Viola Spolin

Based on the best-selling book by Viola Spolin, this new CD-ROM of Theater Games for the Classroom offers the most comprehensive theater instruction for all types of students, from small children to young adults. It includes over 130 theater games and exercises, instructional strategies, video examples, a lesson planning section, alignment to other curricular areas, and alignment to California Theatre Arts standards. First developed by Spolin, the originator of modern improvisational theater techniques, these games have been tried and tested for over fifty years.

In the instructional strategies section, Spolin explains how to teach theater, from how to count off for games, to putting on a complete show.

The game file section provides a complete list of the games referenced in a variety of ways, from traditional to advanced games, alphabetically ordered, or by educational standards.

The video section provides brief video examples of the games, especially helpful for those who have never played the games. There is also a video lecture, providing tips for the beginning teacher.

The reference section provides a theater glossary, a bibliography, related web sites, and categorizes the games by curriculum, by difficulty, and by alignment to state standards.

The lesson planning section provides a calendar and game lists for selecting and printing games for each class or workshop session. The teacher can select from sure-fire running orders developed by Spolin, or they can create a list of games from scratch.

Also available: Theater Games for the Classroom: A Teacher's Handbook