Workshop Experience

Friendship Threads explores friendship through embodied drama experiences, inviting students to investigate what makes a good friend by learning with their whole body rather than simply talking about friendship.

Students work collaboratively with our custom-designed Playscape Playkit, created with artist Sue Loveday, using beautifully crafted open-ended objects to inspire imaginative play, storytelling, and creative problem-solving. Together they create dramatic worlds, images and stories that encourage cooperation, listening and shared decision-making.

Throughout the workshop, students develop core friendship skills by practising how to listen deeply, communicate ideas, negotiate, include others and work collaboratively. Rather than being taught “right” answers, students are invited to explore and discover these skills.

The workshop also creates space for students to investigate tricky friendship scenarios that are familiar to primary-aged children. We hold space for them to step into different perspectives, hear the inner voice of characters, and experiment with a range of possible responses in a supportive, low-risk environment. This process builds social awareness, empathy, and resilience while allowing students to rehearse positive ways of navigating real-life friendship challenges.

Supporting Student Wellbeing

Friendship Threads uses drama as a vehicle for social and emotional learning. Students strengthen their emotional literacy by recognising feelings in themselves and others, exploring multiple perspectives and practising respectful communication. The workshop provides a safe space to rehearse challenging social situations before they occur in everyday life, helping children develop confidence, empathy, and emotional resilience while fostering a genuine sense of belonging and connection within the group.

Workshop Requirements

Indoor hall, classroom with cleared furniture, or outdoor space (this is our preference), suitable for movement.

Students work best in an open area where they can move safely and collaborate in small groups. We prefer being outdoors in nature as we have found there are many benefits for children.

No specialised technology required.

All workshop materials, including the Playscape Playkit, are provided.

Approximately 15 minutes for set-up and 15 minutes for pack-down.

Parent Feedback“My 7-year-old is creative and outgoing, but she can also get anxious in new situations and with friendships. At Playscape, Katie and Emma Che made her feel safe and understood straight away. The emphasis on children’s social and emotional development, combined with the small group size, means she gets the support she needs. Importantly, the creative experiences are thoughtful, meaningful, and of an incredibly high quality (though the kids think they’re just having fun!) We’re so grateful to have found Playscape: a warm, creative space where children can build confidence, be soothed and inspired by nature, and make and grow friendships.”

Playscape Creatives delivers outdoor drama incursions where nature is both stage and stimulus. Led by qualified artist-educators, students step into characters, build stories collaboratively, and use voice, movement, and space to express ideas and relationships. Designed in collaboration with artist Sue Loveday, our Playscape program directly supports the Drama strand’s core content descriptions around making and responding.

Emma Che Raethke:

Emma Che is passionate about working with young people and fostering their creativity. She is a participatory artist with a rich history of creating work with and for young people. She has worked with regional communities across WA, in regional QLD, and for Queensland Theatre, LaBoite Theatre Company, Barking Geko Theatre, Backbone Youth Arts, etc. Emma Che holds a Masters Degree in Theatre practices from WAAPA and BA ( hons) Acting from Rose Bruford College London. https://www.emmache.com/

Katie Fletcher:

Katie Fletcher is a passionate drama educator with over a decade of experience teaching a variety of drama curriculums across Queensland and NSW, including the International Baccalaureate. Holding a First Class Honours degree in Creative Industries (Drama) and Education, she has taught at a variety of schools, including Queensland Academies Creative Industries Campus, where she led students in projects such as The Howl, Girls Like That, The Laramie Project, and The Ark Project. Katie has also worked with companies like Sydney Theatre Company and Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre. She is dedicated to inspiring young people to build resilience, creativity, and self-expression.