Performing Arts 

Howdy all!  At the start of another great term, we’re already building on the ensemble and emotional learning done last term in Performing Arts.  This term students across grades are using fictional texts as a starting point for their dramatic endeavours.  The pictures and words within these texts encourage students to consider how a character feels and why a character behaves the way they do.

Prep students have been exploring fairy tales, specifically “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”.  They have done whole class role-play and created theme songs for each of the characters and will begin enacting the story, combining lines from the text with their practiced character voices.  

Year 1/2 learners have been crafting characters as we read through The Day the Crayons Quit.  The structure of the book (letters written by a box of upset crayons to the child who uses them) allows for students to engage in monologues while being part of a larger story.  

Year 5/6 students have begun exploring Fox.  We’ve discussed character archetypes as students made predictions about the text and discussed connections to other texts they’ve read with similar characters.  Students have created tableaus (still images) embodying some of the major themes of the text including: friendship, betrayal, and risk.  Students will continue exploring the text and its dramatic possibilities in small groups as they put together a dramatic reading of the text.  

Year 3/4 students are continuing their puppetry project.  We have begun the term discussing what constructive feedback is and what it looks and sounds like.  Students have been engaged in read-through rehearsals in which they read their text aloud to the class and their peers give them feedback, offering suggestions and highlighting what they enjoyed about the script.

As we work up towards dress rehearsals, I would like to put a call out for any gently-loved clothing that we could add to a classroom costume box.  Costumes are an aspect of drama that support students in exploring characters and building a world-of-play.  We’d greatly appreciate: hats, ties, costume jewellery, dresses and any other gently loved clothing that tells a story.

Thanks!

-Ms. S