The Festival has become a key component of the English
Syllabus and is a special project which provides an opportunity for
students to develop key skills of communication and compromise.
Drama promotes language development and pupils develop confidence when
speaking to an audience or when they adopt roles and characters. Pupils
also acquire a critical approach when reflecting on and appraising their
own work in drama and the work of others. Throughout the preparation
for the stage presentation pupils work creatively together and solve
problems in groups of various sizes. These skills, along with flexibility,
empathy and risk-taking, are recognised as essential in future adult
life.
Our goal in the preparation and presentation of the show is not to produce
professional actors but to educate through theatre, to break down barriers
and to work on language, personal, social and emotional development valuing
and respecting the creativity of children.
Pretending to be others
in imagined situations and acting out sketches are important activities
in the curriculum for the children of all ages. Very young children, and
those working significantly below the expectation for their age, can respond
to our demands by listening to and watching another group at work in the
classroom - mixing drama, dance, music and visual arts. As children engage
in these drama activities they become increasingly aware of the use of
space and the way body language communicates meaning.
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The
preparation of the Lester House English Festival takes about three
months in which pupils experiment with sound, voice, gestures, silence,
movement, stillness, light and darkness. Pre-school and Primary aged
children are given access to the excellent learning opportunities
that can be provided while preparing and presenting this event. When selecting main and secondary characters, teachers provide equal opportunities for all pupils through an audition process in which classmates also vote for the best performance. Auditions are the tough part in theatre. Teachers are self-esteem builders and they obviously don’t want to hurt kids. Sometimes they have some hard decisions to make, especially when a child could be extremely talented and not be right for that particular part. Students understand an audition is a necessary step, they take part in one way or another and teachers then work on the way pupils have to accept the final voting. |
The last step previous to stage presentation is to improve and refine their acting through the rehearsal process, making full use of the performance space and resources in their productions.
Employing music, light and costume to enhance their stage presentation, pupils understand the benefits of collaborative work and use this opportunity to enjoy themselves and learn more.
