5 Things Kids can Learn from Acting Classes

If you are thinking about exploring acting classes for your child, you might want to start at home and see if they are interested in acting classes. You can start with some pretty neat acting games. These games are used in many workshops and different drama classes to see if the child can pick up on acting and performance. Acting games are also cool if you start at home because the cost is free and all you have to do is be creative. This is a good way for your family to spend time together. If it’s winter and cold, you could design a theme for the beach and have everyone pick a character and act their roles like they would at the beach. Think about all the laughter your family will have. Here are five games you can use to see if you have a little budding actor in your family.

Do Some Warm-Ups

All drama teachers require their students to warm up for their lesson and also for their performances. A good idea is to use games like tongue twisters for kids that are any age to help them have a better grasp of pronouncing the words. Some teachers start by having kids make a scrunchy face and hold for a few seconds. The object of this is to get the kids to expand their scrunchy look as far as they can go. Have them wiggle their nose a bit and they are ready to try tongue twisters. Start with everyone using the tongue twisters at the same time and slowly. If you see that the child is doing well, have them say the word by themselves. Ask them to use their loud voices so they can project across a room.

Build Trust

You can try using a one-word story because this helps kids with teamwork. Sit the children in a circle and have them each say one word and see what kind of story emerges. This is a good way for them to understand that they can create a story with one word and actually understand the story.

Blind Guiding

This type of game suggests that the kids walk around in two’s and use their blinders. This helps them with trust and teaches them to be at ease with the other children. The game is played without talking. The first child closes their eyes and has to trust the second player to be the guide and help the child around the room while the first child’s eyes are closed. They either can guide them by holding their hand or using a shoulder. This can happen for around two minutes, while the two walk around silently. Then they switch and the second child has to close their eyes while the first child guides them around the room.  The goal is to be able to trust the other player while feeling safe in the environment they are role-playing in. When the game is all over, the kids can talk about how they felt being led around the room with their eyes closed and if all the kids were feeling safe.

Break Out

This game is designed to help the children that are shy come out of their shell quickly. There is something called the Exaggeration Circle and the kids stand in a circle while looking at each other.  The first player uses a gesture so they can teach what it is to dramatize. The next player can make the gesture stronger, the third child can use their voice loudly while adding on to the first player’s gesture. This can go on until all the players have added a gesture on to the first gesture the player used. The goal is that all the players remember the first gesture and this helps the kids learn a lesson in drama. This is a good game to start learning drama and starts the development of characters as they grow with these skills.

Focus

Actors have to notice their own bodies and use body language to send messages through movement. This helps kids get comfortable with moving around and using their bodies to express what they are doing. This is also a great team builder. This game starts with pairs and the players should be standing across from each other. The first player pretends they are looking in a mirror, while the second player is pretending they are the reflection. The goal of this game is that when the first player moves, the second player has to move in sync with the first person and copy everything they are doing.  This is what would happen if people looked at their reflections in a mirror. The player must also copy all facial expressions that player one is creating. This is a fun game and afterward, you can talk to the children about their experiences.

Parents can have fun with these five things to see if their kids are interested in acting. This is also a good way to keep them off of their devices and some good wholesome family fun for hours. In addition, you and your children are always learning by trying new things and this is another good way to bond as a family. If you find your child or children have shown interest and are excited about acting, try looking for good places they can take some private acting classes. Sometimes they offer programs like this during summer school for creative fun. This way you can see what a big difference a class is compared to these fun games at home. It’s a great learning experience working with acting teachers because they are able to help your child find where their strengths are and the classroom in the perfect place to find these strengths. Acting teachers are also there to help your child with their weak areas if they are having problems projecting their voices. Children that work together at home are going to be confident that you are sending them to a safe environment to learn. Have at it and watch your child grow.