Can Drama Classes Teach Children About Empathy?
- Published Date: August 31, 2022
Learning To Have Empathy and Compassion Through Drama Exercises
As well as building confidence, public speaking skills, and improving self-esteem, one of the greatest benefits of studying The Performing Arts is that it teaches us to have empathy and compassion for others.
Jigsaw students acting in a drama class.
We often ask our students at Jigsaw to dive into the mind of the character that they are playing. For example, during a drama class while exploring role play activities, improvisation exercises, or working on a script.
For our students to completely immerse themselves into another person’s mind and body, they must take into consideration their character’s background, current situation and the personality traits that they have developed over time because of their surrounding environment. And to play a role respectfully, our students are encouraged to research the character that they selected or have been assigned in great detail.
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 that they feel. These drama exercises are a great way of connecting with people and understanding them better, and they influence our children to have more empathy and compassion for others during real-life situations.
Tuning into the thoughts and feelings of another person can also enhance cultural understanding of people from other backgrounds and corners of life. This is beneficial to a growing mind and will allow our children to see the world in a new way.
So why is teaching our children about empathy important? Empathy is a staple to building a kind, respectful and caring community! And learning about empathy from a young age, in a fun and safe environment, will result in building this compassionate community.
To find out more about the benefits of our classes at Jigsaw, click to read our page on children’s wellbeing and building confidence.
