Secondary Course 01

You should find lots of material here from which to make lesson plans
in preparation for the Production of the Play.

Overview of the play: The Shipwreck.

This play about an adventure at sea was written and performed – with the help of actors, writers and teachers – by special needs students at four secondary schools in Bristol, UK. Each school wrote one of four episodes and this is the first. We encourage you to become creative writers by writing further episodes

Replica of the Sailing Ship Matthew

Backdrop to Stage Set

This beautiful replica of Giovanni Caboto's medieval caravel visits Larks Harbour, Newfoundland in 1997

The Shipwreck

Description: In this free course you can help your students produce and perform a stage play about an adventure at sea, which they can enjoy performing with their class and friends and show to their families, or an audio play, which your students can keep as a record for themselves, their families and friends. There is also help with conventional teaching, containing a warm up song and exercise, and a review of words about body parts, animals and food.

Main Objectives: At the end of the session the students will be able to:
  1. Produce their own ending of the script.
  2. Perform a Stage Play production
  3. Perform an Audio Play production.
Materials: MP3 player, speaker, recorder (if you want to make an audio recording), microphone, printable flashcards. Units:
  1. Objectives
  2. Preparatory
  3. Research
  4. Drills
  5. Song
  6. Stage Play
  7. Audio Play
Rewards: At the end of the course, please send us the script with your own ending, the video of your stage play, and the audio file of your audio play. The prizes will be the Parents’ Course for:
  1. The best production
  2. The best video play performance
  3. The best audio play performance
  4. The best new ending script
  5. The best illustrations to the script
  6. The clearest spoken English by all the actors
Send us the attachments through this link.
Unit 1
Sailing Ship Mathew, Bristol, United Kingdom
Stage set, actors and audience
BBC radio drama recording
BBC radio drama recording
Ship Shape and Bristol Fashion

Objectives

From the start immerse the students in speaking English. Only if necessary allow them to use a little of their own language. In this course you have a choice of helping your students to produce:
  • A Stage Play, which your students can enjoy performing with their class and friends and show to their families.
  • An Audio Play, which your students can keep as a record for themselves, their families and friends and which they can review or you can do both.
  • Research the background to the play.
  • Learn conventional topics in learning teaching
Tips for productions:
  • Perform a stage or an audio play of “The Shipwreck” – or both!
  • Teach them how to lift their voices from a script and/or to learn their parts.
  • Teach them how to listen to and respond to each other.
  • direction.
  • Give the students confidence in acting and speaking English.
  • Prepare them to start thinking about writing their own script.
  • Help them prepare sound effects and music.
  • Have fun!
For the Stage Production
  • Encourage them to create the backdrops for the Stage production.
  • Help them to prepare the props.
  • Help them with costumes.
For the Audio Production
  • Teach them how to use a microphone.
  • Help them with recording and post production.
Research
  • Research the background to the play. Being knowledgeable will help actors, the director and all members of the production team.
  • It is also a good and fun way to learn and remember general knowlege.
For conventional English learning (which will also relate to the play)
  • Make sentences in English.
  • Tell about oneself. Ask and answer personal questions.
  • Also invent a character and ask questions about him/her.
  • Or develop a character from “The Shipwreck”.
  • Use punctuation marks correctly: full stop, comma, exclamation mark, question mark, and capital letters.
  • Use and understand numbers.
  • Say the date.
  • Ask for permission and help.
Unit 2
In audio the seagull's call suggests the sea
Microphone on stand
A Witch
A telescope
A. “Port Starboard” Warm Up Game
  • Students sit in a circle. This activity has two parts. At first pupils ask their neighbours about their names. Next they ask them about their hobbies. You explain the rule: One person points to the other one and says some of these Words:
  • ZIP or PORT – means LEFT – pointed student must tell the name of the neighbour on the left
  • ZAP or STARBOARD – means RIGHT – pointed student must tell the name of the neighbour on the right
  • ZIP – ZAP or PORT STARBOARD- means that everybody changes their seats.
  • Variation: Instead of names or hobbies students can ask their neighbour about interests,
  • Favourite food, favourite colour, favourite sport, favourite animal, favourite holiday, etc.
B. Preparation for the Stage production – get the students to help you.
  • Prepare the backdrops (see script below).
  • Prepare the props (see script below).
  • Prepare the costumes – start by drawing them and then putting them together.
  • Prepare the sound effects (e.g. seagulls). Record with the students using audio recording equipment, find online, create within the production or vocalise.
  • Prepare any music. Again find online or compose and perform yourselves.
C. Preparation for the Audio production – get the students to help you.
  • Set up a microphone on a stand
  • Connect to recording equipment
  • If these are not available, use something to represent a microphone on a stand. It might be a teddy bear or a hat on a stand for example. Get the children to help.
  • Get practical sound effects ready. For example the chimes. 
  • Get the children to help make the sound of a telescope being twisted.
  • Make sure that each child has a job to do either alone or as part of a team.
  • Get the children to encourage each other
D. Preparation for Conventional Learning.
  • Review of the alphabet. Try and find an English word for each letter in the form of a game. For example which student can find the most words beginning with S.
  • Group the students into groups and let them categorise some words. For example parts of the body (head, toes) animals (dog, cat) food (rice, fruit) words about sea and ships (seagulls, sail).
  • Ask each child a personal question. Let them ask each other.
  • Let them also ask each other about their imaginary characters (might be the captain of a ship or a witch or a boy or girl in “The Shipwreck” play). Let them use facial expressions and gestures as well as words in answering these questions and describing their made up characters.
Unit 3
Saint Brendan with his monks sailing to America
Saint Brendan's coracle on a whale
Norwegian longboat
Santa Maria

Research

Introduction 
  • Doing drama is a wonderful way to learn about history, geography, culture and many other subjects
  • Knowing more of the background will help to bring the plays alive.
  • Encourage your students to remember the facts below by doing their own research.
  • They can do this online.
  • Or from books.
  • Or by asking knowledgeable adults.
A. Explorers 
  • In this course your child can learn about the first ships that sailed to America.
  • There is an early account of St Brendan the Navigator, an Irish saint who may have sailed to America in a tiny boat called a coracle.
  • According to legend at one point his ship landed on a whale
  • Five hundred years later in about the year 1,000 Eric the Red, the Norwegian sailor founded a colony on Greenland.
  • >His son Lief Ericsson was probably the first European to land in North America, in what is now Newfoundland in Canada.
  • He probably sailed in a Norwegian long boat.
  • Again about 500 years later in 1492 Christopher Columbus sailed to the West Indies in a ship called the Santa Maria. He claimed Haiti for the Spanish Crown.
  • Five years later in 1497 John Cabot sailed in a ship called The Matthew. He claimed Newfoundland for the British crown.
B. The Parts of a Ship .
  • This information was useful for the warm up exercise.
  • The right hand side of a ship facing forwards is called “starboard.”
  • The left hand side of a ship facing forwards is called “port”.
  • The “bow” is the front of the boat and the “stern” is the back of the boat.
Unit 4
Stage Hands
Long strips of material to be waved to suggest waves
Christmas is an important holiday in many countries

Drills

A. The play
  • The Teacher explains that in this course we will have fun making drama.
  • Through drama they will learn English without effort.
  • Also they will absorb general knowledge and history and geography without effort
  • The students will act. They will work as a team.
  • There are six parts. Discuss which part they would like to play.
  • Also some students might like to be stage hands.
  • Others might like to create the music.
  • Others might like to create the sound effects
  • Read both the stage version and the audio version with them.
  • Ask them which version they would like to produce and perform. Explain what is involved.
  • Explain that their family and friends will be able to come to the production (stage) or read and hear (Audio) what you have done
  • Later they can write some new endings to the play.
    B. Grammar in Action
    First let’s look at some punctuation. Hear how commas, full stops, question marks and exclamation marks works in the script below by taking it in turns to read.
    • Ask what is the date today?
    • Ask the students what dates are their National days or important holidays.
    • Get the students to ask each other what date is their birthday.
    C. Stage Play
    • Help and encourage the students to paint and design backdrops or construct scenery for the ship and for the room in Lady Penny’s castle.
    • Help and encourage them to find the props. Suggest they ask their families to help.
    • Get the stage hands to practice making waves with long strips of material
    • Help and encourage them to design and create costumes.
    • While they are doing the above they can learn and practice their lines.
    • Tell them to think about where the audience will be and always face the audience as much as they can
    D. Audio Play
    • Demonstrates how to use a microphone. It may be a real microphone – if you have technical assistance you can record and play back to the children.
    • Or in order not to delay for now it may, for example, be a teddy bear on a hat stand.
    • Don’t worry – professional actors rarely hear their work back as they are recording? (There is not time in the studio)
    • Stand a long way from the microphone and call ‘Hello. My name is …..’ Then move much closer to the microphone and say much more softly ‘Hello. My name is …’  There will be more of this exercise in later courses.
    • Get each student to repeat.
    • If you have recorded playback to students.
    E. Production
    • Let the students each tell the other about themselves
    • Memory game: let the students repeat what other students have said.
    • Let the students tell you the story of “The Shipwreck” in their own words.
    • Then let the students write five sentences about the story of “The Shipwreck”
    • Rehearse and then perform the play
    • If you have the equipment and technicians and the time involved, audio record the play.
    • And/or Video the stage rehearsal and performance.
    • It will be very important for the students to see and hear what they have achieved. Praise them but also help and encourage them to do even better next time. 
    • See at the bottom other plays they can perform.
    • Don’t be frightened to make mistakes. Mistakes are a useful learning process.
    F. Phonics
    There will be phonics advice on the underlined words in the script. Refer to this audio file:
    Unit 5
    Bonnie Prince Charlie sets out for the Isle of Skye
    Bonnie Prince Charlie
    Old sea chart of the North Atlantic

    Production

    A. Listen to the song and get the children to join in.
    My Bonnie lies over the ocean
    My Bonnie lies over the sea
    My Bonnie lies over the ocean
    Oh, bring back my Bonnie to me…
    Bring back, bring back
    Bring back my Bonnie to me, to me
    Bring back, bring back
    Bring back my Bonnie to me
    Last night as I lay on my pillow
    Last night as I lay on my bed
    Last night as I lay on my pillow
    dreamt that my Bonnie was dead
    Oh blow the winds o’er the ocean
    And blow the winds o’er the sea
    Oh blow the winds o’er the ocean
    And bring back my Bonnie to me
    Bring back, bring back
    Bring back my Bonnie to me, to me
    Bring back, bring back
    Bring back my Bonnie to me.

    B. Activity
    For general learning play the song – My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean – to them several times. Then split them into groups and let the groups compete to see which can write the words down correctly.
    • Ask questions of the different groups about the drama, “The Shipwreck”, for example, ‘what was the name of the ship?” “Where did it sail to?” “How long ago?” “What is a chart?”
    • Record the Song for practice.
    Unit 6
    Captain with telescope
    Chimes
    Lampwick's telescope

    Stage Play

    Preparation
    • See the following table to have fun making preparation with your students. If possible get their families to help.
    Character Costume Background Props Music Sound Effects
    Captain See below Ship’s Deck Captain’s telescope Students  compose/  performe theme Seagulls
    Sailor Becky See below Room in Castle Chimes or find online Heavy seawash
    Girl Long strips of blue and green material Chimes
    Boy Lampwick’s telescope distant waves on rocks
    Lady Penny See below Noise machine or bicycle Noise machine (listen to audio file)
    Lampwick See below Storm at sea
      To help with pronunciation and emphasis and accent reduction listen to a reading of the Stage Script below.
    Setting off down the Avon before the open sea
    The Bristol Channel between England and Wales
    John baptizes Jesus in the River Jordan
    Inside Lady Penny’s castle
    Exercise bike
    Noise Machine
    A three master in a heavy sea
    Painting of a Shipwreck attributed to the French artist Vernet
    Another Shipwreck
    SCENE 1 THERE IS A BACK DROP OF THE DECK OF A SAILIING SHIP FROM 500 YEARS AGO.
    ON DECK ARE THE CAPTAIN AND HIS MATE BECKY. THERE ARE SOUND EFFECTS OF SEAGULLS AND HEAVY SEAWASH. THE SAILING SHIP MATHEW IS UNDER FULL SAIL. THE CAPTAIN IS LOOKING THROUGH HIS TELESCOPE OUT TO SEA SOME CHILDREN COME ON BOARD (ON STAGE). THEY ALL STUMBLE BACK AND FORTH A BIT TO CONVEY THE MOVEMENT OF THE SHIP
    SAILOR BECKY: Captain.
    CAPTAIN: Yes, Sailor Becky?
    SAILOR BECKY: The school children, we’re taking on this trip, have come on deck to see you.
    CAPTAIN: Oh, yes. I see them. (RAISING HIS VOICE) Well, hello there, children. I’m the Captain of the Sailing ship, Mathew.
    CHILDREN: Hello
    CAPTAIN: (LAUGHS) Have you got your sea legs yet? (HE STUMBLES BACK AND FORTH A BIT, COPYING THE CHILDREN)
    CHILDREN: (CHILDREN LAUGH AND STUMBLE BACK AND FORTH MORE) Ooops! Wooow!
    CAPTAIN: Do any of you have any questions for me?
    GIRL 1: In the old days did they have shipwrecks?
    CAPTAIN: Oh – ar. (meaning yes)
    BOY 1: Tell us about them.
    CAPTAIN: Well there was the Sailing Ship Marie Rose.
    SAILOR BECKY: She was sunk not far from here.
    GIRL 1: I’m frightened.
    CAPTAIN: That won’t happen to us, don’t worry.
    SAILOR BECKY: Not unless we hear the ghost of the Marie Rose.
    BOY 1: What sort of sound is that?
    CAPTAIN: It’s a sort of tinkle.
    BECKY HOLDS UP SOME CHIMES AND SHAKES THEM.
    SAILOR BECKY: Like this.
    CAPTAIN: Some people say it’s the ghost of the Marie Rose.
    SAILOR BECKY: The ship that sunk hundreds of years ago.
    CAPTAIN: Some say shipwrecks are caused by the magic of the wicked Lady Penny.
    SAILOR BECKY: And her evil assistant called Lampwick.
    BOY 1: Where do they live?
    SAILOR BECKY: In a castle on a cliff above the sea.
    CAPTAIN: But I don’t believe in nonsense like their magic.
    SAILOR BECKY: Don’t worry it won’t happen to us.
    CAPTAIN: Quite true, Sailor Becky. As long as we look after the ship.
    BOY 1: What was it like in the olden days?
    GIRL 1: When the Mathew sailed from England to America?
    CAPTAIN: Well, five hundred years ago they didn’t have charts to tell them where they were.
    GIRL 1: What’s a chart?
    SAILOR BECKY: It’s a map of the sea.
    BOY 1: Does it show where the dangerous rocks are?
    SAILOR BECKY: That’s right.
    GIRL 1: Are there any here?
    CAPTAIN; Yes. There are some over there (POINTING) To starboard
    BOY 1 : What does starboard mean?
    BECKY: It’s on the right of the ship going forward.
    GIRL 1: And port is on the left.
    BECKY: That’s right.
    CAPTAIN: In the olden days they steered by the sun and the stars.
    SAILOR BECKY: And they had compasses, showing. (SHE POINTS IN THE FOUR DIRECTIONS) north, east, south and west
    BOY 1: Didn’t they have GPS?
    GIRL 1 (LAUGHS) Don’t be silly. GPS is modern.
    CAPTAIN: Now boys and girls do you know the date North America was discovered?
    GIRL 1: Yes it was 24th June 1497.
    BOY 1: Wow that’s clever. You know everything!
    GIRL 1: Thanks! (SHE LAUGHS}
    (WE HEAR THE DISTANT TINKLING OF CHIMES (BECKY ISN’T SHAKING IT THIS TIME). THE GIRL’S LAUGH TURNS INTO A FRIGHTENED . Ooooh!
    SAILOR BECKY: Ooooh! That’s the bell of the Marie Rose. I’m frightened.
    CAPTAIN: Be brave now Becky.
    EVERYBODY STARTS TO MOVE UP AND DOWN IN A STRANGE WAY. PERHAPS STAGE HANDS MOVE THE BACKDROP UP AND DOWN OR SHAKE IT. OR THEY BRING ON LONG STRIPS OF GREEN AND BLUE MATERIAL AND WAVE THEM UP AND DOWN FROM EACH SIDE OF THE STAGE TO LOOK LIKE WAVES.
    GIRL 1: Captain you’re bobbing up and down. It’s scary.
    BOY 1: That’s funny.
    CAPTAIN: What’s that?
    BOY 1: I’m feeling sort of dizzy.(BRING UP THE SOUND OF THE SEA. STAGE HANDS COVER THE BACKDROP OF THE SHIP
    SCENE 2 THE BACKDROP OF ROOM IN LADY PENNY’S CASTLE.
    WE HEAR DISTANT WAVES BREAKING ON ROCKS. LAMPWICK IS LOOKING OUT OF THE WINDOW THROUGH A TELESCOPE. LADY PENNY IS STANDING BESIDE HIM. THE SOUND OF CHIMES ARE LOUDER AND CLOSER.
    LADY PENNY: (IMPATIENT) Lampwick, can you see anything?
    LAMPWICK: I’m just…. just twisting my telescope, my Lady.
    LADY PENNY: Do hurry up. I can sense they are out there, somewhere
    LAMPWICK: It’s not easy, Lady Penny.
    LADY PENNY: (SIGHS IMPATIENTLY)
    LAMPWICK: Ah huh!
    LADY PENNY: What is it!? What is it!?
    LAMPWICK: I can see this ship, this old fashioned ship. There’s these children on board.
    LADY PENNY: (EVIL SIGH OF RELIEF) Good! Bring on. The storm machine Lampwick.
    LAMPWICK Yes, my lady.
    LAMPWICK BRINGS ON A BICYCLE MACHINE OR ANOTHER FUNNY MACHINE WITH PEDALS (WHICH YOU CAN MAKE UP) OR HE CAN MIME THE MOVEMENT.
    LADY PENNY: Start it up Lampwick.
    LAMPWICK: Yes, my lady.
    Exercise bike
    Noise Machine
    Painting of a Shipwreck attributed to the French artist Vernet
    Another Shipwreck
    SCENE 3
    HE CLIMBS ON IT AND STARTS TO CYCLE OR HE MOVES PEDALS WITH HIS HANDS. THE MACHINE MAKES A LOT OF FUNNY NOISES. LAMPWICK THEN TAKES THE MACHINE AWAY BUT THE NOISE CONTINUES AS THE STAGE HANDS TAKE AWAY THE BACKDROP OFTHE ROOM IN LADY PENNY’S CASTLE, REVEALING THE SHIP’S DECK AGAIN. WE LOSE THE SOUND OF THE NOISE MACHINE.
    STAGE HANDS BRING ON LONG STRIPS OF BLUE AND GREEN MATERIAL AND WAVE THEM UP AND DOWN FROM EACH SIDE OF THE STAGE TO SEEM LIKE WAVES. THE CHILDREN AND THE CAPTAIN AND SAILOR BECKY FEEL THEIR WAY THROUGH THE WAVES. THE SOUND OF THE SEA AND CRASHING WAVES AND THE WIND INCREASE IN SOUND
    BOY 1: The rain’s getting up.
    GIRL 1: I’m scared.
    THE WIND AND SEA INCREASE. THE WAVES (STRIPS OF MATERIAL) GET HIGHER AND HIGER, BEGINNING TO COVER THE CHILDREN. THE SOUND OF WAVES AND RAIN AND WIND GET LOUDER AND LOUDER
    BOY 1: (SHOUTS) And the waves are getting very big!
    GIRL 1: (SHOUTS) Look over there.
    BOY 1: (SHOUTS) There are some rocks.
    GIRL 1: (VERY FRIGHTENED) We’re going to be shipwrecked!
    BOY 1: (CLOSE TO MICROPHONE) We’re going to die!
    CRIES OF THE CHILDREN: ‘HELP!’ ‘SAVE US!’ ‘HELP!’ THE WIND AND THE SEAS GET BIGGER STILL. SOUND OF CREAKING AND CRASH OF THE SHIP AGAINST THE ROCKS. EVERYBODY DISAPPEARS BENEATH THE WAVES.

    Homework

    What happens next ! ! ! ? ? ?
    Write and then perform your own ending.
    1. Try “hot seating” each of the characters. (The “hot seat” is where each students sits in turn to be asked questions)
    2. Ask each of them whether all or some of them are saved.
    3. What was the reason for the boy and girl feeling dizzy?
    4. Ask Lampwick and Lady Penny why they started the storm machine.
    5. Think of more questions.
    6. Then let the students work in groups of four or five to write the next episode.
    7. Two or three could improvise dialogue, sound effects and have music ideas.
    8. Another could scribble down what is said.
    9. Another who is democratically voted to be ‘script editor’ or ‘director’, should, after listening carefully to the opinions and suggestions of others, have the final decision.
    10. There should be an agreed time limit to arrive at the final script.

    Prizes

    Send us your script and if possible a video of your stage play.
    In future there will be prizes of parents courses for:
    1. The best production
    2. The clearest English by all the actors (we will check that you are not native English speakers).
    3. The best performance.
    4. The best music composed and performed by the students
    5. The best illustrations to the script (which if you like we can add to our website).
    6. The best new ending.

    Unit 7

    Audio Play

    This audio play was first written and performed by the students of a secondary school in England. It was the first of four episodes by the children of four different schools.

    A. Some Preparation

    Set up microphone on stand, attach to computer or recording equipment, set up audio editing software on computer.
    Character Music Pre-recorded Sound Effects
    Captain Theme music composed and performed by students Seagulls
    Sailor Becky or found online Heavy seawash
    Girl – Chimes
    Boy – distant waves on rocks
    Lady Penny – Noise machine (listen to audio file)
    Lampwick – Storm at sea
    B. Vocabulary
    English French Spanish Ukrainian
    Shipwreck naufrage naufragio корабельна аварія
    children enfants niños діти
    sailing ship voilier velero вітрильник
    frightened effrayé asustado наляканий.
      SCENE 1
    ANNOUNCER:   We present “Murder at the Castle” Episode 1 “The Shipwreck”, a play for radio by the students of…….. School.
        AT SEA. (SOUND EFFECTS TO BE ADDED: HEAVY SEAWASH. SEAGULLS. THE SAILING SHIP MATHEW IS UNDER FULL SAIL)
    SAILOR BECKY: Captain.
    CAPTAIN: Yes, Sailor Becky?
    SAILOR BECKY: The school children, we’re taking on this trip, have come on deck to see you.
    CAPTAIN: Oh, yes. I see them.(RAISING HIS VOICE) Well, hello there, children. I’m the Captain of the Sailing ship, Mathew.
    CHILDREN: Hello
    CAPTAIN: (LAUGHS) Have you got your sea legs yet? (HE STUMBLES BACK AND FORTH)
    CHILDREN: (CHILDREN LAUGH AND STUMBLE BACK AND FORTH TOO). Ooops! Wooow!
    CAPTAIN: Do any of you have any questions for me?
    GIRL 1: In the old days did they have shipwrecks?
    CAPTAIN: Oh – ar. (meaning yes)
    BOY 1: Tell us about them.
    CAPTAIN: Well there was the Sailing Ship Marie Rose.
    SAILOR BECKY: She was sunk not far from here.
    GIRL 1: I’m frightened.
    CAPTAIN: That won’t happen to us, don’t worry.
    SAILOR BECKY: Not unless we hear the ghost of the Marie Rose.
    BOY 1: What sort of sound is that?
    CAPTAIN: It’s a sort of tinkle.
    SAILOR BECKY: Some people say it’s the ghost of the Marie Rose. The ship that sunk hundreds of years ago.
    CAPTAIN: Some say shipwrecks are caused by the magic of the wicked Lady Penny.
    SAILOR BECKY: And her evil assistant called Lampwick.
    BOY 1: Where do they live?
    SAILOR BECKY: In a castle on a cliff above the sea.
    CAPTAIN: But I don’t believe in nonsense like their magic.
    SAILOR BECKY: Don’t worry it won’t happen to us.
    CAPTAIN: Quite true, Sailor Becky. As long as we look after the ship.
    BOY 1: What was it like in the olden days?
    GIRL 1: When the Mathew sailed from England to America?
    CAPTAIN: Well, five hundred years ago they didn’t have charts to tell them where they were.
    GIRL 1: What’s a chart?
    SAILOR BECKY: It’s a map of the sea.
    BOY 1: Does it show where the dangerous rocks are?
    SAILOR BECKY: That’s right.
    BOY 1: Are there any here?
    CAPTAIN: Yes. There are some over there (POINTING) To starboard
    GIRL 1: What does starboard mean?
    CAPTAIN: It’s on the right of the ship going forward.
    BOY1 : And port is on the left.
    SAILOR BECKY: right.
    GIRL: In the olden days they steered by the sun and the stars.
    SAILOR BECKY: And they had compasses, showing north, east, south and west.
    BOY 1: Didn’t they have GPS?
    GIRL 1: (LAUGHS) Don’t be silly. GPS is modern.
    CAPTAIN: Now boys and girls do you know the date North America was discovered?
    GIRL 1: Yes it was 24th June 1497
    BOY 1: Wow that’s clever.
    GIRL 1: I learnt it in school.
    BECKY: That’s the date today.
    GIRL 1: It’s the Feast day of Saint John the Baptist.
    BOY 1: You know everything
    GIRL 1: Thanks! (SHE LAUGHS}(WE HEAR THE DISTANT TINKLING OF CHIMES. HER LAUGH TURNS INTO A FRIGHTENED) Ooooh!
    SAILOR BECKY: Ooooh! That’s the bell of the Marie Rose. I’m frightened.
    CAPTAIN: Be brave now Becky.
    GIRL 1: Captain you’re bobbing up and down. It’s scary.
    BOY 1: That’s funny.
    CAPTAIN: What’s that?
    BOY 1: I’m feeling sort of dizzy.(BRING UP THE SOUND OF THE SEA AND FADE)
    SCENE 2 INTERIOR ACOUSTIC. INSIDE A TURRET AT LADY PENNY’S CASTLE. WE HEAR DISTANT SURF BREAKING ON ROCKS. THE SOUND OF CHIMES ARE LOUDER AND CLOSER.
    LADY PENNY: (IMPATIENT) Lampwick, can you see anything?
    LAMPWICK: I’m just…. (TINKERING NOISES)…. Just twisting my telescope, my Lady.
    LADY PENNY: Do hurry up. I can sense they are out there, Somewhere .
    LAMPWICK: It’s not easy, Lady Penny.
    LADY PENNY: (SIGHS IMPATIENTLY)
    LAMPWICK: Ah huh!
    LADY PENNY: What is it!? What is it!?
    LAMPWICK: I can see this ship, this old fashioned ship. There’s these children on board.
    LADY PENNY: (EVIL SIGH OF RELIEF) Good! Start the storm machine Lampwick.(MACHINE NOISE STARTS UP AND MIXES INTO)
    SCENE 3 EXTERIOR ACOUSTIC. THE WIND AND SEA INCREASE IN SOUND
    BOY 1: The rain’s getting up.
    GIRL 1: I’m scared. (THE WIND AND SEA INCREASE. THEY BECOME A STORM WITH LASHING RAIN)
    BOY 1: (SHOUTS) And the waves are getting very big!
    GIRL 1: (SHOUTS) Look over there.
    BOY 1: (SHOUTS) There are some rocks.
    GIRL 1: (VERY FRIGHTENED) We’re going to be shipwrecked!
    BOY 1: (CLOSE TO MICROPHONE) We’re going to die!
    CRIES OF THE CHILDREN: ‘HELP1’ ‘SAVE US!’ ‘HELP!’ THE WIND AND THE SEAS GET BIGGER STILL. CREAKING AND CRASH OF THE SHIP AGAINST THE ROCKS. FADE

    Homework

    What happens next ! ! ! ? ? ?

    Write and then perform your own ending.
    Try “hot seating” each of the characters.
    (The “hot seat” is where each students sits in turn to be asked questions)
    1. Ask each of them whether all or some of them are saved.
    2. What was the reason for the boy and girl feeling dizzy?
    3. Ask Lampwick and Lady Penny why they started the storm machine.
    Think of more questions.
    Then let the students work as in groups to write the ending to the play.

    Prizes

    Send us your script and if possible the audio file of your audio play.<br>
    There will be prizes of the parent’s courses for:

    1. The best production
    2. The clearest spoken English by all the actors.
    3. The best performance.
    4. The best illustrations to the script.
    5. The best new ending (can be script only, but there will be a bonus for production too.)

    Notes and Recomendations

    You can submit your students’ pictures to the Learn English through Drama website. The best pictures will go on the website. If they wish we shall add their name, school and / or country.

    Your school or drama club  can produce and perform this printable stage version of The Shipwreck.

    We have several pages with  advice on creating an audio play.  Have a listen!

    We have advice on the use of music in plays and particularly the music of the great classical composers and of film music.  Have a listen !

    Primary Courses
    Secondary 02
    • Community
    Ⓒ 2023 learnetd.com | All Rights Reserved.