Customer Reviews

How do you teach Shakespeare to a 5 yr old? You use the resources at Drama Notebook and end up with an amazing 6 yr old Mercutio and a trio of 11 yr old witches. Thank you.

I've never taught a theater class of any kind. I've never taken a theater class of any kind. So when I was informed that I was teaching theater this year to both HS and MS students my blood pressure may have spiked. Drama Notebook has saved my life this semester. One of my students-- one of those teenagers who is too cool for everything-- told the counselor that Theater is his favorite class. I'd love to take credit but almost all the material I'm using comes from Drama Notebook.

Thanks, Janea and team, for creating a comprehensive resource that allows me to start and end class with engaging, fun activities. My kids are becoming comfortable expressing themselves and learning how to do that in dramatic ways. Our little school hasn't had theater classes for a number of years, but suddenly there's a tremendous amount of positive energy about theater. Go ahead and spring for the 1 year membership... there's plenty here to keep your kids busy being AWESOME for a whole year. Totally worth it.

I coach 3 of our school's Destination Imagination teams, and these resources are invaluable for all the last-minute planning (is that an oxymoron?) of warm-up activities and work on drama skills. Very grateful for Drama Notebook! (I only wish I could copy/paste the game instructions into my meeting agendas. I understand why it's protected, but that would make this even better for me!)

Hi Linda,

I can send you individual lessons that you can cut and paste from if you like!

Janea

I subscribed to Drama Notebook looking for a quick fix for a new class I was teaching of 5-9 year olds. This is an age group I do not usually work with and wanted to make sure I had something at their level. DN did not disappoint! Not only did I find a lesson for that day, but found several to use after and many for my older students as well. It was also nice to have the lists of improv starters to save time and brain power! The site was very easy to use and navigate and the newsletters keep you up to date on all new offerings. It is a great supplemental for any beginning acting class at any level.

As someone just starting out teaching drama, I found the lesson plans and activities easy to follow and the students really enjoyed the activities. Thank you for this wonderful resource!

Excellent source for community drama programs for all ages. It's been a life saver for many years. Thanks, Drama Notebook!

Drama Notebook is a brilliant resource for someone who is new to teaching Drama. Well worth the subscription as there is a treasure trove of resources. My students have thoroughly enjoyed the resources supplied here.

So excited to use these ideas and scripts on my Mission trip to the Mayan villages in Belize. Love that some plays have small amount of characters and others involve lots of kids. Aesop's tales are universal lessons and I imagine good discussion to come from these as I work with kiddos. Thanks for the opportunity to open the lives of children internationally.

Well worth the money! The site is easy to browse, rich in contents and interesting tricks and tips. Well done!

This resource is valuable, unbelievably thorough and well done. Looking for a resource for your drama students, this is well worth it.

Fantastic resources!! I have been teaching for 10 years but it's my first year teaching Drama. Drama Notebook has been a fantastic find. Especially when teaching younger students. There is so much useful stuff on this website! Thank you!!!!

I am now retired, but Drama Notebook was INVALUABLE in my drama classroom. I love the resources and the value, and my students always enjoyed the material! Keep up the good work!

This is an amazing resource for teachers just starting out as well as experienced teachers. It is always growing and evolving with activities and lesson plans so I never need to worry about my lessons getting stale. The site itself if user-friendly, and the subscription costs are very reasonable. I have recommended this to so many of my colleagues.

Drama Notebook has been such a lifesaver! This is my 5th year teaching, but my 1st year teaching drama. I did theater in high school and college, but only as a hobby, so I was not sure where to even go for curriculum, plans, and activities. This resource has been invaluable! I am so glad I found it when I was frantically googling for drama curricula. I 100% recommend this! Anyone can teach drama if they have Drama Notebook!

I got A LOT out of this site, the most helpful being How to Run a Drama Camp. I knew almost next to nothing, but it's almost idiot proof with tons of helpful ideas. Plus How to Teach Your First Drama Class was a lifesaver. As a result our troupe's Children's Theater Workshop was hit, and on the last day the kids were already talking about next year! Thanks Drama Notebook!
Sarah
(The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is because it would be nice to just pay per lesson as opposed to a monthly subscription... but can't complain about the material, excellent stuff!)

Hi Sarah, you are welcome to cancel at any time, or purchase $10 in credits without a monthly subscription here: https://www.dramanotebook.com/amember/signup/library/

Script credits may be used in the Lesson Library as well.

I teach Theatre 101 at a local community college (with lots of early and dual enrollment) and Drama Notebook is my go-to for games, activities, and lesson plans! The head of my department even considers it part of my PD!

You've made finding plays so straightforward and I LOVE the fun layout. Thanks for making play-searching so easy on the brain!

I have a theatre background and work for a nonprofit cultural organization. I was recently assigned to develop early childhood programming for 0-5 year-olds and have been ever grateful to Drama Notebook for it's endless resources. I'm glad I went with the yearly subscription for unlimited downloads as I use this site a lot for themed classes. I would LOVE to see some more toddler-preK activities and exercises in the near future. I do and will continue to recommend this website to my fellow theatre educators! Thanks!

Hi Holly, we are working on adding more for very young students!

This is my first year teaching a drama class and I've been scrambling to find resources. There are tons of websites with free material, but they're generally just ideas, like 'have students create tableaus', but they don't give suggestions, and for someone in my position that made them almost useless. This site has it all. I purchased the one month subscription and was able to download weeks worth of awesome materials, it has decreased my stress and increased my confidence in my lesson planning. Also, I had a question, sent an email and received a very kind reply in 10 minutes. Couldn't be happier.

I have gotten a ton of good stuff for my theater camps. The only reason it isn't 5 star is because it seems like the site doesn't remember that I paid my fee for a year . . . sometimes it keeps telling me to sign up . . . and won't give me access that I need to make sure it is what I want. Thanks!

Hi Penelope, we have written to you to resolve your issue!

This site is my go to for acting games and activities for my drama club!

I am thrilled with my Drama Notebook purchase. I originally purchased the $9.95 package. After realizing how helpful the website is, I quickly upgraded to the yearly package.

I am also impressed with the level of customer service provided. I called, left a message and my call was returned within 10 minutes.

I intend to refer this website to others.

This site has a lot to offer, from plays and lesson plans to whole schemes. I appreciate that it is teacher friendly and student appropriate. There were many fun new ideas here.

This has been really useful. I subscribed for one month to download 10 lesson plan ideas and resources. It was well worth it. I was specifically looking for ideas on twisting fairy tales and Drama Notebook had a whole scheme. I have reluctantly unsubscribed but have every expectation that I'll be turning to Drama Notebook again.

I was really stuck and wasn't sure how to begin teaching drama lessons. I came across Drama Notebook and was able to find what I was looking for. Drama Notebook taught me how to get started and keep my students engaged. My students have loved the variety of activities we have been doing and I can't wait for us to start putting together our first play. Thank you Drama Notebook!

Great resource for everything from Classroom Management and Culture to Improv games to Vocabulary all the way to no hassle lesson plans and unit structure. Well worth the $10 subscription. I went from the University system to Middle School (yikes) so a lot of my content automatically doesn't translate. This site came to my rescue and has been a constant go to. Everything is easily downloadable and the content is legit. Don't think twice. Definitely worth it!

I came across this site while searching for resources for teaching Performing Arts. I was able to source material for Drama units for Primary Years 1 to 6, and the flexibility of the play's structure meant that I all the students in each class could have a speaking role.
A great resource. Thanks!

Very helpful! I found Drama Notebook when I began teaching a high school drama class, it helped me find structure, activities, to get everyone warmed up and interested and introduce drama in fun ways.

A brilliant site for new and established teachers. After 20 years teaching I felt I had explored everything possible and tried out every idea. Just when I was reaching "The Wall" along came drama notebook and re -invented ideas again in new refreshing ways.Thank you for energising me again!!

Not just for kids! We have a tour team that works with K-12 youth as well as youth/young adults at risk. We conduct summer theatre camps and we also teach theatre classes for adults with disabilities. This has become our Go To website for the variety of resources offered. From classroom management to Shakespeare in many accessible forms you find what you need! When planning our very first camp, I talked one-on-one with Janea who had great advice and calmed my fears! We have been doing summer camps for 3 years now which have doubled in size every year! We will be tackling Macbeth this fall with our adults with disabilities! Thank you Drama Notebook!

Brilliant resource for drama teachers of all abilities. A wealth of material to use as a starting point or fully flesh out your curriculum. Unbeatable value. Everything you could need to get started on your drama club/activity and a resource that we use extensively every term.

My goto resource for finding new ideas for games and activities for my drama classes and an invaluable resource for setting up a drama club, from scratch. I didn't know where to begin at first but this site has a helpful assortment of ideas, games and activities that gave me the push and support I needed. The broad range of resources and links to other resources has been invaluable

I have found the site most useful in providing inspiration for my drama classes and it has helped to speed up the thinking and planning processes when dullness of thought has kicked in. As a worker in the volunteer sector I am a bit of a lone voice but Drama Notebook has been a friend and support in my endeavours and I am sure that my students have benefited from the plans and ideas that Janea has continued to supply in such an imaginative way. Thank you for your passion and your hard work. Drama is alive and well while you continue.

All kinds of Amazing! A friend suggested I try Drama Notebook and I am SO happy I did ! Barrel loads of materials, really well put together and easy to download and print and ready to go! I have used many of the ideas in iGCSE English classes, History classes and Geography classes.. just swap out some of the vocabulary and good to go. If you are in need of some inspiration or just some ideas to inject some energy into your classroom!! This is the place to be!!! Thanks Drama Notebook Team! You ROCK! 🙂

I absolutely love this site. There is a wealth of material here to choose from that cover just about everything you need to introduce kids to drama. It is so easy to navigate and everything is clearly categorized, it just makes life a whole lot easier and teaching drama a joy! And a lot of fun! Thank you for you passion Janea and your love of drama! I would love to see some mask work lesson plans in the future and maybe some Commedia dell Arte scripts!

This website literally has something for everyone. Whether you're a beginning teacher scrambling to find outstanding drama lesson plans or you're in charge of running the Christmas concert, Drama Notebook has resources for all needs. It is one of the best resources I've found yet!

This resource is absolutely OUTSTANDING! Unfortunately, my school was unable to provide any sort of curriculum or financial support for our drama program, but thanks to the Drama Notebook website, I am never without lesson plans or activities. I am able to print out so many invaluable tools and compile them into an amazing notebook that can be used year after year. So thankful to Janea and Drama Notebook for making teaching life a little bit easier! BRAVO!

I own a School of Music, Dance & Drama. This resource has been invaluable to me as I have worked on putting together our Musical Theater/Drama program. Not only is the material Amazing, the Customer Service provided by Janea is outstanding.

I am a Performance Studies Teacher at Seattle Girls' School and I love roaming the pages of Drama Notebook. This website helps me generate new ideas and practices. There are days when I need inspiration and feel like I am in conversation with the various lessons provided. This means that I am able to adapt activities to meet my students' needs and also tweak various lessons to adequately fit within my school's scope and sequence needs.

This website was so helpful to me as a first year elementary drama teacher. I have decided to keep the subscription into my second year of teaching as it is a wealth of information. I subscribed initially because it was evident that it would be a terrific tool for me in the elementary classroom. That certainly proved true. I would love to see more scripts added that would focus on specific grade levels and incorporate other core subject matter for ease of integration.

This was so helpful as a new drama teacher! I was able to find an abundance of materials that helped me plant my feet for a great year!

Long-time drama teacher enjoying Drama Notebook's wealth of resources in a well organized and user friendly site. Thank you!

I have been teaching Drama for over 20 years and find Drama Notebook an inspirational and invaluable go-to for many of my classroom activities. It is so beautifully organized that I can easily find just what I'm looking for in a matter of minutes. Drama Notebook is especially handy for giving to subs, as everything is clearly explained and in a friendly format. I am never stressed about classroom activities because Drama Notebook has always been there for me (especially on those days where I've been up late performing myself and need to come in all ready to go!). I am appreciative of all Janea has done and the community she has created for all these wonderful theatre teachers!

Beautiful website with amazing content! Thank you for creating such an amazing collection of drama resources! Your work is a work of genius with heart and joy!

Awesome resources for all levels of experience. My students love the variety of activities. In the last couple of years, we have performed selections from Spoon River Anthology, an evening of Shel Silverstein poetry and a Dr. Seuss Review. Monologue selections are wide and varied. Students have gotten standing ovations on some performances. (The emotional ones that make you cry.)

Great resource to keep lesson plans fresh!

Drama Notebook takes the guessing work out of things. Their lesson plans are laid out in a concise, easy to follow manner and provide a guide to get your creative juices flowing. I would recommend them for beginning teachers and seasoned professionals looking for new "old" ways to bring fun back into the classroom.

I have been a drama teacher for quite a few years now and I am always on the lookout for fresh ideas to keep my students keen. This site does not disappoint! I found plenty of activities to start my year and I am looking forward putting them to use. Thank you!

I teach theater and music for grades P-8. Drama Notebook's Resources are the backbone to many of my greatest lessons and units. There are so many scripts and monologues for my kids to choose from. I use the Crazy Card Scenes almost everyday in my classroom. I like pairing these lessons with some of our new puppets we purchased this year. Most of our students say it's their favorite class 🙂

Drama Notebook is one of the most impressive resources I have come across whilst teaching Drama.

I am a Secondary trained teacher but currently teaching Drama in a Primary school from P-6. The variety in lesson ideas, themes and general content is very wide. My students love some of the ideas I’ve adapted through Drama notebook and I never tire of trying to re-invent the Drama curriculum in our school thanks to having Drama Notebook as a handy resource. You guys have the edge, thank you for all your efforts.