Devising a unit around a source text without ever revealing the source is a powerful pedagogical tool. It frees students from the burden of adapting a known story and instead forces them to engage with the core dramatic elements—character, conflict, and theme—on their own terms. This approach cultivates creative ownership and deepens their understanding of narrative structure.
The chosen concepts—mystery, horror, family conflict, myth, legend, and magic—are all present in the magnificent film Kubo and the Two Strings. Using this as our hidden framework, we will guide students to create their own story of a young hero on a quest, without ever knowing the path has been set for them.
Here is a seven-week unit outline, a kind of "dramatic scaffolding," for your future middle school classroom.
Unit: The Unseen Strings
Unit Synopsis: In this unit, students will work collaboratively to build a dramatic narrative from the ground up, guided by a series of thematic prompts and theatrical clues. They will start with a single, mysterious object and, over the course of seven weeks, create a story of family conflict, magical quests, and a climactic confrontation with a powerful enemy. The students' own creative choices will form the backbone of the final performance.
Week 1: The Found Object & The Family Secret
This week establishes the mysterious core of the story.
The unit begins with a central mystery.
The central task is for students to embody a family with a hidden conflict, using a magical object as their focal point.
Without any context, students are given a simple, unusual object—perhaps a two-stringed instrument, a small, polished stone, or an ornate wooden box.
Foundational Drama Games:
"Freeze": Students will use this game to create a series of tableaux that capture moments of family conflict and mystery. By shouting "Freeze!" an observer can enter the scene, shift a character's position, and create a new, related moment. This helps students find the physical tension in the family's secret.
"Gibberish": Using "Gibberish," students will improvise a heated family argument about the mysterious object. Since they can't rely on dialogue, they must use tone, gesture, and physicality to convey their emotions, building a strong non-verbal foundation for the family's conflict.
Key Activities:
Object Monologue: Students will work individually or in pairs to create a monologue from the point of view of the object. What is its history? What does it know? What is its purpose? This is a great exercise in creative writing and finding a unique voice.
Family Tableau: The class will create a series of tableaux that represent a family with a secret. One member of the family is holding the mysterious object. What is their relationship to it? Who in the family is hiding something, and who is an unwitting participant?
The Magical Skill: The students will discover that the object has a magical property. They will work together to create a theatrical way to perform this magic, using movement, sound, and a sense of awe. This establishes the fantastical world.
Week 2: The Threat from the Shadows
This week introduces the element of horror and mystery.
The focus shifts to creating a sense of suspense and horror.
The family and their magical object are now under threat.
The students' family and their magical object are now under threat from a shadowy, menacing force.
Foundational Drama Games:
"Human Knot": The class will use this game to create the physical embodiment of the shadowy force. The tangled, intertwined knot of bodies can be a powerful metaphor for a menacing, unified entity that is difficult to escape. Students will practice moving as a single, menacing mass.
"Hug Tag": We will adapt this game to be "Escape Tag." One student is "it" (the shadowy threat). To be safe, two or three students must huddle together. This forces collaboration and awareness of their surroundings, reinforcing the theme of being hunted and the need for collective defense.
Key Activities:
Physicalizing the Threat: The class will use physical theatre to create a menacing, shadowy force. Students will work as an ensemble to create a single, unified "monster" or a chorus of antagonists. We will explore how to use slow, deliberate movements and collective vocalizations to create a sense of dread.
The Chase: Students will improvise scenes where the family is being hunted by this shadowy force. The focus will be on conveying a sense of terror and high-stakes peril through physicality and vocal tone, with little to no dialogue.
The Family Conflict Revealed: The dramatic tension forces the family's secrets to the surface. Students will improvise scenes of a family argument where the magical object, the threat, and the family's past all collide.
Week 3: The Quest and the Prophecy
This week introduces the mythological elements and the protagonist's mission.
The students will use their imaginations to build the magical world and the quest itself.
Their magical object is not a source of power, but a key to unlocking a greater truth.
Foundational Drama Games:
"One-Word Story": The entire class will collectively create the "prophecy" or the legend of the three artifacts, one word at a time. This exercise in spontaneous collaboration will generate the lore for their world and teach them how to build on each other's creative impulses.
"Sculptor and Statue": Students will work in pairs to physically represent the magical artifacts or the mythical locations on their map. One student is the sculptor, molding their partner into a statue of a lost artifact or a daunting mountain. This builds their physical vocabulary for creating an imagined world.
Key Activities:
The Wise Guide: A new character enters the scene. This could be a wise elder, a mysterious traveler, or a magical being. This character delivers a "prophecy" or a set of clues about three powerful artifacts that must be found to defeat the shadowy enemy.
Myth and Legend: The students will research myths and legends from various cultures and use them to inform the creation of their three artifacts. What are these artifacts, what do they do, and where are they located? This is where the students' individual research and creative ideas will start to fill out the world.
Mapping the Journey: The class will create a map of the protagonist's journey. They will use the stage and simple props to create the various locations on the map, from a cold, snowy forest to a dark, underwater cave.
Week 4: The Companions & The Road to Truth
The protagonist is no longer alone.
They will meet two companions who will join them on their quest.
This week is about building the relationships with their companions and developing the dynamics of their journey.
Foundational Drama Games:
"Yes, And...": The protagonist and their companions will use this fundamental improv game to build their journey. One player makes a statement about their quest ("We must cross this dangerous bridge"), and the next player must accept it and add to it ("Yes, and it's guarded by a three-headed badger"). This fosters spontaneity and a collaborative mindset.
"Bus Stop": We will adapt this game to introduce new characters or challenges the travelers meet on their journey. New students can enter the scene at any time, playing a wise old man or a trickster, to test the companions and move the story forward.
Key Activities:
Character Creation: Students will develop two new characters: a wise and protective figure (a "Monkey") and a strong, courageous warrior (a "Beetle"). These characters will have a unique relationship to the magical world and to each other.
Improvisation on the Road: Small groups will improvise scenes of the protagonist's journey with their two companions. We will focus on the humor, tension, and growing friendship between the characters, similar to the "Bus Stop" game but within a continuous narrative.
The Companions' Backstory: The students will discover that the companions are not just helpful strangers, but have a deep connection to the protagonist's family. This discovery adds a new layer of family conflict and mystery to the quest.
Week 5: The Haunted Past & The Family's Ghosts
This is the week of revelation and emotional conflict.
The line between family conflict and myth blurs as the protagonist begins to understand the truth of their past.
The students will discover that the companions and the quest itself are deeply tied to the protagonist's family.
Foundational Drama Games:
"Mirroring": Students will use this exercise in pairs to explore the emotional connection between the protagonist and their companions after the big reveal. The synchronous, non-verbal mirroring will build a sense of deep empathy and shared identity between the characters.
"Emotional Family": After learning the truth, students will improvise a scene where the characters are forced to revisit the central family conflict, now with all the new information. Each actor will be secretly assigned a specific emotion (e.g., betrayed, heartbroken, determined) to play throughout the scene, forcing them to perform with powerful subtext.
Key Activities:
The Family's Ghosts: The class will use physical theatre to create the "ghosts" of the family's past. We will explore how to use movement, sound, and a sense of stillness to create a haunting presence on stage.
The Reveal: A dramatic scene where the protagonist learns the true identity of their companions and the nature of the family conflict. The companions' true form might be revealed in a flash of light or a moment of intense emotional honesty.
The Final Confrontation: The students will begin to devise the final confrontation. They will realize that their shadowy enemy is not just an evil force, but a member of their own family—the Moon King.
Week 6: The Climactic Confrontation
The narrative reaches its peak.
This week is for building and rehearsing the climax of the story.
The protagonist must face their most powerful adversary: a family member.
The students will devise a non-violent but emotionally charged confrontation with the final antagonist.
Foundational Drama Games:
"Crossing the Bridge": This game is a perfect tool for staging the final showdown with the antagonist. The protagonist and the antagonist must face each other and, through physical and vocal choices, determine who has higher status. The conflict is resolved without a physical fight, focusing instead on the power dynamics and emotional stakes.
"Four-Headed Monster": The students will use this game to embody the main antagonist, the Moon King. With four or five students speaking as a single entity, one word at a time, they will create a menacing and unpredictable villain that is a powerful physical and vocal force.
Key Activities:
Choreographed Confrontation: Students will choreograph a non-contact fight scene between the protagonist and the main antagonist. We will focus on the emotional stakes of the fight, not just the physical movements.
Family's Forgiveness: The class will explore the idea of forgiveness as a weapon. How does the protagonist defeat their antagonist without violence? The students will devise a scene where the power of family, love, and memory is used to resolve the conflict.
Costuming and Masking: Students will create simple masks for the protagonist and the antagonist, using found objects and craft supplies. This is a great way to explore the idea of an actor's physicality being altered by their costume.
Week 7: Final Performance & Reflection
The final week is for tying all the elements together into a cohesive performance and reflecting on the creative journey.
Foundational Drama Games:
"Zip, Zap, Zop": This fast-paced game is an excellent warm-up for focus and energy before a final performance. It helps the group get into a collective rhythm and prepares them to be "on" and ready to perform.
"Human Bingo": After the performance, you will reveal the source text, and students will engage in a post-show reflection activity. They will find peers who "played a character with a hidden secret" or "collaborated to create a mythical creature." This reinforces the learning and allows them to celebrate each other's specific contributions to the final piece.
Key Activities:
Final Rehearsal: Groups will have time for final rehearsals, focusing on lighting, sound, and the emotional arc of their performance.
Devised Performance: The class will perform their devised pieces for an audience (which could be just the class, or another class, depending on the school).
The "Reveal" and Debrief: After the performance, the teacher will reveal the source text: Kubo and the Two Strings. The students will discuss the similarities and differences between their stories and the original. This is a crucial moment for reflection and for showing them how their own creativity led them to a story with a rich and powerful structure. (not sure a reveal is necessary)
