TITLE: THE BOY WHO LOVED CHOCOLATE
INTERMEDIATE/LOWER SECONDARY
CHARACTERS:
Boy
Mother
Father
Argentinian
Policeman
SYNOPSIS:
A 13 year old boy is at home alone playing with his computer. He loves chocolate and decides to order by the Internet a 2000$ worth of chocolate and pays with a credit card number that he finds at random.
CHARACTER OBJECTIVES
THE BOY wants to get some chocolate and share it with his friends.
THE MOTHER wants to punish his son for the crime he has committed.
THE FATHER thinks the boy deserves a spank but he thinks it was very clever what he did and he is secretly proud of his resourceful son.
THE ARGENTINIAN is very angry and wants his Money back
THE POLICEMAN wants to solve the crime and bring the boy to justice
SCENE BREAKDOWN
SCENE 1 (a boy in his bedroom room)
A boy is alone in his bedroom with his computer . He loves chocolate. His parents do not allow him to eat chocolate. He has a great idea.
SCENE 2 (a couple of days later, in the same house)
Someone is at the door. The boy opens the door and gets a big parcel. He has to sign for the invoice.
SCENE 2 (a different house)
An Argentinian man gets home from work he fumbles with the mail, he opens a letter from his bank and shouts “What the heck!!!” or something in Spanish with an Accent.
SCENE 3 (at the boy’s house again)
The boy, the mother and the father are having dinner in the dinning room, somebody rings the bell. The father opens the door and sees a policeman. The policeman wants to ask some questions.
SCENE 4 (At court)
The 4 characters explain what has happened and answer the questions that is the end of the story.
Organisation:
Divide the class into 4 groups. Group 1 is going to play scene 1, Group 2 will play scene 2, Group 3 plays scene 3 and Group 4 acts out scene 4.
I think it is appropriate for intermediate level students
ResponderEliminarIn may opinion it is good to learn how to give explanations and excuses also how to tell off. It also makes them practise past tenses and
I don't think I would make any changes; I think it is very well as it is and I think that if you work with your students in order to get a good performance following the guidelines we have been given it could easily succed in a theatre contest
I find it very educational because any of our students may be found in this situation. The moral is directed especially to teenagers between 12-15 years old. They would learn what they should NOT do.
ResponderEliminarwww.atrimino.jverne@gmail.com
This is a most attractive topic for young students but also for adults who may also be involved in that type of case as parents or even victims. Languagewise the imput sounds also interesting and suitable for an intermediate level.
ResponderEliminarI like very much your outline because there are many feelings your students can express (surprise, regret, anger...).
ResponderEliminarHow do you think you could make the scene transitions? Your scenes take place on different days and places: house, court... I think including a narrator could work or even having some students show some big cards with the words 'TWO DAYS LATER', etc.
Public and level are appropiate. I was wondering about the characters'names. Regarding characters, shouldn't you include a judge for the last scene?
ResponderEliminarI wouldn't use a narrator, theatre props are meaningful enough to mean a change of place.
Congrats, I enjoyed your outline!
I really like the topic of your outline. Crime is always appealing to students and they probably can get a moral from this story.
ResponderEliminarFurthermore, I think this outline is perfect for an intermediate level group and I wouldn't make any changes, though I like the idea of big cards setting the scene in time.
Good job!
I agree with my colleagues!
ResponderEliminarI think the play outline is completely adequate for intermediate students.
Making excuses and giving opinions and reasons are an essential part of the course design for this level. And, as you were also saying, crime is a very attractive subject for students.
Is it right? Is it wrong? Can this child be forgiven for what he did? Are his parents responsible?
This could also lead to a follow-up activity which would consist on a debate: does punishment fit the crime? How?