Our school is located in a high poverty area near Tampa, Florida. My students come from over 40 different elementary schools and are attending our school for a variety of reasons. The mission of our school is to use the arts as the primary way to teach the core academic curriculum. Students go from the one teacher model to an eight teacher model each semester. They each take some half year classes in the arts in order to introduce them to the various types of specific classes that they can take in the future. My students are required to take a half a year of theater in grade six. When I first tell them that they will be required to get up in front of the class, many of them shake their heads in disbelief and inform me that they are not going to do that.
Once students have experienced their first performance, which includes writing, casting, and performing in their own play, they are eager to do more.
They become excited to work with others to create a product of their own. They fall in love with the theater!
My Project
I specifically chose CDS that are not available as downloads to add to my classroom recordings of musical theater. These CDS would be added to my classroom library and students will have the opportunity to listen to various songs from musicals that they have not heard before.
Once they listen to these recordings, they will be able to research the musicals that they are from and make more informed choices about songs to sing for competitions, benefits, and other types of musical performances.
Students will also be able to use these songs as potential audition pieces. Whether it's for a college, community, or professional audition , finding a song to perform that's uniquely their own will increase their chances for success!
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. Bajjaly and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.