Warm-Up: Yes and No Circle

The following warm-up train is easy, however can evoke some highly effective emotions and reactions. It’s an ideal train to assist college students develop their self-awareness and observe consent and boundary setting. It may be accomplished reside in school, or nearly (click on the hyperlink on the backside of the article to obtain digital directions).

In-Person Exercise Instructions:

1. Students will sit in a circle. Have one pupil stand in the midst of the circle.
2. The pupil within the center will flip to face any pupil within the circle, make eye contact, and say that pupil’s identify.
3. The pupil they identify will reply sure or no. Those are the one two selections, and there’s no elaboration, clarification, or paraphrasing. Only sure or no.
4. If the scholar within the circle says sure, they are going to take the spot of the scholar within the center and the scholar within the center will take the empty spot within the circle. The new pupil within the center will then flip to a different pupil and proceed on with the train.
5. If the scholar within the circle says no, the scholar within the center will flip to another person, make eye contact, and say that pupil’s identify. That pupil will then reply sure or no. If they are saying sure, they are going to take the place of the scholar within the center (as above). If they are saying no, the scholar within the center will proceed to name names till somebody says sure and takes their spot in the midst of the circle. Continue taking part in for as many rounds as you want.

Simple, proper? But the reactions that always come up whereas working by this train are assorted and fascinating. If time permits, debrief along with your college students about what emotional and bodily reactions surfaced for them, or give them the chance to journal about their reactions. Here are some prompts:

• How did you’re feeling saying no to somebody (emotionally, bodily, or each)?
• How did you’re feeling when somebody stated no to you? 
• Did you’re feeling stress to reply by some means? Why or why not?
• How does this train assist you to in drama class?
• How can this train be utilized to the true world?

Some of the emotional reactions that generally come up embody worrying in the event that they’ll be caught within the center for ages, feeling annoyed by being regularly instructed no, feeling responsible for saying no, feeling obligated or pressured to say sure, feeling like they need to give the identical response as their associates, or feeling like they should clarify or justify their option to say no. It may be surprisingly tough to inform somebody no instantly! (Teachers, this can be a nice alternative to remind college students that “no” is an entire sentence.)

Physical reactions may embody respiration quicker, avoiding or desirous to keep away from eye contact, feeling tightness or rigidity within the physique (particularly the abdomen), feeling itchy or crawly, fidgeting, or clenching the jaw or enamel. It’s additionally regular to not have any of these bodily or emotional reactions, or to have completely different ones than these listed above. Encourage college students to contemplate why they’re feeling the way in which they’re. 

Note: It may be useful to do a fast stretch, shake-out, or dance occasion to transition college students into a unique exercise after finishing this warm-up train, notably if they’re feeling rigidity of their our bodies or uncomfortable emotions.

Click right here for digital classroom adaptation directions.