The positive impact speech and drama classes have on children’s development are often bigger than most parents expect. The benefits of speech and drama classes for children are plentiful. Speech and drama classes support children to develop CONFIDENCE, CREATIVITY, and LIFELONG COMMUNICATION SKILLS. Children learn the skills to become effective communicators and performers. At GIANT LEAPS, both experienced and new children are fully involved in activities to develop these skills at their own pace. During speech and drama classes, our expert team of teachers are developing children that can speak well, perform well, and achieve more in life. During Speech and Drama classes children develop....

• Confidence
  
• We understand all children are different. We guide our students to develop at their own pace and readiness. We encourage students to think out of the box, try out new things, enter competitions, participate in exams, and learn new skills. All of these opportunities and achievements grow confidence.
  
• Creativity and Imagination
• This is important for the development of children's brains. Imaginative and creative play is how children learn about the world. During imaginative speech and drama activities children learn to express themselves verbally and non-verbally, plan (intentionally or unintentionally), act, interact, react, and try different roles Students are encouraged to express themselves openly and without judgment. We use role play and improvisation activities to develop creativity and imagination.
• Speaking Skills
• We teach the foundation speaking skills for effective communication. Students will learn to use a flexible and appropriate voice for clear speaking. Our teachers use creative activities to teach children to speak slowly and clearly, to use expression, to project their voice, and to use appropriate volume for different audiences and situations.
• Empathy
• Exploring different characters through role play, improvisation, and script work challenges our students to think and act differently. To take a walk in another person’s shoes and explore the emotions they feel. These drama exercises are a great way of connecting with people and understanding them better. This influences our children to have more empathy and compassion for others in real-life situations
• Positive body language and non-verbal communication
• Nonverbal communication or body language is the use of gesture, tone of voice, expression, and posture to convey a message. The effective and positive use of body language makes up an overwhelming amount of how we communicate and our relationships with others. We teach our students positive body language and nonverbal communication for relationships, building trust, and making positive impressions on others.
• Problem Solving
• This is a skill that we use in all aspects of life. Children need to master problme solving as they nagivate academic success and peer reationships. When children tackle problems on their own, or in a group, they become resilient. They learn to look at challenges from a fresh perspective. They take more calculated risks. If students practice problem solving consistently, they can develop greater situational and social awareness.
  
• Good manners, respect, and communicaton ettiquite
• We pride ourselves on always modeling and reinforcing good manners, respect, and communication etiquette. Our classes are positive, energetic, welcoming, and supportive. We expect this from our students too!

At Giant Leaps we believe communication is everything! Communication is the heart of learning and connecting with others. At Giant Leaps our handpicked team of speech and drama teachers are supporting every child, teenager, and adult to achieve their very best communication and performance skills. These skills are needed more today that ever before! Enrolling your child in a speech and drama class is an investment in their future. The benefits of speech and drama will last a life time! www.giantleaps.nz/speechanddrama

Published by - Anna Keno, Speech + Drama Teacher, GIANT LEAPS Speech Company (ATCL, ASB, Reg. EPC)