Performed by a sole teacher/actor, Where there’s smoke… makes extended use of in-role working. This approach can be relatively easily adapted for the classroom by using the teacher-in-role strategy. This is when a teacher adopts a simple role in order to deepen the children’s understanding of ideas, themes and events, to pass on important information or to set up activities.
Working through role has a number of benefits:
- It is a simple way of opening the door for children to enter into an imaginary world
- It allows any instructions or activities to have the added impetus of the drama behind them
- It allows information to be conveyed in a fun and interesting way
- It can empower children to help, particularly if the character they meet is in need
Often teacher-in-role is used in conjunction with hotseating. This is a drama strategy where the character is activated by taking a seat and the children are required to interrogate them to find out the nature of their story. The hotseat often involves children working in an advisory capacity, offering suggestions to the character to alleviate their situation or to challenge their point of view.
Using both teacher-in-role and hotseating need not be a daunting prospect. You do not need to be the greatest of actors; children will accept the slightest shift in attitude as a sign of going into role. You can reinforce taking on a character by making use of basic costuming, for example saying “When I put in this scarf I am going to become Samuel Pepys’ maid Jane Birch”.
Teacher-in-role works well of there is a driving reason for why you need to talk to the children, perhaps the character is in trouble or under threat. Do your research about what you are going to say, but also be open to responding to comments and questions from the children. Once you get the hang of using teacher-in role, then you can deepen the context by placing children in role as well.
Below are some suggestions that you might like to try out relating to both the Fire of London in general as well as the story of Where there’s smoke…
- Take on the role of Jane Birch, the maid of Samuel Pepys. You have been woken by church bells and have seen the signs of fire of the horizon. It is fast approaching. The master has told you that you must organize to save the household’s most precious and useful things (particularly important if the house burns down and everyone is left homeless) but that there is only one cart that can be used to transport what you have selected. Explain to the children what the house contains and ask them to help you to decide what to save.
- Take on the role of a (tabloid) newspaper editor in 1667; one year after fire has taken place. He wants to write an article revisiting the events of the great fire and wants the children to help him to choose the most memorable moment. He is a hard task master challenging the children to remember the most exciting, dangerous and scary events for his readers. Once they have selected a story, he asks them to help him get the tone of the story right, asking them to suggest the words that convey the excitement, fear etc of the event. He then sends them away to draw the picture that will feature on the front page.
- Take on the role of an impoverished, unrepentant looter and take the hotseat. The children take on the role of other people who have been made homeless by the fire and who have caught him/her stealing from the ruins of a rich man’s house. S/he tries to convince them that s/he has no choice but to loot and that they should consider it themselves as a means not only of survival but also of leveling the gap between rich and poor. The children must decide what to do.
- As a follow on to the Mapping activity (see……) take on the role of King Charles II and ask the children to present their plans to him for the rebuilding of the city of London. The King can ask questions to deepen their engagement with the task such as the materials that should be used, how many people and how long it will take to build, who is to live there etc.
