Who: We are a college group of C0-leads who are working to help boost the confidence of Brite kids. We will be using dance improvisation and theatre improvisation. Using improvisation games, we will be able to help them become who they want to be with the new found confidence they possess. BRITE kids can apply this confidence during everyday life where ever they dwell.
What: I am doing one theatre based improv workshop, in a Brite Facility. My co-leads will be doing a movement based improv workshop in the same facility.
When: The improv session happens the week after we came back from Spring Break. The date of April 2nd to be exact.
Where: Brite provided us a dance room layout used for dance, improv, and theatre works. This event happened at a facility in Thousand Oaks. The current address 403 W Hillcrest Drive.
Why: I am doing this to encourage creativity and confidence through improv. To help kids understand that true confidence comes from expression of self. When we use our expressions to describe and deliver how we feel, it is easier to feel and understand ourselves.
How: I am going to use improvisation games to help these kids finally use their creativity. These games will ignite the confidence within these kids so they will create a spotlight of their own. The games are designed to make the kids pop their bubbles and send themselves into a fun environment where reassurance of emotion is applied. Reassurance as in they will be okay, every moment counts for something greater.
Annotated Bibliography:
Q: What do we need to know about guiding children of any age when it comes to improvisation, empowerment, and creativity?
Lin, Angela, and Gloria Yuen. “Empowering Philadelphia Youth with Improv Skills.” The Wharton School, 12 June 2020, https://www.wharton.upenn.edu/story/empowering-philadelphia-youth-with-improv-skills/.
-this is website created by a university posting about how children who are students are inspired by improvisation when taking a production or acting course. This article show that improv is a transformative process. Improv can help develop vocal skills, confidence in movement and creativity. This article shows that improv can be used for all ages sparking inspiration for those who are in process in developing new communication skills.
Cohen, Karen. “Boost Your Kid's Confidence with Acting Classes at Building Character.” Macaroni KID Alpharetta-Roswell-Milton, 3 Feb. 2020, https://alpharetta.macaronikid.com/articles/5e386ba644cc3f5b05419178/boost-your-kids-confidence-with-acting-classes-at-building-character.
-This source quickly and generally goes over the benefits of kids participating in a performing arts environment such as class. Improvisation goes perfectly with kids since they are playing pretend every day as a hobby. So, when the kids learn that improvisation is only a professional way to pretend and think of outside the box ideas on impulse. This will also help kids gain the confidence to use dialogue with creativity. The kids can quickly understand how a bond is put together by team work. This will help my observation and reflection on how the process delivers results.
Schwaba, Jamie. “7 Life Skills Kids Gain by Participating in Theatre.” Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts, 22 Sept. 2016, https://mca.smumn.edu/2016/09/22/7-life-skills-from-theatre/.
-Now this article has plenty of information I can pull evidence from, it’s currently within the last five years and has seven reasons kids should participate in performing arts. This site can tell me why each benefit is just as valuable as the next. Plus this information came from another performing arts studio. This studio helps point out reasons kids will love improv because they will learn skills they've heard about but haven't executed yet.
DeBettignies, Brooke H. "Improvisational Theatre Classes Improve Self-Concept." US Educational Publishing Foundation: 4, Nov 2020, Retrieved From: https://web-p-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.csuci.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=d5e09f71-5401-41fa-bf6d-a6d86f2ce065%40redis&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=2019-29428-001&db=pdh
Update: Improv Session 4/2 was a success. The kids quickly responded to the games, and responded confidently. The supervisors Victoria and Mitch showed great support in their positions. My partners Nicholas and Michela led their parts to perfection. Some kids showed to have an overwhelming sensation, but we handled that situation with positive reassurance that we were all in the same boat in improvisation. Signs of nervousness were to be expected from these kids, with great creativity and confidence displayed by their presenters, we showed them the way to power through. The kids of Brite were able to reach a new level of confidence once they had their moments of life within their grasp.
Credits:
Created with images by Sonyworld - "flower ink abstract" • athree23 - "board chalk gears" • SarahRichterArt - "tact clock alarm clock" • ulleo - "books book stack isolated"