Characters, Environments and Stories
Welcome to Drama at TdVA!
What is Drama? At TdVA Drama is the exploration of characters and their stories. Students create, enact, explore, problem-solve and collaborate their way through every subject area. We use critical thinking skills to bring history, literature, math and science to life.
Your child will work with their classmates to develop stories, explore historical events and perspectives, jump into literature: changing endings, becoming characters and gaining a deeper understanding of the human story. They will explore theater tech from costumes and sets to lights and sound using those tools to bring ideas to life. They will also learn to collaborate with their peers and create together.
We also have Galleries or “informances” (our version of a grade level performance). Students will have the opportunity to share what they are learning in their classrooms through Drama. Some examples are our 3rd Grade Gallery: Ecosystem Circus; 4th Grade: Colorado History Comes to Life; 1st Grades exploration of the night sky and 2nd Grade’s Wax Museum of Biographies. Every child has the chance to create and develop these special nights.
Below are more examples of how Drama is utilized at TdVA. Here are examples of Arts Integration through Drama:
Kindergarten- connect science by becoming entomologists to explore bugs or creating the Arctic using props and sets and bring arctic animals to life
1st Grade- students create and perform folktales, explore community by turning the Drama room into a life-sized map that we navigate.
2nd Grade- students create and fairytales, Create their own community (Rural, Urban or Suburban), and problem-solve their way through its development.
3rd Grade- bring famous art to life through shadow theater or exploring Colorado Springs history through scene creation
4th Grade- Becoming archeologists and discovering artifacts that tell the stories of ancient cultures. Then, bringing those characters and stories to life.
5th Grade- Become explorers and navigate our way to the new world where we interact with the native people and experience new perspectives.
