SCHOOL CURRICULUM

Darcy created the drama program at Near North Montessori School in Chicago, IL, focusing on social-emotional learning and the needs and values of their unique community. Drama at NNM involved innovative devised plays, creative ensemble-building games, and forum theatre exercises to explore social issues.

What does that look like?

The second year of the program, in-school in 2019-20

The first year of the program, after-school in 2018-19

CREATIVE DRAMA

Pretending instead of performing, with the focus on the experience of the participants. When creating characters, playing games, or crafting a longform story together, we follow student interests, say "yes, and" to each other and celebrate everyone's contributions.

APPLIED DRAMA

NNM students used drama skills and concepts to make student-written films, resolve conflicts on the playground, practice math facts, and use role-playing to explore concepts like bystanders vs. upstanders.

DRAMA PERFORMANCE

Using acting, music and movement, the focus is on the shared experience of the participants and an audience. Young actors can create all aspects of the performance, considering the audience in all their choices. View several NNM performances here.

"You do a wonderful job introducing children to the many different aspects of performance, video making, and storytelling that will serve them well in their future work." - Head of School

COVID-19

"Schools that can look ahead, prepare, and find opportunities to transform will look back not only at a crisis
but also at a moment of reimagination."
-Donna Orem, NAIS President

With the onset of remote learning in 2020, creative drama brought imagination, laughter and connection into the pandemic experience. For the upper elementary, the drama program evolved into an innovative co-curricular model.

Rather than asking students to attend separate virtual classes for each co-curricular subject, Darcy proposed that the school facilitate exploration of the arts through student-led projects. Sometimes independently and at other times in collaboration, students began to create and share their own work as it related to art, writing, technology, food science, music, performing, and more, with guidance from adults with relevant expertise.

This approach more closely aligned with Montessori principles and led to deeper engagement and collaboration.

"...Flexible, proactive and thoughtful...it shines through now more than ever!" - 9-12 Parent

"...Pivoting (seemingly) seamlessly in covid times. The after-school play was a dazzling bright spot in an otherwise murky time." - 6-9 Parent

"Very engaging even though it was online. Really helped their creativity grow." - 6-9 Parent

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