In her second article, Alison Chaplin
describes how a fast-paced but reflective
drama workshop can produce a script
based on Roger McGough’s moving poem
about a young death, ‘The Identification’.
By Key Stage 3, pupils are expected to extend their dramatic
repertoire by exploring different roles and contexts. By Years 8
and 9, they should also be being taught to ‘use a range of drama
techniques to explore issues’. In this article, I shall describe how
these two strands of drama work can be combined in a project
that also fulfils a third requirement: that pupils devise and
perform their own drama scripts.
Drama and PSHE have always been linked, partly because
both involve reflection and evaluation, but also because drama is
an ideal way to explore personal and social issues. Devising and
writing an issue-based script therefore seems like a good idea.
But such projects have to be handled carefully. Pupils love to
explore themes they relate to — friendship, jealousy, love,
bullying, peer pressure — but there’s a high risk of issue-based
drama ending up as a cliché-ridden soap opera, or so issue-based
it’s impossible to identify a core story.
The best approach to creating an issue-based performance is
to select a good stimulus, one that will capture pupils’ imagination. Then, use a workshop approach to encourage pupils to
develop an issue that arises naturally from this. A story with a
strong central character, a strong theme, or a strong single issue is
ideal.
The stimulus for the workshop I am about to describe is
Roger McGough’s harrowing poem, ‘The Identification’. This
appeared in the poet’s Blazing Fruit: Selected Poems 1967–1987,
published by Penguin in 1989, and can be found on line, for
example at www.poetrysociety.org.uk/ content/ archives/places/
rogermcgough/btapril/ or http:// famouspoetsandpoems.com/
poets/roger_mcgough/poems/ 1801. It was written in response
to a bombing in Belfast, but this is not information that needs
to be given to the pupils. For them, it is simply a poem with
strong images of a boy who could be their own age and which
has plenty of relevance across the world today.
The poem has the capacity to stimulate powerful pieces of
drama work; but if this is to happen, it is essential to allow
sufficient time, both for planning and for the work itself.
Regular discussions form part of the creative process, shaping the
drama and enabling pupils to share opinions, feelings and
experiences. It is crucial that opportunities for such contributions are planned in. Also, as pupils build a clear picture of the
central character, there are several points at which the drama
could travel in different directions. I have noted some of these
moments, where it is important to ensure pupils have enough
time to consider alternative routes.
The Secondary English Magazine June 2007
Much of the script emerges through different writing-in-role
exercises arising from the drama — scenes of dialogue, monologues, police reports, and so on. These provide the frame upon
which the rest of the script may be hung, and so it is — again
— essential that sufficient time is allowed to complete each piece
of writing satisfactorily.
As in my previous article (The SEM Vol 10 No 4) my aim is
to use drama strategies to explore character, story and issues in
order to support pupils in devising original scripted pieces.
Although this workshop is long, it does work best as one
continuous session. However, there are points at which it can be
paused and continued later, and I have noted these so that they
can be planned in and care taken not to break the dramatic
tension inappropriately.
So, to the work. Before the poem is introduced, the pupils
should use a set of freezes that will prepare them for the introduction of the dramatic stimulus.
An approach through freezes
Freezes of objects
Ask pupils to move slowly and carefully around the drama
space. Call out numbers, at which point they should form
groups of that number and create a three-dimensional freeze
frame of an object, for example: teapot (3); piano (2); bed (4);
car (5); rocket (6); dragon (5); first 3 or 4 rows of a roller-coaster
(6/8) Keep the action moving from one freeze to the next, but
allow sufficient time to view and comment positively on freezes
— realism, body language, originality, imagination, facial
expressions, and so on.
Freezes of emotions
Use the same process as above, but this time pupils create freezes
which represent emotions — using either abstract or realistic
forms — for example: anger (2); joy (4); fear (5) boredom (1);
nervousness (3); excitement (2); loneliness (4). Again, view and
comment positively on effective, realistic or imaginative freezes.
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Freezes of strong images
Ask pupils to work in 2s or 3s to create freezes which depict
strong images: bully and victim (2 bullies if working as a 3);
leader and follower (2 followers if working as a 3); participant
and observer (2 participants if working as a 3). Pupils should
swap roles and repeat the frame so that they have experience of
both roles. View and discuss as many of these images as possible,
considering how powerful they are, their realism, expression,
body positioning, and so on.
Freezes of stories
Working in 5s or 6s, pupils create story freezes (tableaux) which
represent each of these titles in turn: A Dilemma; The Outsider;
The Accident; Bad News.
Allow sufficient time to view and discuss each freeze, exploring
its use of positioning, its effectiveness, power, realism, validity,
relevance to title, and so on. Give thanks and praise for all efforts.
The final freeze links directly to the spontaneous pair
improvisations — imparting bad news — given below.
Break Point If the workshop needs to be split into
several sessions, this is a good place for the first
break. The story freezes can be repeated as a
prompt to start the next session.
Introducing the ‘bad news’ theme
Paired improvisation — spontaneous
Ask pupils to find a partner and a space to work in. They are to
improvise (act out) short scenes based on giving, or being given,
bad news. Allow each pair a short time to discuss their scene and
select roles. Any pupils working as a 3 must decide who the
third character is in the context of the drama. Pupils change
partners after each improvisation. If time allows, some of the
more interesting or effective scenes can be shown to the rest of
the class. Scenes could include:
■ a man from the council telling an old lady she has to leave
her house because the street is being demolished
■ being told by your long-term boyfriend/girlfriend that you’re
dumped
■ telling someone that you’ve just run over their pet.
Discussion
Ask the class to sit in a circle and lead them in a discussion by
asking:
■ what’s the worst news you’ve ever been told?
■ and what’s the worst news you’ve ever had to tell?
Aside from the usual ‘being dumped or dumping’ my
worst news was hearing of the death of my father
and then having to tell my aunt, his sister. I occasionally use this as an example of ‘being told or telling’
bad news. Sharing this sort of information can create
an emotional depth which you may or may not want
to plumb. The benefit is that it diverts the discussion
away from endless ‘being dumped/dumping’ stories
and sets a strong emotional tone for the rest of the
drama. The downside is that it may generate emotional involvement which teacher or pupils don’t
want to handle.
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Develop the discussion by explaining the expression ‘don’t
shoot the messenger’ and considering that, although it’s difficult
to hear bad news, it can also be extremely tough to deliver it.
Finally, ask the class to respond to the question:
■ What’s the worst news a parent could hear?
(The most likely answer: ‘That their child has been hurt’.)
During discussions it’s important to accept that some
pupils will simply repeat what has already been said.
Don’t point this out. It reflects a need to be involved
in the process, and can also be viewed as a form of
reinforcing an important idea. Acknowledge and
thank all pupils for their responses.
Paired improvisation — prepared
Ask the pupils to work in pairs, adopting the roles of a police
officer (or 2 for those working in a 3) and a parent. The officer
must tell the parent that their son or daughter has been in an
accident. (There’s no more information at the moment.)
Allow 5-10 minutes for preparation, then ask all pairs to
perform their scenes at the same time. Walk round the room
assessing the performances and select up to 5 to be shown to the
rest of the class. Discuss the emotional realism, power, body
language, and so on. Thank and praise pupils.
Now ask:
■ What additional information is needed to give this ‘bad
news’ scene depth?
Acknowledge all responses, then say, ‘I can now give you three
more pieces of information:
■ the victim was a male teenager
■ his name was Stephen
■ the accident he was involved in was an explosion’.
Tell pupils you have no further information at the moment.
It’s interesting to note how many pupils pick up on
the use of the word ‘was’ in reference to Stephen. If
they question this directly, encourage them to decide
for themselves what has happened.
Allow up to 15 minutes preparation and rehearsal time and
then ask for volunteers to perform their scenes.
This may involve the whole class wanting to perform,
so be prepared to either reject some volunteers or to
allow enough time for everyone to perform their
improvisations!
Discuss questions such as:
■ how realistic and powerful the performances were
■ whether the responses by both characters were appropriate
(e.g. did the parent ask relevant questions?)
■ how effective the body language, facial expression and
positioning were
■ whether any additional information pupils had devised and
included was appropriate.
Thank the pupils and praise their efforts.
Finally, confirm that Stephen is dead and ask what they
think would happen next. If the ‘correct’ answer is not forthcoming, advise them that the police officer would request that
the parent identify the body.
The Secondary English Magazine June 2007
Place the body outline on the floor in the centre of the circle
again. Give out copies of the poem and read it through again.
Lead a discussion by asking what we know about Stephen
■ How old was he?
■ Did he mix? Was he in a small group of friends? In a gang?
Or was he a loner?
■ What family did he have? We know he had a dad and a
Gran — but what about a mum, brothers or sisters?
■ Does he still go to scouts?
■ Were the cigarettes his?
■ How did he die? Was it an accident? Was he somewhere he
shouldn’t have been? Could he have had links to the people
who caused the explosion, for example, as a lookout?
■ If he did have links, was he a willing participant or a
reluctant follower?
■ Was Stephen necessarily the person who his dad believed
him to be?
Acknowledge all responses and thank the group.
Introducing the poem and Stephen
With the pupils sitting in a circle, ask for a volunteer to lie down
on a large sheet of paper (such as lining wallpaper) in the
middle. Ask another pupil to draw round the first pupil’s
outline, before both return to their place. Then ask one pupil to
represent a father and another to represent a police officer.
Ask the father and police officer to position themselves either
side of the outline, as if at an identification, and to hold that
position. Then ask everyone to remain silent whilst you read the
poem ‘The Identification’ out loud.
Thank and praise the father and police officer and ask them
to return to the group. Then encourage some comments on the
poem and advise pupils that it will form the basis for a performance that they are going to devise and script and that, for this to
be achieved, they need to create:
■ an outline of Stephen’s life, his relationship with his family
and his friends, his opinion of school, his hobbies and so on.
Was he a rebel? Or under pressure? Or leading a humdrum
life? We need to see him as a three-dimensional person.
■ a picture of what happened. How Stephen was killed.
Whether any of his own actions or decisions (e.g. to go where
he shouldn’t have gone) played a part in his death. Whether
his death could have been avoided. Were there any points or
times — recent or past — where a different choice would
have led to a different outcome?
■ an outline of events which presents itself as a story.
There will be a great deal of overlap in the ideas
pupils come up with, with some ideas acting as a
catalyst for others.
Keep the body outline safe to use for role-on-the-wall work
later. It can also be useful not to associate one pupil too much
with the role of Stephen, and to have the option of bringing in
the outline to represent the character.
Break Point If necessary, the workshop can be
broken off here. The poem now needs a second
read-through, which could start the next session.
The Secondary English Magazine June 2007
We need to start building a picture of Stephen’s
character and his life which will suggest what
happened and how/why he died. So we must go back
to when Stephen was still alive.
Role-on-the-wall — initial thoughts
Ask pupils to use marker pens to write down their initial
thoughts about Stephen on the paper with the body outline. In
the centre of the outline, they should write his thoughts and
feelings — fears, hopes, ambitions, and so on. Around the
outside, they should write facts gleaned from the poem such as
age, family members, friends and hobbies.
Explain that the poem only allows us to make a few
assumptions, or guesses, about the character of Stephen, but
that we are going to use these initial ideas to develop a character
about whom we can say a lot more.
At this point, as the character of Stephen starts to
take shape, the drama could take several different
paths. Some pupils will have already decided
whether he was a rebel, a victim, or just an innocent
bystander. It doesn’t matter which ‘Stephen’ begins
to emerge here for different pupils, as there’s more
exploration to come. The objective is for the teacher,
as director of the drama, to ensure that the class
eventually reaches a collective decision.
Image freezes — rebel, victim or bystander
Ask pupils to form groups of 5 or 6. One person in each should
represent Stephen as the groups choose one of the following
freeze frames and depict him as:
■ an innocent bystander who tends to get swept along
■ or a victim, bullied by others into going with them and
doing things with them
■ or a rebel eager to join others, or perhaps even give a lead.
Allow groups up to 10 minutes to discuss and prepare. Then
begin a countdown and give the final ‘freeze’ command. View
each freeze in turn and evaluate which image of Stephen is the
most popular.
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Advise pupils that no definitive impression will be formed
yet. There’s more exploration to do, including finding out what
other people — teachers, friends — thought of him.
Break Point A break could come at this point, with
the image freezes repeated as a stimulus to start
the next session.
What did people think of Stephen?
Mantle of the expert — ‘teacher’ conversations
Ask the pupils to re-form the groups they were in for the last
(image freeze) activity, and adopt roles as Stephen’s teachers —
of various subjects. Pupils who played Stephen in the last
activity should sit on the floor in the centre of their group and
simply listen to the talk between the teachers without responding. The teachers should discuss Stephen, his attitude to school,
his ability, the subjects he’s good at and the ones he isn’t good at.
Remind pupils that this is before Stephen died; the teachers do
not know he is dead. Explain that these discussions should lead
to the teachers producing a written report on Stephen covering at least 5 subjects.
Allow 20-30 minutes for teacher discussion and report
writing, and then ask one from each group to read their report
to the class. Again, make no value judgements about the
different opinions. Pupils who participated as Stephen should
say briefly how it felt being talked about. Assure them they will
have the opportunity to respond later.
These overheard conversations add tension and
depth to the drama, allowing the Stephens to hear
conversations about themselves they would not
normally be party to. They might agree or disagree
with what is said, but can’t respond. However, what
they hear may inform their behaviour for the rest of
the drama.
Mantle of the expert — telephone conversations
Select 2 pupils to act out a telephone conversation between two
of Stephen’s friends. The ‘friends’ should take a little time to
consider:
■ what their names are
■ how old they are
■ whether they are they casual or genuine friends
■ who called whom and what the conversation is about
■ how Stephen’s name enters their conversation
■ what they think of Stephen.
Those playing Stephen from the previous 2 activities should
sit on the floor between the 2 friends and listen to the conversation. Let the improvisation run for up to 10 minutes, until
sufficient information has been gathered. Then invite the
Stephens to say how it felt overhearing the conversation and
what they thought about what had been said.
It’s interesting to begin to develop a central
character through other characters in their life,
rather than beginning by directly questioning them.
Going at it from a ‘sideways’ direction throws up
information that might not come to light during
hot-seating.
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Again, the drama could take several paths at this
point, depending on how Stephen has been portrayed
in the conversations. If he has been seen as a rebel,
he might be involved in the events that led to his
death; if a victim of bullies, he might have been
made to do something dangerous. He obviously has
secrets from his father, but secret smoking is not
unusual in teenagers, so he could have been an
innocent bystander.
Role-on-the-wall — add/amend/remove
Return to the character outline and ask a pupil, acting on the
suggestions of the class and using a different-coloured marker
pen, to add new information, make changes, or remove words or
phrases that no longer seem relevant.
Read out some of the new or amended phrases, then ask:
■ Are we getting a clearer picture of Stephen?
■ Do we have a greater understanding of the manner of his
death?
■ What do we still need to know?
Meeting Stephen himself
Hot-seating — Stephen
Stephen now gets the opportunity to put across his own point
of view: to defend himself if necessary; to explain his motives; to
agree with or dispute the class consensus.
Select a suitable candidate to work in role as Stephen and
place him (or her) on the hot seat. Allow a maximum of 10
questions to be put to Stephen and encourage the rest of the
class to consider these in advance by asking:
■ What do we most want to know?
■ What sort of questions will give us the most information
about Stephen and his life?
The pupil in role must answer as honestly and genuinely as
possible and remain in role throughout the whole exercise.
By the end of the hot-seating, we should have a strong
picture of Stephen, his life, and some of his motivation
Depending on what sort of person Stephen has
revealed himself to be, the drama may take one of
two routes here. The picture of Stephen we now have
should be retained for the remainder of the workshop.
This is, effectively, the final point of consolidation.
Photo album — Stephen’s life
Ask pupils to stand in a space. When you call out a number (see
brackets) they should form groups of that number and create
freezes of these photographs of Stephen:
1. with his mum when he was 8. (2 people)
2. at scout camp. (8 people)
3. with his dad and gran, aged 12. (3 people)
4. buying cigarettes (on the shop security camera) (5 people)
5. on a school trip. (6 people)
6. with his dad at Christmas. (2 people)
Any ‘extra’ pupils can be peripheral characters, and groups
should decide whether they want these in the picture and, if so,
who they might be. Allow up to 5 minutes for the discussion
and planning of each photograph.
The Secondary English Magazine June 2007
Encourage pupils to consider aspects such as:
■ positioning and body language
■ facial expression
■ whether characters are looking directly at the camera, at each
other, or elsewhere
■ levels — height differences.
These aspects should express how the characters in the photograph feel about the event or occasion, about each other, and
about the person taking the photograph.
If time permits, view each photograph each time; if not,
select a group to show their freeze each time and try to use this
selection process to involve the majority of class.
This activity provides an excellent record of Stephen’s
life and is a powerful way of gaining deeper understanding of him and his relationships. It’s a great idea
to photograph the photographs, if you can.
Role-on-the-wall — consolidation
This is the final visit to the character outline. In a differentcoloured marker pen, a pupil should add new information,
make changes, and remove ideas that the class suggests are no
longer relevant. When the class is happy with what remains, ask
pupils to read some of the contributions aloud. The pupils
should now have a clear picture of Stephen.
Because character feeds motivation and motivation
feeds actions, we should now have a clearer idea of
how Stephen died and how he came to be where he
was. However, we need to be sure of what happened
and to clarify events leading to Stephen’s death.
Break Point Another break could happen here, with
reading from the role-on-the-wall sheet used again
to start activities in the next session.
Structuring the dramatic event
Flashbacks
Ask pupils to form groups of 6 or 7 and improvise (act out) 3
scenes from Stephen’s life:
1. a scene from Stephen’s life 3 months before the explosion.
If time allows, view each scene; if not, select volunteers to
perform their improvisation. Lead a brief discussion, asking:
■ Does this tie in with what we know about Stephen?
■ Does it give us any further insights into Stephen’s character,
his life, and how he died?
2. A scene from Stephen’s life 3 weeks before the explosion.
Again, view all or some scenes and discuss as before.
3. A scene from Stephen’s life 3 hours before the explosion.
View as many improvisations as possible and discuss.
Record these scenes on video or audio tape to be
transcribed as scripted scenes later.
There should now be a group consensus about
Stephen, his life and the manner of his death. We
now return to the starting point for the story of
Stephen: his final moments.
Whole-group freeze
Ask the original Stephen to lie on the floor in a post-explosion
position. This is the scene immediately after the explosion. Ask:
■ Who else would be in the picture?
Answers to this will include: other casualties; paramedics; police;
fire officers; passers by, some of whom may have medical
expertise; workers from nearby buildings; and so on.
Introduce other class members to the freeze, building up a
picture of the scene after the explosion. Place each character
carefully in the picture, working with pupils to decide their
positioning in relation to other characters, and in response to the
event, until every person in the class is in the tableau.
Once everyone is in position ask the class to freeze and take a
real photograph of the scene. If time permits, allow pupils to
view the picture in two halves, with one half viewing the other,
then switching over.
Before everyone relaxes completely, advise pupils to remember their character and position in the scene.
Teacher-in-role
Go into role as the Chief Police Officer and take charge of the
scene. Distribute notebooks to the other police officers and
suggest they ask everyone:
■ Did you see what happened?
■ Did you see anyone acting suspiciously?
■ What were you doing in this neighbourhood?
■ Do you know any of the victims? If so, how?
■ Have you any other information you think might be of use
to us?
All witness can sit to be interviewed. Police officers should
record all interviews in writing. Interviews can be done oneto-one or with police officers interviewing small groups.
Teachers reluctant to adopt the role of Chief Police
Officer can either bestow this on a pupil, or direct
the officers as themselves.
The Secondary English Magazine June 2007
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Writing-in-role
Ask the pupils in role as police officers, plus possibly some fire
fighters and paramedics, to write up their notes on the
incident as official reports, giving just the facts of what took
place. Others should write witness statements, which can be
more detailed, giving a more emotional response.
Break Point You can break here, but pupils must
remember their positions in the whole-group freeze!
Scene-by-scene
To clarify what happened and who was involved in the scene
where Stephen died, ask the class to create 3 freezes in turn.
1. a whole-group freeze of the moment immediately after the
explosion
2. going one beat back, a whole-group freeze of the moment of
the explosion. Pupils should get into position according to
their characters. This might mean some are not quite in the
main frame, but on the periphery, or in a parallel scene — for
example, someone is on the phone to the police, who might
be shown scrambling for a car.
3. going back another beat, a whole-group freeze of the
moment before the explosion. Again, pupils position
themselves according to their character. For example, the
person who called the police might have noticed something
suspicious (Stephen behaving suspiciously?) and be watching from a distance, preparing to call the police.
Run VT
Once the 3 scenes have been created, they should be run
together using slow-motion movement, or mime, to transfer
from one to the next. Begin with the scene immediately before
the explosion, moving into the scene of the explosion itself, then
into the scene immediately after the explosion.
Revise and repeat as necessary until movement from scene to
scene is as smooth and as seamless as possible.
These scenes are incredibly effective run in slow
motion with suitable musical accompaniment. It’s one
of the most powerful moments in the drama, as it
focuses on the actual moment of Stephen’s death.
Some pupils may not be able to handle it, and you
need to be prepared to allow them to simply
concentrate on the techniques involved.
In the aftermath, different characters will have differing
perspectives of what actually happened. These need to be heard.
The aftermath and the issues
Monologues
Allocate characters from the list below to pupils, making your
selection as appropriate as possible. Distribute paper and pens
and ask each pupil to write a brief monologue in role, expressing
their feelings about the incident.
■ Stephen’s father
■ a police officer
■ a good friend of Stephen’s
■ Stephen’s form tutor
■ Stephen’s gran
■ a witness to the explosion
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Allow up to 20 minutes if possible and then invite volunteers to
read their monologues aloud. Thank and praise everyone.
Break Point A final break could be taken here, as the
following session focuses more on themes and issues.
TV news programme
Ask pupils to form groups of 6 to 8 to plan, prepare and
perform a television news programme, or a section of one.
■ The main story should be about the explosion and should
include the information that the dead included one or more
teenaged boys (at this point unidentified).
■ There should be an interview with a police officer and at
least one other witness. Encourage the selection of a witness
who will make the news report interesting.
■ The story must include an interview with an expert of some
description, for example, in explosives, in terrorist acts — or
in child psychology if it is suggested that the dead boy may
have had a link to the explosion.
■ Although TV news is supposed to be unbiased, the explosion story should make some sort of social comment on issues
that have led to the incident.
Depending how much contrast — relief even — you want to
allow at this point (this has been a fairly intense workshop!), you
could also permit pupils to include a celebrity story, a sports
bulletin and even a weather report in their news.
Allow plenty of time for pupils to plan, prepare and rehearse
their stories or programmes, and ensure that resources — pens
and paper — are to hand. The final programmes should run for
no longer than 20 minutes, although this can be reduced if
necessary. View each programme and, if possible, record it on
video. Thank and praise pupils for their energy and efforts.
The cumulative effect of the drama strategies
should be to enable pupils to create the full story of
Stephen’s death and what led up to it, whether this
was innocence, or involvement motivated by his
character and/or events. Any of the activities can
now be repeated, either as they were or modified,
but pupils should be nearing the point where they
can tell Stephen’s story.
The Secondary English Magazine June 2007
What’s the story? How do we write it?
Brainstorming to develop a story outline
The story outline that pupils will base their script on should
now be constructed, following the traditional linear structure of
a beginning, a middle and an end. However, there are other
aspects of it that need to be discussed and agreed on.
■ What issues will the story raise? How well parents can know
their children? How far they can control them? Whether
doing as you’re told keeps you safe? Whether bad things
happen to innocent people? Whether it’s possible to resist
peer pressure? Whether young teenagers should become
involved in political action? Whether it’s right to take risks
when you have a loving family?
■ What’s the central theme? This should emerge after the issues
have been chosen and could include: the terrible loss to
Stephen’s family and community of his being in the wrong
place at the wrong time; young people’s need to explore the
world around them; the need to follow strongly held
convictions; actions and consequences
■ What reactions do pupils want to evoke in their audience?
Sadness and a sense of loss? Acceptance that young people
grow away from the safety of home? Anger at people who
take innocent lives? Understanding that young people must
follow their convictions?
Many of the answers to these questions will have evolved during
the workshop, but clarification and agreement are needed here.
Ask pupils to discuss and respond to the above questions in
small groups and to write down their answers before giving
feedback to the rest of the class. The ideas they come up with
should be discussed, and if the class agrees, noted on a large
sheet of paper on which the story line will be written.
Then ask pupils to get into groups again and come up with
possible features for the main characters: Stephen; his father; the
police officer at ‘the identification’; one or more of Stephen’s
friends and/or teachers; and so on. Again, the ones that meet
with general agreement should be listed on the board.
The final task is to collate all this information and use it to
create a simple story outline of what happened, in the order it
happened. As the outline is developed on the board, ideas from
the lists are fed in at appropriate points. Pupils will need to be
reminded from time to time that the aim is to achieve clarity
through simplicity. They should not overload their story at every
stage with issues and character features.
paper, putting them together from the work they have done.
The list of scenes for scripting should include even those done as
movement or mime (i.e. directions for presenting them should
be written down). If it is felt that an extra scene not previously
covered is needed, this can be improvised now, if there is time.
Only when the list of scenes is complete can scripting start.
At this point, if there is time, scenes from the final list — two
from the beginning, two from the middle and two from towards
the end — can be allocated to groups of 4 to 6 pupils for
improvisation. After a small amount of preparation time, these
scenes are acted out and shown to the class to fix the organisation of the script in their minds.
The scripting can be done by pupils working in small groups
on one or more individual scenes, working out the ideas, developing them, then writing the script. Or, one group can list the ideas
for a scene, another can develop them, and a third write the
script. Pupils should understand that they can take their time to
build a scene and shouldn’t be afraid to push for something they
feel is right or abandon an idea which isn’t working.
The essence of the script is there before this final stage
begins; it just needs arranging into a structure which tells the
story in the way pupils want it to be told and reflects their views
and the issues that concern them. Even so, these final stages of
creating the story and producing the script can be long. But
when the scenes are put together and the final performance is
given, it should be beautifully filmic in style and, if imaginations
have been fired, incredibly powerful.
Putting together the script
The script itself will draw on the story outline but does not need
to follow the latter’s linear progression. For example, it can begin
with the explosion — a TV news report/character monologue/
police report on it, or the slow-motion mime of the explosion
itself — and then the rest of the story can be told in flashbacks,
returning at the end to the chosen starting point. Alternatively,
it can begin at any point in the story, with the narrative moving
backwards and forwards across time until events merge at a final
point such as the explosion. As they make their decision, pupils
should understand they are selecting an image, scene, or piece of
writing to grab their audience’s attention.
From this starting point, the class should build up a list of
scenes in the order they will come, again on a large piece of
The Secondary English Magazine June 2007
While this is an intensive workshop, the outcomes are extremely
positive. Many pupils enjoy the cathartic experience of exploring personal issues through a ‘third person’; others appreciate
having their views and ideas valued; and all those involved come
to care greatly about the central character. With that level of
engagement, you generate an emotive and compelling piece of
drama in which all those involved have a feeling of ownership.
Alison Chaplin has an MA in Television and Radio
Scriptwriting and is the manager of Arts On The Move, a
company providing drama resources and support for schools
and youth groups. Visit www.artsonthemove.co.uk
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