Exploring Blue Remembered Hills
Session 1 – Role Play
Objectives: Use role play in a range of ways to explore themes from the
play, create a role or roles that are imaginative and appropriate to the
themes and time period, perform using vocal and physical skills in an
engaging way
Key words: Role play, war, childhood, writing in role, monologue,
Starter Activity – Children’s Games
Students should play the games in role as children of about 7 years old. They
should think about how they behaved and reacted to games at that age and
should focus on the enthusiasm and energy children of that age have. You
could play a variety of games each session to get students into role.
Games should be typical playground style ones and could include:
What’s The Time Mr Wolf?
Grandma’s Footsteps
Stuck in the Mud
Cowboys and Indians
Oranges and Lemons
Activity 1 – Role Play
Students get into groups of about 4. They continue to be in role as 7 year old
children and create a scene around the theme “Mummy’s and Daddy’s.” The
scene should be based around “traditional” family roles and in the time
period of World War 2 so it is highly likely that the men in the family are at
War. Students could stage the scene either imagining their father/brother
returning home for a visit or based on a time they remember before they went
to war.
Watch some example scenes and use a combination of feedback from peers
and teacher. Did individuals use the voice and physicality appropriate to a 7
year old? Did the group create a scene appropriate to the time period?
Activity 2 – Writing in Role
Students use the scenes they have just performed as inspiration for writing a
letter to a male family member who is away at War. The letter should be
written using the language of 7 year old and could include: descriptions of
what they are doing at school, how the rest of the family are, how they miss
the person and want them home etc.
Activity 3 – Monologue in Role
Students use the letter as a basis for preparing a monologue. The monologue
should be presented without the use of the written letter, but students should
improvise and build on the ideas from it. Students could choose to address
the monologue to the male family member or to a more general audience.
Again they must attempt a convincing characterisation in terms of
physicalisation and voice for a 7 yr old.
Performances and Plenary
Watch some of the monologues. Is the characterisation appropriate and
imaginative? Is the content of the monologue engaging and believable? Is the
time period considered?
Homework
Students should keep a log of the activities they explore throughout these
sessions so that they can draw on them when it comes to putting together
their portfolios or work on examination questions. It is important for students
to write up their own contributions to the activities and to reflect on their own
work as well as that of other students.
Read Scenes 1 – 11 of the Play