The Arts · Foundation

Active learning ideas

Props as Storytelling Symbols

Active learning works well for this topic because young students need hands-on, sensory experiences to grasp abstract concepts like symbolism. Moving and using props engages their bodies and imaginations, making symbolic thinking tangible and memorable.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• AC9ADRFE02
• AC9ADRFE03

• 15–20 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Inquiry Circle
• 15 min · Whole Class

Inquiry Circle: This is Not a Box

Pass a small cardboard box around a circle. Each student must use the box as something else (e.g., a telephone, a hat, a drum) and perform a 5-second action with it before passing it on.

Hypothesize alternative identities for a stick beyond its literal form.

Facilitation Tip

During 'This is Not a Box,' model how to treat the box with care and intention to signal its new purpose to the audience.

What to look for

Give each student a simple object, like a scarf or a block. Ask them to write or draw two different things the object could be in a story and one sentence explaining how they would use it.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Simulation Game
• 20 min · Small Groups

Simulation Game: The Prop Shop

One student is the 'shopkeeper' and others are 'customers' who need an object for a specific problem (e.g., 'I need to cross a river'). The shopkeeper must find a 'prop' (like a ruler) and explain how it will help.

Explain how a single object can establish the setting of a story.

Facilitation Tip

In 'The Prop Shop,' circulate and ask open-ended questions like, 'How did you decide what this stick could become?' to prompt deeper thinking.

What to look for

Present students with a picture of a familiar setting (e.g., a park bench, a kitchen table). Ask them to name one prop that would help tell a story happening in that setting and explain why.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Decision-Making

Activity 03

• Think-Pair-Share
• 20 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Mystery Object Stories

Give each pair a random object (a spoon, a leaf, a ribbon). They must come up with a 30-second story where that object is the most important thing in the world, then share their story with another pair.

Predict the impact on a narrative if a crucial prop is removed.

Facilitation Tip

For 'Mystery Object Stories,' give students 30 seconds of silent think time before pairing to ensure all voices are heard.

What to look for

Hold up a single object, such as a cardboard tube. Ask: 'What story could this tube help us tell? How could it be a telescope? How could it be a microphone? How could it be a magic wand?' Encourage students to share their ideas and demonstrate the different uses.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach this topic by modeling flexible thinking yourself. Show how you turn a single object into multiple symbols in quick succession, narrating your thought process aloud. Avoid correcting students too quickly; instead, praise imaginative uses and gently guide them toward clearer storytelling. Research suggests that young children benefit from explicit demonstrations of symbolic transformation before attempting it independently.

Successful learning looks like students confidently transforming ordinary objects into meaningful symbols in their stories. They should collaborate to create new uses for props and clearly explain their choices to peers.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During 'This is Not a Box,' watch for students who treat the box as a container rather than a prop to be transformed.

  Pause the activity and model treating the box as a hat, a car, or a treasure chest. Ask students to copy your movement and explain how the box's purpose changed.

• During 'The Prop Shop,' watch for students who gather many props rather than focusing on one object's possibilities.

  Set a timer for one minute to select just one prop. Ask each student to show their prop to a partner and explain how it could be used in three different ways.

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Methods used in this brief

• Inquiry Circle
• Simulation Game
• Think-Pair-Share