Durham High School for Girls - Drama at Key Stage 3

The course is structured as a skills-based framework using 'Developing Drama Skills 11-14' by Joss Bennathan [Heinemann press ISBN 0-435-1894-2]. There are no further resources necessary for a 35-minute lesson per week. The skills acquired in this course are working towards those needed for GCSE drama or Drama and Theatre Studies at AS or A level, both available as future choices within the curriculum.

The learning for this course actually starts in Y6 where basic skills are taught in a 40 minute lesson per week ready for Key Stage 3. In years 7 and 8, the students revise these skills during the first half term. This ensures that all students both internal and external feel confident in their learning before we start to acquire new skills. A report on the progress of students during that period of assessment is included on the English reports. The drama assessment is incorporated into the Speaking and Listening grade, in line with the new specifications at GCSE where drama is now included in the assessment.

Year 9 drama is held for students on Monday lunchtime as a scheduled lesson for those who opt to do it. However, it is expected that these students will attend this lesson as they would any other curricular lesson. This does limit the written work that can be set however, as not all students do the course. It is suggested as an option for those who wish to further their knowledge and skills and some do choose to complete it.

Annually, in the summer term, the Y9 drama group enter a competition organised by the Durham City Council's Environmental Health Department. This involves the scripting of a pantomime that is performed to about 24 local primary schools. This venture has now developed into a partnership between the school and Durham City Council, culminating in a presentation by the Mayor of an award for service to the community. Many of the skills that are in those schemes of work will be employed in this enterprise. However, should the event not happen for any reason, schemes of work are in place for this term also.

Year 9 reports are included in the English report as a separate comment for the students who opt for the course. It is usually expected that those who wish to do GCSE drama as an option will attend Y9 drama.

YEAR 7 COURSE CONTENT

Opportunities for analysis, reflection and evaluation –oral and occasionally written, [although it should be noted that no specific homework time is given to drama] are built into the units. Extension work is listed which can be offered to those who wish to do some independent work or completed during staff absence or when the hall, is not available and a classroom which is not conducive to drama activity has to be used.

Opportunities for formative evaluation and assessment, on both the part of the teacher and student arise from each unit
The basic skills which underpin drama are developed and consolidated progressively throughout the course

Ideally, an English lesson, or part of one, is allocated for summative assessment by the student, when an overview of the year's work with individual target setting for the future is completed.

The time allocations per unit are as near as it is possible to plan for in drama. The hall is sometimes required for other purposes, which can disrupt lesson planning. Drama lessons are also an ideal time for students to practise assemblies and curricular activities which involve drama and presentation as they have access to the hall. Presentations by the students in drama cannot be timed as accurately as in other subjects and it is important that creativity and discussion is not curtailed if it is fruitful and relevant to individual development.

establish ground rules and expectations
introduce and instil the basic skills necessary for drama to take place
provide opportunities for diagnostic work and assessment of individual and group strengths and weaknesses
introduce students to the concept of individual target-setting

Unit 2: It was terrifying [to the end of autumn term]

facilitate understanding of how space, body language and expression communicate meaning
use still picture to structure, edit and select narrative
introduce monologue as a dramatic technique, a means of revealing
character and a point of view
develop basic group work and presentation skills

Unit 3: haunted and hunted [spring term, first half]

story-telling
ways of communicating atmosphere and communicating without dialogue
use of picture stimulus
ways of creating atmosphere and communicating without dialogue
understanding and application of soundscapes
movement and mime skills as a form of communication
how vocal tone, sound, rhythm and pace convey meaning

Unit 4: Evacuation [second half of spring term]

spontaneous rôle play and improvisation skills
an awareness that a process has its own worth and does not inevitably lead to performance
whole group story telling and image-making
in rôle refection and evaluation

Unit 5: The Tempest [summer term]

consolidates and extends previous work on space, movement and sound
develops understanding of character and point of view
explores dramatic structure
offers a range of whole group, small group, pair and solo work to consolidate basic skills

YEAR 8 COURSE CONTENT

The final unit is designed to provide an overview and extended practical exploration acquired over the year, culmination in a piece which can be used for summative assessment of students' ability to make and present drama.

A self-evaluation and overview of the year enables students to reflect on their progress and for the teacher to diagnose their grasp of new technical vocabulary and different approaches to characterisation.

Unit 1: Saving the universe
[first three weeks approx. of autumn term]

A short unit designed for re-establishment of ground rules and discipline in drama at the start of a new term in order to:

Unit 2: Jo [rest of autumn term]

A mystery to be solved is the stimulus for process and performance, in order to:

focus on whole group work and the skills necessary for this to succeed
introduce teacher in rôle and hot seating
develop analytical and empathetic skills
develop the ability to respond and reflect in rôle
make non-naturalistic techniques and conventions explicit

Unit 3: Status [first half of spring term]

A mixture of solo, pair, small and whole group work, moving from spontaneous improvisation exercises to analysis of duologues from plays designed to:

make the concept of status explicit
provide opportunities for students to understand an apply status to improvised work and to text
develop spontaneous improvisation skills and an understanding of the principles which facilitate effective improvisation work
consolidate understanding of how movement, space, posture and expression convey meaning
explore students' perception of their place in the world while making connections beyond their immediate experience

Unit 4: The child who did not want to go to school
[second half of spring term]

A template for using drama to contribute to students' moral and social development in order to:

consolidate understanding of whole group story-making
introduce and apply the concept of forum theatre
develop analytical and observation skills
focus on the process of drama

Unit 5: Old man [first half of summer term]

develop understanding of the use and limitations of stereotype
enable students to speak in a variety of contexts, using language appropriate to character and situation
develop character through observation, physicality and through an emotional and empathetic approach

Unit 6 Reportage [last half of summer term]

A template using reportage as stimulus for selection and application of performance skills to develop:

the ability to create, structure and present an effective piece of drama
a basic understanding of the rehearsal process as a means of discovery and exploration
the negotiation skills which underpin effective drama work
an understanding of characterisation and status
an awareness of configuration [how different spatial relationships between performance and audience create different meanings]

YEAR 9 COURSE CONTENT

There are opportunities for work using year 9 students' experiences and perceptions as a a starting point but the course is seeking to move them beyond this.

Text is used increasingly to familiarise students with text-based drama but also to ensure that they realise that people of the past were preoccupied with the same issues as today although the words and the conventions used to articulate, explore and present them were very different.

Existing skills are revisited, new ones are acquired and there are increasing opportunities for the autonomous application of this.

As this lesson is not on the scheduled timetable, opportunities for written work are given on a voluntary basis for those students who wish to do some further research. It is more complex and anticipates the kinds of questions in GCSE English and Literature [as well as GCSE drama if this is an option considered at a later date by the school].

Opportunities for assessment and evaluation are, therefore, included in each unit for the student and the teacher to monitor student progress.

The final unit [if completed instead of the DCC enterprise described above] can provide an overview and extended practical exploration of the skills acquired over the year, culminating in an extended rehearsal process and presentation. This can be used for a summative assessment of students' ability to make and present as well as appraise their own and others' drama. This could equally apply to the DCC enterprise.

A self-evaluation and overview of the year can be completed if time allows, enabling students to reflect on their progress over the whole course and support assessment of their understanding of the relationship between content and form.

Unit 1: From Antigone to Rosa Parkes [first half of autumn term]

The theme of the individual who takes the law into her own hands for a just cause is explored in order to develop:

understanding and application of the conventions of some aspects of Greek tragedy
the ability to structure and appraise drama using abstract techniques
the ability to connect students' own experience and beliefs with those in other places and times
the effective expression of ideas and feelings about injustice

Unit 2: Mountain language [second half of autumn term]

A sequence using an extract from a Harold Pinter play as stimulus which revisits various techniques and forms in order to:

consolidate understanding and application of status when making drama
develop understanding of naturalism
consolidate the ability to use language, movement and space with imagination and conviction
establish and communicate a theatrical convention

Unit 3: Underworld [first half of spring term]

An exploration of what causes people to live outside society, enabling students to:

create an environment as the basis for character work
use space with imagination, commitment and with minimum self-consciousness to communicate meaning and evaluate that use
explore the value of process in its own right at a deeper level
contribute positively to the development and realisation of ideas working within a range of groupings, and encouraging others to contribute fully to the same themes
use a range of dramatic skills, techniques, forms and conventions to express ideas and feelings effectively
understand and apply the concept of dramatic tension
appraise the differences between the skills required for spontaneous improvisation and prepared improvisation

Unit 4: Rites of passage
[second half of spring term and first part of third term]

A series of lessons that explore what it means to be grown up and how the transition from age to age is marked. The forms and stimulus used – including Shakespeare –enable students to:

understand and apply the concepts of ritual, symbolism and transformation
use formal language in a variety of contexts
revisit story-telling as a powerful form of drama
physicalise character with imagination and conviction
reflect on their own experience and use as an inspiration for drama

Unit 5: Daydreaming [third term]

The final unit, if completed, takes the need for imaginative escape as the theme for making drama. The process and performance offer the opportunity for students to:

demonstrate and sustain group work skill over as extended period
work in detail and depth, refining, editing, and selecting when devising for presentation
structure a presentation with the needs of a given audience in mind
evaluate their own strengths and weaknesses in group work
select appropriate forms, techniques and conventions when making drama
respond to the work of others sensitively and constructively
incorporate choreographic elements into the range of techniques available

There is an end of Key Stage 3 assessment for a student self-evaluation that can be filled in if time.

Year 7 –9 drama course aims - an overview