Friends of Learnerama
Brian Woolland
Brian worked as a senior lecturer in drama and theatre at the University of Reading, where he led the B.A. (Ed) Literature and Drama, and the PGCE Secondary Drama courses. He resigned his post to develop a freelance career as a writer, workshop leader and theatre director. Brian regularly leads workshops on educational drama, theatre and playwriting in a wide range of environments, including prisons, schools, universities and theatres. He has worked throughout England and Europe, and in Australia, Palestine, Jordan, Turkey and The Lebanon.
He jointly leads Write Theatre, a series of unique, intensive playwriting courses for emerging theatre writers of all ages. Write Theatre also offers an Online Playwriting Course and a Script Appraisal Service.
Brian’s educational drama books include:
Teaching Primary Drama (Longman, 2009)
Pupils as Playwrights (Trentham, 2008 )
His most recent plays, ‘This Flesh is Mine’ and ‘When Nobody Returns’ (loosely based on ‘The Iliad’ and ‘The Odyssey’), were co-produced by London-based Border Crossings and
Ashtar Theatre of Ramallah, Palestine, and ran in repertory in London as part of the Nour Festival through October and November 2016.
Brian Woolland’s website: www.brianwoolland.co.uk
Resources by Brian Woolland
This Flesh is Mine
www.brianwoolland.co.uk/this-flesh-is-mine.html
Essays and articles available for downloading:
www.brianwoolland.co.uk/articles-for-download.html
Chris Ball
Chris Ball (alias Parachute Man) is a teacher, actor and writer who has worked in schools, stately homes, castles, museums, universities and theatres for over 40 years. He has written or co-written articles for the Times Education Supplement and books on Drama in Education including:
Taking Time to Act (Heinemann-USA, 1995)
Key Ideas in Drama (Folens/Belair,1997)
Speaking, Listening and Drama (Hopscotch, 2002)
Surviving Shakespeare (Chalkface)
As Drama and Induction Adviser to the City of Liverpool, Chris also edited and wrote books on Newly Qualified Teacher Induction and the Arts in Liverpool Schools.
While teaching in a Liverpool inner city comprehensive, he hosted a residency for The Royal Ballet’s first outreach programme and set up the school as a performance venue for dance and drama companies such as Red Ladder, M6, First Bite, Extemporary Dance Company, Merseyside Young People’s Theatre and Ludus.
He has co-written or written plays and musicals, which have been performed at the Liverpool Playhouse main stage and studio theatres and at the Everyman theatre. Plays include a musical based on Homer’s Odyssey, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, Blackpool Rock, Beryl, the Girl Who Could Work Miracles, Fatso, the Golden Slipper and Flowers of the City.
Theatre in Education work includes national tours for Treading the Fine Line with First Bite Theatre.
Several stories and series have been broadcast on radio and a radio series The Speaking Clock, won a Sony award in 1986 for the best children’s programme. A short play, Interruptions, was awarded the best play prize at Unity Theatre in 1980. Recent work includes creating the teaching resources for World Museum Liverpool for the Terracotta Army and Ancient Egypt exhibitions and writing and voicing soundscapes for the Vikings and Ancient Greek galleries. He has also written teacher resources for the National Theatre.
Chris has been an honorary research fellow at Liverpool University, vice chair of the Everyman Theatre Liverpool and is currently chair of governors of a Liverpool Primary School.
As Parachute Man, Chris is currently writing a series of stories based on his extensive drama work in schools using an ancient silk parachute (1947 vintage) to foster the imagination and creativity in children and animate myths
and legends.
Resources by Chris Ball
Margaret Branscombe
MA (Drama in Education) PhD (Literacy Studies)
Research focus: Drama as a tool to enhance literacy
Margaret works as a Literacy Intervention Teacher in a secondary school. She is also a drama practitioner, working with a range of community and educational groups to advise on embedding drama in teaching and learning across the curriculum.
Margaret is currently writing a ‘minibook’ for the United Kingdom Literacy Association on the role of drama in a knowledge rich curriculum and has already published a book on using drama alongside non-fiction texts:
Teaching through Embodied Learning (Routledge, 2019)
Please email her if you’d like to know more: info@learnthroughdrama.com
and visit her website: www.learnthroughdrama.com
She looks forward to hearing from you!
Resources by Margaret Branscombe
Oliver
The following KS2 drama plan is based on the wonderful picture book ‘Oliver’ by Birgitta Sif (Candlewick Press, 2012)
Larraine Harrison
BEd, MA (Education),
RSA Dip Drama-in-education
Larraine is a retired Local Authority School Improvement Adviser and Drama-in-Education Consultant. She has also spent some time as a Literacy Consultant, leader of a Local Authority Drama Team and an Ofsted Inspector.
She currently writes children’s novels: Red Snow and Angel’s Child and is a governor of a primary school and a Multi Academy Trust.
During her teaching career she has worked with all age groups using drama as a learning medium from EYFS to KS4, written several books on drama and worked with children and teachers across the UK to develop their practice.
She has some free resources for teachers on the TES website and on her own website: www.larrainesharrison.com
Follow her on Twitter at @larrainesharri3
Resources by Larraine Harrison
Florence Nightingale
The following short, structured drama lesson for year 2, is designed to create audience and purpose for writing about Florence Nightingale.
Castles
The following drama lessons are based on the siege of a castle during the English Civil War but can easily be adapted to suit castles in other historical contexts with different problems.
David Allen
David worked in primary schools for over twenty years as a teacher, senior leader and Deputy Head teacher. He is currently Associate Professor in Learning and Teaching at The University of Hertfordshire. David is also the Programme Leader for the Bachelor of Education and is the professional lead for science and art. He is an active member of the
Association of Science Education (ASE) Primary Committee, Primary Science Editorial Board and Primary Science Quality Mark (PSQM) Executive Group.
David co-wrote a teacher’s resource ‘Science Meets English’ which explores the links between creative English approaches and science teaching. His most recent publication is a children’s book called Superhero Scientists which allows children to research and write about famous
scientists and people who use science within their work.
You can contact David by
Email: d.m.allen@herts.ac.uk
Twitter: @CreativePriSci
