Drama

Curriculum Intention  

Students will learn about the two main areas of creating theatre: scripted and devised. Students will work collaboratively to explore a range of drama strategies designed to inspire creativity and allow them to engage with the creative process. Students will study key drama terminology and begin to reflect on the process of theatre making.  

Students are taught how to:

1. Explore and create scripts

2. Devise theatre based on a stimulus

3. Use a range of drama strategies to explore stimulus

4. Understand and apply key drama terminology

5. Perform as part of an ensemble

6. Reflect on their own performance and the performances of their peers

7. Explore culture through theatre

8. Appreciate and apply the art of story telling

9. Record the theatre process and adapt their work based on feedback

Students in year 7 are building on the Performing Arts skill base they began in KS2 while ensuring they develop a strong foundation of Drama skills. Year 7 introduces the basic elements of Drama and allows students to explore creatively and work collaboratively. The intention of year 7 is to engage students in Drama and enhance their confidence in both performance and reflecting on performances – both their own and their peers’. Year 7 should reinforce all the fun elements of Drama while beginning to provide students with some of the theoretical knowledge that underpins theatre and is required in KS4. Students will develop life-long skills in communication, inquiry and risk taking – building the ability to develop and articulate their ideas, collaborate with a range of people and present and reflect on their ideas. 

Curriculum Implementation  

Students are taught through various approaches and methods including: 

1. Live modelling/ preplanned models of written work

2. Live modelling of practical skills

3. Range of Drama strategies: i.e. hot seating, thought tracking, freeze frames etc.

4. Flipped learning employed to encourage independent reading/research into different cultures/aspects of Drama

5. Students consistently reflect and feedback on their own progress and the progress of those around them

Assessment  

Assessments for each unit are both practical and written in line with the expectations are GCSE/IB. Students are asked to complete knowledge based Socrative assessments to assess understanding and then to apply these practically in some way (creating a piece of theatre/a script/ a drama journal).  

As well as being assessed practically, students will also be assessed on their ability to reflect on the process of creating theatre and their ability to identify their strengths and areas for improvement in line with KS4/KS5 style assessment tasks.  

Wider Curriculum 

1. English – exploration of set texts

2. History/Social Studies/Geography – exploration of other cultures/eras/contexts

3. Art/DT – engagement with design concepts, creating set/costume/staging plans

4. PE – ideas around movement and the use of the body

5. Technology – lighting, sounds, use of technology in class.

6. Students will be able to participate in a range of CCA activities including: KS3 Drama club, School Production and DIS theatre society

7. We aim to offer a trip to the theatre or arrange for a visiting artist to come to school at least once a year (Post COVID)

Curriculum Impact 

1. By the end of Year 7 students will have shown, as a minimum, an understanding of how to create theatre – either using a script or stimulus as a starting point.

2. Students will be able to perform confidently as part of an ensemble.

3. Students will have demonstrated an ability to utilise drama strategies to explore their ideas/characters/plot/themes. 

4. Students will have an appreciation for how theatre is created – how theatre makers use a range of devices in order to illicit specific emotions from an audience.

5. Students will be able to work collaboratively to create a performance and then reflect on evaluate their own performance and the performance of others.

6. Students should appreciate theatre as a tool to record and present ideas about specific places/time periods/cultures.

7. Students should leave year 7 with a solid foundation in a range of Drama skills to enable them to progress towards becoming more expert dramatists.

8. Students should enjoy taking part in Drama, feel free to express themselves and supported to experiment and make mistakes while trying new things.

Students will be able to express themselves, feel more confident in their own communication and presentation of ideas and feel supported and able to make and learn from their mistakes and trial and error in the Drama classroom. 

Curriculum Intention  

Students will learn about different genres of theatre throughout history and how these have impacted modern theatre. Students will work on their research skills, completing independent projects that demonstrate their understanding of and appreciation for the genres studied in class. Mainly, students are still working collaboratively although there are opportunities for solo performance at some stages of Year8.  

Students are taught how to: 

1. How to research theatrical traditions/genres  

2. How to adapt material to fit a specific audience  

3. Appreciate how previous theatre traditions have shaped modern theatre  

4. Practically explore a range of theatre genres  

5. Enhance performance skills and confidence 

6. Record and reflect on the theatre process and performances  

7. Respond to feedback  

8. Devise using a more challenging range of stimuli  

Students in Year 8 begin to build up the depth of their knowledge by delving deeper into theatrical genre while partaking in consistent opportunities to hone their practical craft through a range of explorative, creative tasks. Students start to gain an appreciation for how theatre has changed and developed over time and how we can adapt theatre traditions for a modern audience. Year 8 should encourage students to appreciate the history and theory of theatre while still shaping and refining their practical skills. Assessments start to look more like they do at KS4 and 5 in preparation for those who opt to continue with Drama at GCSE/IB. Students will continue to build communication and inquiry skills, also focusing on balancing their theoretical and practical work and enhancing their knowledge of a range of theatrical traditions. They should develop an open-mindset and be willing to explore a range of drama strategies. 

Curriculum Implementation  

Students are taught through various approaches and methods including: 

1. Research tasks 

2. Practical exploration 

3. Live modelling/ preplanned models of written work  

4. Live modelling of practical skills  

5. Range of Drama strategies: i.e. hot seating, thought tracking, freeze frames etc. 

6. Flipped learning employed to encourage independent reading/research into different theatrical traditions/aspects of Drama 

7. Students consistently reflect and feedback on their own progress and the progress of those around them. 

Assessment  

Assessments for each unit are both practical and written in line with the expectations are GCSE/IB. Students are asked to complete research presentation tasks to demonstrate their understanding of the genre of theatre they have studied and then to apply these practically in some way (creating a piece of theatre/a script/ a drama journal).  

As well as being assessed practically, students will also be assessed on their ability to reflect on the process of creating theatre and their ability to identify their strengths and areas for improvement in like with KS4/KS5 style assessment tasks.  

Wider Curriculum (Links to STEAM, reading across the curriculum, CCAs and trips) 

1. English – exploration of set texts  

2. History/Social Studies/Geography – exploration of other cultures/eras/contexts  

3. Art/DT – engagement with design concepts, creating set/costume/staging plans  

4. PE – ideas around movement and the use of the body  

5. Technology – lighting, sounds, use of technology in class. 

6. Students will be able to participate in a range of CCA activities including: KS3 Drama club, School Production and DIS theatre society  

7. We will aim to offer a trip to the theatre or arrange for a visiting artist to come to school at least once a year (Post COVID 

Curriculum Impact  

1. By the end of Year 8 students will have shown a deeper understanding of theatre genres and be able to take elements from those genres and apply them to their own practice. 

2. Students will be able to independently research theatrical traditions/styles. 

3. Students will be able to explain how different aspects of theatre affect the audience and apply these in their own work. 

4. Students will be able to record and reflect on the process of making theatre.  

5. Students will be able to adapt material to fit their own performance styles/a specific brief.  

6. Students will be able to perform confidently in front of an audience as part of an audience and begin to develop their solo performance skills. 

7. Students should be able to respond to Exam style tasks in order to demonstrate their understanding of theatre. 

8. Students should be able to create theatre using a more challenging range of stimulus.  

9. Students should enjoy taking part in Drama, feel free to express themselves and supported to experiment and make mistakes while trying new things. 

10. Students will be able to express themselves, feel more confident in their own communication and presentation of ideas and feel supported and able to make and learn from their mistakes and trial and error in the Drama classroom. 

Curriculum Intention  

Students will learn about Drama practitioners and the influence they have had on specific theatrical styles. Students will become more independent and begin to focus more on design and directorial roles as well as performance. Students are encouraged to expose themselves to live theatre experiences and take influence from these for their own work. 

Students are taught how to: 

Link theatre to the world around them

Investigate Drama practitioners 

Apply Drama practitioners’ theories in a practical way

Experience and evaluate live theatre

Work collaboratively and independently to create pieces of theatre based on the work of Drama practitioners

Record and reflect on the theatre making process

Explore the idea of theatre as tool to learn about and comment on the world we live in

Students in year 9 are becoming theatre makers in the holistic sense. They are acquiring a deeper knowledge of theatre theory and experimenting with ways of creating different genres of theatre. Students by now are well rehearsed in reflecting and adapting their work as they go but should be starting to challenge themselves to take their knowledge of different genres and styles of theatre and explore ways to adapt these for their own styles/messages. Students are asked to present ideas about staging and directing in more detail as well as performing solo and as part of an ensemble. Year 9 should solidify for students that Drama isn’t just about the end product that goes up on stage – it is about all of the hard work that happens beforehand too. Students will build on their reflective skills, bringing together everything they have covered across KS3 in order to evaluate their progress. They should be able to demonstrate a range of Drama knowledge and be principled in their theatrical practice while demonstrating care towards their peers and cast mates. 

Curriculum Implementation  

Students are taught through various approaches and methods including:

Live modelling/ preplanned models of written work

Live modelling of practical skills

Practical exploration

Research tasks

Range of Drama strategies: e. hot seating, thought tracking, freeze frames etc.

Flipped learning employed to encourage independent reading/research into different practitioners/aspects of Drama

Students consistently reflect and feedback on their own progress and the progress of those around them.

Assessment  

Assessments for each unit are both practical and written in line with the expectations are GCSE/IB. Students are asked to complete knowledge based Socrative assessments to assess understanding and then to apply these practically in some way (creating a piece of theatre/a script/ a drama journal).  

As well as being assessed practically, students will also be assessed on their ability to reflect on the process of creating theatre and their ability to identify their strengths and areas for improvement in like with KS4/KS5 style assessment tasks.  

Wider Curriculum 

English – exploration of set texts

History/Social Studies/Geography – exploration of other cultures/eras/contexts

Art/DT – engagement with design concepts, creating set/costume/staging plans

PE – ideas around movement and the use of the body

Technology – lighting, sounds, use of technology in class.

Students will be able to participate in a range of CCA activities including: KS3 Drama club, School Production and DIS theatre society

We will aim to offer a trip to the theatre or arrange for a visiting artist to come to school at least once a year (Post COVID)

Curriculum Impact 

By the end of Year 9 students will have be more confident in their own communication and presentation of ideas and feel supported and able to make and learn from

Students will be able to utilise theatre to comment on and document the world around them.

Students will be able to take on a variety of roles within theatre making – actor, director, designer etc.

Students will be able to evaluate live theatre and use it to influence their own practice.

Students will be able to demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of Drama practitioners.

Students will be able to perform confidently – both as part of an ensemble and alone.

Students will be able to respond to a range of challenging stimuli and utilise elements of genre and drama theorists in their own practice.

Students will be able to reflect on the process of theatre making and critique their own performance and the performances of their peers.

Students will have a strong knowledge of Drama that enables them to access the GCSE course confidently.

Students should enjoy taking part in Drama, feel free to express themselves and supported to experiment and make mistakes while trying new things.

Click here to view the Year 7 Drama Learning Journey