Effective program planning can be designed to facilitate the use of drama-based approaches and activities to engage students in healthy living. Program planning models are moving away from the traditional one-to-two-week blocked units of health and towards a more integrated approach whereby students learn about health concepts and skills over one to three days of focused learning. Using this integrated approach while employing drama-based activities provides students with the time needed beyond the classroom to embark on further research to build on their understanding of their chosen healthy living topic (e.g., visiting a local health clinic to learn about the services offered; continuing to collaborate with their group) and provides students with the time to practice and refine their work to share with others.
Listed below are other variables to consider when deciding when, how, and to what extent to use drama as an approach to engaging students:
- Class size
- Student backgrounds
- Student needs and interests
- Developmentally appropriate materials, strategies, and topics
- The intended audience for students to perform their work
- Possible forms of presenting (e.g., digital versus live formats)
- The availability of other staff and student expertise to support student groups
- Time allocated for healthy living learning and timetabling (e.g., weekly units vs integrated throughout course)
- Assessment opportunities before, during, and at the end of learning
- The availability of facilities
- The availability of other resources such as public health units and other community partners and offsite facilities