Courses 2019-2020

Drama Workshops for Children

This practical, fun, engaging day will draw on a variety of strategies and research to inspire children to write, perform, create, play and engage using a range of dramatic techniques and games. The day will focus on using a picture book or piece of art and exploring different ways in which children can respond to it, both individually and in a group. With a focus on confidence building, expression, freedom and exploration, this day of drama is sure to inspire!

During the day we will:

-Play a variety of drama games and activities to encourage the children to think about character, feelings, setting and space

-Explore creatice responses to a stimulus, such as a piece of music, a Shakespearian play, a film clip, famous artwork or a picture book

-Respond and create using drama, poetry, art, movement, dance and music

-Work in groups to write, develop, perform and review a piece of drama for an audience

-Develop and encourage speaking and listening skills, group work, resilience, imagination and confidence

The days can be designed linked to a specific topic, story or theme.

Developing whole class reading and reading comprehension strategies

Perfect for: English co-ordinators, class teachers

During the course we will:

-Explore ways of delivering whole class reading, drawing on up to date studies and theory

-Look at ways to develop specific reading skills such as retrieval, sequencing and inference

-Look at a range of pictures and film clips to develop reading skills

-Explore a range of practical activities to enhance reading lessons

-Waffle about books and enjoying sharing some!

Improving sentence structure and writing

Perfect for: English co-ordinators, class teachers

During the course we will

-Explore activities to develop children’s understanding of conjunctions

-Develop strategies to improve descriptive language and sentence openers

-Explore how to use books to teach sentence structure

-Use film clips and visual literacy to improve writing

-Learn about how to develop cross-curricular writing

Writing Workshops for Children

Fun, engaging, interactive workshops, aimed at children.

During the day we will look at:

-Using picture books to develop reading skills

-Using films and picture books to inspire writing

-How to write in a specific genre and engage your audience

-Illustration and presentation

By the end of the day, the children will be have a finished written product to share

I am what I am: Homophobic bullying and using children’s books to promote tolerance and equality

Perfect for: secondary schools, class teachers, SLT, LSAs, PSHE leaders

This practical course aims to get you thinking about how best to celebrate difference, how to promote equality and diversity, the impact of homophobic bullying and the role of LGBTQ+ characters in children’s literature.

Throughout the day we will explore:

The impact of homophobic bullying

My reading journey – books that supported and nurtured me when coming out

Resources to support the teaching of LGBTQ+ issues throughout the curriculum

Planning to use a range of books and films that recognise and celebrate people in the LGBTQ+ community

I am also happy to talk to groups of children about my personal experiences of bullying or run an assembly on the impact of homophobic bullying.

Creating a Writer’s Portfolio: Developing Writing Across a Range of Genres

Perfect for: NQTs, PGCE and SCITT students and anyone on a teacher training programme

This course will expose new teachers to a range of different texts and genres. Teachers will be supported in developing and improving their own writing and leave the day with a portfolio of writing, to which they can refer to when modelling writing to their class. Throughout the day we will explore:

-how to use high quality texts to inspire writing

-the planning process and use of guided writing

-how to model writing a high quality text to a class

-how to write a range of fiction and non-fiction texts

-how to teach grammar to enhance meaning

Drama into Writing: Effective Approaches to Developing Writing Through Drama

Perfect for: English co-ordinators, class teachers

This practical and interactive course will give practitioners a range of tools, games and activities in order to use drama to improve writing. Throughout the day we will:

-develop an understanding of the role of drama and oracy in children’s writing

-creative ideas for teaching drama

-how to use drama activities alongside writing to improve outcomes

For more information and costs, please email: [email protected]