Drama is the art of communication. In drama lessons, students learn how non verbal communication is about 90% of all communication. Words are important, but the cues that our audience (whether that be at the theatre, in school, at an interview or at work- anyone who has to listen to a message we are communicating) will also be based on our physical movement and vocal intonation. This is especially important to the teenage brain which is still learning the nuance of facial expressions and their meaning. Learning Drama skills can enhance the communication skills of our pupils, so that they are prepared to go onto their next stages in life.
The other aspect of drama is the teamwork nature of the learning. It is a social skill where pupils learn the soft skills required of the workplace. These are where the school’s values are best practiced.
Kindness: In rehearsal, pupils are expected to create characters with empathy and negotiate with their team to support the learning and creativity of all.
Responsibility: As an audience member we need to respect the work of others, observe and evaluate work in a positive manner.
Perseverance: The biggest challenge is to never give up. To stand up in front of an audience and speak is a learned skill. It is a life skill. Drama is a safe place to learn that skill.
At Mercia Northridge School we also want to pique students’ curiosity into creativity and cultural capital, so that they can learn about, and be full participants in, the world around them.
Year 7
Cycle 1: Learning the skills of physical and vocal communication in the study of Pantomime. Learning how the characters’ functions are embedded into the way that they communicate with the audience.
Cycle 2: Mime and Silent movies. Students have to rely solely on their physical communication using the conventiona of Silent Movies and classical mime skills to communicate with the audience.
Cycle 3: Deciphering a text. Using a short play, the students will explore how to lift the character from the page to the stage. They will learn about how to communicate from different stages. They will learn how mime and props can also add to the scene.
Year 8
Cycle 1: Victorian Melodrama: Exploring why this style of theatre was so “over the top” given the performance conditions. Students will be bringing a section of text to life using the conventions of this form of theatre, learning to communicate heightened emotions to the audience.
Cycle 2: Greek theatre: This explores the conventions and performance conditions of Ancient Greek Theatre. Students will be improvising a version of Antigone on a thrust stage, using the Greek Chorus.
Cycle 3:
Year 9
Cycle 1: Faustus: The study of this classic play looking at choral techniques and physical theatre, bringing a section of the text to life.
Cycle 2: The Red Room: Students will improvise a scene based on the short story, “the Red Room”. They will explore how lighting and sound can enhance a piece of theatre
Cycle 3: Shakespeare. Students will be learning about the performance conditions of Elizabethan theatre in preparation for their English GCSE (if they don’t go on to do Drama GCSE). They will be learning about stage fighting and bringing the words to life on stage.
Key stage 4 Drama
Learning to learn in a new group is an essential first part of learning at GCSE in drama. Pupils will be working together as a team on two of their units of learning and will be graded within that group. Pupils will work on a short text to learn about interpretation.
The Practitioners: Students will learn in more depth about the conventions of Stanislavski, Brecht, Berkoff and more contemporary practitioners such as Frantic and Complicite.
Year 10
Component 1: Devising Theatre Non-exam assessment: internally assessed, externally moderated 40% of qualification.
Pupils will use their knowledge of one of the practitioners, to devise a piece of theatre based on a stimulus given to us by the exam board. Students will work together in groups to create, rehearse and perform the work. And then each student will write up their rehearsals to demonstrate their creative process and evaluate their performances based on feedback.
Component 2: Performing from a Text Non-exam assessment: externally assessed by a visiting examiner 20% of qualification.
Pupils will work in groups to rehearse and perform two scenes from one play. This will be externally assessed when an examiner comes into school to watch their performances.
Year 11
Component 3: Interpreting Theatre Written examination: 1 hour 30 minutes 40% of qualification
Section A: Pupils will be assessed on how they would perform and direct a text. The script they will study is “Find Me” by Olwyn Wymark.
Section B: Pupils write a theatre review which will assess how well students evaluate the performance skills or design skills of professionals based on a piece of theatre they have seen.
Exam board
GCSE Drama