The Swan Princess. Teacher s Notes

Transcription

1 Workshop Programme This workshop is designed to cover a seection of requirements for Engish and Literacy strategy. Athough primariy aimed at chidren at Key Stage 1, it woud be equay suitabe for younger chidren at Key Stage 2. Learning Objectives Covering a number of the text eve requirements of the Literacy strategy and speaking/istening section of the Key Stage 1 Engish requirements of the Nationa Curricuum. During the roe pay, chidren wi be encouraged to sustain concentration, make reevant comments and isten to others reactions. They wi earn the use of vocabuary such as stage and wings during the production. The chidren wi aso earn about the castes during the day. Timetabe We are an incusive venue and can accommodate groups of up to 180 chidren. The timetabe you foow wi depend upon the size of your group. On the next page you wi find two timetabes. Pease ensure you are foowing the correct one when panning your day. Groups of beow 40 chidren pease foow Timetabe 1 Group A ony. You wi be met by Education Leaders at the Ticket Office, where they wi hep you with your payment and then they wi escort you to the Education Centre. Groups of chidren, pease spit the group into 2 and foow Timetabe 1, Groups A & B. You wi be met by Education Leaders at the Ticket Office, where they wi hep you with your payment and then they wi escort you to the Education Centre. Groups of pease foow Timetabe 2. You wi be met by Education Leaders at the Ticket Office, where they wi hep you with your payment. Group A wi be escorted you to the Education Centre, whie Groups B & C wi be wecomed and given maps and timings to ensure that you arrive at the Education Centre at your aotted time. Pease ensure aso that a chidren have used the toiets prior to their session. Groups of 120+ pease request the timetabe for extra arge groups.

2 The timings beow in both timetabes, are approximate and can vary depending on how the workshop progresses. They may aso vary by season. Timetabe 1 For groups GROUP A GROUP B 10.00am Coach to drive to the ticket office where your Education Leader wi meet you and assist with payment 10.00am Coach to drive to the ticket office where your Education Leader wi meet you and assist with payment 10.20am 10.30am 11.30am Wak to the Education Centre Workshop Session begins Lunch 10.15am 10.30am Wak from the Triange to the Education Centre where the chidren wi eave their bags Depart Education Centre and visit the Caste 12.00pm 12.45pm Depart Education Centre and visit the Caste for guided tour Free time 11.15am 12.00pm 12.30pm Free time Lunch Workshop Session begins 1.30pm Depart Education Centre Timetabe 2 For groups of GROUP A GROUP B GROUP C 10am Coach to drive to Ticket Office where your Education Leader wi meet you and assist with payment. 10am Coach to drive to Ticket Office where your Education Leader wi meet you and assist with payment. 10am Coach to drive to Ticket Office where your Education Leader wi meet you and assist with payment. 10:30am Workshop Session 11:30 am Sef guided Caste tour 12:30pm Lunch & Free Time 10:30am 11:45am 1pm Free Time & snack Arrive at Education Centre at 11:40am (pease ensure a chidren have used the toiet before the workshop session) Workshop Session Sef-guided caste tour 10:30am 11:30am 1pm Sef-guided Caste Tour (caste opens 10:30) Free Time & Lunch. Arrive at Education Centre at 12:55 (pease ensure a chidren have used the toiet before the workshop session) Workshop session

3 Background Information The workshop eader wi support the pupis in the teing of The Swan Princess, based on a Russian fairy tae. We suited to the ocation, its cast of characters incudes a cat, a sparrow, a gnome, a knight and a witch, as we as the Swan Princess hersef, whose brothers and sisters can sti be seen swimming sereney on the ake around the caste. The story has a the eements of a traditiona fairy tae - magica transformations, broken promises, friendship and oyaty repaid, and good and evi ocked in a batte which virtue eventuay wins. A of the cass wi be invoved in the story; it is essentia that you assign chidren to their characters before the day. This is important as you wi know your cass and each chid s aptitude for roe-pay - it aso saves a ot of time on the day. Simpe costumes and props wi be avaiabe for each group to dress up as the main characters in the story and act the pot out as the story proceeds. There wi be penty of opportunities, both during and after the story, to discuss what has happened and predict what coud come next. Cast List Pease nominate pupis to pay the different characters in the story before attending the workshop. There wi be enough costumes for every pupi to participate. Remember to bring this ist with you on the day! Main Characters Pupi Name Supporting Characters Pupi Name (ead characters with either arge or medium speaking parts) (imited speaking required) Swan Princess (Heroine, arge part) Knight (Hero, arge part) Baba Yaga Spindeshanks the Witch (medium part) Gnome (arge part) Sparrow (medium part) King of the Lake (sma speaking/non-speaking) Longshanks (sma part) Skimbeshanks (sma part) Prince Backcoak (sma part) King of the Land (sma part) Cat (medium part) Extras (no speaking required) Pupi Names Other Knights

4 Foow-up Ideas Storyteing & Drama With the chidren sitting in a circe, start to rete the story of The Swan Princess. Each chid then continues by adding their own contribution. There are many variations to this idea. You coud specify that each chid adds ony one sentence, or have a sma ight object that can be thrown from chid to chid in the circe. Whoever receives it must continue for a short whie before throwing the object to another chid and passing the story on. Deveop your own aternatives. Ask chidren to choose a character from the story and use mime to act out that character to the rest of the cass. Can they convey by movement and expression aone, who they have chosen to be? Oder chidren coud aso be asked to make a radio pay out of the whoe story or a section from it. Can they write a script which conveys the gist of the narrative and decide what sound effects they wi need to compete the story? Record onto audio tape when it has been rehearsed throughy. Writing A group of chidren can work together to design a comic strip based on the story. This wi invove deciding which are the most important episodes in the narrative, how many frames they wi need, and how they can reduce the diaogue to its simpest form. For chidren whose writing skis are not so advanced, the story woud make a good exercise in sequencing. Write a series of simpe sentences which summarise the pot and jumbe up their order. Ask the chidren to arrange them back into the correct order and draw a picture to iustrate each stage. Provide the chidren with a bank crossword or word-search grid and get them to design their own puzze, using words seected from the story. As an exercise in IT, the chidren coud type out the story onto sheets of A4 paper and iustrate it themseves. These coud then be inserted into pastic waets, put into a foder and added to the cass ibrary. There are a number of opportunities for etter writing in the story. For exampe, if the knight was writing home reguary to his mother during his adventures, what woud he say? Finding Out The story of The Swan Princess comes from Russia. Can the chidren find any other books of Russian fairy taes in their schoo or pubic ibrary? Using avaiabe information books and the Internet if avaiabe, what can chidren find out about the ife of swans? Can the chidren find any other stories that feature swans in their schoo or pubic ibrary? (Cue: a good starting pace woud be the famiiar tae of The Ugy Ducking.) Art & Design If possibe ook at books of costume design, especiay costumes for the baet Swan Lake. The chidren coud design costumes of their own for the pay. Ask chidren to make puppets of the main characters in the story and use them to act out the narrative to the rest of the cass. Puppets coud be of amost any kind - paper bag puppets, shadow puppets, stick puppets, etc. The ony imits are your time and imagination. Use a papier-mache base buit up over an infated baoon to create masks designed for individua characters.

5 The Swan Princess Story Long, ong ago in a country far away, ived three friends. They were a sparrow, a cat and a gnome, and they ived happiy together in a cottage in a wood. Every morning the cat and sparrow woud go out to coect wood, whie the gnome stayed at home to do the gnome work. One particuar morning as cat and sparrow got ready to go out, they warned the gnome to beware of the wicked witch, Baba Yaga Spindeshanks, as she might come to count their spoons. The gnome promised he woud be carefu and hide if the witch came. The cat and sparrow set off, waving to the gnome as they eft. The gnome got on with his work, poishing the tabe. Suddeny he heard a tap tap on the garden path. Very quicky the gnome hid behind the door and kept very sti as Baba Yaga entered the cottage and opened the drawer. This must be the cat s spoon, and this must be the sparrow s spoon, and this one must be the gnome s spoon she said. The gnome forgot about keeping sti and quiet, and jumped out from his hiding pace and yeed: Leave my spoon aone you wicked od witch! The witch gave a wicked cacke and grabbed the gnome, wrapped him in her coak and carried him off. The gnome, in great distress, shouted as oud as he coud: Cat! Sparrow! Hep me! The two friends heard him and came running. The cat scratched the witch, and the sparrow pecked at her, and she had to et the gnome go. The next day the cat and sparrow again went out to coect wood, and again warned the gnome about Baba Yaga. As he got on with the hoovering the gnome heard the tap tap of the witch s broom, and quicky hid himsef under the tabe. The witch opened the drawer and counted: This is the cat s spoon, and this is the sparrow s spoon and this is the gnome s spoon. Once again the gnome coudn t hep himsef, he sprang out from under the tabe and said: Leave my spoon aone you wicked od witch! The witch gave a wicked cacke and grabbed the gnome, wrapped him in her coak and carried him off. The gnome, in great distress, shouted as oud as he coud: Cat! Sparrow! Hep me! The two friends heard him and came running. The cat scratched the witch, and the sparrow pecked at her, and she had to et the gnome go. The next day the cat and sparrow again went out to coect wood, and again warned the gnome about Baba Yaga. This time though they tod the gnome they were going deeper into the wood, and woud not be abe to hear him if he cried out. As he got on with the washing up the gnome heard the tap tap of the witch s broom, and quicky hid himsef in a cupboard. The witch opened the drawer and counted: This is the cat s spoon, and this is the sparrow s spoon and this is the gnome s spoon. The gnome stayed very sti and quiet, and then the witch said: I think the gnome s spoon needs a poish. Now the gnome coudn t contain himsef and he sprang out from the cupboard and said: Leave my spoon aone you wicked od witch The witch gave a wicked cacke and grabbed the gnome, wrapped him in her coak and carried him off. The gnome, in great distress, shouted as oud as he coud: Cat! Sparrow! Hep me! But the cat and sparrow were far away and did not hear his cries. The wicked witch went deep into the dark forest with the gnome unti they came to her cottage. There she ocked him in and kept him prisoner and made him do a the work. In another part of the forest ived a brave knight. He was the best archer in the and. As he was out waking one day he came across the witch s cottage. He coud see the gnome, who was ooking very miserabe, through the barred window. Why are you so sad caed the knight. I am a prisoner of Baba Yaga Spindeshanks, the wicked witch said the gnome and cannot escape from this horribe cottage. The knight took pity on the gnome and, with a singe arrow, he shot the bot off the front door. The gnome was overjoyed to be free, and together with the knight, ran into the wood before the witch coud catch them. Come with me said the knight, for I am on an adventure, to find a wife. She must be good and beautifu and ove ony me. The gnome who was very gratefu to be free, wanted to hep his new friend, and said We wi wak together to the great ake, where if you hide we you wi see a dazzing white swan fy down to the akeside. As the swan ands it

6 wi turn into a beautifu gir. She is the Lake King s ony daughter; she wi take off her swan feather wings and wi eave them by the ake whie she swims. If you can take the wings she wi not be abe to fy back to her father, and wi marry you. The knight did as the gnome suggested, and sure enough the swan princess few down and took off her feathers to bathe. The knight took the feathers, and when the swan princess came out of the ake, she ooked everywhere for her wings. The knight coud see that she was good and beautifu, and he approached her and asked her to be his wife. I wi be your wife said the princess if you can keep a promise. The knight was overjoyed and agreed straightaway. What must I do? he asked. The Swan Princess ooked serious: You must keep our marriage pan secret for a whoe year, te no-one and then in one year we can be married. As soon as the knight made his promise, and gave her back the feathers, she spread her wings and few over the ake, to go home. The knight and the gnome said goodbye to each other. The gnome set off to go home to his friends and the knight set off to ook for another adventure. Time went by and the year was neary over when the King decided to hod an archery competition. A the sodiers and knights came together and competed. Of course it was our hero the knight who won. The King himsef congratuated him and tod him that his prize was his daughter s hand in marriage. Before he coud stop himsef, the knight burted out: No thank you - I cannot marry your daughter, I am aready promised to the Swan Princess. At that moment the Swan Princess appeared ooking very sad, You have broken your promise she said, so now, to win me as your wife, you must rescue me from the wicked Prince Backcoak who wants me for his wife - you must come and save me. With a fina ong ast sad ook at the knight she disappeared. For many months the knight searched for Prince Backcoak s caste. At ast he coud see in the distance a horribe ooking back caste. As he got nearer to it he saw two strange peope sitting on the roadside ooking miserabe. The knight took pity on them and asked how he coud hep. The first one said: My name is Longshanks, because I can grow as ta as the trees. The second one said My name is Skimbeshanks. I have eyes that go bright ike a cat and then I can see in the dark. The brave knight tod the two friends that he was ooking for the Swan Princess, who Prince Backcoak had captured and was keeping prisoner. We coud come with you and hep you search they said. So a three set off together. The brave knight knocked at the door, which was fung open by a fearsome figure dressed in back. It was Prince Backcoak. He roared in a very oud voice Who are you, and what do you want? The knight answered Where is the Swan Princess? I have come to rescue her! Prince Backcoak stamped his foot and aughed a nasty augh! She is in the midde of the big maze at the top of the hi he said But even if you manage to find her, you wi have to come back out through the underground grotto, which is so dark you cannot even see your own feet! If you can find her and get out, you can take her! So the knight and his two friends set off up the hi. When they reached the maze the knight knew he woud never find his way to the midde because the trees were so high, but Longshanks stepped forward and said Foow me! He grew and grew, and coud see over the trees and saw the way to go. In no time at a they were in the midde. The Swan Princess was very happy to see the brave knight. Thank you for finding me she said, but how wi we find our way through the back grotto? Skimbeshanks stepped forward and said foow me and his eyes grew brighter and brighter, so that he coud see the way out, in no time at a they stepped out into the bright sunshine. From the bottom of the hi, Prince Backcoak saw them emerge from the grotto and knew he was beaten. He yeed You ve beaten me and he stormed back into his caste never to be seen again! And so the Swan Princess and the knight were reunited, and using her swan feathers they few back to her father, the Lake King. He was overjoyed to see them safe and sound, and when he heard they were to be married he gave them a beautifu caste by a ake as a present. A huge wedding banquet was prepared and a the good friends and servants who had heped the knight on his adventures were invited. Needess to say, neither Baba Yaga Spindeshanks or Prince Backcoak ever bothered the Swan Princess and the knight again, and they a ived happiy ever after.