Tapping into children’s creativity
The kind of play where a child takes on a role and learns to interact from within that role, is very valuable to his or her development.
Henriette Lamprecht - Verbal communication skills are more important than ever.
In today’s modern world where young people rely so much on technology to socialize and communicate, it is crucial to nurture children’s confidence to allow them to hold their heads up, speak clearly and present themselves well in all situations, says Lauren Stainton-Traut, principal of the Helen O’Grady Drama Academy in Windhoek.
Benefits of dramatic play includes relief from emotional tension, says Lauren.
“Adults tend to cope with a traumatic event by retelling the event over and over. Children, however, tend to replay the event in their dramatic play.”
Children feel powerful when they re-enact frightening experiences, putting themselves in a position of power.
“They may choose to play the mommy or daddy, the most powerful people in their lives. In dramatic play, the child can control the events, and wishes can come true.”
Dramatic play also makes children use social interaction skills, encouraging them to put themselves in someone else’s shoes.
“Such role-playing helps them to improve their ability to do this in real life. They learn important social skills, such as empathy.”
It also encourages expressive language, motivating children to convey their wishes to others and speak from the perspective of their pretend roles.
“It is often through dramatic play that shy or withdrawn children first begin to express themselves through language.”
Dramatic play furthers an understanding of symbols, says Lauren. For example, a doll becomes a symbol for a baby. A slip of paper may become money. Opportunities to create and use symbols help children to utilize other symbols, like letters and numbers.
It also allows children to differentiate between real and pretend.
“This is readily apparent when observing children using exaggerated voices to signal that they are playing their roles or in the child that announces, ‘It’s just pretend.’”
It may seem as though a child who has spent several hours engaged in dramatic play has just been “playing around” and has nothing concrete to show for it. On the contrary, says Lauren, the kind of play where a child takes on a role, and learns to interact from within that role, is very valuable to his or her development.
With the help of dramatic play, preschoolers (three to four years) through the academy’s Kindy-programme are allowed to express themselves creatively through creative movement, dramatic play, speech training, listening skills, language activities, storytelling and song. This results in an enchanting way for young children to interact in a group and learn about individual roles.
“The aim of the development programme is to give young children ongoing confidence, self-esteem and skill in verbal communication. It provides the best possible preparation for growing up.”
Children in this age group are still learning classroom rules and etiquette, social interaction skills within a group, as well as concentration and focusing skills, says Lauren.
With this in mind, the high-energy lessons contain a number of short lesson segments. Although the content will vary from week to week, the segments follow the same format each week to provide security and structure for the children. All segments of the classes have been specifically created and adapted for this age group, with a strong focus on enjoyment and fun for the young students.
The Helen O'Grady Academy, an international company, was originally founded in founded in 1979 in Australia, when Helen O'Grady, a trained teacher, drama teacher and actress, hired a hall and commenced affordable afterschool drama classes for young people from 3 to 18 years of age. Her aim was to provide a self-development drama programme encouraging amongst others enthusiasm, energy and a positive approach to life, ongoing confidence, skills in verbal communication and effective social interaction.
“Our extensive curriculum, designed over the years by experts in their field, as well as our dynamic teachers and easily accessible venues, make this truly community-based organisation, with a strong emphasis on the care of all its students.”
The Helen O’Grady Academy is the only school of its kind that works with a set curriculum designed to help children develop clear, articulate speech, a fluent delivery and the ability to converse and discuss in a creative manner, says Lauren.
“We are not in the business of turning children into stars; focusing instead on tapping into their inherent creativity and encouraging them to come out of their shells. Having fun remains key to the academy’s success because we believe that ‘a lesson learned through fun is never forgotten. It stays with us forever’”.
*[email protected]; www. dramaafrica.com
In today’s modern world where young people rely so much on technology to socialize and communicate, it is crucial to nurture children’s confidence to allow them to hold their heads up, speak clearly and present themselves well in all situations, says Lauren Stainton-Traut, principal of the Helen O’Grady Drama Academy in Windhoek.
Benefits of dramatic play includes relief from emotional tension, says Lauren.
“Adults tend to cope with a traumatic event by retelling the event over and over. Children, however, tend to replay the event in their dramatic play.”
Children feel powerful when they re-enact frightening experiences, putting themselves in a position of power.
“They may choose to play the mommy or daddy, the most powerful people in their lives. In dramatic play, the child can control the events, and wishes can come true.”
Dramatic play also makes children use social interaction skills, encouraging them to put themselves in someone else’s shoes.
“Such role-playing helps them to improve their ability to do this in real life. They learn important social skills, such as empathy.”
It also encourages expressive language, motivating children to convey their wishes to others and speak from the perspective of their pretend roles.
“It is often through dramatic play that shy or withdrawn children first begin to express themselves through language.”
Dramatic play furthers an understanding of symbols, says Lauren. For example, a doll becomes a symbol for a baby. A slip of paper may become money. Opportunities to create and use symbols help children to utilize other symbols, like letters and numbers.
It also allows children to differentiate between real and pretend.
“This is readily apparent when observing children using exaggerated voices to signal that they are playing their roles or in the child that announces, ‘It’s just pretend.’”
It may seem as though a child who has spent several hours engaged in dramatic play has just been “playing around” and has nothing concrete to show for it. On the contrary, says Lauren, the kind of play where a child takes on a role, and learns to interact from within that role, is very valuable to his or her development.
With the help of dramatic play, preschoolers (three to four years) through the academy’s Kindy-programme are allowed to express themselves creatively through creative movement, dramatic play, speech training, listening skills, language activities, storytelling and song. This results in an enchanting way for young children to interact in a group and learn about individual roles.
“The aim of the development programme is to give young children ongoing confidence, self-esteem and skill in verbal communication. It provides the best possible preparation for growing up.”
Children in this age group are still learning classroom rules and etiquette, social interaction skills within a group, as well as concentration and focusing skills, says Lauren.
With this in mind, the high-energy lessons contain a number of short lesson segments. Although the content will vary from week to week, the segments follow the same format each week to provide security and structure for the children. All segments of the classes have been specifically created and adapted for this age group, with a strong focus on enjoyment and fun for the young students.
The Helen O'Grady Academy, an international company, was originally founded in founded in 1979 in Australia, when Helen O'Grady, a trained teacher, drama teacher and actress, hired a hall and commenced affordable afterschool drama classes for young people from 3 to 18 years of age. Her aim was to provide a self-development drama programme encouraging amongst others enthusiasm, energy and a positive approach to life, ongoing confidence, skills in verbal communication and effective social interaction.
“Our extensive curriculum, designed over the years by experts in their field, as well as our dynamic teachers and easily accessible venues, make this truly community-based organisation, with a strong emphasis on the care of all its students.”
The Helen O’Grady Academy is the only school of its kind that works with a set curriculum designed to help children develop clear, articulate speech, a fluent delivery and the ability to converse and discuss in a creative manner, says Lauren.
“We are not in the business of turning children into stars; focusing instead on tapping into their inherent creativity and encouraging them to come out of their shells. Having fun remains key to the academy’s success because we believe that ‘a lesson learned through fun is never forgotten. It stays with us forever’”.
*[email protected]; www. dramaafrica.com
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