Drama

Subject Statement

The Drama department works to enable Key Stage 4 students at New Directions to build self-confidence, communication skills, and creative self-expression through hands-on performance and digital media production. We create a supportive, dynamic, and safe environment where young people can learn at their own pace, work collaboratively or individually, and develop technical skills across live performance and screen media.

Students in Key Stage 4 will be given the opportunity to gain a BTEC Introductory Award in Performing Arts / Digital Media. The purpose of this qualification is to help students develop transferable skills, practical attributes, and professional behaviors such as teamwork, creative problem-solving, and time management needed for further study, vocational training, and future employment.

The qualification requires learners to complete routine, simple, and directed tasks by applying their creative ideas, dramatic techniques, and media production skills. It is designed around practical projects, enabling students to demonstrate what they can create and produce in practice rather than relying on traditional written exams.

As they progress through their projects, students set their own personal goals and continuously evaluate their creative output. All work is internally assessed through practical portfolios, recordings, and creative logs.

Key Stage 4 Units of Study

1. Drama Unit: Using Stimulus to Create Theatre

Students explore how to take initial ideas—such as images, news articles, poems, music, or historical events—and transform them into original, devised theatrical performances.

Key practical activities include:

Exploring Stimulus Material: Analysing starting points to brainstorm themes, characters, and storylines.
Devising & Rehearsal: Utilising improvisation, physical theatre, and scripting to build original scenes.
Performance Skills: Developing vocal projection, movement, characterisation, and stage awareness for live performance.

2. Digital Media Unit: Creating a Short Film

Students learn the fundamentals of filmmaking, taking a story from initial concept through camera production and digital post-production.

Key practical activities include:

Pre-Production: Storyboarding, shot listing, scriptwriting, and location planning.
Production: Operating digital cameras, managing lighting, capturing clear audio, and directing actors on set.
Post-Production: Editing video footage, adding audio tracks/sound effects, and finalising a short video project.

Assessment and Feedback

Students receive direct, regular practical guidance and verbal feedback during rehearsals and studio sessions. Assessment is fully internal and coursework-based, reflecting the practical journey of developing both live theatre and screen media.

Students build a creative portfolio demonstrating their planning, execution, and evaluation. Evidence includes:

Final video recordings of theatre performances and finished short film edits
Pre-production materials (storyboards, scripts, character profiles, shot lists)
Rehearsal logs, video diaries, or audio evaluation podcasts reviewing their progress

How Parents and Carers Can Help

Promote diverse media consumption: Encourage your child to watch films, TV drama, short films, and theatre broadcasts, discussing what makes stories engaging.
Discuss visual storytelling: Talk about how camera angles, lighting, music, and actor body language convey mood and emotion in movies and shows.
Support practical line learning & story ideas: Help your child run lines for drama performances or listen to their story concepts for short film ideas.
Encourage creative filming at home: Support your child in practicing basic camera framing, editing, or photography using standard smartphones or tablets.
Watch behind-the-scenes content: Encourage watching "making-of" featurettes, director commentaries, or theatre rehearsal videos to see professional workflows.
Prompt creative research: Encourage reading film scripts, exploring stagecraft techniques, or watching documentaries on theatre and cinema.

Links to Online Resources

Contact

Performing Arts, Music Drama Lead

Hayley Reinprecht : hayley.reinprecht@prus.newham.sch.uk