Running head: ENHANCING THROUGH THE ARTS 1

Enhancing Through the Arts: The Necessity of an Elementary School Theater Program

Alexis Teitelbaum

Child Care Administration

Seton Hill University

May 2, 2019
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Table of Contents

Abstract.............................................................................................................................3

Statement of Needs...........................................................................................................4

Summary of Program........................................................................................................6

Estimated Timeline and Budget........................................................................................8

Conclusion........................................................................................................................9

References.......................................................................................................................10
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Abstract

Theater is a necessary and beneficial aspect of a child’s education that increases their creativity,

socialization, academic skills, and love of learning. It provides students with a necessary outlet

that benefits them academically, socially, and culturally, as the arts have been proven to have

numerous valuable effects on children’s overall education and social development. Theater is

also a domain that combines each area of the arts, including visual, drama, and music, into a

singular entity, which allows for a greater understanding of how they have the ability to come

together into one product. It is necessary for an elementary school to contain a theater program

that allows for authentic and high-quality experiences in the arts, particularly as it provides a

cultural opportunity that many students may otherwise not be able to receive. This grant would

provide for the materials to craft a program that allows elementary-aged students to take their

interest in the arts to an elevated level. It would give access to the necessary resources to create a

high-quality theater program that could be utilized by students and faculty on an annual basis.

Getting the opportunity to work on every aspect of a theater production throughout the majority

of the school year would increase socialization, give children a constant activity to rely on, and

allow them to partake in a unique experience on an in-depth level.

Enhancing Through the Arts: The Necessity of an Elementary School Theater Program

Statement of Needs

Too often, elementary schools place all of their focus on educating students in the

traditional academic subjects, and ensuring that they are prepared for the yearly standardized

tests. However, the arts are an invaluable aspect of a child’s education that cannot be overlooked.

Research has shown that participating in the arts, which include domains such as visual arts,

drama, dance, and music, is “effective in instilling citizenship values; in promoting social

inclusion; and in building transferable skills and capacities consistent with current educational

policy objectives” (Wilson et al, 2008, p. 37). Children often have a higher level of interest and

enthusiasm for subjects such as music or drama, which increases their desire to learn and,

therefore, their retention of information and their enjoyment of learning overall.

One specific area of the arts that combines the domains of music, drama, and traditional

art is theater. Much like general arts programs, even brief theater exercises have been shown to

“enhance performance on subsequent divergent thinking and creativity in children, even when

those tasks tap a different cognitive domain” (Clements and Sowden, 2015, p. 136). Education

today is beginning to shift to include skills that are necessary for success in the “real world,”

particularly after schooling is complete. Theater plays a strong role in the cultural development

of elementary-aged children, as it introduces them to parts and people around the world that they

may not see in their everyday lives. Many families do not have the funds or resources to provide

authentic, culturally diverse experiences, such as live theater from all over the globe. Bringing a

quality theater program into a school can create a valuable substitute for experiences that would

otherwise take place out of the classroom. By allowing students to participate in an exceptional

theater program, either during the school day or as an after school activity, students are receiving
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the same cultural knowledge that they would be when experiencing live theater in a way that is

much less accessible to many families. This increases their interest in culture, along with their

overall tolerance and acceptance of others, which are skills that are not only beneficial, but

necessary to create a thoughtful society (Greene et al., 2018, p. 253).

One major benefit of developing a theater program at an elementary school is that it

allows for creative expression in numerous different forms. As previously stated, theater

combines a wide variety of artistic expression, such as visual arts, music, and drama. Acting out

lines, painting and building sets, and performing musical scores not only allows children to

explore each individual artistic domain, but also to form a greater understanding of how all forms

of expression come together to interact and create an incredible product. The majority of

students’ education in the arts is separated into isolated classes for music, art, movement, and so

on, but through a theater program, elementary-aged students will be able to intertwine these

domains and explore how to utilize them together.

Overall, a quality theater program provides numerous benefits for students’ cognitive,

academic, social, and cultural development. Providing a school with such a program would allow

a district that currently lacks the ability to fund one independently to give their students an

opportunity unlike any that they would have otherwise, and would lead to numerous beneficial

long-term effects. Theater is not only a chance for children to have fun and unleash their

creativity, but it enhances their overall artistic knowledge and their education as a whole.
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Summary of Program

Our school’s goal is to create a high-quality theater program that will allow for

maximization of student engagement and learning. We feel that it is necessary for students to

have access to the proper materials and resources to put together a production of live theater each

year. This will involve acting, costumes, sound and lighting, and stage design, along with singing

and dancing if the chosen production includes musical aspects. We would like each production to

take place in the school auditorium, as it provides the students with an authentic environment

that is as true to the professional world of theater as possible. Our school’s auditorium already

contains a functioning audio-visual system, which eliminates the need for sound and lighting in

our budget.

The majority of the money from this grant would be used to purchase the remaining

materials that are essential in putting together a complete theater production, from rehearsals to

performance. It is important to us that our program takes place throughout the majority of the

school year, so that it gives students a long-term activity that can be depended upon and allow

for significant learning and growth. We will provide the students with scripts for the chosen

production, and will spend the first several months of the program’s duration rehearsing lines and

stage movements. Every show that is put on through the program will be royalty-free, if at all

possible.

Not every child will feel comfortable performing on stage, so it is important that our

program encompasses other forms of artistic expression as well. As the date of the spring

performance draws closer, we plan to dedicate time to building and painting sets, creating flyers

or brief programs to hand out to attendees, and putting together appropriate costumes. Many of

the costumes can be repurposed during future productions, along with some of the set pieces and
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materials that are designed. That said, many of the building or art materials will not have the

ability of being reused, so our goal is to obtain enough resources for at least five years of annual

productions within the program, to make it as long-lasting as we can and hopefully retain

students after the initial year who wish to continue participating.

The purpose of this program will is to foster an enthusiasm for the arts within our

students, not to make a profit. Therefore, admission to the annual live production will be free of

charge, and we plan to make it available to families, students and faculty of the school district,

and members of the community. Having open-entry admission will send the message to both our

students and their families that theater is about the learning process and a passion for the arts.
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Estimated Timeline and Budget

An estimated timeline of events is as follows:

Date Event/Activity
May 2, 2019 Submission of grant
May 12, 2019 Grant is received
June 30, 2019 Grant is approved
July 10, 2019 Theater program and initial production are voted on and approved by
school board
July 15, 2019 Scripts for first annual production are ordered
July 20, 2019 Faculty begins purchasing and accumulating materials for sets and
costumes
August 1, 2019 Scripts are received by the school district
August 26, 2019 School year begins and program is advertised to students by teachers
August 30, 2019 Initial meeting of theater program is conducted
September 16, Rehearsals begin for theater production
2019
January 6, 2020 Set design and costuming begins for production
March 14, 2020 Final production is performed for school, family, and community members

Budget:

Item Cost
Grant Application Fee $0
Scripts $100
Costumes $1,000
Construction Materials $1,500
Art Materials $500
Performance Programs/Flyers $200

Total Funds Required $3,300

Conclusion

Our school’s goal for this theater program is to create an environment that fosters young

children’s interest in artistic expression by providing them with a safe, creative outlet for

bringing together multiple means of originality. An education in the arts provides greater social

consciousness, cultural awareness, and overall academic development. As many students do not

have the opportunity to explore theater outside of school, this program will provide valuable and

authentic experiences unlike anything they are receiving in the rest of their schooling. Much care

will be given over the course of the summer to ensure that our program is developed as fully as

possible, so that we are ready to welcome students into a warm and prepared environment. As

this program spans from the fall to early spring, it will provide a long-term education in many

aspects of the arts, which will benefit each child and introduce them to areas of learning that they

would not be exposed to otherwise.

References

Gallagher, K. (2015). A Foothold in the Margins: Theatre Studies and

Education. Canadian Theatre Review, (161), 83–84. https://doi.org/10.3138/ctr.161.014

Greene, J. P., Erickson, H. H., Watson, A. R., & Beck, M. I. (2018). The Play’s the Thing:

Experimentally Examining the Social and Cognitive Effects of School Field Trips to Live

Theater Performances. Educational Researcher, 47(4), 246–254. Retrieved from

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1178815&site=ehost-live

Sowden, P. T., Clements, L., Redlich, C., & Lewis, C. (2015). Improvisation Facilitates

Divergent Thinking and Creativity: Realizing a Benefit of Primary School Arts

Education. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity & the Arts, 9(2), 128–138.

https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000018

Wilson, G., MacDonald, R. R., Byrne, C., Ewing, S., & Sheridan, M. (2008). Dread and

passion: primary and secondary teachers’ views on teaching the arts. Curriculum Journal, 19(1),

37–53. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585170801903266
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