7THE NEW VICTORY® THEATER / NEWVICTORY.ORG/SCHOOLTOOLS © THE NEW 42ND STREET, INC.

®

COMMON CORE STANDARDS

Writing: 4Speaking and Listening: 1; 2; 6Language: 1; 2; 3

NEW YORK STATE STANDARDS

The Arts: 1; 4ELA: 1; 4

BLUEPRINT FOR THE ARTS

Theater: Theater Making; Developing Theater Literacy; Making Connections

AFTER

BEFORE

BEYOND

This section is part of a full New Victory® School toolTM Resource Guide. For the complete guide, including information about the New Victory Education

Department check out: NEWVICTORY.ORG/SCHOOLTOOLS

before | INSIDE EN ROUTE

CATCH ME! (ATTRAPE-MOI)

8THE NEW VICTORY® THEATER / NEWVICTORY.ORG/SCHOOLTOOLS © THE NEW 42ND STREET, INC.

®

ACTIVITY 1: CATCH ME! (NO REALLY, PLEASE CATCH ME!)

AFTER BEYOND

BEFORE

INSIDE EN ROUTE

Trust, teamwork and collaboration are essential tools for the ensemble of CATCH ME! The following activity will allow your students to experience building trust and collaboration with their classmates.

1. Gather your students into a circle in a large open space and explain that they are going to explore safety and trust through a basic circus ensemble exercise called Falling.

2. Tell students that there is a safe way to fall. Model the proper body position: arms should be crossed and hands placed on opposite shoulders, body held still and strong.

3. Ask all of the students to model this position.

4. Now, tell students that there is also a safe way to catch a faller. Model the appropriate catching position with three students. Each student should catch the faller with one hand on their shoulder and one hand on their back. There should always be two people catching the faller.

5. Tell the class that the falling student should never fall all the way to the floor but should be caught in a leaning position.

6. The final step in preparing for catching and falling is to practice a vocal warning. Tell students that when they are falling, they should say, "Catch Me!" Once the two catchers are in place behind the falling student, they should say "Ready!" Only then should the student proceed to fall.

7. Ask three students to model this to the rest of the class.

8. Now, tell students to get into groups of three and practice their falls and catches. Make sure each student in every group gets a chance to try falling and catching.

9. If you’d like to increase the challenge, continue with the Catch Me! game in a full group setting by having all students walk around the room. As they do, explain that you will tap one student on the shoulder. That student will be the faller. When they are tapped, they should get in the faller positions and yell "Catch Me!" to get the rest of the students' attention. All students should then rush behind that student, get in the catcher’s position and say, "Ready!" when two students are prepared to catch.

10. Continue this game, increasing speed and intensity!

REFLECTION QUESTIONSWhat was it like to trust your classmates to catch you? What made you feel safe and what made you feel unsafe?What techniques did we use to safely fall and safely catch our classmates?How do you think circus performers work together as an ensemble to create safety and trust?

before | CATCH ME! (ATTRAPE-MOI)

9THE NEW VICTORY® THEATER / NEWVICTORY.ORG/SCHOOLTOOLS © THE NEW 42ND STREET, INC.

®

AFTER

BEFORE

BEYOND

ACTIVITY 2: OFF THE FLOORUse this activity to get your students working together and off their feet! Challenge ensembles of 6 (the number of performers in CATCH ME!) to safely find balance on the floor and in the air.

1. Divide your students into groups of 6 students.

2. Ask the students to determine the number of points of contact to the floor they have as a group. NOTE: For this activity, a “point of contact” is a place where a group member’s body is touching the floor. For example, a group of 6 people where everyone is standing with both feet on the ground has 12 points of contact (one for each group member’s individual feet). A group of 6 in which 5 people are balancing on one foot while holding the sixth member off the ground would have 5 points of contact.

3. Ask each group to find a way to have 7 points of contact with the ground. An example would be a group of 6 with 2 people standing on both feet and the other 3 each standing on one foot.

4. Once every group has achieved 7 points of contact, continue calling out numbers and challenging students to find the most creative ways to modify their physical configurations to create that number of points of contact as a group.

5. After a few rounds, have the groups challenge one another, two groups at a time, asking them to face off by calling out a number and seeing who can complete the challenge first. Choose numbers that are significantly larger (e.g. 20 points of contact for a group of 5) and smaller (e.g. 2 points of contact for a group of 5) to challenge them to work collaboratively and create interesting shapes as a group.

REFLECTION QUESTIONSWhat was challenging about this exercise?Which did you enjoy more, giving or accepting the challenges? Why?What were some successful ways you and your team worked together?

INSIDE EN ROUTE

before | CATCH ME! (ATTRAPE-MOI)

CREATIVITY PAGE

Dear

Here are some things to remember about us when you read this in 10 years!

Our favorite song(s) are

Our favorite movie(s) are

Our favorite thing to do is

Our favorite place to hang out is

Our favorite inside joke is

When we graduate, we want to be

I remember the day we met. (Describe the day.)

I can’t believe it has been 10 years!

Sincerely,

(Your Name)

© THE NEW 42ND STREET, INC.®

NEW VICTORY THEATER CREATIVITY PAGE

In CATCH ME!, the performers are having a 10-year reunion. What would it

be like to not see one of your friends for 10 whole years?!

Choose a friend who is not in your class. Write a note for them to open in 10

years to remind them of your friendship. Use the template below as a guide!

(Your friend's name)

(Describe when and where you are writing this letter.)