KS3
Students have 1 lesson a week of drama at Key Stage 3. It is expected that all students follow the 5 C's of Drama in their lessons: concentration, co-operation, confidence, communication and contribution.
Students will be taught key drama techniques, for example: split screen, flashbacks, mime, tableaux, thought tracking and use of proxemics that they will need to use in their devised pieces. They will also be given the opportunity to read and learn lines from a published play and to understand the process of page to stage. Students will also be taught how to successfully use their voice, movement and facial expressions in a performance to convey character and how to successfully engage with their audience. They will also learn about the key theatre practitioners and how to demonstrate the practitioners techniques in a performance. In Year 9 students will further enhance and develop their physical, vocal and interpretative skills and will be given the opportunity to practice how to respond to a brief and to create a devised piece to a target audience. Year 9 students will practice and refine how to create a performance from page to stage and how to successfully convey their characters intentions in a scene. All of the skills and techniques rehearsed at Key Stage 3 will aid students with their progression on to study BTEC Technical Award Level 2 in Performing Arts.
Below is information about our KS3 curriculum. Each drop down box contains the topics we cover. For more detail on the knowledge we teach, please click on each medium term plan. Our curriculum map shows the learning journey that our students embark upon.
In Year 7, students study the following units:
- An introduction to drama
- Introduction to theatre skills - physical theatre / mechanical movement
- Ernie's Incredible Illuminations - page to stage knowledge
- Shakespeare - physical theatre
- Evacuees - epic theatre
- Ground Works - drama skills
In Year 8, students study the following topics:
- Between Mouthfuls - page to stage drama
- The Curse of Queen Naffytutu - tableau drama skills
- Curious incident – Physical theatre
- The Titanic - character development
- The Terrible Fate of Humpty Dumpty - page to stage and physical theatre
- The Hillsborough Disaster - Brechtian techniques
In Year 9, students study the following topics:
- A Night Out - texts in practice
- Brechtian theatre – Movement and space
- Responding to a brief 1
- DNA - page to stage drama
- Responding to a brief 2
- Evaluation of skills and performances