Coming Soon...

This Friday, our fourth graders will present a fantastic Black History Month Program featuring Talk About A Family and Uncle Jed's Barber Shop. We have been privileged to work with New Stage Theater through a grant from Ford Foundation connected to the Ask 4 More Arts collaborative. This collaborative is a wonderful initiative that we are taking to infuse our curriculum with the arts. The students have read both books, and they have now explored the characters and the situations within the books. Through their exploration, the students were given roles to present these stories on stage Friday night. The students have worked extremely hard. The New Stage Theater actors have been a tremendous asset to our program, and we are so grateful for their time and enthusiasm throughout the process. Our fourth grade students practice two hours a week with these actors. They have memorized lines, rehearsed, and blocked scenes using stage directions. One of the favorite things before rehearsals is warm-ups!

The New Stage actors guide the students as they "de-stress" and loosen up for their rehearsals after a long morning in the classroom.

Shakin' it loose!

We even have a vocal warm up. Take a look!

After warm-ups, it's time to rehearse! The New Stage actors give last minute advice and direction.

Then, the students are on their own on stage. No one prompts them for places and lines. They become their characters!

While part of the fourth grade group rehearses lines and blocks scenes, there is another group of students working hard on backstage work. There are so many jobs in the theater business! This group of students is in charge of painting backdrops, choosing costumes, lighting, and sound effects. Mrs. Johnson said that it sure SOUNDS like we're having a good time! Ha!

Kim and Genny's room for Talk About A Family

Nice job, girls, on the outdoor scene!

These boys ACTIVELY worked on their backdrop

Aren't you excited about seeing the final performance?!

Another part of our Ford Foundation grant project consists of a field trip! We are really excited about this! Sometime in April, we plan to take a field trip to New Stage Theater to see their presentation of "A Year with Frog and Toad." Mrs. Johnson is really excited about anything to do with frogs!

Thank you again to all involved in this collaborative! It has been a wonderful experience, and we have truly enjoyed bringing our summer reading to life!