Drama Resources for Schools

Movement Games

Follow me

Ask the group to spread out around the room. Tell them that they will start to move around the room slowly at first but when you shout faster or slower they have to follow these directions. When you shout change, they must change direction. Get them to move around the space, making sure they use the whole of the room. Tell them to be aware of other people but not to touch them.

Once you have developed this, slow the group down and tell them that their nose is now leading them and they must follow it wherever it takes them, their nose is in charge!

You can develop this into focussing on different parts of the body. Try your ear, your left foot, your right knee, your tummy and so on, this helps participants discover new ways of moving.

Pinocchio

A physical warm up and stretching exercise named after the famous wooden puppet. Get your participants to spread themselves out throughout the room and to take a comfortable stance with two feet firmly planted on the floor. Then guide the participants to very slowly become the puppet coming to life.

This is roughly what you can say:

You are made out a single piece of wood. You are frozen and can’t move any part of yourself. But slowly a magic spell has begun and you
start to feel the top of your head tingling. The spell moves down slowly until your eyebrows are real. Try moving your eyebrows one at a time and both together.

The spell slowly keeps moving down, until you can move your eyes! All your life you’ve been staring straight ahead, so have a look around you with just your eyes.

The spell gradually moves to your ears and your nose. See if you can wiggle them.

The spell gets to your mouth; smile if you want to. It feels very strange at first but then you like it a lot. Try out some other facial expressions as well.

Then you find that you can move your neck and turn your head. Don’t get dizzy, move slowly. You can look up and down and
all around. Look down; this is the first time you have seen your body!

The spell reaches your shoulders and only your shoulders, not your arms or hands. Try circling your shoulders. Do you feel a tingle up and down your spine? That’s the magic working.

The spell reaches your chest, try puffing it in and out. Your elbows can slowly start to move, but still not your hands. As the magic moves lower, see if you can pull your right hand away from your body. Pull hard and – well done! You did it!

Have a look at your hand, bring it up to your face. See if you can move the fingers. Give yourself a wave!

See if you can get your left hand free as well. Does it move too?

The spell has reaches your waist, carefully bend forward and then to the side. See if you can bend backwards or make a circle.

The spell reaches your hips, but your knees and your feet are still locked together.

Then the spell gets to your knees. Can you bend them?

Reach down and see if you can pull your left foot free. Try point and flexing your toes and make circles.

Let’s see if you can get your right foot free as well – you’re free! Now you’re all real carefully see how you can move, but remember these are your first steps! Try out different ways of moving your new body.

We have a general drama workshop for KS1 and KS2