How to organize theater activities for children in kindergarten?

Childhood is a short but important period of personality development. During these years, children acquire primary knowledge about the world around them, their attitude towards people and work is formed, and a certain character and style of behavior develops. And in this development, role-playing games are the main activity that helps children understand the complex world.

The role of theatrical activities in kindergarten

Theatrical activity is a special type of role-playing games that provide the full development of the child’s abilities. At this stage of growing up, it is very important that children focus entirely on the world that needs to be known and themselves, which need to be loved with all their strengths and weaknesses. The theater provides such a fenced area where the child feels like “the center of the universe” and can share emotions. At the same time, children do not perceive classes as lessons, because what is happening looks like a fun game with costumes and beautiful scenery. What skills do children acquire?

Physical activity. During classes, children move a lot: they improve their body flexibility and endurance, and memorize the movements of dance numbers.
Logical abilities. Memory, attentiveness and concentration on business naturally improve. Imagination and creative thinking develops.
Social experience. Through fairy tales and stories, children learn social experience: norms and rules of behavior, responsibility for their actions, the few responsibilities that are imposed on children.
Moral orientation. Each literary work conveys moral nuances such as “good and evil”, “love and hate”, which help children understand their own feelings and do the right thing.
Social relations. Through characters, children see how family members, friends or enemies interact with each other, after which they can copy examples of behavior and adapt to social society.
Acting skills. Children learn to express their feelings through movements, words and facial expressions. Sharpen your skills and unleash your creativity.
Developing your own opinion. Through heroes, the child sees both good and bad deeds. Evaluates the consequences and forms an opinion.

Goals and objectives of theater in the development of children

The purpose of theatrical activity is to show the child the diversity of the world around him and teach him to interact with this environment. Those. In the process of classes, children not only gain comprehensive knowledge about the structure of the world and human relationships, but also get rid of fears that hinder a harmonious life in society.

Achieving the goal occurs through solving the following tasks:

Developing children's curiosity. Through interesting tales and vivid images of characters, the theater teaches children curiosity and immersion in an issue of interest.
Getting rid of stiffness and tightness. Children “hide” behind the characters, literally stand in their place, perform brave deeds and gradually stop being shy on stage, which will later help them perform at the board.
Development of speech and articulation. Children correct incorrect pronunciation of words, expand their vocabulary and express their thoughts beautifully. They also learn to control the body, which helps get rid of complexes.
Formation of a quick reaction to events. Children are able to assess the situation, react correctly and express their opinion, which helps to get out of unforeseen circumstances and has a positive effect on self-confidence.
Collaboration with the team. Children learn to value common activities, coordinate their actions with others, and be part of a team.

Important! When choosing theatrical activities, it is necessary to take into account the age of the children. Kids will not cope with a full-fledged role: they are not used to performing on stage in front of many people, they do not know how to express feelings and may be afraid of responsibility. On the contrary, older children will get bored at an event where their participation is not required.

There are several age-specific methods for theatrical games:

Junior group. The main role is played by educators or parents, and children pick up the game whenever possible. Usually they become extras who shout “Snow Maiden!” following Santa Claus or repeating dance moves after adults. They can control their own toys and imitate the characteristic movements of the characters: for example, a dog wags its tail and barks, and a cat rubs its legs and meows.

Middle group. Children participate in performances of songs, dances, games and fairy tales. Now it is not enough for them to be themselves or to repeat after the teacher - first they need to learn the correct behavior: memorize several consecutive dance movements or several lines of a poem. There is also training in artistic and figurative means for expressing feelings such as facial expressions, intonation and pantomime.

Senior group. Children perform dramatizations based on works of art, where they get full-fledged roles. They play as the main or secondary character using dolls and flat figures. They are imbued with the spirit of their hero, conveying his emotions through the voice and movement of the doll. They can already come up with a small scene on their own or change part of the work to suit modern realities.

Preparatory group. Children perform costume plays based on works of art or their own stories. Improve acting skills and the transfer of artistic images. Evaluate the character and actions of their character. They develop creative independence in conveying his image: how the character moves, what voice he speaks, what feelings he experiences, etc.

Types of theater for children

Theater on the stand

A stand theater is a specific surface on which decorations and figures are attached. The action takes place within this surface. With light movements, the teacher creates the reality of the fairy tale: he places and moves figures, imitates their voices, waves his arms or stomps his feet at dramatic moments. And when the hero first appears, children can guess who it is. Happens:

Flannelograph is a fabric surface on which figures are attached with Velcro. Suitable for low-moving tales;
A magnetic stand to which figures are attached using magnets. Suitable for moving fairy tales, because these figures are easy to drag without removing;
Shadow theater - instead of a screen, a white cloth is used, behind which there is a lantern. The characters become black figures or palms folded into recognizable shapes;
A stand-book is a large book that already depicts the events of a fairy tale. The teacher turns the pages as the story progresses and points his finger at the characters who are now speaking.
Theater on the table

The performance takes place on the table with the help of table toys. Usually the tabletop and transparent curtains are beautifully decorated, behind which the narrator hides and moves the figures with his hand. You can use any toys: straw, fabric, clay, plasticine - the main thing is that they stand steadily on the table and do not interfere with the movement of other toys. By the way, you can invite the children to make homemade toys.

Theater on hand

The performance takes place using fabric dolls that are pulled over the hand. Such fairy tales are the most emotional due to the fact that the toy constantly moves, jumps, waves its arms and nods its head. Children can also make toys themselves from available materials: for example, plastic bottles, matchboxes, buttons, cardboard, tennis balls, etc. It happens:

Finger theater, when miniature toys are put on one finger. You can move them left and right and nod your head, expressing strong feelings;
A glove doll is a full-fledged toy with a head, arms and a body in the form of a dress or a wide shirt. It is worn over the entire hand: the thumb and little finger control the hands, the remaining fingers control the head;
Spoons - an image of an animal’s face or muzzle is applied to the curved part of the spoon, after which they can be moved left and right or tilted, nodding.
Theater on the floor

These are performances in which the toys, at first glance, stand independently on the floor. Of course, they are tied to ropes, but the movements are so realistic that the toys cannot be distinguished from living people. Such performances seem like real magic to a child. There are:

Puppets are dolls that move using strings tied to their limbs. Children do not participate in the performance due to the difficulty in controlling the puppets;
Giant dolls are child-sized toys. The toy is tied to the child’s body: when you need to move it with your arms or legs, the child uses his arms and legs. And if you need to nod, he tilts his body slightly.
Costume performances

These are re-enactments in colorful costumes. A group of children prepares a performance in advance: chooses the plot of a fairy tale, distributes roles, learns their lines, imitates the character’s voice and characteristic movements. Such activities fully reveal the child’s creative abilities and allow him to temporarily become a favorite hero. Ready-made performances are shown in front of parents and they have fun.

Technology for organizing theatrical activities in preschool educational institutions material

“Working with preschoolers on staging a play”

Teacher Gorbatova N.G.

The methodological recommendations include the main stages of working with preschoolers on staging a play and developing scripts for performances.

Working with preschoolers on staging a play

In modern society, the social prestige of intelligence and scientific knowledge has increased. Associated with this is the desire to give children knowledge, to teach them to read, write and count, and not the ability to feel, think and create.

There is an important problem that worries teachers. According to data, during the period of a child’s psychological adaptation to school, 69% of first-graders experience fears, breakdowns, and lethargy, while others, on the contrary, become loose and fussy, lack voluntary behavior skills, and have insufficiently developed memory and attention. The shortest way to emotionally liberate a child, relieve tension, teach feelings and artistic imagination is the path through play, fantasy, and writing. Theatrical activities can provide all this.

It is dramatization “based on an action performed by the child himself that most closely, effectively and directly connects artistic creativity with personal experiences.” (L.S. Vygotsky).

Creating a play with children is a very exciting and rewarding activity. Joint creative activity involves even insufficiently active children in the production process, helping them overcome shyness and inhibition.

When preparing for a performance, try to follow a few basic rules:

do not overload children;
do not impose your opinion;
provide all children with the opportunity to try themselves in different roles.

Children's first meeting with a play or dramatization should be emotionally rich in order to awaken interest in the work ahead. As a rule, the material for stage implementation is fairy tales, which provide “an unusually bright, broad, multi-valued image of the world.” The world of a fairy tale with its wonders and secrets, adventures and transformations is very close to a child. A fairy tale awakens in children compassion, a desire to understand another person, a sense of complicity, justice, a desire to do good and fight evil.

When choosing material for dramatization, take into account the age capabilities, knowledge and skills of children, but at the same time you need to enrich their life experience, awaken interest in new knowledge, and expand their creative capabilities.

The Kuklyandiya theater association has been open to boys and girls since 2003. At first these were teenagers and high school students. Since 2006, the team has been replenished with younger schoolchildren, and since 2009, the team has expanded with preschool children. In this methodological recommendation, I would like to pay attention to the main stages of working with preschoolers on staging a play or dramatization.

The main stages of working on the performance:

Selecting a play and discussing it with children.
Dividing the play into episodes and retelling them for children.
Work on episodes in the form of sketches with improvised text.
Search for an image (defining the character of the hero, manner of moving, speaking).
Search for mise-en-scène (musical and plastic solutions for episodes, staging dances). You can create sketches of scenery and costumes with your children.
Work on the text: proposed circumstances and motive for the characters’ behavior.
Work on the expressiveness of speech and the authenticity of behavior in public conditions, consolidating individual mise-en-scenes.
Rehearsals based on paintings with elements of scenery and props (possibly conditional), with musical accompaniment.
Rehearsal of the entire play - run-through (scenery, props, costume).
Premiere of the play. Discussion.
Reruns. Preparing an album with photographs.

The first stage of working on a play is related to its selection. When preparing dramatizations based on folk and original fairy tales, you can have a conversation about the life and way of life of people of that time (what they dressed in, what they ate, how they communicated, what customs they observed). Listening to music, artistic illustration. You can watch films, they help you feel the atmosphere of fabulous events. And it broadens your horizons. Activates cognitive interest.

It is useful for the development of imagination, the ability to fantasize, to invite children to compose the lives of the characters before the play begins (i.e., a fragment of life), helping with a variety of leading questions. Thus, we unobtrusively lead children to the ability to analyze and search for a character’s image.

The second stage involves dividing the play into episodes (pieces). Children retell each episode, complementing each other, and come up with a name.

The third stage is working on individual episodes in the form of sketches with improvised text. At first, the most active children become participants, but we must strive, without forcing, to involve all members of the team in this process. From the beginning, children are hampered by a relatively small vocabulary, which makes it difficult to conduct a dialogue, but feeling the support (hint) of the teacher, children begin to act more naturally and confidently, and their speech becomes more varied and expressive.

The fourth stage is the search for an image, the work is first built as a conversation; discussion of the character of the hero, manner of speaking, moving, We listen to all the options, who thinks what? Why? For what? etc.

All children take part in the discussion, but the teacher’s task is to easily lead to the right decision, explaining why and how. Next, we come up with plastic sketches (gait, manner) and demonstrate them. At this stage, you have to talk a lot about the actor's work and the role. That there are no bad roles. Very often children do not want to play negative characters, so it is necessary to explain to children that the actor’s task is to show these negative character traits and behavior of the hero for moral purposes. And one more technique that you can use is to look for positive qualities in a negative character, and negative qualities in a positive one.

The fifth stage is the search for mise-en-scène. Creation of sketches of scenery and costumes.

Mise-en-scene is the placement of actors, things, various things (props, decoration elements) on the stage at certain moments of the performance. At this stage, young (already) actors learn to act. The teacher’s task is to help find the necessary (according to the logic of the action) gesture, movement, action and lead the child to this action, so that he can really live through some moment so that the movement, action is alive and justified, and not imposed by an adult. We lead the child to this, based specifically on his life experience, analyzing his life situations, and what would you do..., if...? and how would you say... if...?). So, as you can see, at this stage children are faced with Stanislavsky’s “magical: if…”, and this leads to the ability to transform.

Also at this stage, children are introduced to the musical works that will be performed in the performance. And bright musical images help children find the appropriate plastic solution; at first they simply improvise to the music, then move, turning into a specific character.

At the same time, they learn to create sketches, make drawings of individual paintings, images according to a creative plan, selecting colors in accordance with their imagination.

The sixth stage is a gradual transition to the text of the play. During rehearsals, the same passage is repeated by different performers many times, which allows children to quickly learn almost all the roles. During this period, the proposed circumstances of each episode are clarified (where? when? at what time? why? why?) and the motives for the behavior of each character are emphasized (for what? for what purpose?)

The seventh stage begins work on the role. Already knowing that, based on personal emotional experience and memory, the child remembers a situation in his life when he experienced feelings similar to those of the characters in the play. Do not impose the logic of another person’s actions on young actors. Children can propose the most successful, in their opinion, invented mise-en-scène and we consolidate them.

At this stage, achieve expressiveness and clarity of speech, identify the speech characteristics of the characters. Each has their own style (smoothly, drawing out words, another - very quickly, emotionally, a third - slowly, confidently, etc.)

The eighth stage is rehearsal for paintings in different compositions. During rehearsal, make sure that children do not repeat the poses, gestures, and intonations of other performers, but look for their own variations. Learn to place yourself on the stage (logically), without getting confused, without overlapping each other (the law of the stage). Any discovery, a new successful solution should be celebrated and encouraged, taught not to be afraid, but to skillfully work with props, play with the scenery, because the main thing on stage is the action.

The ninth stage is the shortest in time. During this period, rehearsals of the entire play take place. If before at rehearsals some of the scenery and props were conventional, now we use props, scenery, and costumes prepared for the performance, which help in creating the image.

Rehearsals are accompanied by musical accompaniment, the tempo of the performance is specified, the length of individual scenes or, conversely, excessive haste and crumpledness. Assign responsibilities in preparing props and changing scenery.

The tenth stage - the premiere of the performance, is also a dress rehearsal because The first viewer comes to the premiere.

A premiere is always excitement, bustle, and, of course, an upbeat, festive mood. In practice, children begin to understand what the collective nature of theatrical art is, how the success of the performance depends on the attention and responsibility of each performer (prop master, sound engineer, prop man, costume designer, etc.). Applause!

There is no point in holding a discussion immediately after the presentation. Young actors are still too excited and will not be able to evaluate their successes and failures. But the next day, in a conversation, you can find out how critically they are able to treat their own performance by answering questions about what was good and what was not, children learn to evaluate sincerity and truthfulness on stage, note the expressiveness and resourcefulness of behavior on stage, noting expressiveness and resourcefulness of individual performers.

And the teacher’s task is to direct the conversation in the right direction with his questions, trying to point out the main mistakes and shortcomings, but at the same time praise and note the successful and interesting moments of the speech.

And the final stage is reruns of the performance. The statement that children get tired of playing the same thing over and over again is incorrect. This will get boring if everything in the play is programmed and the young actors only blindly carry out the director’s will. And if children understand what they should do on stage, then try to act differently each time, then this is already an element of creative improvisation. And this is the most precious thing for a teacher, as for the leader of a theater group, i.e. The task that I set for myself has been completed - to reveal a creative individuality (to teach me to look for my own expressive means, and not to imitate others), capable of authentically, organically acting in public conditions (stage).

Below are the developments of scripts for various performances.

How to organize theatrical activities in a preschool educational institution?

Organizing theatrical activities is not a difficult process, but it requires attentiveness and good knowledge of children. You need to purchase or make materials for the performance yourself, create a script, assign roles and, most importantly, maintain the interest of the children while they study and prepare for the performance. Now, in order.

Creating a scenario and assigning roles

The first step is to create a presentation script. You can choose a ready-made fairy tale or come up with a story from the very beginning. Fairy tales with animals are the most popular because it is easy for children to understand their characters and depict their behavior. They are also easily divided into “good and evil”: predator and herbivore, scary and harmless.

Next, count the number of children ready to participate in the performance. If the number of children does not match the number of characters, you need to balance the fairy tale. From it you can remove the most insignificant characters who appear briefly and say one phrase. Or, conversely, add new characters: for example, instead of one cunning fox there will be two twin sisters who will cause even more mischief. This way the story will sparkle with interesting colors.

At the second stage, roles are distributed. In order not to offend children, it is better to hold a fair competition in the form of a game. Invite them to pretend to be a frog and say one phrase. Let them show how frogs move and what voices they speak in. And then the children themselves will choose the one who can do it better.

Choice of costumes

At the third stage, you need to create the correct image of the character. Using leading questions, the teacher leads children to characteristic associations such as protagonists wearing light clothes, antagonists wearing dark clothes, and animals wearing fur colors. If the budget does not allow you to buy a full-fledged costume, you can get by with the details: for example, a hare needs long ears, and a fox needs a fluffy tail with a white tassel.

The market offers a wide choice:

Fabric suits;
Plastic masks;
Hats with the image of an animal;
Paper and cardboard crafts, etc.

Interesting fact! If you practice the performance in costumes and decorations in advance, children will better feel the fairy tale. They will plunge into the atmosphere like spectators, get to know the characters from a new side and stop seeing them as their “colleagues”. It will also reduce stress on the day of the performance, as children will be in a familiar setting.

Selection of props

At the fourth stage, you need to acquire props that will not only decorate the performance, but also help children plunge into a fairy tale. On the Priority website you will find many interesting things.

Play equipment

Represents analogues of existing buildings and objects. Children easily go inside the shops and look out the window, which makes the show much more realistic. And even after the performance, the equipment is useful: here you can conduct role-playing games to teach children how to behave correctly in different situations. For example:

Play equipment "Shop". This is a grocery store with empty shelves and drawers for products. Children can act out a scene from Pinocchio here, when a boy comes to a bookstore to buy the alphabet.

Play equipment "Doctor's office". This is a bed, table and stool from a doctor's office. Children can act out a scene from Aibolit here, when forest animals come to the doctor and complain about their health.

Wall panels

A wall panel can be not only a prop with a desired landscape, but also a useful toy that will come in handy later. For example, large busy boards will become an interesting and educational game for growing children:

Decorative panel “Steamboat on the Ocean”. This is a wall board in the shape of a steamship. Suitable for a fairy tale with a sea adventure, for example, a story about Robinson Crusoe or Tom Sawyer.

Decorative panel “Tree of Knowledge”. This is a business board in the shape of a tree with many birds. Suitable for any fairy tale with forest animals.

Toys

For tabletop performances, you can use any toys: soft, hard, clay, rag - the main thing is that they stand on their own. For example:

The Elya doll is suitable for thematic performances that introduce children to different peoples of our planet.

The “Gerda” doll is suitable for fairy-tale productions that require a princess in a beautiful dress.

Character dolls

These are rag dolls that are worn on a finger or the entire hand. They are easy to operate even without skills. And the performances are very energetic and fun.

Puppet theater "Chicken Ryaba". This is a set of dolls for the popular fairy tale of the Golden Egg, which teaches children to be thrifty and carefully guard their happiness.

Puppet theater "The Three Little Pigs". This is a set of dolls for the famous fairy tale about the clumsy piglets, which teaches children to do things on time and help loved ones.

Furniture

It is an auxiliary toolkit that is needed for theatrical performances. Starting from an ordinary chair on which the old man’s character will sit, and ending with full-fledged complexes that have become part of the scenery.

Screen "Playing theatre". This is a wooden pedestal with a sign “Puppet Theater” and a special window for showing performances. You can hide in the lower part and quietly extend your hand with the doll to the window.

Screen "Visiting a fairy tale." This is a screen in the form of an old Russian wooden hut, which is ideal for fairy-tale performances. Children can hide behind a screen and look out the window to say a line.

“We play theater” (from work experience)

Early preschool age is the most favorable period of child development. One of the most effective means of child development and education used in our group is theater and theatrical games. Play is the main and leading activity of preschool children, and theater is one of the most accessible forms of art.

A fairy tale is also always an invariable companion of childhood. It plays a special role in the life of a child, comprehensively influencing its development. The kid empathizes with the characters, sharing their feelings. In d/s, entry into a fairy tale occurs in a specially organized environment. It is the organization of the subject-game environment that contributes to the success of using theatrical games at work.

In the younger group, we organized a dressing up corner and selected toys, masks, and costumes for theatrical performances. I organize games with children - dramatizations of familiar fairy tales, puppet theater games, performance games. Work on theatrical activities begins with the younger group. I show children small puppet shows. I take the plot from familiar nursery rhymes, poems, and fairy tales. I am gradually including children in dramatization games, games that imitate the actions of humans, animals, birds, and fairy-tale characters. For demonstrations in the younger group I use a tabletop toy theater, a theater on a flannelgraph, and a finger theater. To enrich your child’s experience, you need to develop the ability to be a spectator, an artist, and the ability to interact with other participants in the game.

First, I read expressively or tell a fairy tale, sing the characters’ songs, pronounce them, the children listen, sing along, and memorize them. It is very good to show children a fairy tale using a flannelgraph, a table theater, or a finger theater. When playing a fairy tale for the first time, we make sure to use realistic images.

In our theater corner there is a finger theater , in order to make this activity interesting, I made a screen in the form of a large beautiful wooden house, the children really like it. And you can make finger puppets from various materials, fabric, tennis balls, mittens, paper, cardboard. Or you can use a ready-made theater. Finger theater effectively develops fine motor skills of preschoolers, which affects the formation of children's speech. He is an indispensable assistant in communicating with the guys.

Also in our corner there is a shadow theater , which is joyful entertainment. Children love to watch how figures of people, animals and birds move on a brightly lit screen. The stage of the shadow theater is the screen. I made the screen for the shadow theater from plywood and covered it with thin white material. When shown, the shadow theater figures are pressed tightly against the material from the back, or the figures have magnets, and they are glued to magnetic tape. Therefore, they are easy to move around the screen. A light source is placed behind the screen. The silhouettes of the figures are made of thin cardboard or plywood. Many interesting fairy tales and other literary works loved by children can be shown in the shadow theater.

Planar or ordinary toys that children play with every day are called tabletop theater . A platform for this children's table. You can make a character for a tabletop theater yourself from any available material: pine cones, acorns, roots; from household materials: milk and kefir bags, shoe boxes. I sit down at the children's table, and the children sit in a semicircle in front of me. Children should not see the toys that I will use to show the performance.

For the performance, it is recommended to take scenes from familiar fairy tales, or you can come up with a whole story yourself. You just need to remember that their content should be extremely simple, without difficult, impossible actions and movements for toys. The toy show is designed for a small group of children. It can be displayed in a group room. The purpose of such displays is to entertain and please children, to make the doll more interesting for them, and to help them add variety to their play activities. The teacher acts out a fairy tale for the children that is appropriate for the children’s age. For example: “Chicken Ryaba”, “Kolobok”, “Teremok”, “Turnip”, “Masha and the Bear” and others. During the show, puppet characters and children communicate.

Role-playing theater is theater where children take on the role of a chosen character. Children, with the help of an adult or independently, act out poems, riddles, short fairy tales, and stage songs. For better visibility, children need costumes. You can buy them in a store or sew them yourself. In the group, I made a hanger for them, here children can try on a costume and take on the role of one or another hero.

An excellent option for theatrical games would be mask theater . I will also make masks for games from paper or thick cardboard. These can also be knitted character hats that are attached with an elastic band around the head. And if children also help in making masks, it is even more interesting and exciting.

Theater on sticks . To make this theater I needed wooden sticks and character silhouettes made from cardboard or paper. The secret of the toys is that each silhouette is attached to a stick and the character is activated by turning it. Theater on a stick is interesting for children not only because it is very easy to make, but also because the actions can be depicted behind a screen or while moving freely around the room.

Meeting a doll helps children relax, relieve tension, and create a joyful atmosphere. Our children love to participate in performances; they actively and with great pleasure take on leading roles. While playing theater, children learn to understand speech addressed to them, make sentences, communicate with peers, and master the culture of communication. And I would like to hope that the love for theater, creativity, and music will remain with our students forever.