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Theatre is about communication; my classroom is about communication. Why not combine the two? I am exploring the ways in which theatre can be a vehicle for target language acquisition. Vocal exercises and improvisations can push students to simulate real world experiences in the classroom and to begin to communicate on a more authentic level. Beyond that dramatic literature is written for performance and if I am proposing improving reading comprehension it must be performed. The practice of performance will allow students to interact more directly with the text. One cannot perform without analysis. This is a lesson I have learned as a stage manager, actor, director and teacher.

Welcome to my wiki where I will explore creating Spanish Language Thematic Units with theatre as the the driving force.

Welcome to the attendees of my session at FLAG 2013. This wiki is a work in progress that grows as I create new elements for the use of theatre in the classroom. If you have any resources you are looking for or would like to share with others please feel free to send those requests to me. Below you will find a PDF version of the handout from the session.
 * FLAG2013: Theatre in the Foreign Langauge Classroom: Engaging your students**

During the summer of 2011 I participated in the NEH Seminar led by John Rosenberg entitled Authors in the Prado. Throughout the seminar we connected art and literature, used performance to aid in our understanding of dramatic texts and connected in many ways with the literature studied. We were asked to perform scenes from the play read in discussed in the course. My colleagues and I experienced a much more profound understanding of the pieces after rehearsal than we had after in-class discussion. I have been a theatre director and a Spanish teacher but this summer has shown my the benefits of combining my two roles. This unit will combine elements of actor training and second language acquisition to culminate in the study and performance of //En la Ardiente Oscuridad// by Antonio Buero Vallejo. Through the process we will learn about the Spanish Civil War and explore its affect on the population of Spain. Students will be asked to research and present on specific topics, analyze post war poetry and perform scenes from the dramatic text. Students will be guided through the role of reader, director, designer, actor and audience member.This unit is being written for my level 4 Spanish course. Most of these students are on track to be in IB or AP the following semester. I teach on 90 block.
 * Unit Overview //En la Ardiente Oscuridad// por Antonio Buero Vallejo **

This is an active unit that I will be using in my classroom, as such this will be a work in progress. Please check back often for updates and changes.

I welcome any thoughts, ideas, suggestions etc. Twitter: 80knitstitches email: Aileen.M.Zeigler at gmail dot com