Embodied Learning via Drama as a Pedagogy

This two-day professional-learning workshop positions drama as an embodied, inquiry-oriented pedagogy: teachers will learn through movement, role, space, voice, reflection and collaborative meaning-making, rather than through discussion alone. It draws on the principles of embodied learning — active participation, learner agency, multimodal expression, authentic contexts and reflective practice — and translates them into practical, curriculum-connected approaches suitable for Singapore schools. These approaches extend from social-emotional learning and behavioural management to the teaching of subjects (e.g., STEM) not traditionally associated with this pedagogical approach. Participants will leave with inclusive, purposeful drama strategies that can be adapted for different subjects, ages, readiness levels and learning needs.

The workshop will enable teachers to:

• Understand drama as a way of learning, not merely a performance or co-curricular activity.
• Experience how physical action, gesture, voice, image-making, role and use of space can support attention, memory, communication, perspective-taking and conceptual understanding.
• Plan drama processes that are purposeful, safe, inclusive and clearly connected to curriculum outcomes.
• Facilitate participation without requiring confident acting, public performance or verbal fluency.
• Use observation, learner reflection and artefacts of learning to assess both subject understanding and transferable competencies.
• Adapt strategies for mixed-readiness and inclusive classrooms, including learners with special educational needs.

Competencies developed:

• Nurturing the Whole Child — inclusive, safe participation for every learner, without requiring performance.
• Teaching Creatively — a purposeful repertoire of drama conventions matched to learning outcomes across subjects.
• Subject Mastery — drama processes tied to curriculum outcomes and assessed through observation, reflection and artefacts.

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Target Audience: Special Education Needs Officers and Teachers working with students with learning and behavioural challenges