FAQ's: What do we cover for Reception - Year 2 pupils as they start their LAMDA journey?

We know it can be tough for our youngest pupils to remember /be able to convey to parents what they've been up to in their weekly Speech and Drama class, especially if they attend within their school day and you don't see them until later on in the evening!

So here's a little guide which details what they're up to and some exercises you can do at home!

Week 1

Warm up Game: 

Tongue Twister: “Red Lorry Yellow Lorry”

Focus: Facial expression, practise poem 1

Homework activity: Practise in a mirror  - how can you look happy? Sad? Excited? Scared? Confused? Tired? Try to think up some of your own and get your family to guess your feelings based on your face. 

Note:

Week 2

Warm up Game:

Tongue Twister: “Peter Piper Picked a peck of pickled peppers”

Focus: Vocal Expression, practise poem 2

Homework Activity: Say ‘And how am I feeling now’ - and try out different feelings (eg happy, sad, excited, scared, angry, confused…) get someone to close their eyes and guess based on how your voice sounds. 

Note:

Week 3:

Warm up Game: 

Tongue Twister: “Bobble Hat, Bottle Bank, Bobble Hat, Bottle Bank”

Focus: Posture, practise poem 3

Homework Activity:  Get an invisible glue stick and glue your feet to the floor. Think about how to stand nicely for your poem - are your hands loosely by your side? Chin straight forwards (not stuck up or down) Shoulders relaxed. No fidgets. Play ‘WRIGGLE TIME’ and get all your wriggles out, then when it’s time to practise your poem, assume ‘Poem Posture’

Note:

Week 4:

Warm up Game: 

Tongue Twister: “Greek Grapes”

Focus: Projection, practise poem 4

Homework Activity: Put your hands on your tummy and say the word ‘PUSH’ nice and loudly. See how your muscles work to push the sound out nice and strong. Work on engaging ‘your core’ 

Note:

Week 5:

Warm Up Game:

Tongue Twister: Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear

Focus: Pace

Homework activity.  Try just the first line of your poem. Go very very slowly. Now try again, very fast. Now find somewhere in the middle. Practise speeding up and slowing down. Experiment with how you can control the pace of your delivery. 

Note:

Week 6:

Warm Up Game:

Tongue Twister: Sheep should sleep in the Shed

Focus: Diction

Homework activity.  Think about why it’s important to speak clearly. How can words be misunderstood when they aren’t enunciated? Look through your poem and find words where we need to put extra effort into how we say them. Are you saying all of the letters clearly? Are you pronouncing the end sound? Eg caT. 

Note:

Week 7:

Warm Up Game:

Tongue Twister: Rabbits raising a rumpus

Focus: Body language

Homework activity.  How does the way we move our whole bodies communicate our mood and intentions? Try to walk into a room in an angry way. Now try a scared way. Shy? Excited? Experiment with how to hold your body to communicate meaning and get a family member to guess your mood based on how you walk in the room (no speaking)

Week 8:

Warm Up Game:

Tongue Twister: A bragging baker baked black bread

Focus: Poem Shapes

Homework activity.  Look at how the poet has placed the words on the page. How can we emphasise the last word in the line? How does the way it’s written tell us more about the story?

Well done this half term! Wishing you a wonderful half term break