Identifying Some Imaginative Processes in the Drama Work of Primary School Children as They Use Three Different Kinds of Drama Structures for Learning

Abstract The imagination is assumed to be part of the classroom drama process developing within children as they are educated. The main purpose of this investigation is to identify some of the processes which make up the imagination as it functions in classroom drama, so that both the teaching and assessment of the imagination can be deliberate and focused upon specific aspects. The imaginative modes of Bell are applied to the drama work of some primary school children as they create drama within three kinds of drama structures, during a series of lessons over one term. These are analysed to identify the kinds of processes being used, and correlated to different personality types. Some concluding considerations about the effectiveness of Bell's modes, and how they might be modified for the analysis of classroom drama, together with some larger issues for teachers and researchers of the imagination are suggested.