Bridget Beaudry-Porter

On Feb. 8 Bridget Beaudry-Porter took a group of drama students to El Morro Elementary to help the younger students with their performance skills for their upcoming play Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She hosted the same field trip last year and received great feedback from both students and teachers at El Morro.

“As a Teacher on Special Assignment for the Visual and Performing Arts K-5 program, I am always looking for ways to promote all arts programs.  The 3rd grade teachers at El Morro Elementary school enjoyed the LBHS Drama workshops so much, that this year were accommodating Top of the World elementary in June.  Third grade students perform in both “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Charlotte’s Web,” and other plays. So, LBHS drama students were able to teach some valuable acting skills to prep them for future performances. Working with Ms. Karol, I created improvisation workshops that focus on essential acting lessons like facial expressions, telling a story, and pronunciation. LBHS students worked with groups of 10 students on rotation,” said Porter.

“Students who are exposed to performing arts early develop communication skills, and they are able to self express.  According to to a recent study, “Younger students (with an average age of approximately 9 years) who participated in an arts program exhibited increases in their tolerance for others’ perspectives, and in the less closely- related areas of growth mindset (the belief in their ability to develop their skills) and academic goal orientation (their motivation to succeed in school),” said Porter.