Scotch College

DRAMA

Rationale
The Drama course aims to give each boy opportunities to develop his creative imagination. This includes capacity to develop self-expression, creativity, physical control, self-confidence, self-discipline, and both verbal and non-verbal skills. There is a strong connection, therefore, between Drama and other creative arts subjects. Because much of the activity is carried out in small groups, Drama also provides valuable experience in learning to work co-operatively and purposefully with others. While some of these objectives may (and indeed should) coincide with those of other teaching areas, there is a fundamental distinction that separates Drama from other creative subjects. Central to Drama is the focus on the human body and voice as prime means of expression. A theatrical context is used to give form to this underlying philosophy - that it is the use of the human body in acting and role play that human-kind has traditionally found to be a natural and accessible means of self-expression.
The Year 8 Drama Course continues the work undertaken in Year 7 by allowing each student opportunities to further develop his artistic imagination, capacity for self expression, self confidence, self discipline, physical control and both verbal and non-verbal skills. There is a greater emphasis placed on group activities so that students may gain experience in working co-operatively and purposefully with others. Students work more on the concept of audience and performer , the use of constructive criticism and the idea of a critical friend as positive drafting tools in the development of their work. Students explore the concept of improvisation in greater detail and undertake activities designed to further their confidence when communicating their own ideas and supporting other students’ ideas. The work on characters aims to not only explore the dramatic potential of creating their own unique individuals but also allows the students to experience the idea of being someone else with their own life stories and journeys.  There are activities for the development of their physical co-ordination and communication of ideas and a focus on the control of their physicality when working in performance.
Course Content
All students in Year 8 participate in Drama for one semester only, three periods per six-day cycle. The program takes a workshop approach concentrating heavily on group work.  It takes in the following broad areas of study:
• Improvisation
• Creation of Character through the expressive skills of movement, voice, facial expression and gesture
• Building a character and creating a role
• Physical Comedy
• Simple character monologues
• Building more complex ensemble performances utilising role and character
Throughout the semester students participate in theatre games and exercises in relaxation, trust, co-operation, concentration and sense awareness. They are encouraged to appreciate the relevance of these exercises to the Drama context. During the course, each class presents an evening of performance to parents and friends.
Assessment
Each student receives a grade at the end of the semester based on the extent to which he has shown concentration, involvement and commitment in the area of:
1. Performance Examination
2. Class Performance Skills
3. Written Tasks
4. Ensemble Skill Development

Year 8 Curriculum 2011

Subject booklet
Subject Booklet
(pdf) 100k

Introduction
Generic skills
Outdoor Learning

Art
Christian Education
Design and Technology
Drama
English
Geography
History
ICT
Language Other Than English (LOTE)

Chinese
French
German
Indonesian

Mathematics
Music
Physical Education
Science

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Scotch College: ABN 86 852 826 445 ACN 005 650 395 CRICOS 00624A (Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students)