What do I get out of Drama? The answer’s easy – loads of ‘life skills’, fun and confidence-building!

At Warneford, the vast majority of students love their Drama lessons: the freedom to create characters and situations; to be somebody different; to create a feeling of empathy with different people; working in groups; presenting themselves in a clear and engaging manner – these are but a few of the benefits of Drama.

Skills such as freeze-frames, thought-tracking, hot-seating and mime are taken into GCSE Drama, to create impressive pieces of drama. Five formal assessments over the two years create the opportunity for the best two practical marks to be sent to the exam board (60% of final GCSE grade). Three of the assessments are improvisations based on a theme – Fairy Tales, Secrets and Trust and, finally, Confinement. Two of the assessed pieces are script based. There is also a final exam taken in May of Year 11 (40% of final GSCE grade); plenty of preparation work is done for this written paper, which should ensure success overall.

Students have the opportunity to go on at least two, normally four, theatre visits. Past visits have included ‘Blood Brothers’, ‘The Lion King’, ‘An Inspector Calls’, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ and ‘Red Shoes’, all of which have been thoroughly enjoyed.

Further information can be found on the AQA website https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/drama/gcse/drama-8261

Finally, extra-curricular activities are available, from lunchtime Year 7 Drama Club to involvement in Shakespeare Schools Festival, from Mask workshops to running workshops for Challenge Group.