Role, Voice and Movement

We are learning to build a character by choosing posture, walking pace and voice on purpose, and to find out more about a role by answering questions in role.

Before you startAbout 50 minutes · what success looks like · notes for the helper

About 50 minutes. It's fine to stop after the Quick Check and come back another day: the lesson opens where you left it, at the Quick Check.

You'll know you've got it when

I can change my posture, my walking pace and my voice (pitch, pace and volume) to build a character from a story
I can show a character's status through the body and voice, and explain that status is not the same as being loud
I can answer questions in role and use my answers to say more about who the character is

For the helperhow to sit beside this lesson, and what this step is for

This step: Spark

Start with the question at the top and chat about it. There is no wrong answer here: it gets your learner thinking about what they already know.

Getting ready: A story the family is reading aloud at the moment (any book will do) and a clear patch of floor, with chairs, bags and loose rugs moved aside so nobody trips mid-walk. Paper and a pencil are handy for jotting the three choices for each character. All of it takes about 50 minutes, a little long for one sitting; if attention fades, the check is a natural place to pause before the chosen task.
What understanding sounds like: Listen for your child naming a choice and what it shows: 'He walks slowly because he is not in a hurry, so he seems calm and in charge.' A reason that links a body or voice choice to the character matters more than a big performance. In the hot-seat, listen for answers that stay in role and invent details that fit the clues, and for status shown without getting louder.
A likely mix-up, and something that helps: Many children think drama means acting big or loud, and that a powerful character must be the loudest in the room. You might try the same line two ways and ask, 'Which one seems more in charge, the shout or the slow, quiet one? What did the quiet one do with the body?'
If it comes easily: For a child who finds this easy, one next step is the same character at high status in one moment and low status in another (the same ferryman, with his boss watching), saying which dial changed first.
If it's a struggle: If it is a struggle, one way is to change one dial at a time, starting with walking pace, and to say the same short line each time so the only difference is the choice. A sentence starter can help the hot-seat: 'What do you do first thing in the morning?' If performing feels too exposing today, your child might plan on paper with the Body and Voice Map and perform just one line, or not at all yet. Words like 'posture', 'pitch' and 'status' carry this lesson, so showing each one with your own body as you say it can help a child learning English as an additional language.

Step 1 of 6 · Spark

Lesson 1 of 5 · Who Are You Now? Character, Tension and Space

Same words, two different people

For the helper

Start with the question at the top and chat about it. There is no wrong answer here: it gets your learner thinking about what they already know.

Two people walk into a room, one after the other. Both say exactly the same two words: 'Good morning.' The first one has hunched shoulders, eyes on the floor, small quick steps and a high, quiet voice. The second has a level chin, a slow steady walk and a low, unhurried voice. You have not been told a single thing about either of them, but you already have an idea of who they are and who is in charge. Say it aloud to your helper: what did you notice that made you decide? Keep your answer, because by the end of this lesson you will be building people like this on purpose.

The same two words, and two quite different people. The words did not change. The body and the voice did.