The Arts · Year 1

Active learning ideas

Audience and Performance

Active learning turns abstract drama concepts into tangible experiences for Year 1 students. When children practice facing audiences or feeling audience responses, they connect theory to real emotions and choices instead of memorizing rules. Movement and pair work make the invisible work of performance visible and fun.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• AC9ADR2C01
• AC9ADR2R01

• 15–30 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Inside-Outside Circle
• 20 min · Pairs

Pairs Practice: Face and Speak

Partners face each other across the room and take turns delivering simple lines from a familiar story. The listener signals thumbs up if they hear and understand clearly, or thumbs down if facing away. Switch roles twice and discuss adjustments.

Explain why it's important for actors to face the audience when speaking.

Facilitation Tip

During Pairs Practice: Face and Speak, circulate and gently turn students who face away from each other, asking them to notice how facial expressions become clearer when facing forward.

What to look for

Ask students to stand and demonstrate two ways a performer can show they are speaking to the audience. Then, ask them to show one way a performer might speak too quietly for the audience to hear.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

Activity 02

• Inside-Outside Circle
• 30 min · Small Groups

Small Groups: Reaction Relay

Each group prepares a 1-minute scene. One subgroup performs while the other acts as audience, responding with claps or questions. Groups switch roles, then share how reactions changed their energy and choices.

Assess how an audience's reaction can influence a performance.

Facilitation Tip

During Small Groups: Reaction Relay, freeze the group if the performer is speaking too quietly, asking the audience whether they heard the words, then coaching the performer to project.

What to look for

After a short peer performance, ask: 'How did the audience's quiet listening help the performers? What might have happened if the audience was talking loudly?' Guide students to connect audience behavior to performer confidence.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

Activity 03

• Inside-Outside Circle
• 25 min · Whole Class

Whole Class: Echo Circle

Students sit in a circle facing inward. Teacher models a line with clear voice and gesture; class repeats facing the speaker. Add movements, noting how turning away confuses the echo.

Justify the importance of clear speaking and movement for an audience to understand a play.

Facilitation Tip

During Whole Class: Echo Circle, start with slow, deliberate movements so students can mimic precisely before speeding up or adding complexity.

What to look for

Students draw a picture of a performer speaking to an audience. They must label one thing the performer is doing to help the audience understand (e.g., 'facing audience', 'big voice').

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

Activity 04

• Inside-Outside Circle
• 15 min · Individual

Individual: Mirror Moves

Students stand before a mirror or imaginary audience, practicing lines with exaggerated facing, voice, and steps. Record one take facing and one turning away, then self-assess clarity.

Explain why it's important for actors to face the audience when speaking.

Facilitation Tip

During Individual: Mirror Moves, pair students with different skill levels so the observer can gently guide the performer to match speed and clarity.

What to look for

Ask students to stand and demonstrate two ways a performer can show they are speaking to the audience. Then, ask them to show one way a performer might speak too quietly for the audience to hear.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Relationship Skills
• Self-Management

A few notes on teaching this unit

Experienced teachers begin with short, focused activities that build confidence before layered challenges. They avoid long explanations by letting students feel audience reactions firsthand, then naming what happened. Research shows young learners grasp audience connection best through immediate feedback loops and physical demonstrations rather than verbal instructions alone.

Students will demonstrate understanding by facing an audience during speech, adjusting volume for clear delivery, and responding to audience cues with appropriate actions. Their performances should show awareness of how performers and audiences affect each other.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Pairs Practice: Face and Speak, some students may turn their backs to each other, assuming it adds drama.

  Stop the pairs and ask one student to sit behind the other while the performer speaks. Ask the seated 'audience' student if they could see facial expressions or hear words clearly, guiding the performer to face forward with peer feedback.

• During Small Groups: Reaction Relay, students may believe whispering is acceptable because the story is familiar.

  After the performance, have the audience raise a hand if they missed any words. Ask the performer to repeat the line louder, then discuss how clear volume helps new listeners understand.

• During Whole Class: Echo Circle, students may think audience reactions do not affect performers.

  Instruct the audience to clap loudly or stay silent during a performer’s sequence. Ask the performer how the energy felt different, linking audience behavior to performer confidence and pacing.

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Methods used in this brief

• Inside-Outside Circle