Home›Lesson Plans›The Arts›Theater · Grade 1

Show It With Your Body

First graders learn to show feelings with their whole body — jumping for happy, slumping for sad, freezing for scared — so an audience can tell how their character feels without any words.

Grade 1Acting30 minutes1 class periodArtistic ProcessExplicit teaching4 StandardsNCAS
Start the Lesson
Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Show feelings with my body.
  • ✓Match feelings to actions.
  • ✓Act without words.
  • ✓Use body language.
Essential Question

Actors show feelings with their WHOLE body, not just their face! How would your body show happy, sad, or scared?

0
Lesson Phases
0
Vocabulary Terms
0
Standards Aligned
0
Interactive Task
Match It · Interactive

Match the Feeling to a Body Action

Project this and match each feeling to how your body shows it — tap a feeling, then tap the action.

🎭 Match each feeling to a body actionTry it
Feeling
How Your Body Shows It
Now tap the action!
The Lesson · Artistic Process (Warm-Up · Explore · Rehearse · Perform · Reflect)

30 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Warm-Up — Your Whole Body

4 min

Actors show feelings with their WHOLE body — how?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show a feeling with your body.
  • Ask what it is.
  • Warm up.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Watch.
  • Guess.
  • Warm up.
2

Explore — Show It

8 min

Children explore.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send children to Match the Feeling to a Body Action.
  • Match each one.
  • Try them.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Match.
  • Try them.
  • Name.
3

Rehearse — Rehearse

9 min

Children rehearse.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show happy with your body.
  • Show sad.
  • Show scared.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Happy!
  • Sad.
  • Scared!
4

Perform — Perform

6 min

Children perform.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show a feeling with no words.
  • Have others guess.
  • Be kind.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Show it.
  • Guess.
  • Be kind.
5

Reflect — Reflect

3 min

Children respond.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a feeling.
  • Show it with your body.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name one.
  • Show it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the National Core Arts Standards (Theatre).

NCAS
TH:Pr5.1.1

Use the body to show feelings.

NCAS
TH:Cr1.1.1

Explore feelings in acting.

NCAS
TH:Pr4.1.1

Make body choices.

NCAS
TH:Re7.1.1

Notice body language.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Feeling + action cards.
  • Sentence frame: “Happy is ___.”
  • Model the actions.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with happy vs. sad.
  • Show one feeling.
  • Use big actions.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Add more feelings.
  • Show a feeling story.
  • Guess a friend’s feeling.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 🎭A pretend stage
  • 💻Match the Feeling to a Body Action
  • 🪞A mirror
  • 🖍️Crayons
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

bodyall of youfeelingan emotionbody languagefeelings shown by your bodyhappya glad feelingsadnot happyscaredafraidslumpto droop downshowto act out
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
How does your body show HAPPY?
Jump up and down with a big smile.
QUESTION 2
How does your body show SAD?
Slump your shoulders and look down.
QUESTION 3
Can you show a feeling with no words?
Yes — with your body!

Reflect: show a feeling.

Have children show a feeling with their body for a family member to guess. A printable body sheet is in the Arts library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Show It With Your BodyFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
0

Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Show It With Your BodyQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
0%

Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Show It With Your BodyPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: body, body language, feeling, happy, sad, scared, show, slump
  1. feelings shown by your body
  2. to act out
  3. not happy
  4. to droop down
  5. an emotion
  6. a glad feeling
  7. all of you
  8. afraid

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. How does your body show HAPPY?
  2. How does your body show SAD?
  3. Can you show a feeling with no words?
Answer key — Part A: 1) body language · 2) show · 3) sad · 4) slump · 5) feeling · 6) happy · 7) body · 8) scared
Part B: 1) Jump up and down with a big smile. 2) Slump your shoulders and look down. 3) Yes — with your body!