Goals of Creative Drama

Basis for Theatre Arts
Theatre, the imagined and enacted world of human beings, is one of the primary ways children at an early age learn about life - about actions and consequences, about customs and beliefs, about others and themselves. They learn through their social pretend play and from hours of viewing television and film. Children use pretend play as a means of making sense of the world; they create situations to play and assume roles; they interact with peers and arrange environments to bring their stories to life; they direct one another to bring order to their drama, and they respond to one another's dramas. In other words, children arrive at school with rudimentary skills as playwrights, actors, designers, directors, and audience members; theatre arts education should build on this foundation. The theatre arts program in the early years starts with and has a strong emphasis on improvisation, which is the basis of social pretend play.

 

The goals of creative drama include:

Language and Communication
Enhancement of language practice, and awareness of communication choices and how they affect those around us.

Problem solving skills
A safe environment to explore solving conflict with the ability to propose and try solutions.

Creativity
An outlet for fostering and developing creative thinking and interactions through dramatic play and art.

Positive Self-concept
A perspective change to see where you fit in and how your life can, has, or may change. An opportunity to fail without repercussions.

Social Awareness
Exploring the “how” and “why” of different cultures, practices, and backgrounds to embrace our differences.

Empathy
A chance to deepen understanding of why people feel the way they often do, and how we can experience similar emotions and situations. A sense of "feeling with."

Values and Attitudes
Consciously, or subconsciously, examining how your beliefs, or a character's beliefs, mesh or clash with others.

An Understanding of the Art of Theatre
A basic opportunity to experience the facets of the art of theatre through simple in—class performance/sharing, pride, production, process, and product.

 

Purpose of Theatre Arts
Participating in theatre arts in teaches the basic life skills, thinking skills and personal qualities which:

develop an understanding of the ideas, attitudes, beliefs, and feelings of diverse people in different times throughout history as communicated through literature and theatre.

employ techniques for teaching and learning through developmental processes and activity-oriented methods.

promote higher level critical and creative thinking skills, problem recognition and problem solving, intuition, examination and implementation of conflict resolution, and the learning of reading, writing, math and other areas of the curriculum.

assist in focusing the emotions for controlled use, strengthening the imagination for creative self-expression, disciplining the voice and body for purposeful use, expanding intellectual horizons to include aesthetic awareness, developing self-discipline, and providing a basic understanding and critical appreciation of all the theatre arts.

involve making connections between theatre arts and other art forms, other curriculum areas, dramatic media, and the related use of technology including numbers and data.

provide an intense study of what playwrights seek to convey and how this is intensified through theatrical production, thus giving students insights into countless aspects of the diverse and changing world.

include the reading, viewing, listening, researching, writing, speaking, preparing to perform, performing, and directing of traditional and experimental theatrical forms, as well as, the accompanying aspects of technical production.

engage students in the creative process and the practical application of theatre techniques (such as observing, considering possibility, and communicating) which students can use in studying other areas of the curriculum and for life-long learning.

and enable students to function and communicate more proficiently, work independently as a member of a team, to value the individual contributions of others, and to learn virtually any subject matter in a more dynamic way.

 

Strands
The following strands run throughout the program, they are listed and defined as follows:

Perceiving - To become aware directly through any of the senses.

Thinking - The act or practice of formulating in the brain; a way of reasoning, reflecting or judging.

Comprehending - To mentally take in the meaning, nature or importance.

Applying - To put into action or to adapt for a special use.

Integrating - The process of combining or coordinating separate and diverse understandings, perceptions or information into a more complete understanding of something.

Communicating - The art and technique of using effectively words, physical gestures or various types of technology to impart ideas, information or messages.

Creating - To produce through artistic or imaginative effort.

Analyzing - To separate into parts or basic principles so as to determine the nature of the whole.

Critiquing - To review or discuss critically.

Imitating (Kindergarten - grade 2) - To use or follow as a model the actions, appearance, mannerisms or speech of others.

Presenting (grades 3 - 5) - To offer or share, usually in a classroom or informal theatre setting, a portrayal or other theatre work for consideration or display.

Performing (grades 6 - 12) - To portray a role or skill before an audience in a formal or informal setting.

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Appalachian State University

& The Turchin Center for the Visual Arts