Personally, I have been blogging for over a year now. I have set up personal blogs to share my experiences with my friends back home since I have moved to the other side of the world. I have set up blogs as part of my Masters degree where I reviewed a few iPad apps and Web 2.0 applications. I have also set up blogs to share my views about ICT uses in the classroom.

As part of my teaching, I make use of blogging to give students an experience of what it means to be authoring content on the Internet and what are the necessary rules/protocols they have to keep in mind as digital citizens. I also make use of blogging in the classroom to create whole-class resources for a specific unit of work. Finally, I have my own subject blog that I maintain regularly: AIA DRAMA BLOG

I have always been a reflective teacher. I am the type of teacher that constantly reflects on his practice, finding ways to improve and develop my skills as an educator. Sometimes, that can be rather taxing, and it can be a source of stress. Other times, it has driven me to grow and develop as a teacher.

I have been lurking on social media like Twitter (@moash245) for a while now, just following websites such as: Edutopia, WeAreTeachers and Web 2.0 Classroom, and retweeting good articles and resources. I have come across a huge range of resources that have contributed greatly to my professional development. I am now more confident to start sharing my reflections with the world, in my quest to become a more connected educator. I have learnt a lot through my teaching experience, and I still have a lot more to learn. I would like to share my experiences with others and invite their views, perspectives, advice and ideas. That is why I have decided to transfer my reflections from a private journal that no one else sees, to a blog that is visible to the world and that allows other educators to pitch in and help me grow and learn more.

So, we have had a pretty busy term. The year 6’s had created their freeze-frames performance task and had the opportunity to practice reflecting on and evaluating their performances. We also assessed Criterion A – Knowledge and Understanding through a comprehension task followed by an oral presentation, where students read different pieces of information related to Mime and Pantomime and then taught the other students what they had learnt.

The year 7’s also had an opportunity to learn about a new topic related to Improv Theatre and then teach it to other students. Their oral presentation was also used to assess Criterion A. The students also had the opportunity to play some Theatresports rounds, where students would sit in groups and then each group is given a prompt like an opening line, or a closing line, or a title, or an emotion, and the students had to improvise for a minute. They really enjoy these sorts of activities.

So, Drama club has officially been running for a term now. The students have been coached through the process of creating story maps and brainstorming ideas under the chosen MYP Area of Interaction: Environments. Three students have also written three scripts, each with a different interpretation of ‘Environments’.

One script talks about time-travel and how environments look different over time and how we take a lot of things in our environment fore-granted. The second play focuses on the school environment and the opportunities it creates for students from poor families. The third play is a rather abstract approach to analysing an institution for treating mental illnesses, as a rather unfamiliar environment.

In the coming few weeks, auditions will take place so that we can start casting the roles. The next phase in drama club will focus on character-building skills, line-memorisation strategies and rehearsal techniques. The students seem very enthusiastic, and I am too!

By Medina from 7D

http://smr.showme.com/sma/embed/?s=GJfWQvQ

By Layla from 7D

http://smr.showme.com/sma/embed/?s=he6RDKi

By Mohamed B. from 7D

http://smr.showme.com/sma/embed/?s=OjrueQa

By Ruwayda from 7D

http://smr.showme.com/sma/embed/?s=6VkYY6K&w=580&h=434

By Sefika from 7B

http://smr.showme.com/sma/embed/?s=3RPIv32&w=580&h=434

By Khalil from 7B

http://smr.showme.com/sma/embed/?s=BffXSds&w=580&h=434

By Afif from 7B

http://smr.showme.com/sma/embed/?s=MT1GshE

Here are some good examples of storyboards for the year 7 ShowMe Task on Improv Theatre! Thanks to the 7B boys: Adam and Khalil!

Here are very good examples of preparation for the year 8 Poster Task on Improv Theatre. Many thanks to the 8B girls: Fatma and Salam.

Here are some good examples of preparing for the ShowMe Task on Improv Theatre! Thanks to the 7D students: Hafsa and Mohamed B.!

Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the AIA MYP Drama Blog…