Our Easter Play

Our Easter Play is an easy-to-perform play for early learners, ideal for an assembly presentation, as the basis for a classroom project linking RE and PSHE or Drama at Foundation and KS1, or performed to an invited audience.

In the play, the story is recounted through narration, mime and singing to popular nursery rhyme tunes, ensuring that pupils of all abilities are enabled to participate fully in the performance. There are also opportunities for simple class-based activities to enhance pupils' learning experience, such as creating simple scenery friezes or collages, writing their own verses to the songs, or helping to make or collect simple items for the props and costumes.

The story is seen through the eyes of Jesus' disciple, Peter, and introduces the events of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Day, ending with the post-resurrection story of Jesus preparing breakfast for his friends on the shores of Lake Galilee

The play can be performed with groups of any size. Simple directions for setting the stage and plotting the performance are given, together with photocopy permission for all music notation and song lyrics.

Brian Ogden was for many years a teacher and OR advisor for the dioceses of Peterborough and Chelmsford. He is author of many books in the Barnabas range including News and Tell!, Year Round Assemblies, Starting Together, Nursery Rhyme Nativities, Beyond the Candle Flame and Sing a Song of Seasons. Brian is a regular speaker in schools, typically sharing his stories and his work with hundreds of children in the course of a year.

From The Association of Christian Teachers - March 2010

The story of 'Our Easter Play' is seen through Peter's eyes, with an adult-read narrative. Peter, John and the woman who recognises Peter have simple speaking parts and there are unlimited miming parts as the other disciples and the 'crowds'.

The four songs are set to well-known nursery rhyme tunes such as Three Blind Mice, and cover the journey to the Upper Room, Jesus washing the disciples' feet, Peter and John finding the tomb empty and the breakfast on the beach. There is no song about the crucifixion, but three suitable songs are suggested if required. The music is melody line only with guitar chords and the song words and music are photocopiable.

Clear stage directions appear throughout.

.The book includes a useful list of props and, for some reason, the template for a paper fish. (A line drawing for the suggested friezes of the Easter Garden and the post-resurrection lake scene might have been more useful for the artistically challenged!)

There are no children on stage during the Good Friday narrative, and suggestions for appropriate Easter music at this point are included.

Notes explain which FS early learning goals and KS1 RE requirements are covered.

At my school, Brian Ogden's Nursery Rhyme Nativity was successfully and enthusiastically performed by Year 1 so I know the idea works!

This is a faithful retelling of the events surrounding Easter, but with no explanation of why Jesus was arrested and put to death. This would need to be covered in another way.

Reviewed by Marian Smith, Class Teacher and Subject Leader for RE and Music, Elmgrove First School, Harrow, Middlesex

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