When I tell people I teach drama to preschoolers, they often ask me how I can get three year olds to perform something. That is not at all what I do. Heaven help anyone who tries to make a typical three year old to do anything, much less stand up in front of an audience and perform!
No, drama with preschoolers is about using participatory stories to teach all kinds of concepts. I tell stories with little ones and I see them developing a love for literature, an ability to understand cause and effect, a desire to use their creativity to find solutions to problems, a budding empathy that gets stretched and flexed, and so much more. Drama with preschoolers is basically advanced dramatic play. You get to tell stories together and see what happens. The adult is a participant and the children get to feel like they are in the driver’s seat of the story. I feel that drama is one of the best ways to teach young children almost anything!
Photos by Kris Morse, Blue Door Art