Secondary Curriculum 1C Drama

Secondary Curriculum
1C Drama 7-10 Assignment 2 –
Unit Portfolio
Brooke Grech - 18893641

Brooke Grech - 18893641

UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN SYDNEY
Secondary Curriculum 1C Drama

Table of Contents:
Contents ................................................................................................................................................. 1
Unit Outline ........................................................................................................................................... 2
WEEK 1 .............................................................................................................................................. 4
WEEK 2 .............................................................................................................................................. 7
WEEK 3 ............................................................................................................................................ 10
WEEK 4 ............................................................................................................................................ 14
WEEK 5 ............................................................................................................................................ 15
WEEK 6 ............................................................................................................................................ 16
Assessment Details ........................................................................................................................... 17
Rationale .............................................................................................................................................. 18
References ......................................................................................................................................... 20
Resources ............................................................................................................................................. 21
Google Classroom ............................................................................................................................. 22
PowerPoint Presentation ................................................................................................................... 23
Pantalone Goes A-Wooing Script ..................................................................................................... 24
Character Profile & Reflection Exemplar ......................................................................................... 25

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UNIT OUTLINE – NORTHMEAD CREATIVE AND PERFORMING ARTS HIGH SCHOOL

Subject: Drama Course: Year 10 (Stage 5) Term 2 Number of Weeks: 6
Unit title:
Commedia Dell’Arte
Key Concepts/ Big Ideas The importance of this learning
Students will learn key features of Commedia Dell’Arte as a dramatic form Students further their knowledge of playbuilding, improvisation,
through the study of stock characters, character profile building, movement and the elements of drama through the study of a popular
improvisation and playbuilding a range of scenarios. dramatic artform and additional context of the syllabus, ‘Commedia
Students will explore the following in their study of Commedia Dell’Arte: Dell’Arte’. Students explore the unit through the objectives of making,
 The genre’s history and social context performing and appreciating. Through the research and playbuilding of
 Stock Characters these dramatic conventions, students will come to appreciate this
 Mask Work performance style and adapt it into their own works. A number of skills
 Status in literacy, numeracy and ICT will be demonstrated through numerous
 Features of comedy, slapstick and buffoonery tasks and activities. The unit’s pedagogical approaches ensure that
 The use of grammelot students with a variety of learning needs are considered and catered for.
 The Elements of Drama Using the Understanding by Design (UbD) model, the unit endeavours
Students will ultimately create an ensemble performance that reflects their for students to complete their study with a thorough understanding of
overall knowledge of the unit. Students will also design a webpage that the genre and its conventions, which will be articulated in an end
reflects the process of their character building (character profiles), performance and a research and reflection task. Furthermore, their
playbuilding, and their overall production journey. learning will help scaffold their approach to further drama studies.

Unit context within Scope and Sequence/Purpose Syllabus Outcomes (See Drama 7-10 Syllabus)
Year 10, Stage 5. Making; 5.1.1; 5.1.2; 5.1.3; 5.1.4;
Term 2 – Weeks 1-6 Performing; 5.2.1; 5.2.2; 5.2.3
Students have developed skills in playbuilding, improvising and movement in Appreciating: 5.3.1; 5.3.2; 5.3.3
Year 9 (Stage 5). These skills have created the foundation for the drama Life Skills: LS.1.1; LS.1.2; LS.2.1; LS.2.2; LS.3.1
studies students commence in Year 10, where these skills are built upon and
elaborated. Students continue to scaffold their learning throughout year 10
for further studies in senior Drama (Stage 6).

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Literacy Focus Numeracy Focus ICT Focus Differentiation

Students develop Students develop skills Students are given High Achievers
skills in: in: opportunities to use their  For students that are achieving at a higher level or do more drama
 Writing, reading  Problem solving devices to conduct outside of school, more challenging tasks can be provided
and spelling  Space, time and research in class and for according to their needs.
 Vocabulary rhythm (elements homework tasks (google Students with a disability:
 Critical Thinking of drama) classroom).  Physical disabilities: drama activities that require great amount of
and Analysis  Time The webpage part of the movement, can be modified according to the student’s needs. E.g.
 Understanding management assessment task allows If limbs are limited to movement, facial and vocal expressions and
themes, (E.g. The process students to develop their movements that are possible can be of focus.
symbols, of making drama ICT skills further. Students Student can be spoken to privately, concerning what is most
metaphors and – production) build their own websites comfortable for them.
satire  Drama games based on the content  Autism Spectrum Disorder: More structure to classroom and
 Creating including learned and provide a routines. Scaffolding of tasks. Use of timers for classroom
narratives numeracy (E.g. 21 section of reflection. activities and transitions of tasks.
 Researching or Multiples of)  Chairs or seating areas available
 Public Speaking  Learning aids can be made available depending on the
 Communicating circumstance. Extra visual material such as pictures and diagrams
 Developing can be made available.
identity  A space/area to recuperate for any students’ use (stress balls,
bean bags etc)
Language Background Other than English:
 Drama games that require mainly noises/sounds (grammelot) and
body movements, will benefit students with a language
background other than English. Instructions for tasks that require
complicated English literacy can be scaffolded.
 A range of pedagogical strategies are used through ICT and in the
classroom, including all representations suggested by the UDL
model.

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Warmup/Drama Game Activity Assessment

Week/ Sequence Course Content Teaching and Learning Strategies including assessment for Resources
learning.
WEEK 1: Revision of the Elements of Drama – with The unit begins with a diagnostic of students’ recollection of the
Outcomes: focus on role & character, movement, elements of drama and their ability to improvise and playbuild.
Making: tension, rhythm and focus.
5.1.1 Revision of improvisation, playbuilding Diagnostic of students’ abilities and growth are measured
5.1.2 and movement foundations. through the NESA checklist after each lesson.
Performing:
5.2.1 Reminder of revision documents on google classroom. Students
5.2.2 are informed that they will be doing a formative in-class quiz on  Google classroom: See
Appreciating: the elements of drama, improvisation, playbuilding and topics https://classroom.google.com/
5.3.1 studied so far in Commedia in week 3. Hence, they should study c/MzUzMjEzMDA4NTNa
5.3.2 the documents provided on google classroom. Students will also  Class code: 9qrw8jb
5.3.3 study this content through studies on Commedia Dell’Arte in the
next couple of weeks.

Warmups/Games to choose from:

 Walk around the space – Students walk around the
space and teacher uses numbers to set the pace.
Variations can be used – E.g. students born in Spring or
Autumn months
(Elements: Focus, rhythm, movement and space)
 21 – Elements: Focus and tension
 Chair Game – Students sits on a chair. One chair is left
empty. One student will walk toward the empty chair
and other students try to block them. Students who are
blocking must commit to the direction they’ve set their
focus on. (Elements: Focus, movement, space &
tension)

Introduction to Commedia Dell’Arte as a An introduction to Commedia Dell’Arte history and its  Commedia Slide show (by
dramatic artform. conventions (slideshow p1-4): James Marland – adapted by
 Meaning: “Artistic know how” or “Comedy of the Brooke Grech) – On google
professional artists” classroom

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The Body – Movement
Scaffolded Warmups/Games and
Activities:
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 Roots in Italian Comedy – 16th to 18th Century
 Settings – Market Place, Carnival, The Charlatan
Students will learn about their bodies and movement:
Warmups/games:
 Walk around the space (with variations)
 The Machine – A student starts in the centre by making
a repetitive movement. Another student places
themselves next to the other student and starts making
their own movement. Students will continue to add to
the machine. Once all students are added. The teacher
will control this machine. E.g. Go slow, go fast, stop, go
normal, start to break down.
(Elements: Movement, rhythm and focus)
Activities:
Partner Statues – Themed version (Carnival)
 Step 1: Students will walk around the space and when
the teacher signals, students quickly find a partner and
make a statue that represents the theme of a ‘carnival’.
The teacher will do this two times, so that students will
have two different statues with two different partners.
 Step 2: Students continue walking around the space
and the teacher will signal for students to move into
either statue 1 or 2 with its corresponding partner.
 Step 3: Repeat step 2, but this time students pick a
random partner and walk side-by-side in the space.
When statues are signalled by the teacher, students
must move with purpose whilst merging into their next
statue. They return to their partner straight after.
 Step 4 (without music): Students pick a partner. They
walk side-by-side and all students follow each other in a
line. The front two students will now change the
movement (matching the carnival theme). E.g.
Rollercoaster wave. Everyone follows. The teacher will
call out a student’s name and a statue number.
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Students will need to make this statue with their

corresponding partner, hold it, then return to their
original partner. The rest of the class will continue
moving as normal.
 Step 5 (Without music): Students pick a partner. They
line up on the side of the ‘stage’. The first two partners
will walk (not side-by-side – one leads, one behind) a
route (a line, then around an imaginary object then
back to the start), the leader will decide on their
movement. The walk/movement should match the
carnival theme.
 Step 6 (With carnival music): Students repeat step 5 Carnival Music (2:35):
with carnival music and perform to the song from start https://www.youtube.com/
to finish. watch?v=6HV1B2CpAaQ

Assessment briefly explained: Assessments:

Part 1:
Students will be performing a group performance in groups of 4-
5 based on Commedia Dell’Arte and its conventions. Assessment
sheet and criteria will be given to students and students will
form groups in week 4 (teacher may need to set groups
depending on students).

Part 2:
Character Profile & Reflection:
Students will be required to design a webpage as part of their
reflection. Assessment sheet and criteria for this task will be
given to students in week 2. An exemplar will be provided as a
template for guidance. Students are encouraged to start writing
reflection entries on their lessons for the week and consecutive
weeks. A short reflection task on google classroom is used in
week 1 to get them started.

1 Lesson on Weebly Basics Teacher goes through the basics of Weebly to prepare students https://www.weebly.com/home
for the Character profile assessment task

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WEEK 2: Introduction to Neutral Mask Work Mask Work (slideshow p5-6): Commedia Slideshow
Outcomes:  Masks – persona vs personality YouTube Clip:
Making:  Embodiment of character – body and movement The Neutral Mask TedTalk (First
5.1.1  How to properly put on and wear a mask few minutes):
5.1.2 https://www.youtube.com/
5.1.3 Scaffolded Warmups/Games and Activities Students will learn how to focus on their bodies in order to watch?v=26dAQgac7qU
Performing: – Connection to Elements of Drama express emotion and create meaning:
5.2.1 Warmups/games:  Neutral white plastic masks
5.2.2  Exaggerate: Stand in a circle. One student starts with a provided
Appreciating: gesture and sound (an emotion). They then pass this to
5.3.1 the next person, but each time it is passed on, the next
person will exaggerate the gesture/sound a little more,
until the very last person has fully exaggerated the
action.
 Word bodies: Students stand in their own space in the
classroom. There will be three categories of words:
Animal, object, emotion. The teacher will call out a
word from either of these categories and then a
number between 1-5. The students must quickly get
into this number of students and embody a freeze
frame of the word. E.g. Hippo, 2; Table, 4; Anger 1. The
teacher can count down from 5, to signal the end of a
round.
 The Elements (With Masks):
- Students put their masks on and lay flat on their backs
(neutral position)
- Teacher will walk them through the element of ‘Earth’.
That is, as the students wake up and attempt to stand,
they imagine they are being held down by mud/the
earth. The teacher will continue as the students
embody the teacher’s explanations of an ‘earthy’
character.
- Students will lay back into neutral position
- The teacher will then suggest the element of ‘Fire’.
Students act according to the teacher’s explanations.
E.g. You suddenly feel your whole body heating up, and

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there is fire all around you! You have it all over your
body. You need to get it off or you will burn!
- The previous steps are repeated with ‘Water’ and ‘Air’.

Elements:
Earth – Heavy, down-to-earth, slow, weighty, stuck, bored/lazy
Fire – Quick, nimble, random and rapid movements,
anxious/apprehensive
Water – Calm, flowing, peaceful, no worries/cares
Air – High levelled gestures, floating, head-up, graceful, on toes

Activities (Mask):
Element Bus Stop (Mask):
 Half the class will perform first, and half will be the
audience, they will then swap.
 3 seats will be placed on stage
 Students will line up on one side of the stage wearing
their masks
 The students are to pick one element and act as this
character as they approach the ‘bus stop’.
 The characters walk to the bus stop one at a time and
shift seats.
 The last person on the seat will then walk away from
the scene when ready and go back side stage.
 The audience must try and guess the performer’s
characters and why this was obvious through their
body/gestures/movements.

Character building and Commedia The Characters (Slideshow p.7-13):

Dell’Arte  Students are introduced to the stock characters and their Commedia Slideshow
personalities:
- Zanni, Arlecchino, Brighella (Servants) YouTube Clip:
- Pantalone, Dottore (Master) Commedia Dell’Arte: Character
- Innamorati – The Lovers shapes
- Etc

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Scaffolded Warmups/Games and Activities
– Connection to Elements of Drama
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 Characters built upon real life people – E.g. Dottore – a https://www.youtube.com/
know it all doctor. Pantalone – a greedy old man. watch?v=JJEwuurzDe4
Innamorati – Perfect lovers
Dissimulation: Motives around poverty and social class
concealed by satirical comedy
Warmups/Games:
 Walk around the space (with variations)
 Multiples of – with sounds: Students stand in a circle
and count numbers around the circle. Multiples can be
added. E.g. Every multiple of 5 must be a random noise
instead of the number.
Activities:
Outside-in Character Building (Character Shapes YouTube
reference):
 Students walk around the space normally
 Teacher will ask students to lead with a part of their
body. Each body part will match different commedia
characters. E.g. Bent Back – Pantalone, Chin & chest –
lovers, Nose & Toes – Zanni
 Teacher asks students a few questions regarding the
personality of their character. E.g. Where do you live?
What do you like to do on weekends? Who is your best
friend? And reasons why.
 Students are given a short time to write their answers.
E.g.
Body Part: Bent Back
Character Name: Pantalone
Where do you live: I live in the wealthiest part of town,
because I’m rich and have plenty of women around me.
What do you like to do on weekends? Find ways to get
more money and more women
Who is your best friend? I don’t have friends, because
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I’m the best and everyone else is not up to my

standard.
Discuss experience and answers.

The World of Commedia Dell’Arte Activity:  Commedia Dell’Arte Masks

 All students will walk in the performing space  Wipes (hygiene)
 The teacher will give the students a setting – E.g. A
dinner party
 Using the masks provided, students will take turns to
take on a character in the performance space.
 As there are only enough masks for some students,
other students will need to take on characters without
masks. In this case, they can choose which character to
portray.
 The students walk around this setting and will approach
each other to have a short conversation in their
characters.
 Students can swap masks to try other characters (using
wipes for hygiene purposes)

Assessment – Character Profile & Hand out and explain the character profile & reflection  Assessment Sheets
Reflection sheet hand out assessment in depth – students will need to create their own  Exemplar/Template for
character profile of the Commedia character chosen for their Webpage (Profile and
performance. They will provide background information for the Reflection)
character, plus a table that demonstrates their reflection on Can be viewed at:
building this character in preparation for their group https://commediadellarteeg
performance. Assessment is due the day after the group characterprofile.weebly.com/
performance in week 6.
WEEK 3: Dissimulation and Status in Commedia Dissimulation and Status (Slideshow p.14-15) Commedia Slideshow
Outcomes: Dell’Arte  YouTube clip on status YouTube:
Making:  Status is multifaceted The World of Commedia dell’arte
5.1.1  Examples of status in modern society (status)
5.1.2  Create the hierarchy map on the board https://www.youtube.com/
5.1.3 watch?v=h_0TAXWt8hY
5.1.4

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Performing: Scaffolded Warmups/Games and Activities Warmups/Games:

5.2.1 – Connection to Elements of Drama  What’s Your Status?
5.2.2 Using numbers 1-5, 1 being the lowliest person
5.2.3 imagined (e.g. beggar) and 5 being the
Appreciating: mightiest/highest person imagined (e.g. God), students
5.3.1 will walk around the room and the teacher will call out
5.3.2 a number. The students must walk/move in
5.3.3 representation of this status.
 Playing with Status:
Using an emoji sheet, the teacher will tell students to
act out an emoji they see on the page. Students will act
it out. The teacher will ask students whether they felt
high or low in status. Students will then pick their 3
favourite emojis. They will stand in their own space
around the room and make freeze frames for each
emoji using their faces and body, exploring levels and
transitioning smoothly.

Activity:
Creating a scene using Status:
 Students will get into groups of 4-5 and move into their
own space in the room
 Students will agree on 3 emojis from the sheet and
create 3 tableaus that represent a scene where they
would be feeling this emoji. E.g. Happy emoji – Won a
competition/victorious
 When ready, the teacher will count down from 3-1 and
students will move into their first tableau. Teacher
counts 3-1 and students move into the next tableau
and so on.
 Teacher gives students time to create a short scene
(using dialogue) where these three tableaus can be
connected coherently and make sense. E.g. Happy
emoji – half a group of friends win a competition,
Jealous emoji – the other half of friends are jealous of

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their victory, miserable emoji – the victorious friends

are upset at jealous friend’s remarks.

Improvisation and Language in Commedia
Dell’Arte
Improvisation & Language in Commedia (Slideshow p.16): Commedia Slideshow
 Lazzi – improvised “sight gags”
 Grammelot (Examples on YouTube) Example of Grammelot:
 Slapstick – exaggerated physical activity (Modern Muppet Show Swedish chef
examples – The Three Stooges) (Gibberish):
https://www.youtube.com/
Warmups/Games: watch?v=UerBCXHKJ5s
 Multiples of – Students stand in a circle. Students will Minions (Mixture of Languages):
count numbers starting from 1. Add multiples: https://www.youtube.com/
Multiples of 5 – every multiple of 5 the students watch?v=yr-PQs9fWd0
mustn’t say the number but make a random sound. Can
add more multiples until nearly all numbers are gone. If Slapstick Comedy:
someone messes up or hesitates, start again from 1. The Three Stooges ‘Do-not
Remove’ scene:
Grammelot: https://www.youtube.com/
Doo-Bee-Doo watch?v=PVcb5tV12O8
 Pass the emotion: Students start in a circle. A student picks
an emotion and starts to act that emotion with the
dialogue: “Doo-Bee-Doo-Bee-Doo”
 The student passes this emotion to the next student, who
imitates the previous emotion, but then subtly changes it
into their own emotion using the dialogue “Doo-Bee-Doo-
Bee-Doo”
 The Grammelot can be changed using different vowels and
consonants
 This cycle can be repeated again using different stock
characters.

Slapstick:
Mirror Me:
Students get into pairs and person A starts by gesturing using
only their upper body (small gestures), aiming to make the
person mirroring them look stupid and silly. E.g. Pig nose,

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slapping themselves (disclaimer – Health & Safety Rules –

everything is pretend). Students swap and take turns. If students
are confident, add sounds to match the gestures or use full
body.

Lazzi - Sight gags:

 Walk around the space with comedic variations – E.g. trip
over a banana; there’s a fly in your face; running on glass;
bang your head against the wall (all imaginary).
 Walk around the space normally. Teacher will call out a
student’s name and ask them to perform a sight gag. E.g.
trip over a banana. The other students must react. Allow all
students to have a turn.
 Balloon Man: Scenario: You’re at the park. There’s a man
giving out balloons. You really want one, but you don’t want
to wait in line, so you try get to the front.
Students stand in a line. The person at the front is the
balloon man. The last student has to get through all the
students in the line by making them perform a ‘sight gag’.
They can say something like: “Your pants are on fire”. In this
case that student will act like their pants are on fire and go
to the back of the line. The student will continue doing this
until they become the balloon man and the original balloon
man goes to the back and continues the cycle.
If there are an equal number of students, this can be done
as a race. Each team will need to perform the full cycle so
that all students have a turn.

Activities in Playbuilding (Masks used):

 Students get into groups of 4-5.  Commedia Dell’Arte Masks
 Teacher will give each group a scenario and characters provided
to pick from (there can be doubles – e.g. 2x Zanni).
 Students must playbuild a short performance with a
clear beginning and ending that include moments of
lazzi and slapstick. Students do not use dialogue, but
use Grammelot. If students are not confident speaking

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gibberish, they can use vowels and consonants

explored in the ‘doo-bee-doo’ game.
 Students perform their plays to each other
 Students in audience guess the scenario and characters.
Students give each other constructive feedback – praise
and things to work on.

1 Half lesson to do quiz Multiple Choice and 1 Short Answer Quiz on revision of  Quiz Sheets
Elements of Drama, Improvisation and Playbuilding and weeks
1-3 topics on Commedia Dell’Arte.
WEEK 4: Narrative Structure in Commedia Dell’Arte Narrative Structure (Slideshow p.17): Commedia Slideshow
Outcomes:  Everything is fine
Making:  Complication
5.1.1  Complications continue to develop
5.1.2  Climax which lacks resolution
5.1.3  Finale with a resolution and everyone is fine again
5.1.4
Performing: Warmups/Games and Activities – Warmups/Games:
5.2.1 Connection to Elements of Drama  Word Tennis: Students partner up and face each other in a
5.2.2 line. Teacher gives all students a category – E.g. cat names.
5.2.3 Students mime playing tennis, hitting the ball to their
Appreciating: partner every time they say a word from this category.
5.3.1  What are you doing? (Start simple and gradually become
5.3.2 more creative and drastic) E.g. Riding a bike vs Riding a bike
with a flat tire in a storm without a helmet

Using Scripts to perform Commedia Activities

Dell’Arte The following script will be studied by the teacher and students.  Script: Pantalone goes A-
Pantalone Goes A-Wooing Wooing.
 Students do a cold read
 Teacher-student Discussion
 Students will get into groups of 4-5 and will playbuild a
chosen scene of the script provided using the
conventions learnt over the unit. Perform to class.

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Putting it altogether Pt 1 Activities in Improvisation and Playbuilding:

Improvising Scenes using Commedia
Dell’Arte Conventions
As playbuilding and improvisation techniques have been
scaffolded over time, students should feel confident enough to
use all they have learnt in the unit and previous units to
improvise different scenes provided by the teacher. Students
can take turns performing and being part of the audience.
Students can give each other constructive feedback – praise and
things to work on.

Performance Assessment sheets and The teacher will hand out the performance assessment sheet
details. and explain the details – criteria.

Work on Assessment Students will use half a lesson for practical and half for
theoretical (research).

1 Half lesson to work on Character Profiles Students form groups and will work on the research for their
(research lesson using devices) character profile websites using their own devices.

1 Half lesson to work on performance. Students use time wisely to play-build ideas and rehearse their
Students form their groups performances.

WEEK 5: Putting it Altogether Pt 2 Unit revision and discussion of topics covered on Commedia
Outcomes: Dell’Arte. Revise topics starting from week 1, with discussion
Making: summaries.
5.1.1 Drama circle – what did students find interesting, what was the
5.1.2 students’ favourite parts, and what was most challenging?
5.1.3
5.1.4 Warmups/Games and Activities – Replay warmups/games/activities that were most favoured and
Performing: Connection to Elements of Drama most challenging to students.
5.2.1
5.2.2
5.2.3 Improvising Scenes using Commedia Activities in Improvisation and Playbuilding:
Appreciating: Dell’Arte Conventions See Week 4
5.3.1
5.3.2

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5.3.3 1 Full lesson to work on Character Profiles Students will use a full lesson to work on their character profile
websites.

1 Full lesson to work on performance

assessment Students use time wisely to play-build ideas and rehearse their
performances. Students also think about costuming and set
design for their performance.
WEEK 6 (or start Assessment Week This week is used for revision and finalising of performance
of Week 7): assessment.
Outcomes:
Making: 1 Full lesson for Warmups/Games and Replay warmups/games/activities that were most favoured and
5.1.1 Activities – Connection to Elements of most challenging to students.
5.1.2 Drama
5.1.3
5.1.4 Activities in Improvisation and Playbuilding:
Performing: See week 4 and 5 (if time permits)
5.2.1
5.2.2
5.2.3 1 full lesson to work on performance Students use time wisely to rehearse and finalise their  All necessary costuming and
Appreciating: assessment performances. props for performance
5.3.1
5.3.2
5.3.3 Students perform in last lesson(s) of week For last lesson(s): Students perform their assessment. Debrief
6 (or start of week 7 – preferably in a circle on their experience of performing Commedia Dell’Arte
double period) Website links for Character Profile & Reflection are submitted
Debrief and reflection of performance through google classroom on the day after the performance.

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Outcomes of Assessment Assessment Details

Performance: There will be two parts to the assessment which will be marked out of 20. Half of the marks will go
Making: toward a group performance and half toward a character profile & reflection website (10 marks each).
5.1.1 Performance:
5.1.2 Students will form groups in week 4. They will perform their assessment at the end of week 6 or start
5.1.3 of week 7. Students will use the conventions studied throughout the unit, the elements of drama and
5.1.4 production elements to create a performance that closely models the dramatic artform of Commedia
Performing: Dell’Arte and its stock characters. Students will be given time in class during weeks 4-6 to playbuild and
5.2.1 rehearse.
5.2.2 Character Profile & Reflection:
5.2.3 Students will create an informative website on Weebly that outlines a chosen stock character in
Commedia Dell’Arte (preferably the character the student will play in their performance, although this
Character Profile & Reflection: may change through the making process). The student will need to research their character and create
Appreciating: a profile that showcases their personality, role/status, movements, costume/mask and other
5.3.1 characteristics. The reflection part will be set in a table starting with week 1 and ending in week 6. The
5.3.2 student will reflect on their learning and experiences studying Commedia Dell’Arte with brief
5.3.3 reflections for each week. Furthermore, students will reflect on their experiences playing their
character and their role within the ensemble and collaboration process.

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Rationale:
The Commedia Dell’Arte Unit Outline is designed for stage 5, year 10 drama students

at Northmead Creative and Performing Arts (NCAPA) High School. Students at this school

study additional hours of drama from the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA)

syllabus and are more exposed to the performing arts than other schools (NESA, 2003).

Therefore, the unit has been designed with higher expectations and a denser curriculum study

within a shorter period. Despite this, students still range in abilities and needs, thus,

differentiation strategies have been applied (Loreman, Deppeler & Harvey, 2011). The

Universal Design for Learning (UDL), Quality Teaching Framework (QTF), Understanding

by Design (UbD) model and other literature are used in this unit outline to address the

pedagogical strategies for all student needs (Loreman et al., 2011; Ladwig & Gore, 2009;

Wiggins & McTighe, 2005).

NCAPA High School is a co-educational school located in Western Sydney and has

an estimated enrolment of 1048 students, with approximately half from a language

background other than English (LBOTE) (MySchool, 2018). Students must audition for

admission into the school in their CAPA area of choice (Northmead-h.schools, 2019).

Therefore, students studying this unit will generally be gifted and talented (GAT). GAT

students range in abilities and needs for learning, such as those with learning or emotional

difficulties, disabilities or LBOTE (Reise & McCoach, 2002). Thus, the unit outline

incorporates the UDL framework to incorporate strategies for diverse student needs.

The UDL framework is made of three principals: multiple means of representation,

expression and engagement (Smith & Tyler, 2011). Representation is demonstrated through

the various kinaesthetic, visual and auditory tasks including drama games and activities, ICT

use, visual materials and teacher explanations (Felder, 2002). Expression is demonstrated

through formative and summative assessments that address both practical and academic
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aspects of drama (Kalidas, 2014). Engagement combines both representation and expression

strategies to increase student motivation and cater for various student strengths, abilities and

interests (Loreman et al., 2011).

The QTF allows for pedagogical strategies to reflect high standards (Ladwig & Gore,

2009). The unit outline addresses intellectual quality through the essential components of

studying drama and Commedia Dell’Arte conventions including, historical and social issues,

the embodiment of theoretical ideas and context-specific terminology. A quality learning

environment is demonstrated through the highly engaging practical and academic tasks such

as improvisation, ensemble work and written reflections (Ladwig & Gore, 2009). Lastly,

significance is achieved through the relatability of content to the students’ lives and modern

world and the inclusive nature of student participation (Kalidas, 2014).

The UbD model assists in the backwards mapping and desired results of the unit

outline (Wiggins & McTighe, 2005). It is expected that students would have acquired an

intermediate understanding of playbuilding, improvisation and the elements of drama by year

10, term 2. Hence, the unit is scaffolded week by week, building upon these foundations with

harder content as the weeks progress. In completion of the unit, students will have an

extensive understanding of Commedia Dell’Arte conventions and stock characters, which

will be exhibited through performance and written assessments. Students will continue to

progress to advanced studies by stage 6.

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References:

Felder, R. (2002). Learning and Teaching Styles in Engineering Education, 1-2. Retrieved
from http://winbev.pbworks.com/f/LS-1988.pdf

Kalidas, C. (2014). Drama: A Tool for Learning. Procedia - Social And Behavioral
Sciences, 123, 444-449. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.01.1443

Ladwig, J., & Gore, J. (2009). Quality teaching in NSW public schools: A classroom practice
guide (3rd ed., pp. 1-60). Sydney, Australia: NSW Department of Education and
Training.

Loreman, T., Deppeler, J., & Harvey, D. (2011). Inclusive education (2nd ed., pp. 1-301).
Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin

MySchool (2019). School profile | My School. [online] Myschool.edu.au. Available at:

https://www.myschool.edu.au/school/41809 [Accessed 6 May 2019].

Northmead-h.schools (2019). High schools - Northmead Creative and Performing Arts High
School. [online] Northmead-h.schools.nsw.gov.au. Available at: https://northmead-
h.schools.nsw.gov.au/ [Accessed 6 May 2019].

NSW Education Standards Authority. (2003). Drama Year 7-10 Syllabus [Ebook] (pp. 1-61).
Retrieved from https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/8bfe0514-e3fd-
4eb4-91ec-1bbdd1980e8a/drama_710_support.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=

Reis, S., & McCoach, D. (2002). Underachievement in Gifted and Talented Students With
Special Needs. Exceptionality, 10(2), 113-125.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15327035ex1002_5

Smith, D.D. & Tyler, N.C. (2011). Effective inclusive education: Equipping education
professionals with necessary skills and knowledge. Prospects, 41(3), 323 – 339.

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2005). Understanding by design (2nd ed.). Alexandria, Va.:
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

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Resources:
Resource 1: Google Classroom

Link: https://classroom.google.com/c/MzUzMjEzMDA4NTNa

Class code: 9qrw8jb

The Google Classroom resource allows students to develop their ICT skills in navigating a
webpage. This resource is easily accessible and easy to navigate. Developing these skills also
scaffold for the assessment task in creating students’ own webpages.

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Resource 2: Commedia Dell’arte PowerPoint Presentation

From: Google Classroom

Below are excerpts of the Commedia Dell’arte PowerPoint presentation which is used
throughout the unit to explore theoretical content. For full version, please see the google
classroom link in resource 1.

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Resource 3: Pantalone Goes A-Wooing Script

This script is used during the session on Narratives and Plots. Students can also use this as
inspiration for their own performances.

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Resource 4: The Character Profile & Reflection Exemplar/Template

Link: https://commediadellarteegcharacterprofile.weebly.com/

The below is an example/template of the character profile & reflection that students can use
as a guide for their own profiles. This resource/assessment allows students to develop their
ICT skills.

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