Drama Unit Planner

Drama Unit Planner: UNIT PLANNER: Drama NAME: Alexandra Harris ID: 100081165 UNIT/THEME/TOPIC: Peer Pressure – Assertive, Aggressive and Passive Reactions BAND: Middle Years Year level: 6-7 OVERVIEW OF THE UNIT According to Maslow (1970), a basic human need is for group affiliation and to be recognised and valued as a group member. This need for group affiliation often leads to peer pressure and conformity. Students explore the concept of “peer pressure” and how it affects them in their everyday lives, focusing on how to resist it in an assertive way. Students discuss and explore what it means to be assertive, aggressive and passive, gaining the understanding that assertive behaviour is the most effective way of communicating ideas and responses to experiences that place pressure or impact upon them in a negative way. Throughout this unit of work, Drama is used as a way of exploring issues that relate to peer pressure through the use of improvisation, role play, play building, improvised role-play and tableau’s. Addressing the concepts of ‘peer pressure’,’ pack mentality’ and ‘non-conformity’ through drama activities encourages student awareness of these particular issues as well as practice for how they will be dealt with in a real life situation. Through exercises that focus on personal and interpersonal skills, participants learn to develop and value their own sense of self whilst simultaneously building positive relationships with other class members. Abbs (1982) states that this fulfils two crucial needs for students: “to be” and “to belong”. Students will be able to identify what peer pressure is, and discover / come up with strategies that will help them avoid succumbing to it such as: saying “no” assertively, avoiding situations that they know will make them vulnerable, respecting others choices and taking action in the form of telling a responsible adult or speaking out.

Class Profile I am basing this unit of work on a year seven class that I observed during a 2008 practicum placement to Burnside Primary. The class teacher often used Drama as a concrete way of enforcing ideas taught throughout different subject areas such as Health, English and Society & Environment. I plan on utilising drama as a powerful teaching tool during my future career as an educator and base this unit of work predominately around the subject area of Health. Unit of Work: Strand/s:

Key idea:

Unit Outcome(s)

Students draw from thought, - Creative Thinking imagination, data and research, and the examination of social and - Verbal Skills Arts cultural issues, to demonstrate Practice personal aesthetic preference, and - Group Work provide imaginative solutions and artistic responses to ideas and - Compassion / Empathy Arts analysis & issues. Id T KC1 KC2 relating to Response  Outcome 3.1 - Problem Solving - Reading body language Arts in

Outcome 3.1

- Assertive

Contexts 

Uses thought, imagination, research and experimentation to create/recreate arts works within each arts forms that convey meaning about issues within their community. Id In T C KC1 KC2

- Social Competence

Key Competencies:

- Students understand that an assertive response to peer pressure is the most effective.

KC1 – collecting, analysing and organising information KC2 – communicating ideas and information KC3 – planning and organising activities

- Cooperation - Distinguish between responding to peer pressure / people aggressively, passively and assertively.

Conceptual (knowledge/understanding) - Students will have an understanding of what peer pressure and conformity is and ways in which they can avoid succumbing to it. - Students will have an understanding of the three different reactions / responses they can have to

KC4 – working with others and in teams

peer pressure and explore the consequences of each. These are: passive compliance (often resulting in feelings of anguish and frustration), KC5 – using mathematical ideas and aggressive (often resulting in offending peers) and techniques being assertive (resulting in positively doing the right thing and making sure no one is offended by KC6 – solving problems your decisions / actions). KC7 – using technology

Essential Learnings: F – Futures Id – Identity In – Interdependence T – Thinking C - Communication

- Students will understand the importance of being able to say “no” in a kind but firm way. Skills ( can do) - Students will be able to develop their problem solving skills. - Students will be able to think about the same thing in different ways. - Students will be able to look at issues from different perspectives. - Improvisation - Role play - Tableau - Play building - Improvised role play - Students will be able to assertively say “no” and refuse to comply. Affective (feel) - Students will develop compassion and empathy. - Students will explore the differences between right and wrong. - Students will develop their responses to peer pressure and connect it with emotive responses. - Students will explore the negative consequences of their actions.