5th GRADE DRAMA

Fall Semester Project Overview

In the fall, 5th grade selected a classic monster film and recreated a portion of it. They selected 1955’s, It Came from Beneath the Sea, set in San Francisco. In teams they selected clips to recreate. For the clips they recreated, they storyboarded, identified shot sizes, and discussed what materials they would need to gather to make it happen. 

Film Selection & Framing Practice

At the start of the project, students watched clips from three classic monster films and voted to remake a section of It Came from Beneath the Sea (1955--set in San Francisco!). Students strolled campus and took a variety of shots of an action figure to practice framing. 

Recreation & Filming

In teams, students worked together to recreate key props and set pieces from their chosen scenes using found and recycled materials. Using their made items they restaged and shot their scenes frame by frame.

Classic Monster Film Posters

While off camera, students studied the style of classic monster film posters. Individually, they took inspiration from the originals and created a poster for an imagined or reimagined monster film.

It Came from Beneath the Sea Remake

Spring Semester Project Overview

In 5th grade, students make muppet style rod puppets, learn puppeteering basics, and produce a puppet variety show. Independently they develop their puppet's character and then work in small groups to imagine a talent performance for their puppets to perform which they then write and turn into a small act to perform at the final variety show.

Puppet Making 

To make their puppets, students carefully followed a set pattern and then added small details to personalize like teeth, eyelashes, and more. 

Puppeteering

To build their puppeteering skills, students took part in activities like teaching their puppets to count in English and Spanish, sing the ABCs, dance to music, and interview one another. 

Variety Show Scriptwriting

After establishing puppeteering basics, students work with a small group to develop and write an act for their puppets to perform in a variety show. Below is an example of one of their variety show scripts.

Performance

Student Reflection Snapshots