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Pretend & Imagine

Second graders discover that theater is pretending — using imagination to become a character and tell a story by acting it out — learning what actors and audiences do.

Grade 2Dramatic Play30 minutes1 class periodArtistic ProcessExplicit teaching4 StandardsNCAS
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Explain pretending.
  • ✓Use your imagination.
  • ✓Know the actor & audience.
  • ✓Make believe.
Essential Question

Have you ever pretended to be a superhero or a puppy? That’s what theater is — pretending and using your imagination! What is theater?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Explore · Interactive

The Pretend Explorer

Project this and tap each idea. Have children learn what pretending and theater are all about.

🎭 Explore pretending — tap eachTry it

The Lesson · Artistic Process (Warm-Up · Explore · Play · Perform · Reflect)

30 minutes, five moves

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

1

Warm-Up — Make Believe

4 min

Ever pretended to be a superhero? That’s theater — pretending!

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Pretend to be an animal.
  • Ask what they became.
  • Warm up.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Pretend.
  • Guess.
  • Warm up.
2

Explore — Explore Pretending

8 min

Children explore.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send children to the Pretend Explorer.
  • Note actor and audience.
  • Try pretending.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Tap each.
  • Note them.
  • Pretend.
3

Play — Play

9 min

Children play.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Pretend to be a character.
  • Use your imagination.
  • Act it out.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Pretend.
  • Imagine.
  • Act it.
4

Perform — Perform

6 min

Children perform.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show your pretend.
  • Be a good audience.
  • Be kind.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Show it.
  • Watch kindly.
  • Be kind.
5

Reflect — Reflect

3 min

Children close.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Say what pretending is.
  • Name the audience.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Say it.
  • Name it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the National Core Arts Standards (Theatre).

NCAS
TH:Cr1.1.2

Use imagination in dramatic play.

NCAS
TH:Re7.1.2

Recognize actors and audience.

NCAS
TH:Pr4.1.2

Pretend to be a character.

NCAS
TH:Cn10.1.2

Connect pretending to their world.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Pretend picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “I pretend to be ___.”
  • Model pretending.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with pretending an animal.
  • Use pictures.
  • Copy the leader.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Pretend a whole scene.
  • Turn an object into something else.
  • Play a new character.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 🧸Props to pretend
  • 💻The Pretend Explorer
  • 🎭A pretend stage
  • 🖍️Crayons
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

pretendto make believeimaginationmaking pictures in your mindactora person who pretendsaudiencethe people who watchcharacterwho you pretend to bemake believepretending togetherstorywhat you act outstagewhere you perform
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
What does it mean to pretend?
To make believe you are someone or something else.
QUESTION 2
What is an actor?
A person who pretends to be a character in a story.
QUESTION 3
Who is the audience?
The people who watch the show.

Reflect: make believe.

Have children pretend to be an animal at home and have their family guess what it is. A printable pretend 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.

🃏 Pretend & ImagineFlip
Card 1
Term
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Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

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

📝 Pretend & ImagineQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
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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.

🖨️ Pretend & ImaginePrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: actor, audience, character, imagination, make believe, pretend, stage, story
  1. pretending together
  2. who you pretend to be
  3. what you act out
  4. making pictures in your mind
  5. the people who watch
  6. a person who pretends
  7. where you perform
  8. to make believe

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What does it mean to pretend?
  2. What is an actor?
  3. Who is the audience?
Answer key — Part A: 1) make believe · 2) character · 3) story · 4) imagination · 5) audience · 6) actor · 7) stage · 8) pretend
Part B: 1) To make believe you are someone or something else. 2) A person who pretends to be a character in a story. 3) The people who watch the show.