Unit 7 - Theatre in education

Thursday 28^th September

Today I was giving a presentation to the rest of the group about what I have learnt so far for the theatre in education unit. The presentation included many different pieces of information such as when Theatre in Education first originated, why it was developed and what impacts it has had on education. It also gave me a chance to share with the group the ideas that I have come up with over the past few weeks for the performance. I was also able to share any other relevant information that I had previously thought about in preparation for the performance.

I made some notes prior to the presentation from the research that I have carried out. Here are the notes which I used during the presentation:

•     T.I.E came about in the 1950’s, education up til that point had been very dry and a one way process with children sitting in front of teacher at a desk.

•     T.I.E brought a new way of learning. A more inclusive and interactive way.

•     It allowed the children to connect with characters and relate to a story.

•     In the beginning productions were centrally funded but nowadays, companies have to apply for funding for individual projects. I will be preparing a hypothetical budget for this production and will also prepare a simple funding application document.

•     For a T.I.E project to be successful it must have the following elements running through it:

•     A theme/educational message must be running throughout the play

•     There are moments for audience participation

•     A small cast which normally means that some members will have to multi-role or play an instrument

•     The costumes must be representational of the characters especially if the piece is being performed to young children so it is easier for them to understand what is going on

These notes are only short and have been taken from the full document of research. Here is a link to the full document of research which I have carried out into Theatre in Education:

http://charlottes16blog.blogspot.co.uk/2017/10/unit-7-theatre-in-education.html

Here is a video of me giving the presentation:

At the end of the presentation, I presented some ideas to the group and asked for their input and any ideas they had which we could use as performance material. Below are some ideas that were discussed about each of the topics and some ideas that I have had myself.

The environment (to include recycling, the impact of global warming and endangered species):

·      Children will gain a better understanding of this topic at an early age as this is something that isn’t taught until a later age.

·      Teaching the children why the environment is important.

·      Each one the sub topics link together so this could have potential for a good, consistent performance.

·      Including the message of how we can reduce the impacts of global warming at an early age so the environment can be made a safer and greener place.

Water safety:

·      Children need to know at a young age how to be safe around water, what danger water brings and what to do if someone is in danger in the water.

·      Children are often taught to be careful of the water but they are not taught why and this should be enforced at an early age.

·      By engaging in a piece of theatre the children should take away a message and this could involve learning about the dangers of water.

Road safety:

·      Children won’t be walking to school by their selves yet but should be taught the do’s and don’ts at the road side.

·      Children should be taught at a younger age about road safety especially now as there are a lot more cars on the road than there used to be and therefore makes roads more dangerous.

·      Information about the different types of crossing.

·      Learning how to cross the road safely even when there isn’t an assigned crossing point (Stop, Look, Listen).

Stranger danger:

·      Some children will talk to anyone and should be taught that they should not talk to strangers and should not take anything off of strangers.

·      This topic or any of the other topics should not scare the children but should be presented in a way that the children will understand the message.

·      Strangers can approach children at any time even when the parents back is turned.

·      Over time things have changed and parents are becoming more wary of their children and leaving them alone to play.

Healthy eating:

·      Initial thoughts were that the topic could be a bit boring for the children but once we got into a discussion, more thoughts and ideas were presented.

·      As long as the theme is cheerful and energetic, the children should pay attention

·      The idea of children having sweets on just one day is better for them rather than eating sweets every day of the week

·      Child obesity is quite a big problem nowadays but never used to be.

·      If the children enjoy the performance then they are going to remember the message of the performance regardless of the topic.

Now I can use the information which I collated from this session to use in deciding on the topic for the Theatre in Education piece.