Last night, we went to watch my niece perform in a middle school version of Singing in the Rain. They had been practicing for six weeks as part of a vocal performance class and had additional after school practices. Of course, the week before the performance, school was canceled for several days due to snow and ice. I can't imagine how stressful that must have been for the director and the performers.
We braved a little more snow and ice to drive down to her school and found our seats in the cavernous performing arts center. The director got on stage and thanked all the booster who made the play possible. (Due to community support, they didn't need to charge for tickets. The booster and parental supporters funded the whole production.) Then, the lights dimmed, and the play was off.
It's always amazing to me what a group of passionate performers can create, but I'm not really here to write about their actual performance. I was more wowed by their joy at being on the stage.
My niece is a little on the shy side, so I was a little surprised that she auditioned for the musical. As she sang and danced in the ensemble, you could see her joy at performing though. Chatting with her and her folks afterwards, it was clearly important to her. The cast was important to her.
I don't think she's going to go onto be a lifetime performer, but she was clearly proud of their work. I think the collaborative effort was even more important than the play itself.
It feels amazing to work hard on something, to share that effort with a group of equally invested folks, to make something that everyone can share in.
What else can we view as a team effort? How can we be a part of something bigger than ourselves? Where are we giving our students a way to join our team?
I often try to incorporate Project-Based Learning into my classes. Typically, students work in teams to create solutions to a driving question or problem. I think I need to develop even more ideas for team building into these units though. I want to see them loving and caring for their teammates like the casts of a play. I want to see them grinning through their stress and exhaustion (not that I want them to be stressed or exhausted) because they care about what they're creating.
We braved a little more snow and ice to drive down to her school and found our seats in the cavernous performing arts center. The director got on stage and thanked all the booster who made the play possible. (Due to community support, they didn't need to charge for tickets. The booster and parental supporters funded the whole production.) Then, the lights dimmed, and the play was off.
It's always amazing to me what a group of passionate performers can create, but I'm not really here to write about their actual performance. I was more wowed by their joy at being on the stage.
My niece is a little on the shy side, so I was a little surprised that she auditioned for the musical. As she sang and danced in the ensemble, you could see her joy at performing though. Chatting with her and her folks afterwards, it was clearly important to her. The cast was important to her.
I don't think she's going to go onto be a lifetime performer, but she was clearly proud of their work. I think the collaborative effort was even more important than the play itself.
It feels amazing to work hard on something, to share that effort with a group of equally invested folks, to make something that everyone can share in.
What else can we view as a team effort? How can we be a part of something bigger than ourselves? Where are we giving our students a way to join our team?
I often try to incorporate Project-Based Learning into my classes. Typically, students work in teams to create solutions to a driving question or problem. I think I need to develop even more ideas for team building into these units though. I want to see them loving and caring for their teammates like the casts of a play. I want to see them grinning through their stress and exhaustion (not that I want them to be stressed or exhausted) because they care about what they're creating.