Zooming In on Drama Education with Janea Dahl

Jan 10

Melissa Milner introduces herself as the host of the "Teacher as Podcast" and mentions that this is the sixth season of the podcast.
Melissa encourages listeners to rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts to help it reach more educators.
Janea Dahl introduces herself as the creator of Drama Notebook, a website for Drama teachers with over 1500 high-quality lesson plans, royalty-free scripts, and tutorial videos.
Janea explains that Drama Notebook is a thriving community for Drama teachers who often work in isolation and lack curriculum support.

Janea shares that she developed a passion for theater in high school and pursued a degree in theater, eventually owning her own theater company.
She realized the lack of drama programming in her son's school and created a drama outreach program that grew from six schools to 100 in Portland, Oregon.
Janea started creating lesson plans and scripts to share with her team of teaching artists, which eventually led to the creation of Drama Notebook.
The website was designed to help teachers with materials and support, filling a gap in the market for high-quality drama resources.

Janea emphasizes that Drama Notebook grew organically, starting with her own materials and expanding to include contributions from her creative team.
She shares her philosophy that drama is a life-changing human experience that fosters creativity, trust, and confidence.
Melissa praises the website and asks Jaina about her favorite resources on Drama Notebook.
Janea highlights the prompt-based lessons and the concept of "devised work," where students create their own pieces, which can be intimidating but are grounded and fun.

Janea mentions the classic drama resources available on the site and her favorite prompt-based lessons, such as three-word skits that encourage creativity and cooperation.
She explains that the site has a lively and dedicated team of eight part-time staff members scattered around the globe.
Melissa compares Jaina's work to that of Peter Reynolds and his TLC Learning Center, noting their similar goals of fostering creativity.
Janea discusses the monologs on the site, which are written by kids and teens and are free for teachers to use, highlighting the high creativity and quality of the submissions.

Janea explains that the monologs are great for public speaking practice and are written by kids and teens, making them engaging and relatable.
She shares that Drama Notebook also offers scripts written by teachers and playwrights, which are professionally formatted and published on the site.
Janea mentions that the site has 750 scripts and 160 contributing playwrights, making it a rich resource for teachers.
Melissa praises the affordability of Drama Notebook, with a one-month membership costing $12.95 and a yearly membership costing $100.

Janea emphasizes that she keeps the prices low to make the resources accessible to teachers who are often paying out of their own pockets.
She explains that the site is designed to be a community hub where teachers can share and support each other.
Melissa and Janea discuss the importance of incorporating drama into regular classroom activities, even for non-drama teachers.
Janea suggests using drama games and activities to make learning more engaging and interactive, especially for students who need to move more.

Janea advises teachers to embrace play as learning and look for opportunities to incorporate drama into their lessons, such as acting out stories during read-alouds.
She suggests using drama name games to help students learn each other's names and incorporating drama into math lessons to make them more interactive.
Melissa shares her experience of putting on plays with her students and the challenges of finding affordable scripts and resources.
Janea highlights the importance of making every child feel like they have a meaningful part in a drama activity, fostering confidence and creativity.

Janea expresses her gratitude to educators for their hard work and dedication, acknowledging the increasing challenges they face.
She emphasizes that Drama Notebook is a source of inspiration and support for teachers, aiming to make the world a better place by helping students access their imagination.
Melissa and Janea discuss the importance of community and support among teachers, with Jaina mentioning the active and helpful Facebook group for Drama Notebook members.
Janea shares her excitement about future projects, such as turning Lynn Cherry's book "The Great Kapok Tree" into a play, and the importance of making drama accessible and inclusive for all students.

Melissa Milner

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