“Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.”
– Shannon Adler, author
Lesson 4: Clarity, Brevity, and Emotion in Your Story
Objective
Students will edit their performance piece using recommendations from articles.
Introduction (1 minute)
Now that you have developed a draft of your performance piece, it is time to take that work and ensure that it is appropriate for the performance at the end of our time together. Today’s session will focus on editing your work based on best practices for creating performance pieces.
Read one of the following articles for additional information to help edit your idea into a usable piece.
Do Now (7-10 minutes)
Based on what kind of performance piece you have drafted, please read one of the following articles.
- For poems or spoken word:
- For songs or raps:
- For monologues:
Lesson Materials (20 minutes)
Using the guidance of the articles, revise your draft. As you edit your draft, please use this rubric (download here):
Performance Piece Rubric
Your performance piece should be 2-5 minutes in length. For songs, music should be provided in MP4 form (please ensure you are using a karaoke format without lyrics). If you plan to play an instrument, please limit to either guitar or piano for staging purposes.
| Delivery | Not Yet Within Expectations (1-2) | Minimally Meets Expectations (3) | Fully Meets Expectations (4) | Exceeds Expectations (5) |
| Point of View | point of view and character are inconsistentan implied listener is seldom evident | point of view and character are clear and consistentan implied listener is evident | point of view and character are clear, focused, and consistentan implied listener is established | point of view and character are integrated; an implied listener is evident throughout the monologue |
| Physical Delivery | lacks involvement; no movement or gestureslimited use of nonverbal gestures and facial expressions | behaviors, gestures, or movements do not fit the characternonverbal gestures and facial expressions are occasionally distracting or inappropriate for the piece | gestures or movements are fine, but may have omitted obvious behaviorsnonverbal gestures and facial expression suit the piece | natural gestures and movement enhance message; fit piece nonverbal gestures and facial expression enhance the piece |
| Pacing | either too fast or too slowshorter than 90 seconds or longer than 3 minutes 30 seconds | either too fast or too slowshorter than 1 minute, 45 seconds or longer than 3 minutes 15 seconds | delivery generally successfulless than 15 seconds shorter than 2 minutes or less than 15 seconds longer than 3 minutes | excellent pacing that helps build the emotional response to the piecebetween 2-3 minutes |
| Speaking Techniques | uses volume, tone, and pace inappropriately or ineffectivelyenunciation is not clear; performance does not flow smoothly and contains many breaks or fillers that are distracting | uses volume, tone, and pace somewhat to suit the content and purposeenunciation is mostly clear; piece flows adequately with some noticeable breaks or fillers (um, uh, etc) that are distracting | uses volume, tone, and pace appropriate to the content and purpose enunciation is clear; expression is appropriate and natural; piece flows well with few noticeable breaks or fillers that are distracting | adjusts volume, tone, and pace to achieve a special effect or for impactenunciation is exceptionally clear; monologue flows smoothly without noticeable breaks or fillers |
| Purpose | the piece rarely reveals the thoughts, feelings, and context of the performer | the piece occasionally reveals the thoughts, feelings, and context of the performer | the monologue interprets the thoughts, feelings, and context of the performer | the piece effectively elaborates the thoughts, feelings, and context of the performer |
| Meaning | often confusing;content may be inappropriatefew details; often very brief; parts may be irrelevant | straightforwarddetail and description tend to be direct and concrete | some originality and creative developmenteffective detail and description | originality and a strong voicesome maturity and sophistication |
| Content | /30 |
Closing (2 minutes)
Today, you had the opportunity to use professional advise to revise and edit your draft according to the final performance rubric. As homework before the next session, you should practice your piece and be prepared to present in front of a partner. In the next lesson, you will receive feedback from a partner to ensure that the emotion and main idea of your piece is clear to your audience.
Homework (30 min)
For the next session, please practice your piece (again, review the rubric for clarity on exemplar performance pieces). In your next two sessions, you will perform your piece in front of a partner.