Theatre-in-Education (TIE) is a term coined in the 60s and typically includes a theatre company performing in an educational setting (i.e. a school) for youth, including interactive and performative moments. TIE seeks to educate young people on issues that are relevant to both them and their communities, for example: bullying, environmental preservation, and peer conflict resolution.
Continuing on from the success of last year, this year we developed this unit further with our Y11 Drama class, focusing on TIE and the fostering the relationship we have with our special ESF sister school Jockey Club Sarah Roe School (JCSRS). The students at JCSRS all have complex learning needs, and yet all love Drama as much as our students do.
In collaboration with colleagues at JCSRS, we built a unit of learning which focusses on our DC students creating, performing and supporting original theatre works specifically designed for a young special needs audience, set into the current JCSRS learning unit of inquiry. The unit was focused on ‘Looking after myself’ and had themes of personal hygiene, personal safety, and making the right choices for ourselves.
Our Y11 students researched the relevant issues, explored similar materials for the allocated age groups and then, in groups, created a short play with accompanying activity to support the learning.
On Tuesday 11 June, our Y11 Drama class culminated the TIE unit with a trip to JCSRS to perform six pieces of theatre and run their activities with students across the age groups of 5-19. Our students did a great job and learned so much from the process. Their empathy, friendliness and teaching skills were heartwarming to watch, and the students at JCSRS all loved the performances and interaction with our students during their activities.
In response to the feedback received from last year’s students, Holly Manning, the arts coordinator at JCSRS, and I decided to integrate our students more during the day, so in times when they were not performing, our DC students spent time with specific classes, experienced the Sensory Integration Room, and assisted in the Living skills room and in the cafe run by their students. We are very pleased with the outcome of this unit and as always, I couldn’t be prouder of my Y11 Drama students
– Danielle Veilleux