Performing Arts

Performing Arts encompasses dance, drama and music and is designed to incorporate the aims of the Australian Curriculum as well as link to the school’s wider topic curriculum. Performing Arts fosters a supportive and creative environment for students to strengthen self-confidence, social skills and their ability to create and solve problems. Students are encouraged to collaborate in group-devised pieces as well as individually develop their own personal interests and learning goals. Each lesson promotes opportunities to explore, create and play and incorporates the walker learning approach. This includes key learning intentions, focus students, drama investigations, the ‘create space’ clinic groups and performance-based ERPs. The approach is aimed at developing and providing opportunities for experimentation, enjoyment, leadership, self-expression, appreciation and success.

The performing arts classroom is a large open space, where shoes (and worries) are left at the door and students can sink their feet into  creating and playing. students enter the room, take their shoes off and find a space in the room for a warm-up activity.They come in buzzing with excitement as they never know what is going to happen.  Although there is consistency in routines, the warm-up activity varies weekly and provides the students with a chance to move and stretch their bodies, transitioning from classroom learning to a kinaesthetic environment. This assists in gaining student focus and setting the theme/mood for the lesson. The next activity involves ‘tuning into’ the learning intention for the lesson and identifying the focus students as per Walker Learning Pedagogy.  The focus students are then given a task, asked a question or given a series of observation questions based on the learning intention for the week. Learning intentions are displayed and referred to on the interactive TV as well as on the communication board. The main task for the lesson then occurs, which varies in teaching strategies and resources, such as but not limited to, explicit teaching, active learning, problem-based learning, project-based learning, collaborative learning and peer teaching.

Every year we enjoy a production written, created and presented by the students.  Every class in the school features in the production and are a part of the Finale item, which brings the whole school back onto the stage. Kidman Celebrates is held at the Christian Family Centre in Seaton, and all students are given the opportunity to perform on stage with lights, costuming, sound and visual effects. It is an excellent way to end the school year and proves to be a wonderful annual community event for the school.