primary drama guidelines

8/13/2019 Primary Drama Guidelines

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Arts Education

Teacher Guidelines

Drama

Primary School

Curriculum


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DramaArts Education

Teacher Guidelines


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ContentsDrama in the primary curriculumWhat is drama? 2

The contribution of drama to the childs development 4

The content of the drama curriculumBasic structure and layout of the curriculum 8

The elements of drama 8

The prerequisites for making drama 9

The strand units 9

School planning for dramaCurriculum planning 16

Organisational planning 21

Classroom planning for dramaThe general planning context for drama in the classroom 26

The content of the drama 27

The integration of drama with other curriculum areas 29

Teaching drama to multi-class groups 31

Section 1

Section 3

Section 4

Section 2


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Drama Teacher Guid

Approaches and methodologiesMake-believe play to process drama 37

The prerequisites for making drama 39

The elements of drama 46

Approaching a drama activity 62

Descriptions of successful drama activities 64

Examples of how content objectives in the strand units manifestthemselves in the descriptions of successful drama activities 92

Drama strategies and conventions 97

Looking closely at childrens work 99

AppendixBibliography 104

Glossary 108

Membership of the Curriculum Committee for Arts Education 111

Membership of the Primary Co-ordinating Committee 112

Acknowledgements 113

Section 5

Section 6


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Make-believe play


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Drama in theprimary

curriculum

Section 1


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What is drama?The essence of drama is the making ofstory through enactment. The answerto the question whats the story? willalways lead to the making of a plot(a series of actions and events) with atheme (a focus for reflection). Successfuldrama will reflect life in a realistic or

metaphorical way and will clarifyelements of real life and point up thepatterns beneath it. The content ofdrama is, therefore, real life in all itsmanifestations, and the method bywhich it is examined is story. Themaking of this story is done throughthe enactment of selected significantmoments or scenes; and the selection,enactment and linking of these scenesand reflection upon them comprisesthe text of the drama class.

In the context of the primary school,educational drama is not to be confusedwith what may be termed performancedrama. This activity, familiar to manyteachers, usually involves choosing ascript and cast, rehearsing, designingand building a set, organising lighting,sound and other technical features, andmounting a performance for an audience.

Being involved in such an experiencecan, if undertaken with a knowledge othe principles and practices outlined this curriculum, benefit children infostering self-confidence, in giving thethe opportunity to appear on stage anin allowing them to express themselvepublicly. However, in undertaking suca project the teacher should bear inmind that circumstances often tend tocause the overvaluing of product andthe undervaluing of process.

Educational drama, as it is envisagedin the curriculum, is a creative procesthat allows children to explore thefull potential of drama as a learningexperience. It is improvisational innature and has as its aim a quest forknowledge that involves every aspect othe childs personality: spiritual, moralemotional, intellectual and physical. Inmaking this drama the child enters animagined context (the drama world),through enacting a fiction aboutcharacters in certain circumstances,at some particular time and in someparticular situation, and so can explorin a unique way conflicts, issues, consquences, attitudes, emotions, concernand preoccupations that are importanto the understanding of real life.

Drama in the primary

curriculum

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The developmental and learning powerof drama lies in the particular nature ofthe dramatic experience. In

surrendering to the fiction

projecting himself/herselfimaginatively into a situation

knowing and living thecircumstances, dilemmas, choicesand actions of a fictitious character,and their consequences

refracting all this through his/herown personality

the child can come to new perceptions.Drama provides a unique gateway tolearning and affords a dimension ofknowledge that is otherwiseinaccessible.

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The contribution of dramato the childs developmentDrama can make a unique contributionto the development of the child. Itspurposes, and the particular characterof its activity, provide the means bywhich the child can achieve an enhancedawareness of self and can experience a

unique mode of learning. It can give each child the opportunity to

approach new knowledge throughthe dimension of imaginativeactivity and experience

give each child the opportunity toapproach knowledge in the ways thatare most suitable to him/her

create the motivation and interestthat can spur the child to researchand thus foster an attitude that vieknowledge as essential in adaptinghis/her perception of the world

provide the means by which thechild can relate knowledge, in aspecial way, to previous learning

and experience help the child to see pattern and

unity in seemingly disparate pieceof knowledge encountered indifferent subjects

make distant what is close and maclose what is distant at both acognitive and an affective level, sothat aspects of life can be exploredclosely enough to afford effectiveexamination but distant enough to

provide safety for the child

give the child a rich oral languageexperience and afford the opportunto experiment with different registeof language

give the child experience of dramaas an art form

help the child to assimilate andaccommodate the experience ofother cultures

help the child to assimilate a changienvironment through anticipatingpsychological development andthrough allowing him/her to transceimmediate experience by trying ouother worlds through drama

The teacher observing simultaneous dramatic action

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facilitate the childs imaginative,intellectual, emotional and physicaldevelopment in a contemporaneousand holistic way

foster the childs creativity, invention,insight, discovery and problem-solving through exploring activelythe intuitive and the spontaneous

allow the child, through thedramatic fiction, to experience,understand and practise the lifeskills needed in reality

promote empathy with the ideas,attitudes and feelings of others.

The content of educational drama islife. It encompasses the entire range ofa childs experience and every facet ofhis/her personality; and because it

constitutes a unique way of learning itshould be an indispensable part of thechilds experience in school.

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The contentof the drama

curriculum

Section 2


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Basic structure andlayout of the curriculum

LevelsThe content of the drama curriculum isset out in four levels: infant classes, firstand second classes, third and fourthclasses, and fifth and sixth classes.

Content strandThe content is presented in one strandat each level:

Drama to explore feelings, knowledge

and ideas, leading to understanding.

The title of the strand defines thenature of drama. The learning experienceencompasses both the cognitive andthe affective abilities of the child and

involves an exploration that will lead toa greater understanding of himself/herself and of the world.

Strand unitsWithin the strand the detailed elementsof content are presented in three strandunits which describe aspects of dramaexploration, experience and activity. Thestrand units are:

Exploring and making drama

Reflecting on drama

Co-operating and communicating inmaking drama.

Exemplars are given with each contentobjective which indicate the kind ofexplorations, experiences and activitiesthat are envisaged in it.

These are neither prescriptive norcomprehensive. They are merelysuggestions that may help the teacherin planning a programme of effectivelearning through drama.

The elements of dramaDrama is characterised by certain

features that give it its unique power.These may be called the elements ofdrama. They are:

belief

role and character

action

place

time

tension

significance

genre.

These elements will be treated indetail in Section 5, Approaches andmethodologies, pp. 35101.

The content of the drama

curriculum

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The prerequisites formaking dramaThe approach to drama in the curriculummay be termed process drama. It involveschildren in a process of improvisationand exploration that leads to definabledrama outcomes and learning outcomes.In order to make the process effectivethree prerequisites are necessary:

content

the fictional lens

a safe environment.

Content will supply the subject matterof the drama. This will be based onsome aspect of life, on the childsexperience or on the content of someother curriculum area.

By using the fictional lens the teachercan look at the content through themedium of a story and frame it as adramatic fiction. He/she can thensuggest that the children improvise anenactment in which they engage withcharacters who find themselves in theparticular dilemma, location orsituation suggested by the action.

In order to increase childrens confidence,allay their fears and dissipate their

inhibitions they must be allowed tomake the drama in a safe environment,where what they do is valued and valid-ated by other children and by theteacher.

These three prerequisites for makingdrama will be treated in greater detailSection 5, Approaches andmethodologies.

The strand unitsThere is a close correlation betweenthe content objectives of the curriculu

and the elements of drama. Through tobjectives the children will becomefamiliar with the elements and how thprovide the structure for drama, andthey will learn to use them to explorethe possibilities of drama activity.

In keeping with the gradual developmeof the child, progression can be seen the content objectives from level tolevel. For example, in infant classes thchild will merely explore and develop

what is still a strong instinct for makebelieve play, whereas in first and seconclasses he/she will use the ability to pat make-believe in order to enter fullyinto participation in drama. Similarly, infant classes children will explore andevelop the ability to play in role, butthird and fourth classes they will begito understand the relationship betweerole and character. Other contentobjectives, such as those dealing with

using script as one of the pre-texts fordrama or distinguishing betweengenres, such as the comic and theabsurd, are not approached until thesenior classes. The following is a briefdescription of each of the contentobjectives as they appear in the strandunits of the curriculum.

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Exploring and making drama

The continuum of make-believe play

and drama

Make-believe play is the basis of alleducational drama. The impulse tomake-believe is spontaneous in theyoung child, and when this begins towane it is important that the teacherfosters and encourages its essentialcharacteristics in drama activity.

Role and character

It is through entering into the differentcharacters in the drama and playing thecharacters in various roles in the contextof the drama that the children experiencethe drama process. Taking a role can bedescribed as pretending to be someoneor something else while character refers

to the entire intellectual, emotional andphysical make-up of a real or fictionalperson. The nature and function of bothof these and their relationship to eachother will be explained in more detail inSection 5, Approaches andmethodologies.

Using space and objects to deepen

the drama context

and add to its reality

The space in which the drama takesplace will, as the story or drama textis created, come to represent thelocation of the drama. It is importantthat children are encouraged to developthe imaginative flexibility to exploit thedrama space and the objects it containsin order to extend and deepen thereality of the drama.

Exploring how the fictional past a

the desired future influence the

dramatic action

This content objective deals with theelement of time. Drama always takesplace in the present moment but thepresent moment contains residues ofthe past and the seeds of the future. I

entering into the character the childshould be encouraged to imagine thecharacters past and what may havehappened before the drama. This willimpinge on the course of the dramatiaction. Similarly, in striving towards aparticular future the character willinfluence the action.

Maintaining focus in the dramatic

action

In fostering the impulse to make-belie

the teacher can encourage childrento enter as fully as possible into thefiction they are creating and accept thfictional consequences of their actionin the drama situation. In doing thisthey will learn to contribute to maintaing the focus of the story as it developin the drama.

The function and effect of tension

the drama

In drama, as in life, it is the element o

choice that constitutes the dynamic ochange and development. It arises frothe conflicting demands of two (or modesires, ideas or needs and engendersthe need for decision. This is the sourof tension in drama, and its roots aretwofold: the impetus to come to adecision and the conflict inherent inchoice.

Taking a role

pretending to be someone or

something other than oneself

Characterisation

an attempt to assume the

characteristics, desires, thought

processes and physical attributes

of another person

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Using script as one of the pre-texts

of the drama

The pre-text is the springboard thatlaunches the drama and it can take anumber of forms. In the senior classesthese can be extended to include theuse of a written script. This will notentail a performance of the script: it will

usefully consist of giving the childrenthe opportunity to adopt the charactersand the situation of the script andreinterpret their development throughtheir own imaginative dramatic action.In situations in which a short script ismade into a drama text for performanceto the rest of the class, the childrenthemselves should act as directors,using their knowledge of making thedrama text.

Distinguishing between variousgenres such as comic, tragic,

fantastic, poetic, absurd

Drama has many genres and each offersa particular perception and clarificationof aspects of the human condition. Inthe junior and middle classes childrenwill be limited in their understandingand appreciation of genre and therefore,though using various genres to explorefeelings, knowledge and ideas, may notconsciously distinguish between them.However, by the senior classes, with aconsistent experience of drama,children will begin to appreciate thepossibilities of some of the principalgenres: the comic, the tragic, thefantastic, the poetic, the absurd.

Reflecting on dramaThe content of the second strand unitan integral part of the drama process.is concerned with reflecting on the drammaking connections between plots anthemes and establishing relationshipsbetween drama and life experience.

Reflecting on a particular dramati

action in order to create possible

alternative courses for the action

As the drama activity is taking placethe child will be helping to create astory and will be reflecting continuouon how it is developing: what hashappened, where the situation is leadihow his/her own character and othercharacters are developing, and manyother questions. In this reflective

response the child will make choicesand create alternative courses of actioand so contribute to the developmentthe drama.

The relationship between story,

theme and life experience

The creation of a story or fiction isat the heart of the drama process. Thethemes that the story explores will bedrawn from the childs general experienfrom concepts, knowledge and

experiences encountered in the varioucurriculum areas and from other contexIn exploring these the child can cometo new perceptions, insights andknowledge about life. In this way dramis a learning experience that is valuaband relevant.

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Using insights arising out of

dramatic action to draw conclusions

about life and people

Reflection can also take place after aparticular drama activity. Children maydiscuss not only what has happenedbut the ideas and feelings encounteredand the new knowledge gained. Above

all, they can examine and explore theways in which the drama has given themnew insights into human attitudes andconcerns and a greater understandingof people and life.

Co-operating and communicat-ing in making drama

Co-operating and communicating

with others, out of role, in order to

shape the dramaOne of the important learning benefitsin drama is the experience it gives

children in working together and withthe teacher. Opportunities for co-operation arise all the time in decidinon content, in choosing the fictionallens (particularly as they mature andgain experience in making drama), inusing place and space, and in choosindifferent directions for the drama. Thiwill also involve them in discussion an

negotiation with each other and withthe teacher and so lead to the development of communication skills. In thisway the children take the principal roin shaping the drama and so enhancetheir sense of ownership of it.

Co-operating and communicating,

in role, in order to shape the dram

Children also shape the drama whenthey are in role in the enactment. The

extent to which they enter into the roor character, progressively developingit more depth and believability, will haa crucial influence on the directions tenactment will take. Through reactingin character in co-operation with eachother they are continually makingdecisions that lead to the furtherdevelopment of characters and of thedrama. The ability to communicate thcharacters thoughts and emotions is a

facility that will grow and will providethem with the experience of living inand through the character. This allowthem to express and clarify intuitions,to experience new perspectives and tocommunicate them effectively.

Co-operating in the shaping of the drama

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Developing fictional relationships

through interacting with the other

characters as the drama text

is being made

A great part of the development ofcharacter can come through interactionwith other fictional characters in thedrama. The extent to which this happens

will, in the first place, be a factor of themeasure of belief each child brings tothe drama. Through believing in thedrama and accepting the fictionalconsequences of the enactment, he/shewill deal seriously with the attitudes,opinions and feelings of the othercharacters. The different registers oflanguage in which these are expressedand the dimension the sub-text adds toit through gesture, facial expression and

unspoken attitude and feeling will alsoinfluence the quality of the interactioand so enhance the effectiveness of thdrama.

Enacting for others a scene that ha

been made in small-group work

The value of drama in the classroomboth as a learning and a development

experience resides in the actual makinof the drama and in reflecting on it.This of its nature is an improvisationaprocess. The children explore the contthrough the fictional lens by adoptingcharacters and allowing them to develthrough the enactment. The directionthis will take is wholly dependent onspontaneous interaction among thecharacters as the drama is made. Itcan be useful, however, to ask a group

to re-enact a scene that has alreadybeen done in small-group work, forother members of the class. This canlead to reflection on particular aspecof content and the way it has beenrefracted through the drama, thusadding to the childrens learningexperience. This will always be done inthe class as part of the drama processand need not lead to any emphasis onperformance or presentation.

The agreement to suspend disbelief is central to the drama.

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Tension derives

from the interplayof choices and

their consequence


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Schoolplanning for

drama

Section 3


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To ensure that the aims of the dramacurriculum are realised it is importantthat the principal and staff draw up acoherent plan for the teaching of dramain the school. This collaborative processwill involve parents and the board ofmanagement, where appropriate. Thissection of the guidelines will examine

curriculum planning for drama organisational planning for drama.

Curriculum planningDrama, as outlined in Section 1, has aparticular contribution to make to thechilds development. However, if thiscontribution is to be effective it isimportant that the principal and staffplan carefully for the implementationof the drama curriculum. In doing thisthey will need to take account of anumber of considerations:

ensuring that the importance ofdrama as a part of the curriculum isrecognised and that the staff iscommitted to this

recognising the importance of theintegrity of the drama as part of thelearning experience

guaranteeing the continuity of dramain the childs school experience

providing for the integration of dramawith other areas of the curriculum

allocating time for drama.

The importance of drama inthe curriculumThe true importance of drama lies inthe nature of the learning experienceit affords the child. Through theimaginative engagement of the childsintellectual, emotional and physicalcapacities he/she can be brought to

new perceptions and new understandinThis is done through the experience ocreating a drama text. It is in this act ocreating the story that the educationaliberating power of the drama resides.The endless possibilities of fiction allofor the exploration of the unboundedrange of human experience. Furthermothe improvisational nature of theexploration can give a spontaneousrelease to the childs intuitions and a

context that enables him/her to clarifyand to express them. Through theenactment and the reflection on itthrough adopting a character andempathising with it, and throughinteraction with other characters inthe dramathe child finds a gatewayto new experience, knowledge andunderstanding that no other learningexperience provides.

The true importance of drama

lies in the nature of the learning

experience it affords the child.

School planning for drama

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The importance of theintegrity of the drama in thechilds learning experienceAlthough the child learns throughdrama in a different way than throughany other subject, that unique learningexperience depends entirely on howsuccessful the drama is. It is the quality

of the drama that will determine thesort of learning that will take place. Thisapplies whether the drama is done forits own sake or as an integrated elementof another subject. In planning, theprincipal and staff should always thinkof the nature of the learning experiencethat drama can provide. To considerdrama merely as a methodology is torisk diminishing both the dramaprocess and the learning experience it

can uniquely afford. It is important that,whatever the circumstances in which ittakes place, the integrity of the drama ispreserved. For example, drama as part ofa history lesson or an SPHE lesson willonly yield up its full learning benefits tothe child if, whatever the content, thedrama experience is as successful as itcan be. The better the drama thegreater the quality of the learning.

The continuity of drama in thechilds school experienceA continuous and consistent experienceof drama is central to the successfulimplementation of the drama curriculumand should be a major consideration inthe planning process at school level.The backbone of a successful approach

to process drama in school is thefostering of continuity from make-belieplay to drama. At infant level muchclassroom drama will beindistinguishable from make-believeplay. It will be easy for the teacher, atthis stage, to use this impulse to beginto lead the children towards drama. Athe impulse to make believe wanes witthe childrens growing maturity it iscrucial that they have an experience odrama that will enable them to use thessential characteristics of make-belieplay in a way that is natural and relevato them. This will only be fully achieveif children have a consistent experienof drama from year to year throughouttheir school lives.

In this way drama can become anaccepted and normal part of their schoexperience with which they can engagwithout any self-consciousness. Theywill come to appreciate the importancof drama rather than see it as somethisilly or irrelevant or, indeed, as merelya break from lessons. Furthermore, it only through a continuous experienceof drama that children will developdrama skills and achieve a facility withthem. The quality of the drama exper-ience and, of course, the learning that

results will be greatly dependent onthe extent to which the drama skillshave been mastered and the dramarules learned.

The better the drama the greater

the quality of the learning.

A continuous and consistentexperience of drama is central to

the successful implementation of

the drama curriculum.

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Integrating drama with otherareas of the curriculumThe content of drama is life experienceitself. This may come from childrensown general experience or from the

content of one of the other curriculumareas. Drama provides the child with aunique and potent means of learning,whatever the content. The effectivenessof the learning experience, however, willdepend on how good the dramaexperience is. This means that evenwhen content from another curriculumarea becomes the content of drama itshould be regarded as a basic principlethat the resultant activity will retain the

integrity of the drama itself.Drama should not be used as a moreattractive way of presenting some pieceof knowledge but as a means by whichthat knowledge (or a particular facet ofit) becomes accessible to the child in away that is not possible in any otherlearning context. In this way drama

can become an essential learningexperience in any curriculum area,and at the same time the quality ofthat experience will be a factor in thesuccess of the drama itself.

Drama can also be integrated with othparts of the curriculum by using dramitself as the starting point. An approacto learning about the Great Famine, foexample, might begin with a drama aboa family in famine times. Through it thchild could not only live through andcome to know what it was like to livethen but, as a series of drama activitiedevelops, he/she would be led to researfactual material and internalise it by

incorporating it into the drama worldand refracting it through the dramaexperience. Whatever the starting poithe child will not only benefit from thunique learning mode that dramaaffords in the particular curriculumarea but will gain in his/her generaldevelopment as well.

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Language

Music

SPHE

PE

SESEVisual Arts

Mathematics

Drama


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An Ghaeilge agus drmaochtThe language of communication indrama will be determined largely by theparticular medium of instruction in theschool and teachers will refer to theappropriate language version of thedocuments. It will be noted that somecontent objectives in Irish are included

in the English version. Where English isthe normal medium of instruction it isimportant to consider the relationshipbetween drama and the teaching andlearning of Gaeilge.

The greatest benefit of drama in Irishis that it can bring fluency in thelanguage to the speed of life. Dramaactivity in Irish should not, therefore,be inhibited by continued interruptionfrom the teacher to ensure accuracy.

Any common mistakes can be referredto later and corrected. More thananything else, a lack of vocabulary caninhibit the success of the drama. Tocounteract this the child should beencouraged to use whatever language ismost effective and appropriate in orderto retain the spontaneity of the drama.For example, the creation of gibberish isoften used by drama teachers and actor-trainers to create the necessity for the

actor-pupil to express thought physically,thereby extending the range of physicallanguage. Similarly, the childs lack of theappropriate word can be used to forcehim/her to express a thought physically.As before, the word can be suppliedlater, or a What was she trying to say?game could be devised for the purpose.

In an English drama it is easy tointroduce a character who speaks onlyIrish, thus encouraging its use. Forexample, the boatman speaks only Irish athey cant go to the island without making

known the reason why they have to go.Similarly, in a situation where languagdifferences emerge, as for examplebetween an alien and an earthman,either English or Irish can be used tosignal a lack of communication. Theteacher can also go into role in thedrama in order to prompt and extendthe use of Irish. This can happenspontaneously in an Irish class or aspart of a drama class. With practice,both approaches can become usefulelements in the teachers strategies.

The content of drama in Irishsometimes needs to be simpler thanthat used in English drama and is ofteslightly restricted to allow the child tocreate freely within a language rangewith which he/she is reasonably comfoable. A pleasant drama game is to askthe children to create playlets aroundgroups of words supplied by the teachThis can form the trimhse ramh-chumarside (pre-communicativephase) and lead to the teaching ofthe vocabulary.

Using different short improvisations iIrish to build up a day in the life of acertain character is another usefulstrategy. The pre-text for this activitycan be four six-line scripts supplied byeither the pupils or the teacher.

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The integration of Irish and drama inways like these will assist the childsdrama education and at the same timehelp him/her to achieve greater fluencyand expressiveness in Irish.

Allocating time for dramaThe contribution that drama has tomake to the childs development and

learning in school underlines theimportance of planning for it whenallocating time to the differentcurriculum areas and to the subjectswithin them. The allocation of time todrama will have two sources:

in the time allocation given to Artseducation

in its integration with other subjectsand curriculum areas.

As was discussed in a previous sectionIntegrating drama with other areas ofthe curriculum, these two sources areinterrelated. They will be complementato each other and will often overlap.

Children with special needsBecause of its nature and the uniquelearning experience it has to offer,drama is particularly relevant tochildren with special needs. It can be enormous benefit both in terms ofaffective and cognitive development.General guidelines for teachers,however, can only give a broadindication of the contribution thatdrama can make in this area.

The drama experience in general andthe activities in the strand unitCo-operating and communicating inmaking drama provide learningopportunities that are crucial tochildren with special needs. It can, inparticular, contribute to the childslanguage development in extendingvocabulary and expressive ability. Thephysical dimension of drama will alsoassist non-verbal expression. Indeveloping the childs concepts ofdrama, elements such as place and timspatial awareness and more accurate

perceptions of time relationships arecultivated. Furthermore, the story basof process drama will help to developthe childs ability to understand andexpress the sequential nature of eventand the importance of focusing ondifferent aspects of a drama activity wfoster powers of concentration.

Drama borrows time from other

subjects in order to enhance the

childs learning experience inthose areas.

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Because drama is a co-operative activity,it provides a valuable experience inturn-taking and in working with othersin order to achieve particular goals.One of the essential learning benefits ofdrama is that it provides the opportunityto deal with questions of choice andconflict by distancing them in thefictional context, thus helping to providea safe environment in which to explorethem. Above all, because it gives suchscope for self-expression and self-realisation, the contribution dramacan make to the childs self-esteem isincalculable.

Organisational planningHaving considered the needs of theschool with regard to the drama

curriculum, it is important to considerthe features of school organisation thatwill best facilitate their fulfilment. Inpractice these will often be consideredtogether and will entail a collaborativeand consultative process involving theprincipal, the teachers and, whereappropriate, parents and the boardof management.

Planning for drama should contributeto the overall school plan, which will be

reviewed by the board of management.Within the resources available to it theboard will, as with other subjects, providesupport for the implementation of drama.

Arising out of and in conjunction withcurriculum planning, a number oforganisational issues will need to beconsidered by the principal and staff order to facilitate the successful implementation of the curriculum. Amongthem are:

developing among the members of

the staff a commitment to drama ithe school

co-ordinating the allocation of timto drama

planning for the various sound levthat drama entails

organising parent-teacher contactrelation to drama.

Developing staff involvement

in dramaAs discussed under Curriculum planninthe principal and staff should regarddrama as an important feature of thecurriculum and as a unique mode oflearning. With regard to school plannithis will involve seeing it not as aperipheral or add-on activity but ascentral to the childs learning experien

Drama is a unique mode of

learning, not an add-on activity.

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Members of the staff should beencouraged to consult each otherregarding the integration of drama inthe curriculum and in the organisationof co-operative drama activities. It isimportant too that teachers availthemselves of in-service education inorder to enhance their skills in teachingdrama. This will help to ensure the

successful implementation of thecurriculum. Whole-school in-careerdevelopment is most effective andrelevant in facilitating maximum staffinvolvement in both the planning andthe operation of the schools dramaprogramme.

It is important too that if a member othe staff evinces a special interest orexpertise in drama in the school, thisshould be encouraged by the principaand the board of management, andsuch teachers should be facilitated inobtaining whatever further training thmight need.

In the process of curriculum planningand development a co-ordinator indrama could be of great benefit to theschools drama programme. He/shecould facilitate the curriculum in waysuch as

taking responsibility for theorganisation of drama in the schoo

organising school-based in-serviceeducation in drama

encouraging and supporting othermembers of the staff in the teachinof drama.

The co-ordination of timeallocation to dramaDecisions made in the curriculumplanning process will have implicationfor the organisation of drama in theschool. Most frequently these willconcern the use of the different facilitthe school has at its disposal. The moobvious locations for drama are theclassroom and the school hall or generpurposes room, although there is noreason why, in good weather, effectivedrama activities cannot be pursued ouof doors.

Children looking at a character study on the wall of the classroom

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Teachers can do drama very successfullyin the classroom, but the varied natureof drama activity will also require thefacility of the greater space that theschool hall or general-purposes roomcan provide. The allocation of time forthe use of this facility can become animportant element of the organisationalplanning of drama in the school.

Although every class should have aweekly time allocation for drama in theschool hall or the general-purposesroom, the nature of drama and thevariety of drama activity will requireflexibility from all members of the staff.For example, when the type of dramaactivity in which a class is engagedduring a particular week does notdemand the use of the larger space, itcould be allocated to another class ona quid pro quo basis. This wouldrequire both co-operation and regular

consultation among staff members. Thavailability of a teacher who organisesdrama in the school would be of greatassistance in this regard.

Sound levelsIt is important that drama allowschildren as much freedom and choiceof expression as is consistent with thecontent, characters, action and situatioof the particular drama activity in whithey are engaged. This may, on occasioresult in sound levels that are quite hig

However, all members of the staffshould recognise that what may seeman inordinate level of noise in a classroois not necessarily caused by indisciplinOn the contrary, noise may at times ban essential ingredient of a successfuldrama lesson.

Involving parentsIt is important that, in the context ofregular parent-school contact, parentsare made aware of the contribution thdrama has to make to the childs learniand development. In the approach todrama in the school parents should beinvolved in planning to support theimplementation of the drama curriculuThey can also, on occasion when it is

appropriate, contribute to the organisation of drama activity. Most importantparents should be encouraged todiscuss childrens drama experienceswith them. This can give them avaluable role in facilitating thechildrens reflection on drama.

Noise may at times be an

essential ingredient of the

drama lesson.

Parents have a valuable role to

play in childrens reflection on

drama.

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Fictional relationships


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Using space to deepen

the drama context


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Classroomplanning for

drama

Section 4


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In his/her approach to planning dramain the classroom the teacher needs totake account of a number ofconsiderations:

the general planning context fordrama in the classroom

the short-term and long-termcontent of drama

the integration of drama with othercurriculum areas

teaching drama to multi-classgroups.

The general planningcontext for drama in thclassroomDrama in the classroom provideschildren with an experience that wi

develop their drama skills

develop their ability to use dramato enhance their learningexperience in other curriculumareas

contribute to their overalldevelopment.

This will entail long-term and short-term planning that will incorporateregular engagement with all thecontent objectives of the dramacurriculum and ensure a consistent

and imaginative use of the threeprerequisites of process drama:

content

the fictional lens

creating a safe environment.

In order to ensure continuity it isimportant for the teacher to takeaccount of childrens previous dramexperience. This will entailconsultation with previous teachers

and a consideration of any assessmeof childrens progress and experiencin drama to ascertain their level ofability and their experience of usingdrama for learning.

Integrating visual arts and dramachildren create their fictional village

Classroom planning for

drama

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Thereafter, the teacher should plan

to give children as wide and as richan experience of drama as possible,consistent with their stage ofdevelopment

to set this in the various contexts ofthe years work, of periods that maycomprise a number of weeks, and of

each weeks work

to achieve a balance between activitybased on the childrens generalexperience, concerns and preoccup-ations, and drama arising from andintegrated with other curriculum areas.

The content of the drama

Long-term planning

It is important to identify an overallbody of content for drama for the year.This will have a number of sources,which will include

drama drawn from childrenseveryday experience

particular issues, such as responsibility,that the teacher may wish to explorethrough drama

aspects of life from the past, thepresent or a possible future thatwill arouse childrens curiosity

the needs, concerns andpreoccupations of the children

content and issues from othercurriculum areas.

It will be useful for the teacher toidentify a list of these and to draw up

a plan that will take account of theirintegration with the overall curriculumplan for the years work. This must, ofcourse, allow for a considerable amouof flexibility, since the teacher will modthe drama content as the year progresto accommodate factors such as

the extent to which the class progres

in the different curriculum areas the progress of individual children

in the class

the extent to which current eventswill impinge on school experience

the need to accommodate the issuconcerns and preoccupations of thclass and of individual children.

In this context it is important that theteacher makes full use of the elements

of drama, the prerequisites for makingdrama and the content of the curriculuin the different drama activities. Thiswill ensure the essential characteristicof flexibility and add to the richness othe childrens drama experience. It wilgreatly facilitate both the coherenceand breadth of the teachers long-termplan if he/she can identify a list ofdrama experiences that can be initiatefrom different starting pointsconte

enactment, reflection, etc. (SeeDescriptions of successful dramaactivities, p. 6491.)

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Short-term planningPlanning a weeks work in drama caninvolve

drama arising out of the previousweeks work

activity that is part of a moreextended drama activity

a new drama exploration.Whatever the case, it is important thatthe teacher decides beforehand on adefinite, fresh focus for the weeks dramaand on which starting points will bemost appropriate and effective ininitiating the chosen content.

The question of integrating drama withother curriculum areas will also need tobe decided. At times, when the particularlearning benefit cannot be predicted atthe outset and when it may depend onwhich direction the children take in thedrama, such planning may not bepossible. In any case it is important thatcareful thought be given to

the extent of the integration

the length and frequency of integratedactivity

the identification of the particularcontribution that drama can make

to the learning experience.

It is essential that wherever there isintegration of drama with anothercurriculum area, whether the activityhas its source in the drama per se orin the content of another subject, thequality of the drama is the firstconsideration.

As is already emphasised in Section 3School planning for drama, the betterthe drama the higher the quality of thlearning.

The teacher should prepare for anydrama activity by identifying clearly

the drama objectives of the activity

the learning objectives of theactivity.

The work will be successful only if botof these are achieved.

At a very practical level the teachershould decide on a number of scenesthat will form the basis of the weekswork. They should be chosen in thecontext of the planning considerationalready discussed, but the selectionshould not be rigid. Developments in

the drama work itself or in the othercurriculum areas may make it moreappropriate to use scenes other thanthose planned for.

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Drama Teacher Guide

The integration ofdrama with othercurriculum areasAs was indicated in the previous section,The content of drama, it is important,both in the long term and the shortterm, to plan carefully the integration

of drama with other curriculum areas.Whether a projected integration shouldbe undertaken depends entirely on theextent to which the drama is going toenhance the learning experience in thearea with which it is integrated. A numberof factors will affect this decision:

the nature of the content

how the childrens drama experiencecan be matched with the complexityof what is to be learned

the appropriateness of the dramain dealing with a larger body ofknowledge in another curriculumarea, for example the developmentof transport

the teachers sensitivity to theunexpected and spontaneouslearning experience that dramacan provide in the weeks classroomactivity

the extent to which drama canovercome particular learning orconceptual difficulties that the class,a group or individual children mayhave.

The planning grid on page 30 gives anindication of how a drama activity canbe integrated with other subjects. Thiis based on Drama Activity 3 which isdescribed in detail on pages 7479.


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Inside circle: integration

that takes place within

the lesson itself.

Outside circle: possible

extensions and further

exploration of aspects

opened up by the lesson.

How drama activity can

integrate with other

subject areas

30

Drama ona dolmen:

Drama activity 3

(see p. 749)

SESE

The engineering aspects

Power and its sources

Levers and friction

Artificial lighting

Shelters

Tribal organisation

History

Lack of conveniences

Tools and implementsPredominance of bog

Labour shortages

Need to work and gather

in order to live

History

Ogham

Writing materials

Weather fluctuations

Stone Age tombs

Artificial light through the ages

Maths

Further work on the

weight of various

materials

MusicSound track for an

incident in the

episodeselect or mPE

Dance based

on the episode

Maths

Tonnage

Weight of stones

Maths problems

associated with

the dolmen

PE

Expressive use

of body

Reading body

language

Music

Sounds of

working

SPHE

Dealing with jealousy

Conducting negotiations

Personal benefits of

entering inProblem-solving

Lateral thinking

Language

Expressing thoughts, feelings

and views at fictional and

real level, The language of

problem-solving

Using and reading

body language

Geography

Scale and distance

Rocks and bogs

Geography

Bogs

Fossil fuelsArchaeology and sources

of various rocks

Sites of portal-tombs and

passage tombs

Visual arts

Drawings of technical aspects

Still image read as pictures

Visual arts

Pictures and collages of

images from the episode

An artist at the time

records an incident


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Teaching drama tomulti-class groupsIn approaching drama with a multi-classgroup the teacher has to overcomecircumstances and obstacles that arenot experienced by his/her colleaguewho teaches a single-class group. Themost obvious of these are: the widerdifferences in the ages and maturity ofthe children, the different curricula thatthe children are dealing with, thegreater complication in integratingdrama with other curriculum areas,and the accommodation of all of thesein effective drama activity.

While this can create difficulties for themulti-class teacher, such groups provideopportunities of their own for learningexperiences. Chief among these are thefollowing:

The different ages and levels ofmaturity can provide a richexperience in communicating andco-operating through the drama.

Younger children can be exposed,through drama, to a range ofexperience beyond the curriculumlimits of their class group.

Older children get the opportunityto encourage and support theyounger children.

Older children can learn to be moreflexible and open in their approachto co-operation through workingwith younger children.

To exploit these advantages and toobviate the difficulties, the teacher caemploy a number of strategies. Structurplay may be arranged for the smallerchildren while the older ones are doindrama. Alternatively, it is easy, if firstand second classes are doing a pieceof drama, to find roles in it for theyounger children and to give them taswithin the drama that they are capablof doing. This model of working can bextended, with careful planning, toinvolve the use of drama as a centralactivity through which children canlearn according to their competenceand abilities. The same approach canbe used in multi-class teaching in themiddle and senior classes.

Such a system of work will depend onthe teacher structuring his/her daydifferently from the single-class teachThis will involve selecting drama projethrough which specific content, that iboth suitable and challenging to all thages involved, can be explored and inwhich suitable tasks can be set foreach age group. In Drama activity 3,for example (p. 74), it can be seen thasome of the mathematical problems tobe solved are suitable for older childrwhile others are appropriate to a young

age group. Similarly, in the dramaactivity about fishing up the moon(p. 80), children could, at their ownlevel, draw pictures of the wonderfulthings in the new world or write letterhome to tell their people they havefinally caught the moon and to expectthem to come home in triumph.

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Following the same approach, quicklessons on appropriate grammaticalstructures or on how to use line andcolour could be incorporated atdifferent levels during this activity. Itentails, while learning through drama,working outwards to encompass thedifferent developmental activities thatflow from the drama.

The success of this exciting mode ofworking will depend on very thoroughplanning, both for the long and theshort term. The teachers long-termplanning should incorporate suchconsiderations as

the drama skills and concepts thathave to be taught

the topics to be dealt with

how and to what extent drama is tobe integrated with other curriculumareas.

Short-term planning will enable him/herto integrate drama into all these areasat levels appropriate to the variousindividuals in the class group. Theteachers planning, however, shouldalways be flexible enough to takeaccount of the spontaneous learningopportunities that present themselves

in drama activity.In this situation, mantle of the experttechniques can be readily used. Anexample of this might begin with theteacher saying, Does anyone knowanything about NASA? I have a letterfrom themoh, yes, it says it here:National Aeronautics and Space

Administration. They want to know if wcould advise them on the feasibility ofbuilding a landing-site on our bog. Illread it to you. This would initiate anintegrated project in which all canparticipate.

In all this work the teacher will, whilemixing and changing the groups

frequently, assign activities to themin a way that will cater for the varyingabilities of the pupils. For some activithe/she will group children of similarabilities together, while for othersmixed-ability groups will be chosen. Tdeliberate mixing of children of differeages and abilities can benefit childrenlearning and development in a numbeof ways. It can

help older children to take

responsibility for and assist inyounger childrens learning

give older children the opportunitto experience the kind of caring thcan form the basis of good parentinin the future

give older and younger children aperspective on the concerns andpreoccupations of another age-group.

The imaginative teacher will see manymore opportunities for stimulating anexciting learning resulting from theinclusion of drama in the curriculum.

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Children laying out the space for the drama


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Entering fully into

the drama


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Approachesand

methodologie

Section 5


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The aim of this section of the guidelinesis to furnish teachers with a practicalapproach to the teaching of drama inthe classroom. It will involve a consider-ation of the essential components ofprocess drama and of the means bywhich these can be incorporated inpractical drama activities.

The section starts with an outline of theprinciple that should inform all processdrama activity in the school: the fosteringof the childs spontaneous impulse formake-believe play and its preservationin a fulfilled experience of drama activitythroughout the primary school.

The essential components of processdrama are then considered. These are:

the strand units of the curriculum(already outlined in Section 2,

pp. 913)

the three prerequisites for makingprocess drama

the eight elements of drama.

How each of these contributes toboth the structure and the dynamic opractical drama is discussed in detailand then exemplified in

a basic practical approach to dramin the classroom

descriptions of five drama activitiethat were successful with different

groups of children.

Teachers should find these descriptioof drama activities particularly useful.They are not only described in detail,with a commentary on their structurelearning goals and teaching methods,but are analysed for their relevance tothe content objectives of thecurriculum. This entire section ofteacher guidelines, therefore, takes thestructure indicated below:

Approaches and

methodologies

36

Make-believe play to drama

The elementsof drama

The prerequisiteof drama

The content of the curriculum

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Make-believe play toprocess dramaThe simplest drama text is seen in thechilds make-believe play, and itsrelationship with education can beseen in the following example.

Two children are playing house.

Together they have transformed theenvironment into a symbolic area: theenvironment has become somethingthat stands for something else. Itprovides them with a symbolic contextfor trying out symbolic actions andreaching conclusions about reality andits meaning. Realitythe real context,its real people and their real actionsthey can understand only partially andcannot control, so they create a make-believe world whose circumstances,people and events are manageable. Inthis way, through the symbolic worldthey can explore and try to understandthe real world. This is the pre-schoolchilds way of understanding andmaking sense of experience, theenvironment and the world.

This drama text is not presented to anyexternal audience, nor does the learninggained from it depend on its being

presented. The childrens own responseto what is happening in the drama, evenas it proceeds, is in itself the learningactivity and forms a step to otherlearning outcomes.

The most obvious characteristics ofmake-believe play are:

a willingness to believe that thesymbol is real

sincerity in adopting roles andplaying the characters

an acceptance of the fictionalconsequences of the play

an impulse to explore.

Young children will, of course, playwithout any consciousness of thesefactors, but they constitute some of thessential features of learning throughdrama.

The ability to play in this way isstrongest in the pre-school child andmay begin to fade gradually at aboutfive years of age, although the impulsecan be readily observed in older childrin the playground and on the streetwhen, for example, they play out fictiobased on film and television characterEducational drama is a more consciouand sophisticated form of make-believplay. Its essential characteristics are thsame as those mentioned above. Thefirst content objective at each of thefour levels in the curriculum is, indeeconcerned with establishing the

continuum from make-believe play todrama and in preserving thecharacteristics and learning benefits omake-believe play in the childsexperience of educational dramathroughout the primary school.

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Because the natural impulse for make-believe play does begin to wane it iscrucial that a consistent approach todrama in the curriculum affords childrenthe opportunity to use its essentialcharacteristics in order to avail of theeducational benefits it can bring. In itssimplest form this might consist of theteacher suggesting a situation and

certain characters to the children andencouraging them to explore, by playingthe characters, what might happen. Theteacher might say, The princess is beingheld in the castle and you want to saveher. Try out different ways you mightpersuade the sentry to let you pass. Theessence of the activity would consist inthe children accepting the fiction andin following the consequences ofwhatever direction the drama might

take. This concept of accepting the

consequences of the fiction and of thactions and reactions of the characteris very important, as will be seen laterThe key features of the activity are,therefore,

a situation in which particularcharacters are placed

creating a drama, through languag

and action, in which children explopossible solutions and outcomesthat are inherent in the situation.

This constitutes the basic unit, thebuilding block of drama experience, aits efficacy depends on the interest anthe commitment of the children. If thechildren accept the fiction and arewilling to follow its consequences in tactions and reactions of the characterthen not only can it be enjoyable but

can prove a valuable learningexperience. Its potential for learning,however, is only fully realised if theteacher knows how to build scene onscene so as to achieve desirable learnioutcomes. In order to do this, theteacher must be continually aware thaall drama, from classroom to theatre, ibased on exploring life (what wouldhappen if ...?). As in all creative activitythe choice of which explorations to

conduct is dictated by curiosity,intuition or logic, and the truth or theappropriateness of the conclusions isoften felt to be aesthetically correct,even before it can be logically assimilat

Physical activity is also a dimension of the drama.

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Throughout the entire spectrum ofdrama, texts can range in scale andcomplexity of content from a simpleclassroom improvisation to a Shakespeareplay, and the entertainment value of atext is an important element in provokingand shaping the response. In theprocess of classroom drama the makingof a play is done for the benefit of theparticipants, and the entertainmentelement comes from the pleasure ofparticipatingthe same pleasurethat the child gets from his/her make-believe play.

The prerequisites formaking dramaThe above description of the basic unit,the building block, of drama experience

incorporates the three prerequisites formaking process drama in the classroom.These are:

content

the fictional lens

the creation of a safe classroomenvironment.

The first two, content and the fictionallens, provide the approach, the gateway,into a drama activity in the classroom.

The third, a safe environment, isabsolutely essential if the drama is tobe successful.

ContentThe content of drama is always someaspect of life. Its source is acombination of

material experienced, imagined orread about

aspects of life from the past, preseor possible future that will arousethe pupils curiosity

the needs, concerns andpreoccupations of the children

issues such as relationships that thteacher may wish to explore througdrama

curriculum material, whose codesdrama can crack and the humanaspects of which may need to beexplored actively.

The teacher will direct the pupils to thcontent, which will lead to issues, themand knowledge considered importantfor the pupils at their particular stageof development. This content should,initially, help young children to cometo terms with and understand theirfears, worries and excitements in a bigdangerous and wonderful new world. will involve helping the child to copewith the immediate world of home anschool and to develop relationshipswithin it. The content should also helto extend the childs knowledge into aunderstanding of the wider communitand the bigger world and to develop tskills he/she will need in order toassimilate and accommodate that wor

The prerequisites for

making drama

content the fictional lens

a safe environment

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As the child grows, the teacher will beaware of his/her particular developingpersonal and social needs. Dramathemes, activities and issues to beexplored should reflect this and assistthe child in dealing, at a distance, withany personal and social difficultiesbefore they become habitual. The contentof drama will also be used to accommod-ate and to motivate the learning ofappropriate curriculum material.

As the child matures he/she developssome concept of the difference time hasmade to the world. The content ofdrama can then help him/her to seehistory as a continuum of lived-throughhuman activity and to see presentevents as thrusting towards a future thatmay still be influenced. The child canalso become aware of the humandimension in all knowledge, and dramacan be used to connect the childsexperience with this new knowledge, thusencouraging research into relevant areasof knowledge. Personal and socialproblems, such as bullying and passivity,that are beginning to manifestthemselves, can also be dealt with.

By the time the child reaches the seniorclasses drama can be used to memorise

facts and, through the use of script, toestablish simulations of actual events.Script, however, should be usedsparingly and only in conjunction withgood drama practice. Drama can also bea powerful influence in extending thechilds vocabulary and in teachingspecific language skills. However, itshould be borne in mind that, whether

it deals with content from other areasthe curriculum or with content that isespecially relevant to a particular grouof children, drama should always lead understanding and to the revelation opattern and meaning.

The selection of content

In the selection of content the teache

should be guided by a number ofconsiderations, all of them related tothe particular quality of the learningexperience that drama can provide.The content of drama should help to

make children curious aboutknowledge

assist with and motivate researchskills and actively show the place opersonal enquiry in the acquisition

of knowledge show the child the relationship

between wanting to know somethinand the ability to acquire thatknowledge

make the child aware of the humandimension inherent in all knowled

increase the childs understandinglife topics and themes

give the child an insight into aspe

of life that are vital to his/herdevelopment

relate knowledge to experience

assist the child, through the involvment of all the senses and throughtotal body experience, to develop tmemory, and particularly the long-term memory of facts and data.

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The fictional lensWhen the content is chosen it isexamined through the medium of thefictional lens. This is the means bywhich content is translated into story.The question Whats the story? hasthe double meaning, What is the realsituation? and What is the fiction?

The making of plot (a series of incidents)and theme (a focus of reflection onessence and pattern) has, from myth tofairy-tale to Shakespeare to soap opera,always been regarded as a valid way ofunderstanding reality. For example, theissue of bullying might be examinedthrough making a fiction about a boyand his dog, his friends, his parents,their kindness and their cruelties. Suchstory-making will allow the child whohas a tendency to bully, as well as thosechildren who have experienced bullying,to identify with the fictional boy whois bullied and to examine the issuesinvolved without having to put up thepersonal defences that a direct approachto the subject would invite. The lens offiction distances the issue enough tomake it safe for the participants tohandle while at the same time presentingit in such a way that the essentialelements become clear. If this were

merely a story that was read, someonewho had bullied might and could optout of the discussion and, consequently,out of active consideration of the issues.The active, playful, affirming way inwhich drama makes stories is the lurethat invites everybody to participate.

In infant and junior classes the storieand fictional incidents that constitutethe fictional lens and through whichthe content is mediated will be storiesof animals, toys, fathers, mothers, simpjourneys, bus stops, and all the otherfictional transformations that allow thchild to try out, in safety, situationsencountered in the real world. Later,when the child is no longer afraid offantasy and fairy-tale, these can beadded to the fictions used. From themiddle classes onwards factual storiesfrom history or current news (whichwill have been used from the beginninmay be used more and more. At thisstage it is important that the particulaframing of the dramatic incident allowthe child to enter the drama withoutbeing restricted to mere representatio

of fact.

By the time they reach sixth class,children should have begun tounderstand the essential relationshipthat drama has with life, and the basisshould be laid for an enlightenedchoice of significant action. Childrenshould also have a sense of howdifferent genres (the tragic, the comicthe absurd) can act as distinctive lenson reality. This can lead them towards

an authentic appreciation of dramaticliterature as a blueprint for dramaticaction. In the senior classes especiallyexisting fictions such as stories, poemplay scripts or videos can be used aspre-texts, providing content that hasalready been mediated through afictional lens by the writer or director

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It should be emphasised, however, thatthe drama process involves story making,not merely the acting out of existingstories. While existing stories, plays etc.may help the teacher to find the fictionallens appropriate for his/her class,existing material should always be re-invented in order to match the needsof a particular group of children and theeducational objectives of the teacher.The children will take the charactersinto new situations, discover newdilemmas, test other solutions, and givethem new words and worlds as theypursue the characters relevance to theirown childhood needs and concerns.

The experience of approaching dramathrough a wide variety of fictional lensescan help develop childrens perceptionsof the relationship drama has, in all itsforms, with life. In choosing theappropriate fictional lens the teachershould be concerned that it enablesthe children to

understand, through activeparticipation, the essential nature offiction and the relationship betweenplot and theme

understand the particularrelationship that drama has to life

and thus form the basis for anenlightened, critical viewpoint inthe study of all dramatic texts on thedrama floor, in the theatre, in thecinema or on television

understand the nature of dramaticliterature and the way in which itinvites the participant to createdramatic texts that illuminate thetime the drama was written and atthe same time relate to the universconcerns that can apply to thepresent time

understand the place of myth, fairtale and drama in the moral,cultural, aesthetic and spiritualdevelopment of people

understand the place of symbol ansign in the examination of reality.

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Creating a safe environmentThe making of drama involves enteringthe drama world with as much honesty,authenticity and spontaneity as possible.The degree of spontaneity will be indirect proportion to the emotional andphysical safety that the child feels.Insecurity may be caused by the childs

temperament, his/her family background,

the social relationships in the class, ohow emotionally safe he/she feels withthe teacher. The teacher, in the dramaclass, can address these problems direcby creating fictions that explore suchissues as gender equity, self-esteem, thvaluing of difference, the acceptanceof responsibility, or the developmentof positive attitudes towards problem-

solving. However, he/she will get trulyspontaneous work and innovativethinking from the class only if positiveattitudes in these areas are continuallnurtured at a practical level in thedrama class.

Since children have different emotionand physical needs, this process will hadifferent emphases in different classesand with different groups of children.While young children are usually veryphysical and free in their play, many othe social skills needed for small-grouwork are relatively undeveloped. Thechild may therefore feel threatened bythe social situations involved in smallgroup drama. Furthermore, since thechild at this stage still has some difficuin distinguishing between make-believand reality, and since drama by its natucrosses this boundary, the teacher masometimes be required to help the ch

with this distinction.

The level of spontaneity will be in proportion to the emotional and physical safety that the

child feels.

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Developing social skills will, in time,allow the child to participatecomfortably in small groups workingsimultaneously. However, childrenshould be made to understand that, inthe real social context, no child mayhurt another physically, emotionallyor intellectually.

The strong natural desire for make-believe will wane as the child progressesthrough the infant and junior classes.It is important that the teacher createsvibrant and motivating drama contextsthat will keep the impulse towardsmake-believe alive during this periodof the childs development. Otherwise,he/she may reach the stage of thinkingthat make-believe and drama are justsilly, and this may lead to the fear of

making a fool of myself or of makingmyself ridiculous through becominginvolved in the drama. The teacher cagreatly assist in dispelling this attitudby entering into the drama through thteacher-in-role.

At this stage, too, children can beginto confuse drama skill with display. Th

may discourage the more introvertedchildren as well as steering the extroveaway from both a sincere participationin the drama and any useful reflectionon it. At this stage children also beginto seek safety in comedy. This shouldnot be discouraged. On the contrary, should alert the teacher to the need foeven greater safety if feelings are to beexplored with the truth they merit andin the depth the children need. It shoualso make the teacher aware that thecomic genre can be used effectively toexplore important topics and content

As children mature, small-group workcan be used effectively to accustomboys and girls to co-operating and tosharing ideas and suggestions. Thisexchange is crucial in the developmentowards adolescence. Peer pressure anbullying may also be a part of childrenexperience at this stage. The observanteacher will see these tendenciesmanifested in the drama class and candeal with them in a non-judgementalway. This should lead to a healthyatmosphere in which the child canexperience open relationships withmore than a selected few in the class,and this in itself will improve the qualof the drama.Planning what to do next

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The creation of a safe dramaenvironment is concerned particularlywith the childs intrapersonal andinterpersonal development, and it isworthwhile identifying what drama hasto contribute in each of these areas.

Intrapersonal development

Drama can help the child

to understand and moderate his/herbehaviour

to become more spontaneous,confident and self-assured in dealingwith others

to foster, in a practical way, thesense of his/her own uniquenessand in turn develop a positiveassertiveness as the basis ofhandling conflict and solving

problems

to value his/her own abilities andaptitudes

to understand and come to termswith, at a very practical level, anydisadvantage accruing from thechilds environment

to recognise the positive andnegative aspects of emotions and

their importance in his/her life

to come to terms with appropriateaspects of his/her growth anddevelopment.

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Interpersonal and social

development

Drama can help the child

to trust, respect and support othersin the group so that a basis is laidfor co-operation in the creation ofdrama

to experience openness with othersand to practise, without fear, self-revelation and self-expression

to respect and cherish thedifferences in people

to be comfortable with andexpressive in verbal and non-verballanguage

to experience and create anatmosphere in which ideas, thoughtsand feelings can be expressed,conflict handled positively, and lifesituations openly and honestlyexplored

to help the child to experience open,healthy relationships with all themembers of the class and not justwith a selected or exclusive few.

The elements of dramaDrama has a number of definingcharacteristics. These are the elementof drama. They dictate the structure odramatic form and give the drama itscharacteristic mode of expression. Theare as relevant to process drama in theclassroom as they are to the corpus of

world theatre. The elements of dramaare:

belief

role and character

action

time

place

tension

significance

genre.

Their importance in the curriculum isunderlined by the fact that they areclosely reflected in the individualcontent objectives of the strand unitExploring and making drama. The firstwo prerequisites for making processdrama, content and the fictional lens,also have an intimate relationship witthe elements, while the creation of a

safe environment is an essentialingredient of all drama in the classroo

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The relationship between the elements of drama

Drama Teacher Guide

genre

tension

action

belief

time

significance

them

e

place

plot

role and character


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BeliefThe element of belief in drama, as in allliterature, is rooted in imaginative truth.The world of the imagination allows forthe myriad of human possibilities thatlie beyond the reach of everydayexperience, even beyond the experienceof a lifetime. Through it we can explore

these possibilities, speculate aboutthem and extend our view of the world.This depends, of course, on ouracceptance of the validity of the truththat imagination offers, in the trust wehave in its capacity to enrich humanexperience.

The essence of drama is story, thecreation of a fictional world in whichcertain characters live out theconsequences of a particular situation. In

the theatre the characters and thesituation are developed, typically, in aplay script, which actors and the directorbring to life on the stage in aperformance for an audience. The text ofthe play is a fiction created by theauthor, and the element of belief resides,in the first place, in the authorsconviction that it is a dramatic constructthat, either realistically or metaphorically,represents or comments on or gives

meaning to some aspect of humanexistence. Belief is also essential whenthe director and the actors accept theauthors version of the fictional worldand attempt to bring it to life on thestage. In the course of the performancethe audience, in acceding to theconditions and logic of the play, agrees tothe fiction and completes the circle of

belief. The centrality of the element ofbelief in the drama is as relevant to asoap opera as it is to Greek tragedy.

With regard to drama in school, belief ismost evident in the childs trust in andease with make-believe play. It is thequality of this belief that the dramacurriculum seeks to foster and preserve

throughout the childs life in school. Thdegree to which he/she can enter into timaginative world by accepting the fictiof the drama will, to a great extent,determine both the success of his/herdrama experience and the learningexperiences that will result from it.

In conventional theatre it is customarfor people to enter the process ofmaking performance texts with theobject of fulfilling one of the three

following functions: the actor: mimicking life-behaviou

until he/she can surrender to thefiction and behave as if living in thexistential fictional moment

the director: ensuring that therepresentation of life is accurate acreates visual and auditory meanin

the author: probing for meaning ainitiating drama moments that ma

lead to potentially significantunderstanding.

In process drama, however, all threefunctions are undertaken jointly so ththe teacher may be in role while thechildren may interpret what may emerfrom a still picture or a score, or suggwhere the drama might go next. Belief

The elements of drama

belief

role and character

action

time

place

tension

significance (plot and theme)

genre

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in the drama world is built up throughthis fluid engagement and the dramatakes on its own life, from which we mayhypothesise about life in the real world.

Role and CharacterIn the early stages of taking the part ofa character in the drama the child willdo no more than assume a role. InDrama activity 2 (p. 70), the child takesthe role of a shepherd without havingany knowledge of how the individualshepherd acts. In taking the role, he/sheis saying, in effect, If I were a shepherdthis is how I would behave in thissituation. This is enough to enable the

child to participate in the drama. As itprogresses, however, he/she will comeknow about how the shepherd thinks,about his past, about his ambitions,about his view of life. As the childproceeds to generate and accumulateinformation about the shepherd, he/sis engaging in characterisation, whichthe process of taking on himself/herse

the physical, emotional and intellectumake-up of a fictional character. Thebenefit of characterisation is that thechild learns to view the drama worldfrom the point of view of someonedifferent from himself/herself. Thispromotes understanding and empathyand this empathy will in turn enhancethe childs ability to understandcharacters increasingly distant fromhis/her own personality.

It is important to distinguish betweentaking a role and what is often calledrole-playing. Role-playing is the actingout of a limited activity for the purposof forming or representing habits andattitudes, for example road safety drillor to give practice for a forthcomingevent, such as a mock interview. It coualso be used to consolidate thememorisation of facts already acquireRole-playing Diarmaid Mac Murchs

conversation with Strongbow might bused for this purpose. Taking a role indrama, on the other hand, involvesentering into a fictional world andhelping to determine what happens inthat world in order to understand thepatterns of human behaviour thatunderlie a particular event.

Drama Teacher Guide

Children develop understanding and empathy as they move from taking a role to characterisation.


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This may, of course, involvecharacterisationan attempt to assumethe characteristics, desires, thoughtprocesses or physical attributes ofanother person.

In make-believe play, children createcharacters quite spontaneously andwithout reflection. As they mature,

however, a more acute sense ofindividuality develops, along with aheightened sense of the otherness ofpeople. More conscious characterisationbecomes possible at this stage. This canassist greatly in exploring relationships,in developing the ability to use differentregisters of language and in using non-verbal means to communicate meaning.

Through a consistent engagement witha wide variety of roles and characterisat-

ion in a range of stimulating andchallenging situations, children candevelop

the ability to enter physically,mentally and emotionally into thefictional context and to co-operatewith others in playing at the fictionalsituation in order to discover theparticular possibilities that it offers

the empathy with and understandingof others needed to assume a role or

a character

a willingness to accept responsibility.

This can foster the personaladaptability, spontaneity, verbal andnon-verbal skills, co-operation skills,initiative, imagination and creativeabilities that are necessary to ensurethat the drama text is a fresh and validrepresentation of life.

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ActionAction springs from the interactionbetween character and situation. Inthe drama, characters and situationsare chosen so that certain unresolvedconflicts, tensions, questions or choicesresult. The action of the drama lies inthe resolution or attempted resolution

of these. The characters act and interactwith each other in the desire to resolvethe situation in which they find them-selves. Through the action the initialfictional situation changes and develops,and this in turn will be reflected in thedevelopment of the different characters.The essence of drama, then, is the

modification that occurs in the circumstances and attitudes of a group ofcharacters in a particular situation, anit is through the action of the dramathat this modification comes.

However, in entering into the actionit is essential that children accept itsdramatic consequences, otherwise the

validity and potency of the drama willbe lost. This may conflict with what thmight wish would happen; but they mube encouraged to stay with the characand to affirm the dramatic logic in ordto ensure the integrity of the drama.When this happens, when they are truinvolved with character and action inthe drama, children can come to newinsights, gain new knowledge and reachnew understanding. Action in the dramhas an integral relationship with theconcept of text. The definition of texthitherto confined to the written wordhas expanded considerably in moderntimes and is now used to describe aperformed play, a film or a video, wheththese are fictional or documentary.The use of the word text in the dramacurriculum is related to this meaning.It does not mean script but the performfiction that takes place on the dramafloor. To make the drama text, pupils

create and enter a drama world andcreate a fictional action in that worldThe coherence of the action is notachieved through linear narrative butthrough the enactment of selectedsignificant moments (scenes), whichtogether illuminate the content ofthe drama.

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Action springs from character and situation.


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The teacher can begin the dramaprocess by introducing a pre-textanobject, a poem, an anecdote, a piece ofscript etc.that is a starting point fromwhich to launch the dramatic world insuch a way that the participants canidentify their roles and responsibilitiesand begin to build a dramatic contexttogether as quickly as possible. The pre-

text therefore provides both aspringboard and the context for thedrama. The role of the pupils will not,however, be confined to acting out whatthe teacher suggests; they will also takepart, side by side with the teacher, asshapers, contributors, creators, selectorsand evaluators in the drama process.

The nature of the childs engagementwith the drama will vary with his/herstage of development. How

primary drama guidelines

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