Teaching Drama to Early Years (4–7)

Games, lesson plans and classroom management for four- to seven-year-olds

Thursday 18 March 2027, 7pm to 8.30pm (UK time) · Live online · £20. Early Bird offer £16.

Teaching drama to four- to seven-year-olds can be magical, exhausting and one of the most rewarding things you'll do in a classroom. It can also fall apart fast. I've watched a lot of good teachers lose a group of five-year-olds in under ten minutes, and it's never the children's fault. The lesson was too complicated, too slow, or pitched at an age group the teacher didn't yet understand.

I started out as a nursery assistant, then spent ten years at Stagecoach Theatre Arts teaching seven classes of four- to seven-year-olds a week. It's the age group I've learnt the most from, and the one I've trained the most teachers to work with. In this 90-minute session I'll share what works.

We'll cover:

• How to hold their attention: pace, energy, a bit of magic, and why with this age you have to entertain as well as teach
• Classroom management that works for four- to seven-year-olds: a signal for silence, one instruction at a time, setting expectations, stickers, performer of the week, and the four Fs (fun, fair, firm and funny)
• How to build a lesson: around six activities for an hour, eight for ninety minutes, and why repetition is your friend
• Games to take away, including Pirate Ship, The Giant's Keys, Magic Wand, Soundscape and Acting Out a Picture Book
• Reading the room: spotting the moment to move on, and what to do when a game isn't landing

The session draws on my book Drama Games for Early Years (4–7 Years) (Morpho Press), which has a foreword by Dr John Spencer and has been praised by Polka Theatre and Punchdrunk Enrichment. You don't need the book to come. You'll leave with games and routines you can use in your next lesson, and there'll be time for your questions at the end.

Who it's for: drama teachers working with reception and Key Stage 1, franchise teachers running classes for 4–7s (Stagecoach, PQA and the like), nursery and primary teachers who want to bring drama into their day, drama club leaders, and anyone new to this age group or finding it hard going.

Details
When: Thursday 18 March 2027, 7pm to 8.30pm (UK time)
Where: Live online. You'll be sent the link after booking.
Cost: £20. Early Bird offer £16, ends 31st December.