Wonderful that children are exposed to such relevant mental health issues through quality drama.St Columba Anglican School, Port Macquarie, NSW
I have one particular student who often experiences "the huffs'. You made his day. ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT!!Gayndah State School, QLD
SYNOPSIS
Bill is having a bad day.
Mr Huff is following him around and making everything seem difficult.
It starts will feelings of grumpiness, not wanting to join in and upsetting his friends. Mr Huff just gets bigger and bigger and the feelings become debilitating, rendering Bill unable to complete his schoolwork and being disruptive in class.
Unable to understand these feelings Bill continues to try to get rid of him, but Mr Huff just keeps getting bigger and bigger until he's bigger than Bill! Then they both stop, and a surprising thing happens...
ABOUT THE SHOW:
The Australian Government says:
Quote:
"Not only do confident and resilient children with a capacity for emotional intelligence perform better academically, these skills can also contribute to their ability to create strong social bonds and supportive communities, and to maintain healthy relationships and responsible lifestyles." - https://www.education.gov.au/student-resilience-and-wellbeing
Our adaptation of Anna Walker's award-winning book is written for grades Prep - 6 and is designed to help children build both healthy relationships to their own emotions and increase their emotional intelligence. Through a blend of puppetry, music and dance, our performers will have the students so engaged they won't realise they're learning.
Our performers take on multiple roles throughout the show and with a mixture of performance styles the action is dynamic and fast paced. We also have multiple opportunities for audience participation, keeping students engaged from the moment they enter the space. The action is designed to move around the whole space. This makes students refocus so they never have an opportunity to zone out.
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"I liked the use of the entire space - not just the stage. The students were so engaged." - Our Lady Queen of the Peace, Greystanes NSW
Our adaptation of Mr Huff supports delivery of the Self Awareness element of the Personal & Social Capability curriculum by creating a language students can use to recognise and articulate their emotions. By following Bill's journey students begin to understand what is causing his emotions and how he can adapt his behaviour to manage them more effectively. In particular, we explore feelings of being fed up, overwhelmed, angry and anxious.
Initially, Bill's mood represents as a small cloud hovering around Bill's body. Bill finds it irritating. As he struggles to describe the feelings he's having, he allows small things going wrong in his day to affect him. His initial grumpiness manifests into a larger version which starts to envelope him. Bill's grumpiness developing into anger he arrives late for school. He starts behaving more aggressively and as he is unable to complete his schoolwork he becomes disruptive in class.
Eventually, the cloud has evolved into a fully formed being whose size overwhelms Bill. He starts to lash out until he names him Mr Huff. Suddenly, Bill realises these feelings are a part of him. By giving his anxiety a name and acknowledging that those feelings are a part of him Bill starts to find Mr Huff easier to deal with. We watch as Mr Huff reduces back to his original size. The difference is, now Bill understands these feelings and can articulate how they are making him respond to situations.
With our innovative design of Mr Huff, the students will be enraptured as he grows bigger, scene by scene, until he is a full-sized costume character able to interact with the students, whilst remaining faithful to the book. The moment Mr Huff cries is pure theatrical magic!
Our award-winning song writing team have crafted our music lyrics to perfect straddle the line between education and entertainment, keeping the students bopping along as the performers dance along with them.
Included in the cost is our teacher resource pack, which includes activities for both before and after the show, enabling teachers to expand on the material presented in the show. This allows students to engage more deeply with the themes and message of Mr Huff over multiple lessons, deepening their understanding of the work.
We provide all of the staging and sound requirements, all we need from you is a performance space approx. 5m by 5m, plus enough room for the students to sit and watch the show.
Q&A:
We include a structured and informative Q&A session which supports the school's delivery of the Critical and Creative Thinking curriculum. We discuss the themes raised in the show and support Inquiry Learning by discussing how we made the set, puppets, music, etc.
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"Was great how it was run by you and not just the kids asking random questions. (10/10)" - Bargara State School, Bargara QLD
Excellent opportunities for all children to participate. Age appropriate to help embed learning how to manage emotions.St Stephen's College, Upper Coomera, QLD
Absolutely fabulous!! Thank you. Super message - great lesson in life.St Oliver Plunkett School, Cannon Hill, QLD
It truly was the best shortlisted book performance I have ever seen.Iona Public School, Woodville, NSW
The interpretation of the book was fantastic and presented at a level that engaged all students, Prep to Grade 6.Lightning Reef Primary School, VIC
BOOKINGS
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