You may have noticed a new feature on the Mantle of the Expert website. We now have a calendar of events which can be accessed from the top ribbon on each page.
The calendar will show key events happening around NZ related to Mantle of the Expert and Dramatic Inquiry, including cluster groups, workshops and meetings of the Dramatic Inquiry Trust – many of which are open to any interested members of our community.
The website was set up over ten years ago as a way to facilitate networks and keep teachers around the country in touch – we really hope this new feature will help with this goal by giving a picture of what’s going on around Aotearoa and what you can be part of.
If you have an event to add to the calendar (e.g. a local cluster meeting or an ‘open day’ where colleagues can visit your classroom) please email mantleoftheexpertnz@gmail.com to notify. Include a contact email so people can get in touch.
Our next cluster meeting will be held over zoom to allow anyone from around NZ to participate. All welcome – very informal – BYO cuppa and afternoon tea! The focus will be on preplanning in Mantle of the Expert with teachers from Kawaha Point school sharing a recent example.
Questioning is a crucial aspect of teaching in Dramatic Inquiry. With a little practice you can move beyond the simple ‘who, what, where, why and how?’ to questions that reposition learners, elevate language and deepen thinking. Here’s a fabulous tool to help with this. It was created by Michael Bunting and originally published on the UK Mantle of the Expert website. This version was created by Whakarongo Tauranga. Thanks to all of the above for permission to share and use this.
Print it out, keep it on hand and explore what happens in your classroom when you start introducing questions in new ways. It’s amazing…
This handy planning tool was created by Heathcote to help teachers plan using the drama element of TENSION. For more detail on how to use this tool, check out the dynamic planning digram here.
This version of the tool is adapted from Mantle of the Expert, My current Understanding (Heathcote 2009)
https://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpg00Dinnahttps://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpgDinna2020-08-03 20:44:192020-08-03 20:52:06Levels of tension
In term 2 and 3 2020, the Dramatic Inquiry team at Knighton Normal School in Hamilton collaborated to create these lovely teaching resources based on the book Wooden Arms by Sarah Johnson.
The team rose to the challenge of using the same source material (the quality picture book) to create a collaborative play-based experience for New Entrants / year ones AND a full-blown Mantle of the Expert experience for more senior students. The results are something to be very proud of – exploring themes of identity and belonging in the context of New Zealand history.
Those new to dramatic inquiry will enjoy the detail in the planning, which include step by step instructions and questions etc. Those more experienced in the approach will appreciate the use of various finessing tools including the three teacher voices, the dimensions of dramatic imagination, the teacher compass and a range of drama conventions.
Many thanks to the teachers Jacki Paea, Chrissy Cottingham, Katie McLean, Nicole Antoniadis, David Hannah, Diane Cooper & Whakarongo Tauranga for generously making these resources available. Thanks also to Sarah Johnson who gave her enthusiastic support for this planning.
https://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpg00Dinnahttps://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpgDinna2020-08-03 20:38:212020-08-03 20:39:55The Wooden Arms – Dramatic inquiry response to a NZ picture book
The weekly podcasts are available on subscription. Each will be supported by reading material, an interactive google doc, and a live zoom discussion (dates as below). Participants will be encouraged to try out new strategies in their classroom, with an opportunity to reflect and ask questions within a supportive environment of the zoom hui. We’re really excited about this format. It’s not a ‘course’ – there are no ‘assignments’ – just lots of invitations to dialogue, reflect and try new things. You can take part as little or as much as you wish.
The podcast series has something for everyone. For beginners, there’s a once-off introductory session with a follow up zoom hui ($20+GST), while more experienced practitioners can sign up to an additional four podcasts and zoom hui to look at specific teaching tools in more detail ($100+GST). Special price for school groups of 6-10 teachers ($500+GST).
For further information about how it all works, have a listen to this short audio clip:
https://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpg00Dinnahttps://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpgDinna2020-06-23 18:54:392020-08-03 20:54:54Podcast series with Tim Taylor, Viv Aitken & Whakarongo Tauranga
Luca’s image of ‘Max’ – from the Dog Squad Hero’s Board
It’s a great pleasure to share this slide show (see link below). It’s an overview of a Mantle of the Expert – inspired adventure called Dog Squad. These slides represent the culmination of an incredible team effort over the last few months. Inspired by the work of Tim Taylor and exploremore, the planning for Dog Squad was originally written by Renee Downey (Otaika Valley School) and Viv Aitken, trialled by Renee in her class, and then further developed by teachers from Hillcrest Normal School.
Dog Squad was originally developed for use during lockdown – to support home learning in levels 4 & 3. We wanted to see if we could provide ‘distance learning’ with the qualities of Mantle of the Expert – and encourage children to learn through imagination, embodiment and creativity away from their devices. As you can see from the samples of work on the slides, it was a great success with buy-in from a large number of children and their families. Children responded in all sorts of highly creative ways – the level of commitment and self-directed work was amazing! I think everyone involved would agree that the experiment brought home the potential for Mantle of the Expert in the digital age.
Hillcrest Normal School has continued to work with Dog Squad through the transition back to face-to-face learning – so this version is hot off the press! Slides and examples of children’s work are shared with permission – these are only a small sample of the many creative responses that have been produced.
The collaborative process of working on this resource has been unforgettable and wonderful. The story deserves telling in much more detail – and will be in future. And there are other adventures still in development that I hope we can share in time (I’m looking at you Fossil Hunters team!)
The generous teachers who created Dog Squad are happy to share the slides they created for each episode on a case by case basis – so please email on mantleoftheexpertnz@gmail.com if you would like to request access to those.
For now, here’s a small taste of what has taken many hours of hard work from passionate and committed teachers – and their students.
https://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpg00Dinnahttps://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpgDinna2020-05-27 17:18:482020-08-20 09:59:28A taste of Dog Squad – a mantle of the expert-inspired adventure for home (and school) learning
Here’s a wee drama written by the Dramatic Inquiry team at Knighton Normal school in Hamilton (Jacki Paia, David Hannah, Diane Cooper, Nicole Antoniadis, Whakarongo Tauranga) with support from Viv Aitken. This group of teachers has been working to support children in their transition back to face-to-face schooling, with experiences in dramatic play, process drama and Mantle of the Expert.
The drama is based on the picture book Lessons of a LAC by Lynne Jenkins. The story is all about two groups who live on opposite sides of a mountain: the Little Anxious Creatures and the Calmsters. These two groups have a long history of battles. But then one day Loppy the LAC learns some useful strategies from his new Calmster friend and they start to consider a new kind of relationship…
The team felt this story was a good way to begin a conversation with children as they process their feelings about the Covid-19 pandemic and the return to school. The use of drama and the imagined world of the story provides a safe, frame-distanced and enjoyable way to explore some important questions of wellbeing.
Teachers have been trialling the drama this week and it’s gone really well. Now they want to make their planning freely available for others to use. THANKS team for your generosity.
Please post a response below if you use this planning in your class – we’d love to hear how you get on!
https://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpg00Dinnahttps://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpgDinna2020-05-27 16:21:162020-05-27 16:22:00LAC (Little Anxious Creatures) process drama resource
We were due to have a cluster meeting for teachers in Wellington this week, but this has been rainchecked what with one thing and another. We will definitely get back into face-to-face cluster meetings in due course.
Meanwhile, how about a zoom hui / zui cluster? The advantage of this is that colleagues can join from anywhere within Aotearoa (or indeed beyond!) What a great opportunity to reconnect with like minded colleagues and to share what we have tried – and learned – from the experience of teaching over the last few months… both during lockdown and in the transition back to school. There have been some terrific initiatives, so plenty of great stories to share in an informal setting. BYO cuppa!
We have scheduled a zoom meeting for Thursday 4th June at 3.30pm. ALL WELCOME.
https://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpg00Dinnahttps://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpgDinna2020-05-27 15:55:182020-05-27 15:55:43Next cluster meeting 4th June on zoom – all welcome
The University of Auckland, NZEI, the Principals Federation and the Sir John Kirwan Foundation have partnered to create www.teritotoi.org an online resource to support teachers to return to school through the arts and wellbeing.
This is a very valuable, and very attractive resource with lots of inspirational ideas for using drama and other arts. The resource was specifically designed for use in the first few weeks after lockdown when we finally return to school.
The activities include several really lovely process dramas – and three connected units of work focussed on Hā Ora. These would be a great way to lay the foundations for the longer term cross-curricula learning in Mantle of the Expert once you are back with your classes.
Highly recommended!
https://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpg00Dinnahttps://mantleoftheexpert.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Mantle-of-the-Expert-logo-.jpgDinna2020-04-26 15:56:062020-04-26 16:18:11Te Rito Toi
New calendar feature
You may have noticed a new feature on the Mantle of the Expert website. We now have a calendar of events which can be accessed from the top ribbon on each page.
The calendar will show key events happening around NZ related to Mantle of the Expert and Dramatic Inquiry, including cluster groups, workshops and meetings of the Dramatic Inquiry Trust – many of which are open to any interested members of our community.
The website was set up over ten years ago as a way to facilitate networks and keep teachers around the country in touch – we really hope this new feature will help with this goal by giving a picture of what’s going on around Aotearoa and what you can be part of.
If you have an event to add to the calendar (e.g. a local cluster meeting or an ‘open day’ where colleagues can visit your classroom) please email mantleoftheexpertnz@gmail.com to notify. Include a contact email so people can get in touch.
Cluster meeting 2nd Sept 3.30-5pm via zoom. All welcome
Our next cluster meeting will be held over zoom to allow anyone from around NZ to participate. All welcome – very informal – BYO cuppa and afternoon tea! The focus will be on preplanning in Mantle of the Expert with teachers from Kawaha Point school sharing a recent example.
If you’d like to attend, please email mantleoftheexpertnz@gmail.com and ask for the zoom link.
If attending in a group, please use a separate device per 2-3 people so we can see individual faces – THANKS!
Questioning
Questioning is a crucial aspect of teaching in Dramatic Inquiry. With a little practice you can move beyond the simple ‘who, what, where, why and how?’ to questions that reposition learners, elevate language and deepen thinking. Here’s a fabulous tool to help with this. It was created by Michael Bunting and originally published on the UK Mantle of the Expert website. This version was created by Whakarongo Tauranga. Thanks to all of the above for permission to share and use this.
Print it out, keep it on hand and explore what happens in your classroom when you start introducing questions in new ways. It’s amazing…
Levels of tension
This handy planning tool was created by Heathcote to help teachers plan using the drama element of TENSION. For more detail on how to use this tool, check out the dynamic planning digram here.
This version of the tool is adapted from Mantle of the Expert, My current Understanding (Heathcote 2009)
The Wooden Arms – Dramatic inquiry response to a NZ picture book
In term 2 and 3 2020, the Dramatic Inquiry team at Knighton Normal School in Hamilton collaborated to create these lovely teaching resources based on the book Wooden Arms by Sarah Johnson.
The team rose to the challenge of using the same source material (the quality picture book) to create a collaborative play-based experience for New Entrants / year ones AND a full-blown Mantle of the Expert experience for more senior students. The results are something to be very proud of – exploring themes of identity and belonging in the context of New Zealand history.
Those new to dramatic inquiry will enjoy the detail in the planning, which include step by step instructions and questions etc. Those more experienced in the approach will appreciate the use of various finessing tools including the three teacher voices, the dimensions of dramatic imagination, the teacher compass and a range of drama conventions.
Many thanks to the teachers Jacki Paea, Chrissy Cottingham, Katie McLean, Nicole Antoniadis, David Hannah, Diane Cooper & Whakarongo Tauranga for generously making these resources available. Thanks also to Sarah Johnson who gave her enthusiastic support for this planning.
Podcast series with Tim Taylor, Viv Aitken & Whakarongo Tauranga
Very excited to announce this PLD opportunity which runs 16th July – 19th August and can be accessed by teachers from all over Aotearoa.
Tim Taylor, Viv Aitken and Whakarongo Tauranga are producing a five-part podcast series exploring different aspects of Mantle of the Expert.
CLICK HERE to read more about the presenters
The weekly podcasts are available on subscription. Each will be supported by reading material, an interactive google doc, and a live zoom discussion (dates as below). Participants will be encouraged to try out new strategies in their classroom, with an opportunity to reflect and ask questions within a supportive environment of the zoom hui. We’re really excited about this format. It’s not a ‘course’ – there are no ‘assignments’ – just lots of invitations to dialogue, reflect and try new things. You can take part as little or as much as you wish.
The podcast series has something for everyone. For beginners, there’s a once-off introductory session with a follow up zoom hui ($20+GST), while more experienced practitioners can sign up to an additional four podcasts and zoom hui to look at specific teaching tools in more detail ($100+GST). Special price for school groups of 6-10 teachers ($500+GST).
For further information about how it all works, have a listen to this short audio clip:
Here’s the link to the enrolment form: https://forms.gle/pQ8u6xUsJUAHdE8w5
And here’s the email address if you have any other questions mantleoftheexpertnz@gmail.com
A taste of Dog Squad – a mantle of the expert-inspired adventure for home (and school) learning
It’s a great pleasure to share this slide show (see link below). It’s an overview of a Mantle of the Expert – inspired adventure called Dog Squad. These slides represent the culmination of an incredible team effort over the last few months. Inspired by the work of Tim Taylor and exploremore, the planning for Dog Squad was originally written by Renee Downey (Otaika Valley School) and Viv Aitken, trialled by Renee in her class, and then further developed by teachers from Hillcrest Normal School.
Dog Squad was originally developed for use during lockdown – to support home learning in levels 4 & 3. We wanted to see if we could provide ‘distance learning’ with the qualities of Mantle of the Expert – and encourage children to learn through imagination, embodiment and creativity away from their devices. As you can see from the samples of work on the slides, it was a great success with buy-in from a large number of children and their families. Children responded in all sorts of highly creative ways – the level of commitment and self-directed work was amazing! I think everyone involved would agree that the experiment brought home the potential for Mantle of the Expert in the digital age.
Hillcrest Normal School has continued to work with Dog Squad through the transition back to face-to-face learning – so this version is hot off the press! Slides and examples of children’s work are shared with permission – these are only a small sample of the many creative responses that have been produced.
The collaborative process of working on this resource has been unforgettable and wonderful. The story deserves telling in much more detail – and will be in future. And there are other adventures still in development that I hope we can share in time (I’m looking at you Fossil Hunters team!)
The generous teachers who created Dog Squad are happy to share the slides they created for each episode on a case by case basis – so please email on mantleoftheexpertnz@gmail.com if you would like to request access to those.
For now, here’s a small taste of what has taken many hours of hard work from passionate and committed teachers – and their students.
Enjoy…
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1r1f6o5FgtPQXrZp-4B1JRtB-hvaoCZcPVeKisGgFpAs/edit?usp=sharing
LAC (Little Anxious Creatures) process drama resource
Here’s a wee drama written by the Dramatic Inquiry team at Knighton Normal school in Hamilton (Jacki Paia, David Hannah, Diane Cooper, Nicole Antoniadis, Whakarongo Tauranga) with support from Viv Aitken. This group of teachers has been working to support children in their transition back to face-to-face schooling, with experiences in dramatic play, process drama and Mantle of the Expert.
The drama is based on the picture book Lessons of a LAC by Lynne Jenkins. The story is all about two groups who live on opposite sides of a mountain: the Little Anxious Creatures and the Calmsters. These two groups have a long history of battles. But then one day Loppy the LAC learns some useful strategies from his new Calmster friend and they start to consider a new kind of relationship…
The team felt this story was a good way to begin a conversation with children as they process their feelings about the Covid-19 pandemic and the return to school. The use of drama and the imagined world of the story provides a safe, frame-distanced and enjoyable way to explore some important questions of wellbeing.
Teachers have been trialling the drama this week and it’s gone really well. Now they want to make their planning freely available for others to use. THANKS team for your generosity.
Please post a response below if you use this planning in your class – we’d love to hear how you get on!
Next cluster meeting 4th June on zoom – all welcome
We were due to have a cluster meeting for teachers in Wellington this week, but this has been rainchecked what with one thing and another. We will definitely get back into face-to-face cluster meetings in due course.
Meanwhile, how about a zoom hui / zui cluster? The advantage of this is that colleagues can join from anywhere within Aotearoa (or indeed beyond!) What a great opportunity to reconnect with like minded colleagues and to share what we have tried – and learned – from the experience of teaching over the last few months… both during lockdown and in the transition back to school. There have been some terrific initiatives, so plenty of great stories to share in an informal setting. BYO cuppa!
We have scheduled a zoom meeting for Thursday 4th June at 3.30pm. ALL WELCOME.
Just email mantleoftheexpertnz@gmail.com by 4pm on Tuesday 2nd for the link.
Te Rito Toi
The University of Auckland, NZEI, the Principals Federation and the Sir John Kirwan Foundation have partnered to create www.teritotoi.org an online resource to support teachers to return to school through the arts and wellbeing.
This is a very valuable, and very attractive resource with lots of inspirational ideas for using drama and other arts. The resource was specifically designed for use in the first few weeks after lockdown when we finally return to school.
The activities include several really lovely process dramas – and three connected units of work focussed on Hā Ora. These would be a great way to lay the foundations for the longer term cross-curricula learning in Mantle of the Expert once you are back with your classes.
Highly recommended!