Little Miss BZ Makes a Comeback

After a 3 year hiatus, I've decided to come back. A lot has happened - the good, the bad, the ugly - but every single one of them, a learning experience for this busy little bee.
I recently paid for a year's membership at a gym so that I'll be motivated to go (no point wasting all that hard-earned money). I'm applying the same principle here by making a public announcement / promise to write more and if I don't, you are all welcome to give me a gentle reminder / reprimand / shaming.
Now on to business... Of teachers and theatre.
For those who don't know me or are new to my blog, aside from being a kindergarten teacher, I'm also our school's Theatre Coordinator. In a nutshell, I'm in charge of organising school shows and promoting the theatre arts in our school. A few years back, I required teachers to produce and act in shows for our children. They hated it. It was extra work. They felt too shy to act on stage. They just aren't creative enough. They are too old for that sort of thing. What they didn't know at that time was that they already had it in them.
The fact that one teaches preschool age children makes you an actor. Everyday, early years educators perform for their students. It is a known fact that children learn best through fun and meaningful experiences.  Through play, music, art, physical, visual, hands-on experiences, just to name a few, and we, preschool teachers can't do all these by sitting on a chair or standing in front of a chalkboard. We move, we sing, we dance, we act. Every single minute, every single day.
Our classroom is our stage. Not only do we do lots of creative, artsy stuff to get our learning objectives across, our learning environment also has to change regularly to accommodate our themes, display artwork, and make it a print-rich environment. Just like a stage with changing sets, props, and scenery.
Finally, we are the Directors of our classroom routines and activities; Playwrights of stories and songs we have to make up in order to teach the letter, number, or shape of the week; Backstage crew working hard to help our students shine; Set and costume designers of our learning centres and role play areas.
It took some convincing and time, but this year, I'm proud to say that the teachers in my school are not scared of the limelight anymore. They write scripts, produce shows, and act on stage in front of our students, and they love it! They did a stellar job, and so can you! Need to be inspired? Check out The Children's Garden teachers adaptations of "The Greedy Triangle" by Marilyn Burns for Pattern Day and "I am Antar" - an Arabic story by Caroline Hamada, at http://www.tcgjumeira.ae/en/picture-gallery/.
Shine on, teachers, shine on.