“My students are very vague when it comes to object and environment work. How do I get them to make more specific choices?” This is a common problem when teaching beginning improv. The above video is a great game to play to address this issue. Here’s how it works: Improv Game: Creating Obstacles 1. Remind students [...]
Type: Creativity, Improv Purpose: A useful game that will help students explore objective and tactics. Most appropriate for slightly older students. Prep: Write a list of feelings up on the board (provided at the bottom of this post) Procedure: 1. Divide the students into pairs (preferably random pairs.) 2. Tell the students that you will give them [...]
Type: Creativity, Improv Purpose: This fast-paced improv game helps students quickly be able to justify their actions in the middle of an improv. This game is best for slightly older students with some improv experience. Procedure: 1. Have the class stand in a circle. 2. Go around the circle having each student count off as “A” [...]
Type: Improv, Creativity Purpose: A simple improv game for more advanced actors. Procedure: 1. Ask two players to take the stage. 2. Assign two different emotions to each of the players. 3. Ask the audience for a setting and conflict, and have the two players improvise a scene starting with the emotions they were assigned. 4. Over the [...]
Type: Improv, Creativity Purpose: A simple improv game that helps create a positive creative environment. Procedure: 1. Have the class stand in a semi-circle. 2. Everyone standing in the semi-circle is a “superfan” of whomever steps in front of them. 3. One at a time members of the group will step in front and narrate a real or fictional [...]
Type: Improv Purpose: A fun beginner improv activity that involves every player at the same time. Procedure: 1. Divide the class into pairs. 2. Have each pair decide on who is Player A and who is Player B. 3. Call out three words that are unrelated (i.e. “Palm Tree”, “Saturn”, “Shoelace”) 4. Player A has one minute to tell [...]
Type: Improv, Creativity Purpose: A popular improv game that will help students think beyond the most obvious answer. Procedure: 1. Divide the class into two lines, in which the heads of the lines face each other centerstage. 2. Give the students a prompt or setting. 3. The heads of each line come together and interact based on the prompt, but they [...]
Type: Creativity, Improv Procedure: 1. Ask 3 players to take the stage. 2. One player sits cross-legged, another kneels behind him, and another stands behind him. They have their hands clasped together as if praying and heads bowed. Together, they make up The Great Booga Booga Booga, an oracle-type being that can answer any question [...]
Type: Improv, Creativity Purpose: A fun improv activity for slightly older students. Procedure: 1. First, you may want to tell the class that MacGyver was a very popular U.S. TV series in the 1980s/90s about a secret agent who solves complex problems with everyday ordinary objects. 2. In this activity they will all get a chance to be [...]
Type: Improv, Creativity Purpose: A simple game to use before introducing kids to improvisation. Procedure: 1. Have the class stand in a circle facing in. 2. Place a marker at the feet of one student (the marker could be anything but should be large enough to not be missed, i.e. a large book, or binder, or even a [...]
