Teaching Playwriting

Playwriting is a skill under-explored in the classroom, despite the strong evidence that it's an engaging and rewarding activity for young people. Teaching Playwriting addresses this gap and is an essential resource for teachers wanting to gain the skills and confidence necessary to introduce playwriting to their students.
Based on rich research and clearly explained theoretical concepts, the book explores the lessons from creativity theory that will provide the teacher with the skills and knowledge necessary to empower students' writing and creativity. It also includes extensive practical activities and writing exercises to develop students' playwriting proficiency and creative capacity.
Discussing key concepts in playwriting such as idea, dialogue, character, action and structure, the book enables teachers to respond to the unique learning needs of their students and help them tell their stories and reach their potential as young playwrights.

Dr Paul Gardiner lectures in creativity, drama education and pedagogy in the Sydney School of Education and Social Work at the University of Sydney. He is an experienced Drama and English teacher, having taught in secondary schools for nearly twenty years before embarking on his doctoral studies. He was Senior Marker for the Scriptwriting component of the NSW HSC Drama exam and continues to offer playwriting workshops for teachers and students.

Part 1: Why Playwriting? The benefits of teaching playwriting with students
Chapter 1: Why teach playwriting?
Chapter 2: The spectrum of ideas: knowledge to aid creativity
Part 2: How playwriting works - the teaching approach
Chapter 3: A playwright's wheel
Chapter 4: Teaching the idea
Chapter 5: Writing dialogue
Chapter 6: Generating action
Chapter 7: Creating character
Chapter 8: Story structure
Chapter 9: The poetic
Chapter 10: Page to stage
Chapter 11: Conclusion