Maddie Hanson Arts Bridge

These past two weeks that I've spent putting together and presenting our little Tacky the Penguin performance have been really fun, kind of crazy, but also the most educational. There's nothing like just going for something even if you feel unprepared, and I saw that in my own efforts, and in those of the first-graders. Using a narrative mime written originally by my mentor teacher at BYU as a map, I put together a narrative mime-type performance with the students telling the story of Tacky the Penguin  where they each had a role and I was the narrator. The first thing I learned is that I had to let go of any perfectionism here and just get down to the raw basics of performing. We didn't use any costumes, props, or even sets. Instead, I had students help me create any necessary sets with their bodies, and prompted them through any lines or movement. I acted as the narrator and talked the actors through everything they needed to do and say in the script. If the penguins ne

I have really loved coordinating these past couple lessons to revolve around a single book - Tacky the Penguin. It has not only given me direction as I plan lessons, but also provided continuity for the students as they build upon their knowledge of this book. I see how the students are getting excited about the characters and plot as they get to know them better. It also allows them to feel really successful because we're not switching around what we're talking about every week, so they can feel more prepared. Today, we did activities with the same book as last week, Tacky the Penguin. But instead of focusing on the movement of characters, we did games and activities that focused on voice. Through these activities and exercises, the students didn't know it, but they were actually preparing for a performance we will be putting on in a couple of weeks. One piece of advice I got from my faculty mentor was to prepare the students for difficult tasks by showing a lot of