ABSTRACT
In drama, the notion of role reflects to some degree the sociological idea of ‘function’ within, for example, the family, group or society in general. Drama workshop activities may also explore role through a variety of methods such as role reversing and doubling, where the thoughts of someone in role are imagined and spoken aloud by members of the group. The activities presented in this chapter suggest ways of structuring drama that allow children to access role play and use it to adopt and explore the familiar roles of everyday life. There are some suggestions for working on the roles that children adopt in the drama group itself, but the focus of the chapter is on exploring roles within children's everyday lives. People who are part of children's social networks, identified in the activity from the previous chapter, may be asked to participate, for example, a class teacher, key worker, head teacher, bus escort.
