Narration is a technique whereby one or more performers speak directly to the audience to tell a story, give information or comment on the action of the scene or the motivations of characters. Characters may narrate, or a performer who is not involved in the action can carry out the role of 'narrator'.

Spotlighting is a useful teaching technique for sharing improvised drama when you have divided the class into smaller groups. When it is time to show their work, ask all the groups to sit on the floor. Explain that you will walk around the room and as you get closer to each group, that group will stand up and show their performance. As you move off towards the next group, they will stop the drama and quietly sit down again so that they can watch other groups.

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The leader or one member of the group acts as conductor, whilst the rest of the group are the 'orchestra'. Using their voices (and body percussion if appropriate!), the group paints a soundscape of a particular theme or mood, for example the seaside, a city, a jungle. The leader can control the shape of the piece by raising her hand to increase the volume or bringing it to touch the floor for silence. You may also use simple percussion instruments for this exercise.

Use the player below to hear a pretty convincing rainforest soundscape created by a dozen talented teachers on one of our Primary Drama INSET days.

This is a simple and effective way for using still images to tell a story. It also mimics the technique of blackouts on stage - with no technical equipment required! Divide the class into small groups and give them the task of telling a story using a specific number of still images - between three and five images is a good number. Now they must work out the story and practice moving from image to image. When the time comes for sharing the work, the teacher, or one person in each group, should take responsibility for saying 'Open' and 'Close'.

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