Success in making depends on the following basis:
- the creation of drama and theatre process
- the participation and awareness of the process
- collaborative and individual exploration of fictional and imaginative worlds.
Drama 7–10
Students engage in experiential learning, exploring and appreciating the artistic and creative processes needed to make and perform drama for an audience.
Drama 7–10 Syllabus (2023)
These resources can be used by drama classroom teachers and/or school leaders to support teachers with effective implementation of the Drama 7–10 Syllabus (2023).
They have been developed to assist teachers in NSW Department of Education schools to create learning that is contextualised to their classroom. They can be used as a basis for the teacher’s own program, assessment, or scope and sequence, or be used as an example of how the new curriculum could be implemented. The resources may be adjusted by the teacher in relation to the strengths and needs of their students
Scope and sequences
Sample scope and sequences provide an example of how to structure teaching and learning programs for drama in stages 4 and 5. Knowledge, understanding and skills are built through engagement with the 3 focus areas of making, performing, and appreciating.
All NSW public schools need to plan curriculum and develop teaching programs consistent with the Education Act 1990 (NSW) and the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) syllabuses and credentialing requirements.
Scope and sequences form part of the ongoing documentation or evidence schools maintain to comply with the department’s policy, policy standards and registration requirements.
Developing a robust scope and sequence has many benefits and may help teachers and schools to:
- promote high expectations for student learning
- identify opportunities for explicit teaching
- create opportunities for students to receive feedback on their learning
- systematically plan for and undertake assessment
- collect and use data to monitor achievements and identify gaps in learning
- differentiate curriculum delivery to meet the needs of students at different levels of achievement
- collaborate with other teachers to plan for quality teaching and learning.
Drama 7–10 Syllabus (2003)
Making
Performing
When performing drama students will:
- engage audiences while acting and performing in a variety of dramatic forms, conventions and styles
- experiment with performance spaces, technologies and production elements to create and enhance dramatic meaning
- perform and improvise using scripted and unscripted drama individually and collaboratively.
Appreciating
When appreciating drama as an art form, students should study:
- the historical perspective of drama
- dramatic forms, techniques and conventions
- theatre practitioners
- elements of drama and production
- writing for the theatre and theatre criticism.
Sample scope and sequences
The sample scope and sequence documents provide teachers with overviews for programming and assessment in drama.
Sample assessment tasks
A summative performance and learning map assessment task (DOCX 80 KB) for the Playbuilding with Aboriginal pedagogies learning sequence.
Elements of drama
Elements of drama poster and brief animated video are available to print, play and display in your classroom via the links below.
Watch
Watch the 'Elements of drama' video (4:54).
Resource
Playbuilding
Devising with text is a Stage 5 program that addresses the practice of making through the compulsory context – 'playbuilding', using text as a stimulus.
Resources
This learning sequence draws on Aboriginal Pedagogies (ways of learning, thinking, knowing and doing) to explore playbuilding in Stage 5 drama.
Resources
CApture student filmmaking
- The CApture student filmmaking interactive resource guides Stage 5 creative arts students through the collaborative processes of filmmaking.
- CApture teacher support guide for programming and assessment (DOCX 163 KB) supports drama teachers in delivering CApture – a Stage 5 creative arts filmmaking resource.
Writing about performance
A Stage 5 resource to develop students' skills in writing critically, descriptively and reflectively about performance in dance and drama.
To access this resource visit writing about performance.
Other teaching and learning resources
Teachers can use the logbook guide (DOCX 80.4 KB) to establish a learning dialogue with students and gain insight into engagement with making and appreciating outcomes. This student-centred resource provides answers to common questions about the function of the drama logbook and scaffolds experiential learning through meaningful logbook reflection for Years 9 and 10.
The KASCA drama framework breaks down the core components of the elements of drama, drama practices and drama context into a series of lesson sequences. All lesson sequences come with ready-to-use differentiated learning and teaching resources and are available in an online format in this section and an e-book version (PDF 5.219 KB) that can be downloaded to your smart device.
Lesson sequences
- Playbuilding with Aboriginal Pedagogies
- Brecht – Political theatre
- Comedy – Satire
- Page to stage – Anatomy of a script
- Writing monologues – Jasper Jones
- Melodrama – Background and structure
- Melodrama – Stock Characters
- Melodrama – Voices and asides
- Greek theatre – Chorus
- Greek theatre – History and context
- Greek theatre – Masks
To support the teaching and learning of the 7-10 syllabus and literacy needs of students, these units of work will provide guidance and assistance to help teachers meet the literacy demands within the drama classroom. The 'IMAGinE this' units of work, support teachers to integrate picture books, graphic novels and slam poetry to enhance their drama teaching and programming. It provides examples of learning activities in drama with suggested activities for approaching drama in English.
To access this teaching and learning support visit IMAGinE on the Literacy in creative arts webpage.
u.b.do is a five week innovative teaching and learning program that responds to the issue of digital citizenship. Through the program, students will become more self-aware of the responsibilities and roles of living in and surviving in both an online and human-centred world, by participating in digital and collaborative learning experiences.
Student guided online learning sequences to support learning from home or in the classroom.
Students are guided in completing a short investigation and submitting a brief report and reflection.
Educational resources for Stage 4 and 5 Drama
Syllabus
Further information and teaching support is available on NSW drama 7–10 Syllabus (2003).
Contact us
Stay connected with the creative arts curriculum team by:
- Subscribing to the Creative arts curriculum network.
- Joining the Creative arts statewide staffroom
- Email creativearts7-12@det.nsw.edu.au