DREAM BELIEVE ACHIEVE
Life skills/Resilience/Building Confidence
Through Music, Drama & Presentation Skills
Weekly sessions throughout the academic year
With a very different focus to a theatre school or a typical speech & drama class, the main objectives are to build confidence and develop life and social skills in a fun-filled, no-pressure atmosphere. For this reason the classes are non-exam focused and are restricted to 12 children per class (or 11 for the 3-5 year olds) to allow for plenty of encouragement and individual attention. Students build a strong bond within the group, therefore creating a safe environment for taking steps outside their comfort zone. Public speaking, presentation skills, musical performance, social skills, coping skills, assertiveness and self-belief are explored through music and drama. Parents are encouraged to talk to the teachers about their children’s progress and any day to day issues that arise in the children’s lives can be explored in the class. Each group of children perform a separate annual concert for families and friends, where every student has the opportunity to stand in the spotlight and perform a couple of chosen solo pieces along with some public speaking worked on throughout the year. The concert also serves as a showcase for social skills and other life skills learned throughout the year. While many love to perform, others need lots of individual encouragement and support. Each of our teachers are totally committed to each child, providing the care and genuine interest that is required to help them achieve their goals. This course is suited to all types of personalities and abilities and attracts as many boys as girls.
There are three elements which comprise the content of the classes:
A) Performance and Presentation skills
(i) Students choose from a range of poetry/monologues and songs. They work on one piece at a time with a view to gaining the confidence to perform them – not only for their class but to a wider audience. Within the small groups, students encourage and support each another – which is important for building confidence. (ii) Students work on a short play throughout the year in preparation for performing it at their annual class concert. From Junior Level (6-8 year olds) upwards, the students learn the skill of presenting: from a starting point of speaking for one minute on any topic they wish. The techniques we use are the same ones used in many of the communication skills centres for adults.
B) Life Skills, Communication Skills, Resilience and Confidence Building through Drama Games, Improvisation and Role Play
Every two weeks the class will focus on a particular life skill theme and this will be explored through discussion, role play and improvisation. Students learn to look outside of themselves; to respect and understand other people’s ideas, attitudes and approaches. Acting out day-to-day scenarios results in children processing their own and others’ behaviour in both enjoyable and potentially challenging situations. They learn how to be assertive in such situations without being aggressive and they form opinions on all sorts of things gaining a broader perspective on life. They become more emotionally intelligent and self aware. Examples of life skills themes include empathy, understanding and relating to older people, passive, aggressive and assertive behaviour, managing friendships, appreciating different opinions and personalities, managing stress & anxiety. This is valuable training in preparing children for the inevitable challenges of secondary school life.
C) Annual Theatre Outing.
An optional annual theatre outing is organised to encourage a love of theatre. Very often it is arranged for the children and their parents to meet cast members backstage and experience being on the set. This enables students to learn first-hand, how a show is produced from a “backstage” point of view.
Musical Theatre & Hip Hop Dance for Children & Teens
Ages 3 – 17yrs
Weekly sessions throughout the academic year
This class is action-packed fun!
Students have an hour of singing, acting, stage technique and through the medium of drama specific life skill’s themes are explored each week. The second hour of the class is dance/hip hop training. Even though there are larger numbers in this class, great care is taken to give each student equal opportunity to develop further talent. The emphasis is on building confidence and having fun rather than creating ‘little stars’, however, if suitable, plenty of opportunities for auditioning for, and performing in professional shows are available along with the preparation and support throughout the process. Indeed, many of the students have enjoyed great success in this regard. All students will work towards performing in the fully costumed annual show at The Mill Theatre, Dundrum, where all children are treated equally regardless of their standard of performance. While training of the highest standard is provided, the school prides itself on its focus on the well-being and encouragement of each child’s development, to prepare them for the inevitable challenges of life.
Innate Health Education And Resilience Training
The Mel Ryan School is the first to bring this global project educating young people in dozens of countries around the world, to Ireland. This programme has been accredited the MATRIX Standard which is the UK Department of Education’s international quality standard for the delivery of high-quality information, guidance and advice (IAG).
We all know that the mental health of our young people is in crisis. Here are some statistics from a survey carried out in the UK by iheart;
90% increase in the number of students experiencing anxiety or stress over the last 5 years.
81% of pupils would like their school to teach them more about their mental health.
50% of mental health problems are established by age 14.
20% of adolescents may experience a mental health problem in any given year.
About Us
Mel studied at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, The Gaiety School of Acting, The Bil Keating Centre for TV Presentation Skills and Carr Communications. She has been playing leading roles in The Gaiety Theatre, Learn More
How to Book
Please complete the REQUEST A BOOKING FORM above, or if you would like further information, or wish to discuss your child’s needs, please do not hesitate to contact us: Phone: 086-8372364 Email: melryanschool@gmail.com
Timetable
Please see our Timetable page for our Current Timetable or please contact us for more information.
