Elementary students explore pioneer living
"Learning through the arts" is an oft-used phrase. And nobody does it better than Hillcrest Professional Development School. For the 16th year, the school has used a broadway-like theater production to enhance the study of writing, history, mathematics, reading, science, and fine arts.
Commonly referred to as Showtime, this year's production was entitled The Pioneer Way, an original student-written play adapted from the works of Laura Ingalls Wilder. To some, witnessing the production was like watching an episode of Little House on the Prairie, a long-running television series also based on Wilder's writings.
Showtime requires teamwork. It's a phenomenal feat made possible by dedicated, hard-working teachers, dozens of focused fourth- and fifth-grade students, supportive parents and a school administration that values learning through the arts.