Drama : movement and meaning making

This chapter looks at the role of drama and how it supports children's meaning making. It examines the positioning of drama in relation to English as a subject domain and considers the affordances drama offers for learning and teaching. After considering a range of conceptualisations of drama in education, two case studies are presented of the authors’ experiences of using drama to explore Shakespeare's plays with children in Key Stage 2. Throughout the examples, different ways in which meaning can be made are considered, including meaning making through bodily movement, speech as a form of movement, and interaction with physical objects. Different forms of movement are considered with a focus on children working both as individuals and collectively. These examples of children's experiences help illustrate the potential of drama as a powerful tool to open up opportunities for learning in English and give insight into how drama can support their developing understanding when exploring a challenging text.