Welcome to the Drama Department
Our Curriculum Intent
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 and provide cultural capital.
We focus on encouraging teamwork, creativity, reflection and communication. We aim to engage students and build confidence in a safe and inclusive environment. We aim to develop individuality; to encourage students to think and express themselves with flair and to encourage tolerance and understanding.
Students are given opportunities through teacher led workshops, explorative strategies and scripted drama activities to experience the world around them and consider situations from more than one perspective.
Vocabulary will be taught, implemented and consolidated in line with The Warriner MAT Strategy alongside specific department strategies.
We incorporate peer mentoring, live theatre experiences, outside practitioners and student led/alumni workshops for all our year groups. All of our students will have the opportunity to experience live theatre at least once in their time at The Warriner School.
We passionately believe that the teaching style within the department should be organic and this is reflected in our schemes of work and planning of lessons; we are responsive to the needs of our students and to the ever changing world around us and the delivery of the drama curriculum reflects this.
Throughout our 7 year curriculum students will be introduced to Drama Skills (Elements of Drama), Explorative Strategies and Drama Medium in line with the demands of the GCSE and A Level specifications. These will be embedded throughout KS3, KS4 & KS5, but will be applied with varying levels of competency as students’ progress through our courses.
Drama Ladder of Progression:
YR 7- ENJOY
YR 8 – Introduce
YR 9 - Experiment
KS4 - Consolidate
KS5 – MASTER
Drama skills incorporated into our curriculum:
- Confidence & Communication - A command over their vocal and physical skills to allow them to approach a wide range of public speaking with confidence
- Concentration - Working on intricate projects over extended periods of time
- Empathy & sensitivity - Understanding the viewpoints and emotions of a range of characters
- Co-operation & team-work skills - Getting the best out of each other when striving towards a common goal
- Commitment & self-discipline - Encouraged and helped to excel when challenged, developing resilience and grit
- Creativity - An understanding of the benefits of participation in the arts, performance and creativity during their time with us at The Warriner School and throughout their lives.
- Evaluation & appreciation - An appreciation of the ways in which playwrights achieve their effects and communicate their intentions to an audience and an ability to evaluate their own and others’ work.
We hope that all our students enjoy Drama and are inspired by the curriculum and our results, uptake, reputation and parental/student feedback reflects this year by year.
Our Curriculum Implementation
Key Stage 3
In Years 7-9 we deliver an exciting and varied curriculum so that students develop skills for physical comedy, acting in masks, stage combat and physical theatre. They encounter Brecht and Shakespeare in a practical, engaging way and we also spend time developing useful skills for job interviews.
Key Stage 4
At GCSE, students develop their own performance skills for devised theatre (where they create it themselves from scratch) and scripted performance. They develop a working knowledge of contemporary theatre practice through theatre trips and learning the techniques of key practitioners. Some students specialise in costume and make-up, sound or lighting rather than being assessed as actors.
Examination Information
Other Information
We offer many extra-curricular opportunities. For example, we produce school productions that are open to all. If performing is not your thing, you might be interested in a technical (lighting, sound, costume or make-up), stage management or marketing role.