Drama

Drama plays an important role in all areas of the School and ensures that our pupils can speak and perform publicly with confidence.

From Nursery right through to Year 6, drama and performance feature across many areas of the curriculum. Children thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to perform on stage, in assemblies and as part of their lessons.

Why is it important in education?

From an early age we try and equip our children with the skills needed to succeed inside and outside school. Skills like communication, self-expression, problem-solving and forward-thinking. Drama provides many opportunities to nurture and hone these skills as it permeates through aspects of the curriculum and helps children establish a strong platform from which they can build upon.

Drama activities can steer children down avenues related to public speaking, creative thinking and negotiation. It can also open the floor to creative criticism and feedback from others prepares them for life in the workplace.

Furthermore, drama creates a fun, supportive and multisensory environment. Pupils use drama to express their real emotions, test their creativity and guide their own learning.

Drama at Yarm Preparatory School

Drama features in our extra-curricular and activities programme throughout the year and provides many opportunities for children to further their passion for performance.

In Nursery, Reception and Pre-Prep, the children are regularly invited to role-play. They also perform a nativity and assemblies to pupil and parent audiences.

Children build on their passion for performance further as they move through Preparatory School. They perform in nativity plays, seasonal celebrations, year group plays and prize givings. Year 3 perform a Christmas themed production to mark their first time in the Prep School whilst every class regularly performs class assemblies to their parents and the school community. Our Year 6 pupils also perform in a production in the summer term.

We welcome pupils to perform in a range of excellent locations as this supports their confidence on stage. This includes the well-equipped Pre-Prep Studio Hall and Prep Hall, as well as the stunning 750-seat Princess Alexandra Auditorium based in the Senior School. We invite our families to the many performances that take place in all of our performance spaces.

As well as taking part in drama classes, the School often visits local theatres in Teesside and our own Princess Alexandra Auditorium to watch dramatic performances that are related to their curriculum areas. Visiting actors, authors and poets often provide further enrichment opportunities across the curriculum.

We want to support all of our pupils and ensure we do what we can to help them improve in areas and activities they most enjoy. For keen drama pupils in Years 3 -6 we offer extra tuition in speech and drama with our specialist staff.  They will be prepared for LAMDA examinations and are given the opportunity to compete in local festivals over the year.