of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD in the adaptation of LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS.

• Play within a play – The actors are initially “real”

characters of a theatre company (Stephanie, Humphrey,

Maggie) who then become the characters of the play

(Little Red, Granny, Harry Wolf).

• Audience participation – From sound effects to

joining the cast onstage, students are a vital part of the

performance.

• Twist on a fairy tale – As you can see from the

synopsis, there are characters new and old who are

part of our adaptation. However, main elements such

as apparel (a little red cape), setting (the woods), and

motivations (desire for cookies) are still prevalent.

• Stranger danger/Code word – This adaptation

incorporates teaching children to be mindful of

strangers. Little Red’s mother teaches Little Red a

code word (provided by the audience) to request if a

stranger approaches her.

• Don’t judge a book by its cover – Another modern

lesson taught is empathy. At the end of the play, we

learn that Harry Wolf cannot read and therefore didn’t

make the best choices in his life. When the rest of the

characters learn this, they agree to help him rather

than punish him.

Here are just a few adaptions available: • Petite Rouge: A Cajun Red Riding Hood by Mike Artell

• Pretty Salma: A Little Red Riding Hood Story from Africa by

Niki Daly

• Little Red Riding Hood: A Newfangled Prairie Tale by Lisa

Campbell Ernst

• The True Story of Little Red Riding Hood: A Novelty Book by

Agnese Baruzzi, Sandro Natalini

• Betsy Red Hoodie by Gail Carson Levinethat in mind, MCT has created this educational guide to assist in curriculum creation for before and after your visit so you can bring theatre to your classroom.

Greetings from the Missoula Children’s Theatre (MCT)!

SYNOPSIS


MONTANA STANDARDS

(BENCHMARKS FOR END OF GRADE 4)

» Arts Content Standard 1: Students create, perform/exhibit,

and respond in the Arts.

• Identify their own ideas and images based on themes, symbols,

events and personal experiences.

» Arts Content Standard 2: Students apply and describe the

concepts, structures, and processes in the Arts.

• Composition: Apply the elements of plot, character and setting.

• Presentation: Demonstrate storytelling and creative dramatics.

» Arts Content Standard 3: Students develop and refine arts

skills and techniques to express ideas, pose and solve

problems, and discover meaning.

• Use mind, voice, and body to create characters and tell stories.

» Arts Content Standard 4: Students understand the role of

the Arts in society, diverse cultures, and historical periods.

• Recognize common emotions, experiences, and expressions in

art.

• Demonstrate appropriate audience behavior for the context and

style of art presented.

COMMON CORE (2ND GRADE)

» SPEAKING & LISTENING

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.2.2

Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read

aloud or information presented orally or through other

media.


Tell a story or recount an experience with appropriate

facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking audibly in

coherent sentences.


Create audio recordings of stories or poems; add

drawings or other visual displays to stories or recounts

of experiences when appropriate to clarify ideas,

thoughts, and feelings.

» READING: LITERATURE

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.2

Recount stories, including fables and folktales

from diverse cultures, and determine their

central message, lesson, or moral.

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.9

Compare and contrast two or more versions

of the same story (e.g., Red Riding Hood

stories) by different authors or from different

cultures.

» WRITING

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.8

Recall information from experiences or gather

information from provided sources to answer

a question.

NATIONAL ARTS STANDARDS (2ND GRADE)

» Theatre Anchor Standard 1: Generate and

conceptualize artistic ideas and work.

• Propose potential new details to plot and story in a guided

drama experience.

» Theatre Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop

artistic ideas and work.

• Contribute ideas and make decisions as a group to

advance a story in a guided drama experience.

» Theatre Anchor Standard 3: Refine and complete

artistic work.

• Contribute to the adaptation of dialogue in a guided

drama experience.

» Theatre Anchor Standard 8: Interpret intent and

meaning in artistic work.

• Identify causes and consequences of character actions in a

guided drama experience.

» Theatre Anchor Standard 10: Synthesize and relate

knowledge and personal experiences to make art.

• Relate character experiences to personal experiences in a

guided drama experience.

EDUCATIONAL BENCHMARKSHaving your students experience live theatre and participating in theatre activities before and after their visit fulfills many Montana, Common Core and National Arts Standards educational benchmarks.


VOCABULARY

o Actor/Actresso Directoro Stageo Scripto Curtaino Lobbyo Ploto Storylineo Main Charactero Conflicto Comedyo Dramao Seto Costumeo Blackouto Strangero Adaptationo Casto Performanceo Designero Theatre

TABLEAUX – In theatre a tableau is a great way for young actors to perform without the pressures of reading or speaking. Students can listen to a part of a story and then create a frozen picture of that scene. In doing so, students use collaboration and imagination to embody characters, scenery and emotion to tell a story. Guiding students through tableaux of the traditional version of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD will prepare students to experience the adapted content of LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS.

THEATRE ACTIVITY BEFORE THE PERFORMANCE

Activity Instructions1. Adapting the Adaptation – Now that your students

have seen LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS have your students create five sentences based on the performance of LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS.

2. Once your class has created their recollection of LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS, split them into groups and have them create tableaux based on each of the created sentences.

3. You can continue the process by having students adapt their own versions of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD and then creating tableaux based on their new versions

THEATRE ACTIVITY AFTER THE PERFORMANCE

Activity Instructions

1. Explain to your students that “tableaux” is just a fancy word for a frozen picture. In this picture it takes many people working together to tell a story.

2. To make a successful tableau, performers need to:a. Make sure everyone can be seen from the audienceb. Use their faces and bodies to show character and emotionsc. Stay frozen so the audience can take a moment to see the picture

3. Defineyourplayingspaceanddefinewherethe audience is sitting. It can be as easy as using the space in front of the desks in the class room.

4. To begin, focus on making a tableau of something every student can envision such as a moment in the library, cafeteria or playground.

5. Ask students what activities or scenery they would findinthoselocations. When students give an example, ask them to come forward and freeze in a pose of what they just mentioned. (Avoid students acting as other students or teachers).

6. Once you have a few students in the tableau, have them hold the pose while the rest of the class takes in their picture. Give your performers a round of applause and have them take a seat.

7. Repeat this process of making one tableau a few times with other familiar locales.

8. Once students are familiar with the tableau process,workwiththeclasstocreatefive sentences that tell the traditional story of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD.

9. Oncethefivesentencestoryiscomplete,splitthe class into equal groups of 5-7 students.

10. Have each group create a tableau for each sentence and then take turns to have each group perform as you narrate the story.


BEING A GOOD AUDIENCEFor some of our young patrons, LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS may be their first experience as an audience member at a theatre. Here are a few tips to help them get ready for their big visit.

• Leave toys, books, electronics (anything that could be distracting to them and their fellow audience members) at school.• Use the bathroom before the show so you don’t miss any of the performance.• The ushers are people who are there to help you if you need anything at the theatre.• During the performance it is distracting and impolite to talk while the actors are performing, unless they ask you to!• It’s OK to laugh and clap at appropriate times – the actors love it!

Write a review!

Writing a review is great way for students to demonstrate their knowledge of their theatre experience and retention of events in the performance. We would love to read them! Here are some writing

prompts to get student’s reviews going:• What was your favorite part of LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS?• Who was your favorite character in LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS?• How was LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS different from other versions of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD?• If you could change one thing about LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS what would it be? • Would you recommend your friends to see LITTLE RED AND THE HOODS? Why or why not?

• We would love to read your reviews! Please send them to [email protected]

Brief MCT History

MCT, Inc. is an umbrella organization sitting atop two distinct yet connected programs: a community theatre production company and the world’s largest touring children’s theatre. Since throwing open

the doors to the MCT Center for the Performing Arts in 1998, we have hosted more than 1.3 million guests. We love being Missoula’s unofficial community center, and we want to contribute to and be a catalyst for community vitality, artistry, and service for many years to come. MCT has a significant economic footprint. We average 120 full-time staff members, about 50 of whom live in Missoula. We earn most of our $5.5 million budget outside Missoula and spend more than 70% of it locally. MCT employees volunteer at more than 50 local organizations.

About Spark!

A National Partner in the Kennedy Center’s Any Given Child Initiative

We believe that the Arts have the power to ignite the imagination, spark innovation through creativity, and transform learning. SPARK! works in collaboration with artists, classroom teachers, university

staff, school administration, and volunteers to ensure that the arts are an essential part of every school day. SPARK! is a national partnership site for the Kennedy Center’s Any Given Child Initiative, a growing network of communities working to transform learning and ensure access to the arts for every public school student.

© 2015 MCT, Inc. (Missoula Children’s Theatre). Written by Matt Loehrke. Designed by Megan Brown. MCT welcomes questions, comments and feedback. Contact us by mail at 200 N. Adams St, Missoula, MT 59802 or email us at [email protected]. Please visit our Web site at www.MCTinc.org.

Documents

2nd Grade Educator’s Guide