There are three types of drama books on the shelves of Drama teachers across the land. Mixed in with play texts we used for that one awkward GCSE group back in 2014 there will be a little collection.
The first type will be drama pedagogy or theory. We might have picked these up when we doing our degree or teaching qualification. Books of Dorothy Heathcote, Cecily O’ Neill, Jonathan Neelands et al – books read for inspiration and guidance often neglected in the busy day to day business of working with young people. Some might say unfairly…
And there’s the second sort. Books written by practitioners of the art of theatre. Katie Mitchell on directing; Frantic Assembly on devising; Declan Donnellan on acting. Books I dip in and out of and am always promising myself I’m going to get round to reading in full one day. One day.
And then there’s the practical handbooks. The books you grab after parents evening or a particularly good weekend or when you’ve used up all your ideas with year 9.
Sam Marsden books are firmly in this third category. Born out of years of experience and in a simple straightforward format that is easy to use and follow, these slender books are the busy Drama teachers’ helpmate. Her two new books, however, are aimed at specific groups with specific aims.
The first DRAMA GAMES FOR EARLY YEARS (4 -7 YEARS) is a collection of games and exercises aimed at supporting structured imaginative play with the youngest of age groups. Anyone who has ever worked with groups of 4 – 7-year-olds will know that both their energy and their imagination is boundless. The trick is to channel these things into positive and developmental experiences. Sam’s book, based on over a decade of after school clubs, helps with this but also suggests that you could use these games just as a warm up for some other activities.
ACTING EXERCISES FOR CREATIVE WRITING the second book being added to the series is generally for older children, although I’m certainly planning to make use of some of these ideas with my adult writing group. This book will be invaluable to anyone who is trying to get young people to write interestingly and creatively but are faced with the teenager’s cry of “Oh miss, I dunno what to write”. Yes, English teachers I’m looking at you. I’ve been there; I know how frustrating it is Some of the exercises are 10-minute warmups; some are longer but all can be adapted to suit the situation that you are trying to work out, and because of the format it won’t be a difficult job. I think some of the short exercises on developing character or considering an inciting incident could be used as a possible help for devising. I certainly intend to try it.
Both books also contain brilliant QR codes allowing you access to play lists of music to go with the exercises or the worksheets that you need for the writing exercises, making them extremely user friendly. They’re also competitively priced so you can afford the whole lot. Go on, use up the last few pounds in your budget. You’ll thank me and Sam in some future November morning…
Drama Games for Early Years (4-7 Years) and Acting Exercises for Creative Writing are published by Morpho Press and are available now on Amazon at the links above.