Year 8 Drama

Unit Content

Unit 1

Using the Voice

This unit of work teaches students to use their voices in different ways. We consolidate and build upon the basic vocabulary learned in Year 7,  taking each element as the main focus for a workshop-style lesson. Students learn to use pauses effectively, to create a character using vocal timbre, and to build tension and atmosphere using a range of vocal resources and sound collage.

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing how received meaning depends on vocal delivery
  • Understanding the variables that contribute to an effective vocal performance

Key skills developed:

  • How to experiment with pause, timbre and other elements of vocal delivery
  • How to use the voice effectively to create atmosphere and subtle characterisation 
  • How to deliver a text in an interesting and unusual way

Assessment: Throughout the unit, learning is assessed formatively by the teacher and feedback is provided by peers.

Unit 2 

Theatre in Education

Students learn to use their drama skills to engage with real world issues affecting their age group. We explore themes including bullying, self-image, divorce and substance abuse.  Students produce a theatre in education (TiE) style advert designed to tackle an issue that is important to them. The unit of work begins with an exploration of adverts, identifying techniques their makers use to persuade an audience and considering how these technqiues can be integrated into students' final performances.

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing correct vocabulary for discussing dramatic techniques
  • Understanding how drama skills can be used to intensify meaning 

Key skills developed:

  • How to use a range of dramatic techniques to communicate a clear message to an audience
  • How to use drama to explore important and potentially difficult issues
  • How to use a range of persuasive dramatic techniques

Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Finally, students receive written feedback from the teacher following each group performance.

Units 3/4

A Midsummer Night's Dream

This unit of work takes the character work and performance skills developed in Years 7 and 8, consolidating and amplifying this learning in the context of a more challenging script. Students learn to devise thoughtful and imaginative responses to Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, experiencing the kind of work that is required for a key component of GCSE Drama. Building on the Year 7 Matilda unit, A Midsummer Night's Dream provides a second opportunity for students to work in a group for an extended period of time and to engage fully with a challenging and fun project. 

Key knowledge developed:

  • Understanding the dramatic conventions of a Shakespeare play
  • Understanding dramatic devices such as freeze frame

Key skills developed:

  • How to deliver a Shakespearean text effectively
  • How to engage productively in a rehearsal process
  • How to collaborate to devise a piece of original drama in reponse to a text

Assessment: Students benefit from immediate oral feedback from the teacher in lessons. They receive peer feedback and have the opportunity to assess themselves according to established criteria. Finally, students receive written feedback from the teacher following each group performance.