Growing Roots: Veterans Day Performance Day: What I Tell My Students Before We Go On

This is the fourth and final post in my series about putting together a simple Veterans Day performance with elementary students. We've talked about why I make time for it, how I assign speaking parts, and how we practice without letting rehearsals take over. Now it's almost performance day!

Our Veterans Day program is a school-wide event, so thankfully, I'm don't worry about auditorium chairs, decorations, programs or any of the other logistics. I've chosen to have my class perform, so my job is simply to get them ready to stand in front of the big audience and do their part.

Practice Where You'll Perform

I make sure we get into the actual performance space for a few run-throughs. A line that sounds plenty loud in our classroom can disappear pretty quickly in a gym or auditorium full of people.

We find our spots, practice getting there quickly, and run through the performance a couple of times.

Basically: Make sure the back row can hear you.

We Talk About Performance Manners

Elementary kids need very explicit reminders about what it means to be in front of an audience. My biggest one is when someone else is speaking, you are still performing.

No waving at Mom. No whispering to the person beside you. No fixing your shoe. No making faces at your brother. Stand still, look toward the audience and remember that people are watching the whole group - not just the person speaking.

Basically: Don't be a goofball.

What If Someone Makes a Mistake? (And someone will.) We talk about it so a misstep doesn't become a catastrophe. If you forget your line: stop, look at me, find your place and keep going. If someone else makes a mistake: do absolutely nothing. Don't laugh. Don't correct them. And don't announce, “That's not your line!” Pause. Recover. Keep going.

Basically: Pretend you didn't notice.

What I Don't Bother With

I don't worry about memorization. I don't correct every tiny stumble. I don't rehearse until everyone sounds robotic. I make sure they know where to stand, speak loudly enough for the back of the room to hear them, support each other when something goes wrong, and remember that they're performing even when it isn't their turn to talk.

Basically: They're not the Royal Shakespeare Company.

And Afterward?

I tell them what they did well. Not just, “Great job!” I point out something specific: Everyone remembered where to go. You really projected your voices. Nobody panicked when we lost our place.

And then we move on with our day.

Basically: Take the win and move on.

The Veterans Day Class Performance Script I use throughout this series includes the student speaking parts, individual practice cards, line-assignment sheet and the large prompting cards I use during rehearsals and the performance.