Theatre is good for the Young

A study into children's literacy by Professor Wendy Schiller from the University of South Australia has shown that live theatre has a noticable and beneficial effect on literary performance. Additionaly, the tolerance levels and general expressions of empathy were significantly higher as a result of these shows.

These are the results of a three year study by the SA Department of Education and Children's Services (DECS) where 140 5 to 12 year old students, from four schools attended performances with Windmill Performing Arts.

"You couldn't have missed it. These children suddenly began asking for performance-related words to be included in their spelling lists - things such as costume designer, lighting technician were appearing in spelling lists - and children were asking for assistance in how to write scripts. Spontaneously they started to engage in a whole lot of different activities that they'd never even asked for before and that were new to their parents as well. I think it had a spin on affect that whole communities became involved in these theatre performances and when some parents had a chance to accompany the children to the performances, they got enthused and became involved in the projects." - Professor Schiller

The messages of the shows were quite frequently understood by the young audience, One child stated as was identified by their interview responses. One child stated after seeing 'A Safer Place' that 'at the end I resolved never again to groan about the washing up because I live in a safe place.'

"The children are very clear about what they like and what they don’t like and why. That’s the most exciting part. They understand, and they’re questioning themselves about why they respond to something or not. It’s not just ‘it’s nice’ or ‘it’s OK’. They go much deeper and richer in their responses." - Julie Orchard Windmill's Art Project Officer.

For more details:

http://www.unisa.edu.au/unisanews/2006/August/children.asp

http://www.abc.net.au/news/arts/articulate/

Jeff

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