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Drama
Department
The Drama Department is part of a thriving Performing
Arts Curriculum within the school and delivers drama at all
years including both
KS3 and KS4. Each year the department also delivers an extensive
extra-curricular programme which involves pupils from all year
groups and abilities.
Staffing
The department is staffed by two full time drama specialists
who all hold subject qualifications to Degree and PGCE (Post Graduate
Certificate in Education) level.
Facilities
As a result of extensive investment in the Performing
Arts Southmoor School now has some impressive drama facilities.
These include
three dedicated drama rooms which are all capable, in terms of
size and design, of comfortably accommodating workshops, practical
lessons and other activities for groups of up to 30 pupils. All
three of the rooms are linked to form a single department and this
has benefits in the sharing of good practice and linking of activities.
Portable lighting, sound and projection equipment is available
for use in any of the rooms.
A small audio-visual facility is also available for use by all
pupils involved in drama work. This is a self-contained unit which
houses several desk top computers for video-editing, word-processing
and desk-top publishing Sound recording equipment and a Gifted
and Talented book and audio library are also available. The AV
room reflects the department’s commitment to the involvement
of computing within the drama curriculum and is also expanded by
our relationship with the City
Learning Centre and the new ‘Sir
Tom Cowie’ ICT suite at Southmoor School.
Storage for costumes and props are also available within the department.
The school hall is used for major drama, music and dance performances.
The facilities there are now second to none including a full
computerised lighting grid and a recently installed sound system
incorporating
radio microphone capabilities. The hall plays a big part in the
delivery of the department’s extra-curricular activities.
Key Stage 3 Curriculum
All pupils are taught drama in mixed ability
groups for one hour per week. The curriculum is designed to follow
the KS3 National
Strategy for Drama and assessment procedures are based on the
objectives
laid out in this document. The curriculum extends through a basic
understanding of drama as an exploratory tool, the development
of issue based approaches (incorporating cross-curricular elements
including Citizenship, ICT, Maths, English, History and SMSC)
through to performance techniques in preparation for the KS4
course. A
wide variety of subject matter is covered during the KS3 years
- units of work studied include focuses on moral dilemma, relationships,
war, bullying, speaking and listening, the media, the ethics
of work and many others. Specific drama techniques are developed
as
the course progresses – along with interpersonal skills
such as communication, co-operation and evaluative abilities.
Key Stage 4 Curriculum
At KS4 all pupils follow the Edexcel
GCSE syllabus for drama. This incorporates practical approaches to two assessed
units of
work in year 10, which are supported by portfolios of written and
graphical coursework. All assessment in year 10 focuses on a pupil’s
ability to respond, develop and evaluate ideas in practical, verbal
and written forms. In Year 11 the focus shifts entirely to performance
work. Pupils study, in a practical sense, a range of scripted plays
and develop techniques towards exploring the themes, characters
and ideas from these texts. An external examiner, who observes
and grades the pupil’s final performance work, carries out
all assessment in Year 11.
Drama at KS4 is
an option subject. In the past four years it has been extremely
well subscribed to and numbers of pupils studying for the course
have remained high. In the academic year 2006– 2007,
eighty-eight pupils will begin the course in year 10.
Extra-Curricular Activities
The extra-curricular programme of
the department is both extensive and highly successful. In 2006– 2007
seventy-five percent of the school pupil population took part in
an extra-curricular
drama activity of some kind.
Each year the department
produces a minimum of two major school productions and recent
examples of these have included ‘Joseph
and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’, ‘Peter Pan’ and ‘Oliver!’.
Some of these not only take part in the school hall but also go
on tour to local primary, junior and special schools. Pupils from
all year groups take part in these productions and cast numbers
range from 30 to 100. Being part of a Performing Arts Department
also means that drama enjoys an excellent relationship with music
within the school and live bands are a feature of many of the performances.
As well as
this the department takes part in concerts, assemblies and
small-scale performances throughout the year. Drama also organises
an annual Search For A Star Talent Competition that, over the years,
has grown in popularity and now attracts more than 250 pupils entering
the event and audiences of over 300. In 2004 and 2005 Southmoor
School won the County Finals of the Search For A Star and has
now hosted the event for the past two years.
Clubs, ranging from drama for years 7 and 8, a separate club for
year 9, 10 and 11, playwriting, video and production, are a regular
feature of lunch times and after school within the department.
Pupils are also given
as many opportunities as possible to become involved in professional
theatre. This ranges from regular trips to see live performances – recent
ones include ‘Blood
Brothers’, ‘Cats’ ‘Starlight Express’ and ‘Grease’ – to
theatre practitioners giving workshops in school on such skills
as stage make-up, video and film production, approaches to practical
drama and even circus skills. These workshops are often accompanied
by professional performances, which take place in the school hall
and are seen by pupils of all ages – recent visits have included ‘M6
Theatre Company’ ‘Bell and Bulloch Circus Skills Company’ ‘No
Limits Theatre Company’, a professional make-up artist and
film and stage directors. We also take twenty pupils in Years 10
and 11 to London to experience a west end musical, visit back stage
performances and visit Shakespeare's Globe.
As well as in school our extra-curricular programme has been
designed to forge links with outside organisations and, in the
past, pupils
have become involved in activities such as television (Byker Grove),
film (‘Gabriel and Me’ with Billy Connolly) and stage
(Centrestage summer school productions and local amateur dramatic
societies).
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