Cover the Space

Description
This drama game/teaching strategy encourages students to be present with other students and
with their own bodies as they move around the classroom space. This activity is also useful for
teaching students to listen to the side coaching of the instructor.

Directions
Here is a step by step guide of how to facilitate Cover the Space:
1. Begin by designating the space the students are going to move around in.
2. Have the students start moving around the space without looking at or touching the other
students.
3. Begin asking students to stretch arms, reach for ceiling, shake out various limbs as they
move around the space, while still not making contact with the other students.
4. Ask students to notice their walking pace and whether or not they are walking in the same
pattern.
5. Ask students to break their patterns and try a new pace or vary where they are walking.
6. Now have students start to make eye contact with their fellow students as they pass them.
7. Now add a physical greeting such as a wave, handshake, fist bump, etc.
8. Now add a vocal greeting such as hi, hello, hey, how are you, etc.
9. Transition back to the silent walk around, or into a variation of the strategy.
10. After the strategy, have the students reflect on the experience. Reflection questions could
include:
a. What did you notice about yourself in this exercise? What did you notice about
the group?
b. How did you communicate with each other when you were required to be silent?
c. What did you notice about your body as you moved around the space?
d. Why might it be important to take time to settle yourself into a space and group at
the beginning of our work together?
When to Use This Strategy
This strategy can be used many times throughout the year.
1. Beginning of the year as an icebreaker.
2. It can be used throughout the year as a warm up activity.
3. When the teacher feels that students need to sharpen their listening skills.
4. As a closing after an intense lesson.
5. At the end of the year to compare how they felt coming into class at the beginning of the
year and how they feel now as they prepare to leave class.

Variations
Here are some variations of this strategy:
1. Character Walk: As the students move around the space call out various characters
(cowboy, spaceman, old person, etc.) or experiences (walking through mud, being afraid,
high winds, etc.) and the students have to start moving in that way. Then have students
stop and talk as that character or how they would talk in that experience. This could be
especially useful when talking about characterization.
2. Sort Based on Opinion: Invite students to think of their response to a prompt. To be
successful as a class we should… Invite students to cover the space sharing their answers
to the prompt with each other as they pass in space. Next, invite students to make groups
based on their words/phrases. Once groups are formed, ask each group to come up with a
name for their group and have groups share their names. Dialogue about what the
categories tell us about this group. Why? This could be useful to do at the beginning of
the year.
3. Sort Based on Observation: Invite students to silently form groups based on an
observable characteristic. Make a group based on what you are wearing on your feet.
Once groups are formed, ask each group to come up with a name for their group and have
groups share their names. Dialogue about what types of properties were used to make
groups (color, size, use, etc.). This could be useful when discussing how you work as an
ensemble.