Primary drama resources

A series of simple displays with key words accompanied by a picture.

A full scheme of work with a detailed work booklet exploring ‘An Inspector Calls’ (Drama but also suitable for English) including: characters plot themes exploration of social class assessment task

This assembly script is designed for Y6 leavers - focusing on being locked in ‘primary jail’ for various crimes and needed to perform tasks to escape to secondary school. Each child has committed a crime (e.g. crimes against handwriting/dad dancing etc). one child from each task escapes until they join a group at the end, who perform a dance - therefore when adapting to suit your class, you may need to change the crimes or order of children. It could be adapted to suit any transition year. Our class thoroughly enjoyed this play.

The ballad Candle In The Wind by Elton John and Bernie Taupin is about the effects of fame and Marilyn Monroe. But the writers said that it could be about anyone who has had their life cut short through fame. The same song was then re-written and played during the funeral of Princess Diana. This lesson uses drama to explore these same themes of how society glorifies fame and immortalises the famous. This is a perfect resource for Key Stage 3, to help students at this level understand and appreciate the themes of this complex ballad in a creative and accessible way.

This pack is to support teachers in exploring the production ‘The Velveteen Rabbit’, an adaptation of the iconic children’s book, for working with children in Years 1 - 4. It contains interviews with the director, one of the actors, images of the set design by James Button, and practical drama activities that explore themes and ideas in the play.

This pack is to support teachers in exploring the production ‘Seesaw’, for working with children in Early Years - Year 4. It contains interviews with the writer, director, and practical drama activities that explore themes and ideas in the play.

This pack is to support teachers in exploring the production ‘Othello’, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s play for working with children in Years 4 - 8. It contains an interview with the director and practical drama activities that explore themes and ideas in the play.

This pack is to support teachers in exploring the production ‘Othello’, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s play for working with children in Years 4 - 8. It contains an interview with the director and practical drama activities that explore themes and ideas in the play.

This pack is to support teachers in exploring the production ‘Laika’, working with children in Years 2 - 6. It contains an interview with the directors and practical drama activities that explore themes and ideas in the play.

This pack is to support teachers in exploring the production ‘Beowulf’, a reimagining of the Old English epic poem, with students. It contains context around the myth & the poem, interviews with the writer and composer, and practical drama activities that explore themes and ideas in the play.

This pack is for teachers working with children in Year 4 and above. It contains ideas for classroom activities to explore ‘Beginners’, including an interview with writer and director Tim Crouch, and practical drama activities that explore themes and ideas in the play.

My year 4 class wanted to do a World Cup themed leavers show this year, but I couldn’t find anything suitable that would allow them to also share their memories and stories, so I wrote this instead. There are 5 acts in the show, each one has space for memories from a specific time/year group - namely: reception and nursery (combined), year 1, year 2, year 3 and year 4 (in that order). For obvious reasons these will need to be completed by you, although I had my class write their own scripts for each of these bits and just added them in when they were done to save me some time. There is also a song at the end of each act. These are not detailed due to copyright issues - you will have to choose your own. With my class I have used a mix of songs the children liked singing in school and some pop songs they enjoy with altered lyrics. In addition there is a bit for a group of children to do a dance/gymnastics/karate/origami/whatever else suits your kids routine (cheerleaders bit). It’s a fairly straightforward setup, and props wise the minimum you would need are a desk and chairs for the commentators to sit at on stage, and a whistle. While it’s set up for year 4, it could easily be adapted for year 6 or another primary age class. PLEASE NOTE: Act 5 contains some reference to the pen licence music (Strauss’ Also Sprach Zarathustra, the theme from Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey), which I play to my class when someone is being awarded a pen licence. Clearly this will not be relevant to your children so the final ‘breaking news’ act will need a slight bit of tweaking to fit your class.

The Race to Bethlehem is a heart-warming version of the Christmas story for younger children (ages 4 to 8) to perform. In the story we meet Farmer Dan’s pigeons and Fluff, a little pigeon who prefers walking to flying. Every year, the village farmers hold a race to Bethlehem for the pigeons and Fluff is determined to get there. On the way he meets Joseph and Mary, who are on their way to Bethlehem too… The Race to Bethlehem story is written simply for young children to learn easily. The 7 original songs are catchy and fun to sing, easy to learn and remember. In addition there are two well-known songs – Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (with an additional verse) and Away in a Manger. The script includes stage directions to help with your performance. I hope the children, their teachers and parents enjoy the story of Fluff’s journey to Bethlehem and his encounter with the Nativity story!

A card game that can be used as a starter, plenary or as a revision activity. Students can work in pairs/groups and they turn over a card. They should describe how they would play that stereotypical character by explaining how they would use their acting skills/characterisation. The rest of their group should guess the stereotypical character. Could be developed into a charades type game. This includes 24 characters/cards.

This game is a great starter, plenary or general revision tool. Can be used as a starter task by giving each student one of the cards and they have to find their partner or as the more traditional card game method. This consists of 16 pairs of cards - one has a stereotypical character printed on it, the other has the acting skills required to play that character. Cards should be printed double sided and then cut out so that the pattern is on the back of the cards.

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**** STAGE PLAY VERSION **** This is a tried and tested Script, created for a after-school drama club. It was performed by a mixture of Lower and Upper KS2 children. It would be perfect for a Drama Club or PSHE project. It also highlights ‘first days’ and transition along with sibling and peer relationships. It has an appropriate ending to promote ‘doing the right thing’ and forgiveness I give permission for the names and genders to be changed to suit the group performing. Please leave a review to help others thinking of purchasing.

These are good warm up games or class activities. Each game teaches a different drama skills and the games are brightly printed so could be displayed. Please leave a review for others.

This is a good warm up game. It encourages the children to move, follow instructions and use senses.The game is brightly printed and could be displayed. Please leave a review for others and check out my pack of 5 games for £2

We all know that teaching sophisticated terminology can be really dull, so I decided to teach my class 18 top terms using Disney (and other family films). This will take 2 lessons, unless you skip some parts of the clips, or don’t complete them all. Included is the powerpoint that contains a starter and all the answers for the students (and yourself beforehand), whilst the worksheet contains the definitions for later revision and the space to conduct the quiz format lesson. I teach these terms by first having students read the terms and definitions aloud in class and clear up any misunderstandings. I then open the YouTube playlist and put it on shuffle. The students should write on their worksheets in pencil and should write the name of the film next to the technique that they think is present in the clip. You can choose to reveal the answers as you go through or all at the end… Normally, I do it all at the end because students change their answers after seeing a clip like Finding Nemo and realising that Dory and Marlin are foils of each other. Unfortunately, you will need internet for this lesson as YouTube is a central part, and as the playlist I have made is on YouTube, I cannot promise that videos won’t randomly stop working. I would double check these before doing the lesson, but you have all the answers and can search the same video on YouTube otherwise. Lastly, use the two Lion King videos together, one shows Scar killing Mufasa, and the other shows him blaming Simba (DRAMATIC IRONY OR WHAT?!)

Drama! Bring out the risk taking, creativity in your young actors t with this fun script for reading and fluency. Complete with fun props, which are entirely optional, you could have a full blown Oscar worthy performance! With masks, speech bubbles and puppets, let the children decide how to perform this classic fairy tale. Perfect for literacy groups with 9 in the cast. The script is designed for 3rd-5th grade. With a focus on the traditional American fairy story of The Gingerbread Man this drama will reinforce the children’s understanding as well as reinforcing reading fluency. The performance takes approximately 12 minutes once rehearsed. The props are easy to print and go, with simple preparation involving nothing more than construction paper, scissors and glue. Bring this engaging and funny reading activity into your classroom and enjoy the kiddos’ creativity. This readers’ theatre is a part of my complete unit of inquiry of Fairy Tales. You may also be interested in these dramas too - Pilgrims in A Pickle , a tale of the American Thanksgiving story and The Nose Glows, a comedy about Rudolph and the need to be friends. Follow along with my store. You can find many more hands on tips and tools in my store and on my blog. Enjoy! Susan Powers PYPteachingtools.com

I wrote this play based on the nativity story - based mostly on the 3 kings who get lost trying to find where baby Jesus is being born. I used lots of local references - to the local hospital, a nearby toll bridge and a local hotel / castle - but it should be easy to substitute in local landmarks near you. It has 21 speaking parts, suitable for KS2 and Y2 children) and as many parts for ‘farm animals’ as you want (non-speaking parts). There are places suggested for 6 songs, there are some suggested songs but you could put in any songs of your choice. We performed this to the parents at Christmas a few years ago and they loved all the local references, it went down very well.

I wrote this play for our whole school, we are in a small village primary school but it could be easily adapted for a KS2 class. It has 7 suggested songs (carols such as ‘O Little town of Bethlehem’ and ‘Once in Royal David’s City’ ) but these can be deleted or substituted as required. There are 26 parts, 4 of which are non-speaking parts. It only requires very simple props. It tells the story of the nativity but through an evening TV news report. I’ve left spaces to substitute in the name of your school and the names of the different reporters with the children’s names.

I wrote this adaptation of ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ for our Christmas play but it could be used at any time of year. The main characters visit ‘different countries’ which offers lots of opportunities for children to do songs and dances from different places, I’ve used a French song, an American line dancing scene and others - but they could be adapted to whatever skills/ strengths your children have. There’s around 19 speaking parts and also lots of opportunities for singing and dancing for various groups of children. I use it as a whole school play in our very small village primary school but it could easily be adapted for a KS2 class.

I wrote this adaptation of ‘A Christmas Carol’ as a whole school Christmas play for our very small village primary school, it was very popular with the parents. It has roughly 30 parts - but some can be ‘doubled-up’ if needed. There’s also a suggestion for KS1 children to perform a song and dance at one point but this can also be adapted if needed. There’s suggestions for songs at different stages in the play but these can be dropped/ substituted as required. I usually ask KS2 children to take the speaking parts, there’s a main character (Scrooge) and most of the other characters have roughly 2-6 lines to learn. This could easily be adapted for a class Christmas play, probably Year 2 upwards.

I wrote this Christmas play based on a folk tale, it has 34 parts (but some could be doubled - up if needed) and it contains suggestions for songs to sing a different parts of the play but these can be dropped / substituted as you wish. The main character has 15 lines and most characters have around 2 - 6 lines, there are also a few non-speaking parts. The narration of the story is told in rhyme and there’s the option of a child singing a solo, if wanted. The props are minimal and easy - just spades for the villagers and a throne (decorated chair) for Father Time and the costumes should be fairly easy - I usually ask narrators to dress in plain dark clothes and there’s a Wicked Winter Witch who has one costume change (into a sparkly gown and wearing a crown). I will use it for the whole school (we’re in a very small village school) with KS2 taking the speaking parts and I’ve put in an option for KS1 children to do a song & dance part way through - but it could easily be adapted to use with a class, probably Y2 upwards.

These colourful, comprehensive, and well-structured revision cards have been creatively designed for students securing their understanding of Arthur Miller’s play 'A View from the Bridge.’ Each card is visually-appealing and highly-detailed, covering aspects of each feature including a full summary, cited quotations from the play, definitions/ examples, and a consideration of audience reactions. They are tried and tested, with teachers incorporating them in revision games, using them as essay writing aids, or utilising them as home revision aids. They are provided as both PDFs (to prevent formatting issues between computers) and as Word documents (for easy editing). The revision cards included in this pack are: Characters - Eddie, Beatrice, Catherine, Rodolpho, Marco, and Alfieri. Context - Arthur Miller, Italian Immigration, Omerta; Devices - Dramatic Irony, Stage Directions, Dramatic Tension; Scenes - Alfieri’s Prologue, Chair-Lifting Scene, The Tragic Ending; Themes - Community Law, Irrationality, Masculinity. For any questions or comments, please contact TandLGuru@yahoo.co.uk - Many thanks!

This Reading Comprehension worksheet is suitable for upper intermediate to proficient ESL learners. The text gives a summary of Christopher Marlowe’s adventure novel “Doctor Faustus”. After carefully reading the summary of the novel, students are required to complete some comprehension exercises including: True or False exercises, comprehension questions, a character match and a fun crossword . The vocabulary used in the text is rather advanced and can also be used for IGCSE, TOEFL or IELTS vocabulary building purposes. The handout can be completed in class or assigned for homework. A full answer key is included.

Do you love changing up your dramatic play area to keep your kindergarten and preschool students engaged and creative? This dramatic play BUNDLE is visually appealing, engaging, educational and just plain fun! Using dramatic play to learn math, reading, social skills, science, sight words and so much more is incredibly effective and they don’t even realize they are learning! HOSPITAL VET POST OFFICE RESTAURANT

A short extract from the mini play Sausages For Tea, which tells the story of one family’s experience of a WW2 air raid in a fictional town during 1940s Britain. The play mixes fact and fiction, allowing young performers to gain some appreciation of what life was like on the Home Front for children in Britain during World War Two. The play is short and, with a small cast, it is ideal for performances in assemblies and on topic days. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fab classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/ww2-mini-play-for-ks2-ks3-11373895 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play script Whistle As You Walk Away which tells the harrowing stories of children who worked in the cotton mills in Victorian England. The play uses factual accounts from Victorian children to show what life was like at that time, the hardships they faced, and the changes in society which made their lives a little easier. It’s a great historical play with a heart and is perfect for a large cast of young actors who want to connect with this period in British history. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fab classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/victorian-mill-children-play-script-11377361 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play Three Murders, a Suicide and a Near Miss - a great one act version of Othello, Shakespeare’s tragic story of love, jealousy and revenge. The play is presented in the style of a melodrama with the hero, heroine and evil villain evident, but also retains all of characterisation and story elements of the original text. This a great introduction to Shakespeare and provides the opportunity for some really over the top acting from your young performers! These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fabulous classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/three-murders-a-suicide-and-a-near-miss-othello-play-script-11438285 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play The Xmas Factor, a fabulous one act version of the nativity story. This is a respectful retelling of the Christmas story with all of the familiar characters and a couple of interesting extras! As the search is on to find a Christmas star, someone is trying to throw a party in the stable. The play is perfect for seasonal celebrations, can be extended using Christmas music, and provides an ideal opportunity to include younger performers in non-speaking roles. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fabulous classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/the-xmas-factor-ks2-nativity-play-11377298 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play The Witch Who Nicked Happiness, a simple one act fairy tale play which explores issues such as happiness, belief and friendship. When Witch Fisticuffs is refused entry to the Princess’s birthday party she threatens revenge and it looks like she’s succeeded, but things aren’t quite as they seem. This is a lovely play for a small cast and provides an ideal opportunity to include young performers in non-speaking roles. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fabulous classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/the-witch-who-nicked-happiness-play-script-11438278 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play The War of the Vegetables, a lovely one act play about bullying, differences, and living in harmony. The Peas and Tomatoes have accidentally been sown in the same vegetable patch. They are struggling to live together until the Runner Beans threaten to take over and they have to join forces against a common enemy. With narration in rhyming verse and some lovely comedy business from the different vegetables, this is a great play for a large cast of younger performers. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fabulous classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/the-war-of-the-vegetables-play-script-11437930 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play The Trouble With Young People Today… a simple but effective one act play which explores the issues of self-confidence, peer pressure, and just saying no. Jimmy would rather play the fool and impress his friends than use his brain and stay out of trouble. Eventually his craving for attention and respect has dire consequences. This is a powerful play to perform and would work well as a performance to a younger audience. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fabulous classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/the-trouble-with-young-people-today-play-script-11438272 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play The Rise and Fall of Lord Macbeth, a great one act adaptation of Shakespeare’s dramatic tragedy. This play retains all of the character references and story of the original text but in a shorter, simplified, form. It’s a great play for classroom reading during Shakespeare topics and is also very effective as a theatre performance for a large group of young actors. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fabulous classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/macbeth-play-script-for-ks2-ks3-11373876 Thanks everso!

A short extract from the play The Pied Piper of Hamelin, a lovely one act play which tells the whole story of the Pied Piper, the people of Hamelin, and the consequences of breaking promises! The whole poem is narrated and brought to life using additional scenes. This is a great play for a large cast and provides an ideal opportunity to include performers in non-speaking roles. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fabulous classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/pied-piper-of-hamelin-play-script-11377338 Thanks everso!

Three lessons that explore four ballads; The Ballad of Charlotte Dymond, The Ballad of The Gresford Disaster, The Ballad of Frankie and Johnny and Candle In The Wind The lessons introduce students to drama concepts such as cross cutting, dramatic irony, verbatim theatre, epic theatre and documentary theatre. These lessons are an awesome way of helping students understand and access these complex ballads whilst creating some innovative and challenging pieces of Drama.

A short extract from the play The Legend of St George and the Dragon, a lovely one act play that gives an account of how the brave and noble Knight, George, saved a village from the dragon that terrorised it and began his journey to Sainthood. It’s a gentle comedy which small groups of performers in KS2 and KS3 will enjoy. Great for celebrating St George’s Day! These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fab classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/st-george-and-the-dragon-play-script-11377323 Thanks everso!

FIVE LESSONS FOR KS1 & KS2 This Resource Pack has been created for the summer term, to encourage teachers and pupils to get outside and to learn in an outdoor environment (in glorious sunshine, we hope!), using five of the best children’s fiction and non-fiction books as inspiration. The aim of this Resource Pack is for children to feel less inhibited, both physically and mentally, allowing them to learn with more freedom and apply their knowledge in a real-world context. It can be used with all children from KS1 through to KS2, recommended ages 5–11. Each lesson is based on an individual book and targeted at a different age-range, giving teachers flexibility to choose and differentiate as needed. The activities included can be taught as whole units or as individual activities to be dipped in and out of.

A short extract from the play The History of the Theatre - Part One! This is a one act speedy journey through the beginnings and development of the wonderful world of theatre. The story begins with early origins and ends with the emergence of William Shakespeare. It’s a great play script for learning about the history of the theatre in a humourous and entertaining way. These sample pages give you a taster of what the play is like and allow you to try before you buy! If you like this sample the complete script - with full production notes, photocopiable script pages, and fab classroom follow-on activities - can be found in the Arts On The Move Shop here: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/the-history-of-the-theatre-part-one-play-script-11438263 Thanks everso!