Speech and Drama Programme at Lorna Whiston Schools

Equipping Students with
21st Century Skills and Values

At Lorna Whiston Schools, we empower our students with the skills and values they need to be successful individuals in the modern world through our signature Speech and Drama programme.

Our Speech and Drama programme focuses on:

  • Empowering students to become confident communicators who can interact with a wide range of audiences

  • Guiding students to think creatively and critically when communicating their ideas.

From early starters to adult learners, each tier of the programme is curated to be age-appropriate and builds competencies in 4C’s: Creativity, Critical Thinking, Collaboration and Communication. Drama is used as a tool for learning and to teach students to hone their 4C skills through practical sessions with their peers and teachers.

The Lorna Whiston Schools Pedagogy with Internationally-Recognised Qualifications

We take pride in nurturing our students to become global citizens and plan every lesson through the following objectives.

Each level is designed to cumulatively build our students’ mastery levels through a combination of everyday conversation and formal presentations. Our Speech and Drama programme starts with instilling confidence and creativity at young ages before progressing to critical skills such as active listening and self-expression. Through presentations on a prepared topic, learners as young as four years old are encouraged to achieve clarity in their communication. These skills form a solid foundation for students to build on to expand their competencies.

For students in the "Speak Up" and "Confident Communicators" levels, we offer them the opportunity to take examinations with Trinity College London, a leading international exam board providing assessments around the world since 1877. The Trinity College London Examinations are international qualifications that form valuable assessments for our students as a culmination of their progress and learning during their time with Lorna Whiston Schools. Trinity Grade 6-8 Communication Skills Solo Examinations qualify students for Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) points required for application to UK universities.

Students are prepared for all assessment tasks in our curriculum from Terms 1 to 4. The curriculum is carefully planned to ensure that our students are well-equipped with the relevant skills to excel in the year-end exam. Lorna Whiston Schools has submitted over 3,500 candidates for Trinity College London examinations since 2012.


Over 90% of our students achieved a Merit or Distinction, and we are committed to helping our students achieve continued success in these assessments.

See how Lorna Whiston Schools empowers our students to excel confidently in the Trinity College London examinations whilst developing effective communication skills for life.

Programme / Age Class Duration / Size Programme Objectives for Our Students
Early Bird 1 & 2
(3 - 4 years)		 1.5 hours / 10
  • Foster a strong language foundation through phonics
  • Learn how to confidently express their ideas in front of the class
  • Dramatic Play Centre
  • Be able to articulate clearly and form full sentences
  • Interact with various characters during our Drama Land Adventures
  • Have fun while they move towards clearer speech
Elementary 1 & 2
(5 - 6 years)		 1.5 hours / 12
  • Present on stage weekly
  • Learn to work collaboratively in group performances and be able to individually work on their stage presentations
  • Learn how to use oral language skills in various settings
  • Enhance their creativity and speech skills as they work towards becoming confident young communicators
Speak up 1 to 3
(7 - 9 years)		 1.5 hours / 12
  • Be provided with more individual presentation opportunities
  • Be guided to present their opinions, thoughts and information in a logical order whilst developing an awareness of the audience and the purpose for communicating
  • Learn how to prepare, create, organise and express their own ideas in the form of a speech before working as a group to do the same with their peers
  • Learn to use a range of language structures expressively and clearly
  • Use visual tools to support presentations
Speak up 4 to 6
(10 - 12 years)		 1.5 hours / 12
  • Learn to use persuasive language meaningfully, with clarity and purpose
  • Develop the ability to summarise and communicate information and articulate their personal views on social issues
  • Present with comfort and confidence using appropriate language with an emerging vocal variety, and appropriate eye contact and body language
  • Go through individual presentations to build their confidence, ability to showcase their personality and speech skills
Confident Communicator
1 to 4
(13 - 18 years)		 1.5 hours / 12
  • Learn to communicate with a high level of confidence by using a diverse range of verbal and non-verbal skills appropriate in different scenarios.
  • Sustain evidently researched presentations from a range of perspectives within a coherent structure.
  • Apply the skills taught in class with prepared aides to get their messages across to the audience.
Confident Communicator for Adults
(Tertiary students and adults)		 1.5 hours / 12
Trinity drama
(13 - 18 years)		 1.5 hours / 12
  • Build communication skills through the performance of a wide range of material, working on vocal and physical skills that convey meaning, character and story to an audience.
  • Develop skills through responding articulately to questions provided, as well as self-analysis in reflection tasks.
  • Through rehearsal and preparing for public performance, hone critical thinking and analytical skills.
  • The experience of preparing for both performance and the exam itself builds belief and confidence.

Passionate & Experienced Teachers

A school is nothing without its teachers, and Lorna Whiston Schools hires the most passionate and dedicated teachers we can find. With decades of experience operating within the education industry, we are a thought leader in the field of education. Our experienced teachers are committed to supporting each student’s progress by providing individual attention and progressive feedback.

Expanded Learning Through Holiday Camps

Run every week during the local school holidays, Lorna Whiston Camps provide a supportive playground of self-exploration for all children of ages 3-14, so they can discover and enhance their unique skills, abilities, and talents through a diverse mix of fun learning experiences. There is always something different for each child with a comprehensive range of camp themes such as English Explorers, Creative Writing, Magic, Art Studio, Coding Academy and Actor’s Studio!

Trusted by Parents, Enjoyed by Students

Driven by our mission to transform lives through exceptional learning experiences for students, Lorna Whiston Schools is shaped by our five core values of collaboration, integrity, education, determination and innovation. These five core values shape every interaction and learning experience delivered in our enrichment classes and enable parents to entrust their precious young children to us.

SD Testimonials
Blog Post Title One

“Both my children Jiale P1 and Kangle K1 have been with Lorna Whiston for 2 years and are going to continue for many years to come. Loves the passion of the teachers who have been teaching them, even during the hard times of covid 19 where Zoom meeting has been used to let them continue the lesson without fail. Thank you, Lorna Whiston”

K1 Parent

Blog Post Title Two

“My child enjoyed both the Speech and Drama, as well as English enrichment classes. We have seen improvement in her language as well as her confidence.”

N2 Parent

Find out more about our Signature Programmes

Keen to find out more?

At the heart of our programmes is our desire to build a solid academic foundation that equips students with strategies to help them learn better and install soft skills and values essential for success. To prepare our students for academic success, we believe in providing authentic and meaningful learning experiences. More than 70,000 children have experienced the difference of the Lorna Whiston experience. We invite your child to join us on a transformative learning journey too!