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Drama & Public Speaking Program Overview: Preschool to 8

Clairbourn provides specific instruction in public speaking skills in the elementary grades and in select middle school specialist classes. A wide variety of public speaking opportunities are offered for first through eighth grades. Starting in 1st grade, giving Morning Assembly announcements, giving presentations to the entire school, doing oral presentations in classes, and participating in classroom performance activities such as Reader’s Theatre and classroom plays. By blending creative self-expression with our core curriculum, students progress from imaginative play to confident public presentation.

Early Childhood & Lower Elementary

Foundations of Imagination & Storytelling: In the earliest years, drama is used as a tool for discovery and confidence-building. Students engage in structured imaginative play and creative storytelling to explore emotions, develop spatial awareness, and build collaboration skills. Through fairy tales, fables, and improvised adventures, children learn to use their voices and bodies to communicate ideas.

Early Elementary

Introduction to the Stage: In the upper elementary grades, the drama program integrates directly with social studies units, transforming history into an immersive, hands-on experience.

List of 3 items.

  • 3rd Grade (The Pioneer Unit)

    Students step into the shoes of early American settlers. By acting out the Pioneer experience, students gain empathy for the challenges and triumphs of westward expansion, bringing history off the page through role-play.

  • 4th Grade (The California Missions)

    Drama serves as a bridge to the past as students explore the narratives of the Mission era. Through dramatic scene-work and character perspectives, students examine history from multiple viewpoints to deepen their presentation skills.

  • 5th Grade (The American Revolution)

    History comes alive as students reenact the pivotal debates, figures, and events of the Revolutionary War. Acting out these foundational moments helps students internalize the concepts of democracy, liberty, and conflict resolution.

Middle School (Grades 6 – 8)

In middle school, students meet for specialist-led drama classes that rotate by trimester. These classes help students build confidence and teamwork skills through hands-on theater games, character work, and script reading. The program focuses on bringing students together to put on fun, age-appropriate scenes, one-acts, and plays. Middle schoolers get involved in the whole process, from learning lines and acting on stage to helping out with backstage jobs like props, costumes, and scenery. 

Clairbourn provides advanced drama studies through CAST (Clairbourn After-School Theater). Middle school student participation in the annual play is by audition, but there is a wide variety of parts to allow maximum opportunities for those who want to participate. Many of our creatively inclined students appreciate opportunities to participate in drama productions from behind the scenes.  They have opportunities to be stagehands, set and costume designers, lighting designers, makeup artists, and other stagecraft positions.
As students work to refine their pieces of sculpture or drawing, or their presentation of spoken lines or singing parts, they learn to be self-critical and self-correcting, to handle frustration, and to persevere until they achieve their goal.
8400 Huntington Drive | San Gabriel, CA 91775 626.286.3108 | info@clairbourn.org
 
Private School Education for Preschool, Kindergarten, Elementary School & Middle School. Serving Families in the Pasadena Area and San Gabriel Valley. Clairbourn is a 501(c)3 charitable organization (K-12 Private Schools) and accredited by CAIS and WASC. Child Care Facility license # 191500903.