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Whole School Approach to Dramatic Inquiry

Big Picture Planning
Enduring Understandings
Essential Questions
Whole School Immersion
Planning at POD level
Translating this to the classroom level

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Big Picture Planning:

Human Equality

St Theresa's Big Picture Planning Process An example from 2021

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Big Picture Planning

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Enduring Understandings:

Human Equality

We are all beautifully made in the image and likeness of God.
Kakano POD: Year 0-2

All children matter equally
Children need different things at different times, ages and places.
We are all similar and different from each other and that’s OK.

Pihinga POD: 3-4.

Equity is giving people what they need so that there is equality.
People have differences that make them unique but still have an equal place in the world.

Pohutukawa: 5-6:

Everyone who is born is deserving of human dignity and human rights.
Humans need lawful agreements to keep us accountable.
Anyone can stand up for freedom in many different ways.

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Essential Questions:

Human Equality

Examples

How am I different and how am I similar?

Who makes a difference in our community?

Who is in need in our community?

How can I make a difference?

Who can help me make a difference?

What are human rights?

Are they law?

Which organisations fight for lives?

When did children’s rights come in?

Are children’s rights the same as adult rights?

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Immersion

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Human Equality Immersion

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Kakano Pod Ākonga Yrs 0-2 - Dramatic Inquiry using a Picture book

Every Child a Song, by Nicola Davies

“Every child has the right to get

what they need.”

“We must do better so that

every child can grow up

with a song in their heart.”

Nicola Davies

Jo: Walk through the story briefly.

Briefly talk through the planning process at Kakano level and the activities to best support ākonga at their age and stage.

We discussed the EUs and EQs. In particular, concern over making it age and stage appropriate. Talk about the good things we have but to also include the, “Now here’s the thing….For some children in the word their experiences or how they live is not nice…..”

We walk through picture books, etc and decide on one that will support the teaching and learning.

Every Child a Song worked for us and could work for our students. I chose to use origami birds to support the learning (older student wanted to make the birds for the class). Another teacher wanted to use music as the support.

Used Viv’s planning template and adapted as we went at a classroom level as we are led by the students, teacher’s interest/focus. (find pictures of origami birds, etc).

Assessment: used the “first thinking” followed by “second thinking” at the end. What new learning could be seen? (more ideas, deeper ideas (not just about toys, play, favourite food, etc but about warmth, home, friends, good food, not war…).

From second thinking, the children created a class Rights of the Child poster; Room 3’s Rights of the Child. Shared this with other classes, and parents/whanau.

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Group Interactive. “Let’s all be….”

Drama Conventions?

“Let’s all be……” and “Spoken thoughts.”

Holding a baby, look up to the bird

and tell the bird what you want for

your baby as they grow up.

What song will you want for your tamariki?

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Pihinga POD: Dramatic Inquiry. Creating a narrative to hook children into the learning about equity and equality.

Story world created using the 6 dimensions of Dramatic Imagination.

As the sun starts to set after another busy day at the zoo, the tired lions retreat to the coolness of their dark dens. The baby monkeys swing towards their mothers, kiwi awaken and begin to search for their grubs as an owl sits motionless in the tree watching at the end of his first day in the zoo. The metal clinks as the zookeeper locks the iron gates and everything is quiet.

Pauline: Pihinga’s POD focus was on equity and equality using the lens of a zookeeper and appropriate care for the different animals in the zoo. This work was an extensive piece of work, a mini mantle where the students were posed as expert enclosure designers.

I am going to share the hook for this drama adventure. When I put on my glasses I will go into role.

Well that was an interesting first day. It was very different from where I come from. The meat the zookeeper left me this morning while I was asleep is warm and the ants have had a feast. I don’t feel like eating but I’m hungry now.

I was woken today by the giraffes grumbling about being given the same food as the lions(meat of all things) when all they wanted was some nice green juicy leaves to munch on. Surely that zookeeper must know that giraffes don’t eat meat.

Out of role: What did you notice from what you’ve heard so far? Here’s the thing: ALL the animals at the zoo are being fed meat. Think about an animal at Wellington Zoo or a NZ zoo. Be your animal, move, freeze…when you are moving around you are thinking about how you are feeling about everyone being fed meat. When I say freeze and you’ll share who you are and what you are thinking.

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Pohutukawa POD:

Planning the Mantle

Responsible team: Students are positioned as expert illustrators who work for Dream Believers Children’s Book.

Commissioned by the Head of Education at the Children’s Rights Commission of New Zealand to produce an illustrated children’s book of Children’s Rights.

Pauline: In Pohutukawa POD we planned a mantle of the expert, positioning students as expert illustrators and with a commission of creating an illustrated ebook of children’s rights. The hook for this mantle involved looking in detail at UNICEF children’s rights by creating a piece of artwork/sculpture that is found in the NZ Children’s Commission gallery. We can give this a go now.

Please get in groups of ¾. Look at the children’s right and decide how you could represent this as a piece of artwork. Name your work. Choose 5 words to describe the Article. When I put on this scarf I will go into role as Meera Singh, Head of Education at the Children’s Commission in New Zealand. Meera comes to work at the Commission everyday and passes by these artworks. When Meera passes your sculpture/painting, can one person in the artwork, say the name of the artwork, 5 words, then the Article and then return to the artwork.

The link shows the planning process for this mantle and the different stages we went through. Specifics of the artist explored are not included but we did explore the art of Hundertwasser, Gavin Bishop and Robyn Kahukiwa.

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A completed ebook

Another completed ebook

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Whole School Reflection:

What worked well?

What didn’t work well?

Next steps?

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Whole School Production: What if we all did that?