Making allows students to develop skills in playwriting, role-playing and other situations. This involves using the elements of dramatic tension, contrast, symbol, time, space, focus and mood through the dramatic forms of:

• improvisation
• movement
• mime
• storytelling
• reader’s theatre
• puppetry
• mask
• video drama
• play building.

Performing gives students an opportunity to practise their skills and critically evaluate that of their peers and others, including professionals.

Appreciating offers students an opportunity to consider live and on-screen dramatic works, of themselves and others, through viewing, talking, reading and writing about the works.

• lots of teacher involvement in drama
• high level of teacher direction in structuring what?s going on
• mostly short-term activities
• lots of whole-class work
• lots of spontaneous imaginative dramatic play

Examples

Improvisation

• lots of whole-class dramatic play structured by teacher

Mime

• enacting simple activities, songs and texts

Movement

• moving in response to stories and music

Storytelling

• listening and responding to stories read aloud
• simple retelling

Reader's theatre

• enacting simple texts
• teacher often as narrator

Script

• teacher often as scribe records class stories and ideas in drama

Puppetry

• lots of dramatic play using puppets

Suggested activities

• still lots of teacher involvement in drama
• teacher direction in structuring what?s going on
• longer activities, some ongoing
• whole-class and small-group work
• topics, issues and themes often linked to personal experience

Examples

Improvisation

• whole-class and small-group improvisations structured by the teacher
• simple role-play
• simple play building structured by the teacher

Mime

• enacting simple activities, songs and texts movement
• simple depictions
• simple movement sequences

Storytelling

• listening to stories read aloud
• simple storytelling in pairs and small groups

Reader's theatre

• enacting simple texts
• teacher and student narrators

Script

• simple outlines of ideas and scenes

Puppetry

• role-play, storytelling and simple playbuilding using a variety of puppets

• some teacher involvement in drama
• less teacher direction in structuring what's going on; students are doing more of this on their own
• more ongoing activities showing development over a period of time
• whole-class and small-group work
• varied topics, issues and themes

Examples

Improvisation

• whole-class and small-group improvisations with minimal structuring from teacher
• extended role-play in more challenging situations
• more student-devised playbuilding with less guidance from teacher

Mime

• extended mime sequences based on varied sources

Movement

• extended depiction work, often in combination with other forms
• extended movement sequences

Storytelling

• use of storytelling in combination with other forms
• more student-devised stories

Readers' theatre

• enacting more complex texts
• student narrators

Script

• Reading and discussing others' scripts
• Writing and performing playbuilt scripts

Puppetry

• any of the above using puppets

• less teacher involvement in drama
• more ongoing activities showing development over a period of time
  
• whole-class and small-group work
• more challenging topics, issues

Examples

Improvisation

• whole-class and small-group improvisations with less structuring from teacher
• varied role-play activities
• playbuilding with less guidance from the teacher and some student-devised playbuilding

Mime

• longer mime sequences based on varied sources

Movement

• depiction sequences
• longer movement sequences

Storytelling

• storytelling of known texts from different points of view
• some student-devised stories

Readers' theatre

• enacting variety of texts
• student narrators

Script

• reading and discussing others' scripts
• using conventions of script to record and develop drama work

Puppetry

• any of the above using puppets

• lots of teacher involvement in drama
• high level of teacher direction in structuring what?s going on
• mostly short-term activities
• lots of whole-class work
• lots of spontaneous imaginative dramatic play

Examples

Improvisation

• lots of whole-class dramatic play structured by the teacher

Mime

• enacting simple activities, songs and texts

Movement

• moving in response to stories and music

Storytelling

• listening and responding to stories read aloud
• simple retelling

Reader's theatre

• enacting simple texts
• the teacher often as the narrator

Script

• the teacher often as scribe records class stories and ideas in drama

Puppetry

• lots of dramatic play using puppets

• still lots of teacher involvement in drama
• teacher direction in structuring what?s going on
• longer activities, some ongoing
• whole-class and small-group work
• topics, issues and themes often linked to personal experience

Examples

Improvisation

• whole-class and small-group improvisations structured by the teacher
• simple role-play
• simple play building structured by the teacher

Mime

• enacting simple activities, songs and texts movement
• simple depictions
• simple movement sequences

Storytelling

• listening to stories read aloud
• simple storytelling in pairs and small groups

Reader's theatre

• enacting simple texts
• teacher and student narrators

Script

• simple outlines of ideas and scenes

Puppetry

• role-play, storytelling and simple playbuilding using a variety of puppets

• some teacher involvement in drama
• less teacher direction in structuring what?s going on; students are doing more of this on their own
• more ongoing activities showing development over a period of time
• whole-class and small-group work
• varied topics, issues and themes

Examples

Improvisation

• whole-class and small-group improvisations with minimal structuring from teacher
• extended role-play in more challenging situations
• more student-devised playbuilding with less guidance from the teacher

Mime

• extended mime sequences based on varied sources

Movement

• extended depiction work, often in combination with other forms
• extended movement sequences

Storytelling

• use of storytelling in combination with other forms
• more student-devised stories

Readers' theatre

• enacting more complex texts
• student narrators

Script

• Reading and discussing others? scripts
• Writing and performing playbuilt scripts

Puppetry

• any of the above using puppets

• less teacher involvement in drama
• minimal teacher direction in structuring what?s going on; students are doing this with greater independence
• more ongoing activities showing development over a period of time
• whole-class and small-group work
• more challenging topics, issues

Examples

Improvisation

• whole-class and small-group improvisations with less structuring from teacher
• varied role-play activities
• playbuilding with less guidance from the teacher and some student-devised playbuilding

Mime

• longer mime sequences based on varied sources

Movement

• depiction sequences
• longer movement sequences

Storytelling

• storytelling of known texts from different points of view
• some student-devised stories

Readers' theatre:

• enacting variety of texts
• student narrators

Script

• reading and discussing others' scripts
• using conventions of the script to record and develop drama work

Puppetry

• any of the above using puppets

• Colours (DOCX 60.95KB)
• Chants and rhymes (DOCX 62.12KB)
• Imagination (DOCX 62KB)

• Magic Beach - using picture books (DOCX 62KB)
• Songs of a summer night (DOCX 62KB)
• Toy World

• Captured by the goblins (DOCX 62KB)
• A new look at Cinderella (DOCX 62KB)
• Creatures of the sea (DOCX 62KB)
• Sport and fitness (DOCX 62KB)
• The show - exploring local community (DOCX 60KB)
• Ancient Anna: Looking into the past

• Anzac Day (DOCX 61KB)
• Ashes remembered (DOCX 61KB)
• Designing Kiola Park school playground (DOCX 61KB)
• The cloth of dreams (DOCX 61KB)