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Play: for ages 0 and up
In the world of performing arts, playfulness isn’t just for the stage—it’s a powerful tool that can transform the way we do business. At...
Creating safe and inclusive classrooms for drama kids
A successful drama studio is filled with creativity, exploration and self-expression. These aspects of drama allow students to create amazing work, fo...
Why are we Brisbane’s kindest drama school?
Since our school began in 2011, kindness has been at our foundation. While we are teaching our students to develop their performance and communicati...
Raising confident, clear communicators
Speech and Drama classes are often praised for developing creativity and confidence in children. But they are also an invaluable means of promoting an...
Tips for getting performance ready
Preparing for a drama performance or exam is about so much more than simply learning lines and picking a fun costume. If you know us at all, you will ...
How we keep young students engaged
When it comes to engaging preps and grade ones in our Speech and Drama lessons, our mission is to be one with the amazing, playful, sticky, littlest l...
Why student retention matters to us
During a child’s first year at Speak Up, it is clear to us as teachers how much they progress in speaking skills and confidence. But the real magic ...
Does your child find it hard to sit still?
From prep, when some kids are just 4 years old, they are told to look at the teacher when they are speaking and sit still an...
How Drama Classes can benefit your child’s future
When your child tells you they want to be an athlete you sign them up for weekend sport. If they tell you they want to be a politician, you encourage ...
The Magic of Performing
When you are growing up, it’s important to experience the magic of performing. If you had the privilege of this experience when you were younger...
Developing your child’s social independence
The *blissful early childhood and primary school years can seem like an unending period of our lives. It’s a time when our kids are still depend...
How we monitor students’ progress
On Thursday afternoons I teach two back-to-back philosopher classes. The first group has been in our philosophers program for only a term, let’s cal...
Tips for prioritising progress over perfection
If we focus on being perfect all the time, we hear that little voice in our head that says, “not good enough.” When I listen to the voice, I buy...
Imagining the Future of Speak Up Studio
I started Speak Up when I was 20 years old. Looking back, I think I had more confidence than I do now. Or maybe it was naivety? Or blind faith that I ...
Playful Parenting
How to spark imaginative play and keep you and your child interested. Photograph: Fotofox Images When you’re a parent, you may find a time when you ...
Can you teach imagination
Kids have some amazing brains in those heads of theirs and as a boring old grown up myself, I am easily envied by their natural ability to imagine fan...
Kids need supportive adults in their lives
Did you ever have a teacher when you were growing up who felt like a different kind of parent, a second parent or a wise older sibling? When I was gro...
Speak Up High: helping kids transition to high school
Every year at Speak Up we say solemn goodbyes to talented kids as they make the transition to high school. Many leave us to try new extracurriculars o...
What happens when kids move up a class
Want to know what happens when your child is moving up at Speak Up? If it’s time for your child to move up from one level to the next, congratulatio...
Announcing a new drama studio in Sherwood
Speak Up Studio is expanding, from the hills to the woods. From our colourful studios in Red Hill, we launch into the leafy surrounds of Sherwood, pro...
Inspiring the social justice warriors of the future
As a teacher who finds herself in a great number of classrooms filled with students of varying social, political, and economic backgrounds, I witness ...
How to create a positive learning environment
Building a positive classroom environment can be difficult for teachers. It can be a mission that is easier said than done! At Speak Up Studio, we are...
How I am teaching my son to respect women
The one thing I hope for most, as a parent, is that my kids will grow up to simply be decent human beings. I try to teach my son and daughter to be re...
What my kids have learnt from performing on stage
Even before I started working at Speak Up, I knew about the Speech and Drama classes they held. In fact, my eldest attended lessons at his scho...
Does practice make perfect?
Who said practice makes perfect? If practice makes perfect and nobody is perfect, then why practise? Perfection is not what we should be aiming for. R...
Helping kids deal with scary things
How much do you protect your child from seeing scary things? Parents all have different approaches if their child is scared easily. We should, of cour...
Speech and Drama Warm Up
Our Speak Up kids have made a great video to show you our Speech and Drama warm up they will be practising for the end of year concert. This is a fant...
Finding a place where your child feels like they belong
When parents enrol their children in Speak Up classes we send them a little questionnaire to fill in about their child. One of the questions is, ̶...
Games for parents when you’re too tired to play
We know what it can be like at the end of the day. You have just got the kids home after a busy day and they are starting to lose it. They are sad, cr...
Speak Up has been amazing for Hailey’s confidence and building her social and emotional skills.