Last weekend, I had the great pleasure of attending an improv show performed by Josh Radnor (of How I Met Your Mother, Liberal Arts, and HappyThankYouMorePlease) and Dion Flynn (perhaps most widely known for his portrayal of President Obama on The Late Show with Jimmy Fallon) at The People's Improv Theater (PIT) in New York City.
Flynn and Radnor trained together in NYU's Tisch drama school. While training, the actors developed an improv game based on repetition and phonic word associations that they called "Clanging." Clanging begins with a simple word or phrase provided by the audience such as, "I think I love you." From there, the original phrase transforms through a rapid-fire back-and-forth "tennis match" in which the players take turns echoing the phrase with a twist that slightly alters one or more words so that the response sounds like the original. But, because of the change, the new phrase may have a completely different meaning. So, "I think I love you" could become "I think above you" (oh, snap); "I think I'll loofa you" (day at the spa); or "I think olive. You?" (choosing pizza toppings). The evening was a joyful occasion. Fun was had by all, performers and audience-members alike. Monday morning after yoga class, I rode the subway and got to thinking... As a test prep coach, one of my tenets is "What is in the one is in the whole." In other words, you only need one bite of a cake to know how every bite of the cake tastes. In life, this means that we can use one experience as a metaphor for another seemingly unrelated experience by finding a connecting link between the two. I wondered if I could find a way to link the absurdity of Clanging back to SATs and ACTs for this week's blog post. A tall order, to be sure. But, the parallel came to me.
Essentially what Radnor and Flynn do while Clanging is a simple, quick word association. Over their years speaking English, they've developed quite the arsenals of words. So, when one of them says something, the other speedily delves into his own lexicon and retrieves a reply that continues the banter. Speed is an important element here: almost as important as the meaning of the words themselves. Several times Flynn or Radnor stumbled over words or simply repeated the phrase to maintain the game's rhythm.
Now, imagine what it's like to take an SAT or ACT. When test-takers are at their best, they are actually "Clanging" with the test. The test gives them a problem, the test-taker makes a quick association, and takes action. In a math section, there are lots of word associations adroit test-takers have at their disposal. For instance, when a problem describes a service (like a phone company) with a fixed-fee and an additional charge proportional to usage, you should think of a linear regression line, y = mx + b. The y is the total charge for any usage, x. The m is the charge per unit. The b is the initial flat fee. To be a good test-taker and a good Clanger, you have to keep the ball rolling: receive the information, process it, reply with an answer, and repeat. {Tweet It} As soon as you stop to think about a problem past the point that you are actively solving the problem (or trying something that you think might solve the problem), you are losing the rhythm of the game. So, how does one become a skilled SAT/ACT Clanger? Know your stuff. Radnor and Flynn's fluidity comes through practice being present and available in the moment (surprisingly difficult, at times)... as well as from their experience speaking English (also surprisingly difficult, at times). Your fluidity will come through reviewing concepts and practicing problem solving. When you are doing the test, almost every question will have "trigger words" that literally "trigger" associations that help you to solve the problem. The better you understand the concepts and problem-structure of the tests, the better you can identify triggers, the more quickly and ably you can solve the problems. Eventually, it becomes a game. A beautiful cycle of receiving and responding to the challenge presented to you. To review your concepts Clanger-style, use quick word-association brainstorming. Give yourself a topic, and brainstorm everything (including rules and concepts) you associate with it. For instance, if you start with "commas," you immediately bring to mind the rules of comma usage. Okay, so maybe Clanging is really just about having a good time and not taking ourselves too seriously. But, I already wrote about that. What do you think? Are you game for some clang? As always, I love to hear your comments below. And, if you feel inspired, please share this post with your social networks.
UPDATE!
Someone at the same show as I posted a short video of Josh and Dion doing their thing. Check it out!
12 Comments
3/29/2014 12:59:34 pm
Great article. I think i'm going to try to incorporate the Clanger method! :)
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Erika Oppenheimer
3/31/2014 06:21:48 am
Awesome, Brandi! Let me know how it goes :)
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Erika Oppenheimer
3/31/2014 06:22:46 am
Isn't it funny how seemingly different things can illuminate each other?
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Erika Oppenheimer
3/31/2014 06:24:55 am
Yes! Glad that line resonated with you!
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4/1/2014 08:42:32 am
First of all, what a great experience that must have been!
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Erika Oppenheimer
4/1/2014 01:00:51 pm
Yes! And guess what! Someone posted a video clip from the show! Check it out
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4/1/2014 12:08:28 pm
The clanger method is very interesting, thanks for sharing with me. I think I'm going to give it a try!
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Erika Oppenheimer
4/1/2014 01:01:26 pm
Great! Let me know how it goes :)
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4/2/2014 02:23:33 am
FUN! Watched the video, that helped me get it. Gotta find a way to incorporate this into something!
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Erika Oppenheimer
4/3/2014 06:23:15 pm
So fun! I'm glad you liked it! Keep me posted :)
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