back to our subjects

Curriculum Intent Statement

At Leigh Academy Rainham, our vision is to offer a comprehensive Performing Arts curriculum, encompassing the domains of practical, theoretical, and disciplinary performance art knowledge and the interrelationships between them. We teach our pupils the fundamental practical performance techniques required to succeed at GCSE level and beyond. Our Performing Arts Department is guided by the inspiring straplines, “Unlocking Potential, Making Dreams a Reality” and “Dream, Believe, Achieve.” Our curriculum is deeply rooted in the Middle Years Programme (MYP) framework from the International Baccalaureate (IB) and is a powerful embodiment of these visions. to develop intercultural understanding, interdisciplinary learning, and global engagement.

We aim to develop students’ practical knowledge and skills in both drama and music. Our focus is on improving instrumental ability and understanding of basic music notation in music, while enhancing confidence and performance techniques in drama. These performing subjects are taught in a carousel format, allowing pupils to move between subjects after each module. We integrate works of theatre practitioners such as Bertolt Brecht, Frantic Assembly, and Antonin Artaud to broaden their knowledge of varying performance styles, ensuring that our pupils enter their GCSE and post-16 years with knowledge that will not only help them succeed at these levels but also in further education and the professional industry. We adhere to a “no opt-out” policy to encourage pupils to confront their performance fears, enhancing their confidence and ability to excel in any workplace scenario.

Key Concepts

Communication

Related Concepts

Audience & Narrative

Statement of Inquiry

Performers use personal and cultural expression to communicate ideas to an audience through the use of narrative.

Careers

  • Theatre in Education Practitioner
  • Middle Management

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • What is a tableaux?
  • What is narrative?
  • What makes a consistent performance?

Conceptual Questions

  • Why do people go to the theatre?
  • Why do we use drama techniques in performance?
  • Why do people enjoy watching stories they’re familiar with?

Debatable Questions

  • Can performance make a difference in the world?
  • Do we need theatre in society in modern Britain?

Key Concepts

Change

Related Concepts

Play & Role

Statement of Inquiry

Shakespeare’s role in writing plays was a turning point in shaping theatre for the future.

Careers

  • Playwright
  • Translator
  • Historian

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • Who is William Shakespeare?
  • What did he do?
  • Where did he live?

Conceptual Questions

  • Why were women played by men?
  • Why did people go and watch Shakespeare’s plays in the Jacobean era?
  • How has his classical language influenced the modern tongue?

Debatable Questions

  • Why is Shakespeare still taught in schools today?
  • How has Shakespeare remained relevant in modern society?

Key Concepts

Change

Related Concepts

Style & Innovation

Statement of Inquiry

People’s style, dreams and innovations can change the world.

Careers

  • Innovator
  • Author
  • Fashion

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • Why do we use scripts in drama?
  • What is devising?

Conceptual Questions

  • Why do people dream?
  • What are dreams?
  • How can a performer engage their audience?
  • Why must a performer remain in character?

Debatable Questions

  • Is daydreaming always a negative?
  • Is facial expression more impactful than words?

Key Concepts

Creativity & Development

Related Concepts

Style & Narrative

Statement of Inquiry

Identities and relationships can help creativity and style to develop a narrative.

Careers

  • Theatre in Education Practitioner
  • Middle Management

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • What is physical theatre?
  • Who are DV8 and Frantic Assembly?

Conceptual Questions

  • Why do people perform in the style of physical theatre?
  • Why do we use drama techniques in performance?
  • How can physical theatre influence the narrative of a story?

Debatable Questions

  • Apart from money saving, what is the point in physical theatre?

Key Concepts

Creativity

Related Concepts

Purpose & Style

Statement of Inquiry

The creativity of dramatic performance is based in historical ideas, with purposeful ideas, styles and linguistic systems.

Careers

  • Journalist
  • Teacher
  • Actor
  • Carpenter

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • What are the conventions of a Shakespearean comedy?
  • What is a prologue?
  • What is soliloquy?
  • What was the Globe theatre like?
  • What is the meaning of Elizabethan and Jacobean?
  • How was Shakespearean theatre different from theatre today?
  • What are the main themes of the play?
  • What is duality?

Conceptual Questions

  • Why do human beings crave order?
  • Why do you think humans are still obsessed with parallel universes living alongside their own?
  • How are we shaped by superstition?
  • Why do we tell stories?
  • What can be expressed through storytelling?

Debatable Questions

  • Is a Midsummer Night’s Dream a ‘comedy’ for contemporary audiences?
  • Is Shakespeare still relevant?
  • Do people fall in love at first sight?
  • What is the importance of the child?
  • How are we shaped by the stories we are told as children?

Key Concepts

Communication

Related Concepts

Audience & Narrative

Statement of Inquiry

Narrative gives you the freedom to communicate to an audience.

Careers

  • Director
  • Stage Engineer
  • West End Performer

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • What are musicals?
  • What is Blood Brothers about?

Conceptual Questions

  • How can musicals influence people’s views?
  • Why do musicals often carry meaningful messages?
  • What must you do to be a successful musical performer?
  • What is the importance of song in musicals?

Debatable Questions

  • Why do people enjoy musicals?
  • Can any story become a musical?

Key Concepts

Identity

Related Concepts

Boundaries & Representation

Statement of Inquiry

Representation of privilege creates social boundaries which force class identity.

Careers

  • Journalist
  • Social Worker

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • What is a musical?

Conceptual Questions

  • How is social class and privilege portrayed in Blood Brothers?
  • Can your social upbringing can define your identity?

Debatable Questions

  • To what extent does social class create social boundaries?

Key Concepts

Communication

Related Concepts

Role & Narrative

Statement of Inquiry

Communicating narrative within roles is often ritualistic

Careers

  • Film director
  • Producer
  • Actor
  • Camera crew

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • What are the different camera angles used in film acting?

Conceptual Questions

  • To what extent does acting for film differ from stage acting?
  • How is soap opera acting ritualistic?

Debatable Questions

  • Is film acting harder than stage acting?

Key Concepts

Identity

Related Concepts

Interpretation & Genre

Statement of Inquiry

Interpretation of the identity of role models is genre dependent.

Careers

  • Social worker
  • Young offenders rehabilitation worker

Inquiry Questions

Factual Questions

  • What is a role model?
  • What is a genre?

Conceptual Questions

  • How can we interpret the identity of different role models?
  • How do characters identify in different genres?
  • How can we formulate an argument to compare different interpretations?

Debatable Questions

  • To what extent are role models considered to be always positive?

WJEC Eduqas Drama GCSE

Topics

Module 1

  • Devising Theatre

Module 2

  • Performing from a Text

Module 3

  • Interpreting Theatre – I Love You Mum, I Promise I Won’t Die

Module 4

  • Interpreting Theatre – I Love You Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die (component 3 exam prep)
  • Performing from a Text – Continuing to study a variety of texts in prep for Component 2 exam performance

Module 5

  • Interpreting Theatre – I Love You Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die (component 3 exam prep)
  • Performing from a Text – Continuing to study a variety of texts in prep for Component 2 exam performance

Module 6

  • Revisiting Component 1 – Devising Theatre
  • Mock performance and portfolio based on a previous stimuli

40% exam & 60% practical assessment

Component 1 – Devising Theatre
Learners will be assessed on either acting or design. Learners participate in the creation, development and performance of a piece of devised theatre using either the techniques of an influential theatre practitioner or a genre, in response to a stimulus set by WJEC. Learners must produce: a realisation of their piece of devised theatre, a portfolio of supporting evidence & an evaluation of the final performance or design

Non-examination assessment (NEA)
40% of GCSE
Internally assessed, externally moderated

Component 2 – Performing From a Text
Learners will be assessed on either acting or design. Learners study two extracts from the same performance text chosen by the centre. Learners participate in one performance using sections of text from both extracts

Non-examination assessment (NEA)
20% of GCSE
Externally assessed by a visiting examiner

Component 3 – Interpreting Theatre
Section A: Set Text for assessment from 2024 onwards – A series of questions on one set text from a choice of seven (Macbeth William Shakespeare; An Inspector Calls J.B. Priestley; Find Me Olwen Wymark; Noughts & Crosses Malorie Blackman, adapted by Sabrina Mahfouz; Refugee Boy Benjamin Zephaniah; I Love You Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die Mark Wheeller; The IT Vivienne Franzmann); Section B: Live Theatre Review – One question, from a choice of two, requiring analysis and evaluation of a given aspect of a live theatre production seen during the course.

Written exam
1hr 30mins
40% of GCSE