Intent of curriculum 

Our intent is to nurture an enjoyment and understanding of Drama through practical experience and to develop both subject specific and transferrable skills that empower students. We focus on encouraging teamwork, creativity, performance, reflection and communication. We aim to engage students and build confidence in a safe and inclusive environment. Students will learn to confidently explore and investigate how practitioners and artists create and make drama and theatre. They will learn how to apply these processes to their own creative work and progressively deepen their knowledge, understanding and appreciation of drama and theatre. Students will develop a range of subject-specific skills, language and techniques; they will learn how to create, perform, devise and experience all areas of drama and theatre in an imaginative, engaging and creative way. The curriculum will be delivered through regular and structured opportunities to reflect and evaluate their own and others’ work across a range of content. Studying drama requires emotional maturity and gives students a deep understanding of themselves. Because it involves using not only their voices and bodies, but also emotions and creativity, it is able to engender a deep sense of self-esteem. It is also a subject that requires a great deal of peer trust, and so it plays an important role in teaching communication, listening and empathy skills.
 

Implementation of curriculum 

To ensure knowledge is memorised and available for retrieval and application, strategies such as these are used in lessons: 

• Low stakes testing of prior learning on entry to the classroom using quick fire questions / answers on whiteboards 
• Spelling and definition tests 
• Interleaving – revisiting prior knowledge in a timely fashion 
• Repetition of activity 
• Creating knowledge organiser at KS4/5

Teachers demonstrate techniques and introduce new materials in small steps then question pupils to enhance engagement and ensure pupils can demonstrate their understanding. The teacher demonstrating, questioning the student’s decision and using written prompts are all examples of scaffolding that are used in the Drama department. 

Independence is encouraged and confidence is built in both theory and practical work by  

• Each pupil being allowed their own concepts to be voiced  
• Pupils having increasing autonomy over how to create their performance pieces as their experience develops 
• Having some autonomy over how to demonstrate understanding when working verbally or in books 

• Using a wider variety of theatre styles and roles within the performing arts sector.  
• Providing wider reading and promoting wider research around a topic 
• Reading is built into lessons, scripts, homework and wider reading / research using articles from newspapers and journals. 

Teachers within the department have worked collaboratively on a curriculum map which meets the Key Stage 3 national curriculum (See Below). This has informed the Subject Knowledge & Understanding (SKUs) within the different years that contain an Intent/Implementation/Impact specifically for each topic. As well as this the SKUs include key terminology that will be promoted in lessons to broaden the drama vocabulary for the students.
 

Impact of curriculum 

We are confident that through the content of the curriculum and the way in which it is delivered that Drama will have a profoundly positive impact on student’s appreciation of the Theatre as a disciplined art form and a reflection of social and cultural influences and their own important place within it. We will measure this in several ways:  

• Through rigorous, reliable, and accessible assessment. On-going assessment will occur through teacher monitoring of classwork and discussions with students. Students will be assessed termly on their knowledge and understanding of the different elements of drama and performance and showcase their work back to peers giving and receiving feedback.  Outcomes of these will be analysed and discussed within the department and interventions and extra support set up where appropriate. Assessment outcomes will be compared to targets. Specific groups such as SEN & Disadvantaged will be closely monitored.  
• Lesson observations and work scrutinies. 
• Destination data at transition points – Key Stage 3 to GCSE, GCSE to A level and A level to university/work/training.  

In Drama, by the end of Year 9 (Key Stage 3), students will be: ambitious, capable learners; enterprising, creative contributors; healthy, confident individuals; ethical, informed citizens.  They will have the experience of working in a team and being independent, disciplined learners and understand how history has shaped the theatre of today. Students will be assessed termly on their knowledge and understanding of the different elements of drama and performance and showcase their work back to peers giving and receiving feedback.  

In Key Stage 4, students will become theatre critics and will be able to comment in detail upon all aspects of theatre performance as well as becoming highly capable and confident performers.