Lesson 1: Intentions

The student will rehearse and perform the same line as another student with a different
intention using movement and voice.

Activity:
Discuss how people can say the same things but they can mean totally different things.
What changes the meaning of what you are saying? Emotions, personality, movement,
tone, and what the character wants. This is a change in intention.
o Define intentions: Characters aim, what they want.
Show movie clip from Disneys Frozen (Do you want to build a snowman?)
o Pause before the ship sinks
Ask: what is Annas intention? Resume video. Ask students how Annas
intentions change? Did it change at all?
Discuss how movement and voice changes intention.
Students will select a line. On their own they will practice saying the line with the
specific intention
o Call students back; have them sit down with their number groups. Students will
present their lines to their group and discuss what the different intentions were.
How did the intention change the way they said the line?
o Now as a class, two students from each group will share their line with the class
Students will explain the intention behind the words, what did they
want?
Student will explain how they said it, and how their voice
affected/changed the meaning of the phrase/words/ Students
will come to understand how it is not WHAT you say, but HOW.

*Lesson 2: Letter Reading
The students will randomly select a
monologue from the book, The Day The Crayons
Quit. The students will rehearse, perform, and
clearly state the intention of their crayons
monologue.
(Key ideas: Monologues, intentions, conflict, and
interpretation)

Activities:
Scan each letter from The Day the
Crayons Quit, order the letters from 1 to 12, in
the order they will be performed. Before opening
the book, show the cover and ask students to
predict what they thinking the story will be about.
Introduce students to the book, as well as the
activity by reading the first page:
One day in class, Duncan went to take out his
crayons and found a stack of letters with his name
on them.
As a class define intentions. What are intentions?

Students will select a crayon letter; it is okay if some colours repeat because each
student will interpret the text differently.
o Students will write down what their colours problem is and their intention (what
does the crayon want?)
o The students will independently rehearse their letters
Memorized or mostly memorized
Once students have had enough time to rehearse bring them back and have them read
out their letters in the order of the story, between each letter show students the
illustrations from the book.
o After each performance the next person performing will state the INTENTION as
well as give FEEDBACK. Feedback must be positive or constructive, which
means they must also be SPECIFIC
This MOVEMENT worked because it showed this
That PAUSE worked because it showed this etc.

Lesson 3: Elements of a Monologue
The students will understand and identify the key elements of a monologue. Students will
rehearse and perform a section of Alices monologue from, Alice in Wonder Land.

Activities:
Pre-assessment: Graffiti wall What are they key elements of a monologue?
o Compare to teachers Graffiti wall:
Student vs Teacher

o Include things like:
Characters age, temperament, family history, social status, etc.)
Character objectives
Tactics how will your character get what they want
Obstacles to the objectives whats in the way?
Intentions (what does the character want)
o Subtext: what the words mean to that character who is
speaking, which may not be what the words say on the
surface.
Beats/units/transitions (this is when there is a change in
intention. Emotion or idea)
Who is the monologue addressing
Are they addressing anyone, or are they thinking out loud?
Climax what are the stakes (what has your character got to lose?)
As a class we will be analyzing Alices monologue from Alice in wonder Land.
o Walk students through the monologue and help them discover the key
elements (discussed above, find the beats).
Think, pair, share
Tell students to select two beats from the monologue (this way we can see the
transition). Students will:
o Memorize at least one line
o Students will have a couple of minutes to rehearse, then perform for their
peers
Stress the importance of comprehending the text

Lesson 5: Monologues & Rehearsal days
The students will select, analyze, and rehearse one of the monologues they are presented
with in class.

Activities:
Students will select the monologue, and begin rehearsing. If students have already
selected their monologue they may complete character analysis worksheet.
o The next few classes will be rehearsal days. Use teacher discretion to decide
how much rehearsal time to give students.
At the end of each rehearsal day ask students to get into pairs (someone different each
day), and perform three lines of their monologue for a partner
o Lines must be memorized
o State the OBJECTIVE, and give feedback. Be Specific

Assessment: Walk around as students perform, observe and give feedback where
needed.

Lesson 6: Performance day
The students will rehearse, and perform their selected monologue for their peers.

Activities:
Start with a warm up
o Ask students to walk (long, short, slow, quick steps. Best day ever walk/worst
day ever walk). Walk as the character from your monologue (Silently greet
others, in character). Say hello to four different people, and then find a spot in
the room alone to rehears.
Give students 5-10 minutes to run through their monologues twice.
Remind students to use their time wisely
Students will, perform, give and receive feedback after each performance.

*Lesson 7: Letter Writing & Rehearsal days
The students will create, rehearse and perform a monologue written from the point of
view of a new crayon colour. (Key ideas: peer review, creative writing, and tone)
Activities:
Buy a box of 96 crayons; remove the crayons that were used in The Day the Crayons
Quit. In small groups, students
will brainstorm a list of
problems crayons could have.
Example:
o Tickle-me-pink is tired
of being tickled
o Neon Carrot just wants
to be treated like
everyone else and is
tired of being bullied
Students will select a crayon
and write a letter from the
point of view of that colour.
o Each letter must:
Include a clear problem as well as a clear intention
Start with Dear Duncan, and end with Crayons colour name
o This activity is also a great way to introduce tone.
o Crayon puns are encouraged and expected!
Once students have written their letter, have them peer review each others letter.
After peer review students may rehearse their letters.
o Students will perform their monologues and give feedback after each
performance.

Final performance task overview: Theatre for Young Audiences
(Key idea: Collective creation, and script writing)
Using the letters students will re-interpret The Day the Crayons Quit, to include both the
original crayons letters as well as their new crayons letters.
o This is a great way to introduce story structure, as well as technical elements for
bringing a piece of text to life.
Field trip:
o Students will create, rehearse and perform their re-interpretation of The Day
the Crayons Quit for division 1 students.

Lesson 8: Collective creation & Crayon Production Pitch
The students will work in teacher assigned group to create a crayon production plan,
which they will present to an elementary school, AKA their peers and the teacher.

Activities:
Show students the opening clip from Sleeping Beauty (mention how it was a short story
first. Ask students to think about how it was adapted and turned into a full length film)
o Childrens books are often altered so that they can be performed an audience.
Think of a book that you have read, that has either been staged or filmed. How
was it adapted? Consider:
How the story could be made longer
Set, props, and costuming
If you were to adapt The Day the Crayons Quit, for the stage, what are some elements
you would consider?
o Things students need to be aware of when performing for children:
If you ask a question you will get an answer
All action must be done standing up, otherwise you must deal with the
groundhog effect.
Feet need to be planted move with purpose
Look where you want students to look direct the students attention

Review production consideration
Present students with this scenario:
o A local elementary school is looking to hire a TYA company to put on a
production for its students. The school is requesting:
The production is to be inspired by the book, The Day The Crayons Quit.
A production the is efficient; can be done in a classroom, is easy to
move and cost efficient
This means no tech, and a simple set that is easy to pick up and
move. You are selling your ideas so make sure you think
everything through.
Assignment: In groups of four, that I assign, students will brain storm a Crayon
production plan, which they will pitch to the elementary school
o Requirements:
Script the opening, and ending (to introduce the characters and the
main problem).
Middle: In point form you will give a brief description of how each
crayon is going to present their problem
How will you introduce the difference the different characters
and their problems?
Explain what you will do differently from the book, if anything
SAMPLES:



Once students have completed the assignments, go around and have students pitch
their plan.
o After each group has presented, students will go around and leave comments
on each plan
Students will comment on the ideas they like best, they will explain why
they liked these ideas. Students will complete an exit slip explaining
which production they liked best. Key Question: If they were a school
which company would they hire? Why? What worked?

*Lesson 9: Script & Blocking
The students will create, rehearse, and perform a re-imagined version of The Day The
Crayons Quit, for division one.

Activities:
Using the information gathered from students Crayon production pitch to put together
a script. Explain to students that you have created a very rough version of the script. You
have also left spaces where they will come up with possible lines for their character.
o Students will read through the script, ask them to fill in the blanks, and then go
back and add their lines. Walk around as students do this walk around give them
examples:
If I have to colour one more grape Im going to lose it!
Trouble shoot script: once students have completed this task have them from a circle.
Students will go around and share their lines. I will decide if the line is acceptable or
whether it needs to be cut.
Blocking: Block the scene. Duncan will help with this after he is off stage, so that he has
something to do.
Costuming & Props: Students decide on costumes & props.
o Take time in between rehearsals to create the costume and props needed for
their production.
Individual monologues: Give students time to work through their individual
monologues.
Run through once students have created their crayons costumes, we will begin
rehearsing and fine-tuning

Final Activity: Performance and Reflection
Students will perform their final creation for division one students

Activity:
After performance, students may write a reflection on this experience. They may discuss
the differences and challenges they faced when writing individual and collectively. They
may also discuss taking that piece of literature and turning it into something new and
performing it for an audience.

Extension Activity: Personal letters, collective creation, or problem solving
Have students write a letter discussing a problem they are currently facing. Everyone
will start their letter with, Dear Duncan, and they will sign it with a pen name so the
letters stay anonymous.
o Collect the letters, and redistribute them so that everyone one has someone
elses letter. Students will edit and perform the letter they receive.
Using the letters that students wrote, as a class attempt to find a common theme.
Create a collective creation based on the theme the class decides on.
o The students will rehearse and perform their collective creation for an older
audience (Division 2).
OR work on problem solving skills and have students respond to the letter they received
OR display the letters in the class, give students sticky notes, and have them write
responses