Lights, Camera, Action!!!

 

We filmed the anti-drug skit today. I was so nervous, because one of the kids didn't show up at school. I had to do so much running around to gather all of the kids and to get the drugs into their white shirts. Then, I called the camera men to ensure that they would be at the school by 2 p.m., but they were already on their way.

The drama teacher didn't tell me until the last minute that she wouldn't be able to direct the skit!! So... in I move into Director mode! Oh, my!  Win ~ the Director...

 Still...  it really wasn't so bad to play Director. I knew I had to do my part, and besides, I already knew how I wanted it done, and I knew the kids needed my help to do a good job.

I was going to do the skit in the cafeteria, but when I passed by the courtyard, it called me to come outside. There were benches and trees and grass. It was the perfect background for the skit.

I had to substitute one of the trees as one of the drugs, because of the girl who didn't show up, and I put the other tree as an extra friend. The kids were so nervous at first that they kept messing up.

Me, I had my personal problems trying to get the CD player to work! I had to borrow a long extension cord, because there were no outlets outside. Then the camera men had problems setting up, so the kids had to start over several times. One of the little boys felt like giving up, because they had to start over so many times. 

After the kids calmed down, they kept excellent timing, and they played their parts well Yes! Even the girl that I had to use as a substitute. The part wasn't hard for her, because she had to fill in whenever the other kids were late to practice, which was pretty often, so she already knew what to do.

Finally, the CD player was cooperative, the cameras were cooperative, and the kids did an excellent performance at the last take. The camera men were so impressed with the kids that they kept thanking me. I found that kind of odd, but I was so grateful to have them come out and do this for us. 

The camera people still need to edit the piece to fit the song. I hope to get a copy of the skit. Silly me, I get so into it that I keep forgetting to get a camera and take pictures. After the camera people edit the piece, they are going to present it on television for the all the school kids to see. 

The kids did so well. Ohhhh, it was so awesome to see them lose their inhibitions! I am so proud of them. When it was all over, some of the kids asked if they will be able to do another skit. Can you believe it?!

Some of the kids that kept walking by asked me if I was a drama teacher. LOL... I have a new role to add to my resume?!

How dare I take kids with little or no English and absolutely no acting experience and help them to triumpth with as little as 30 minutes of practice daily in less than two weeks!!! It was scary to try, as much as they wanted us to fail, but we did it!!!

                               

One of the teachers mentioned that I am so energetic and good with the kids that she wants to refer all of her kids to my program, because the kids get a lot from my program. One of the other teachers mentioned that she wants to get some of her kids into my reading clubs. Of course, some of the teachers don't want me to shine, but the way I see it, it is the kids that I want to help to shine, and I want to teach them that learning can be fun.

P.S. I was wondering why everyone was congratulating me for being nominated for a Vivi award. I thought it was a mistake. Little did I know that the spam folder was holding my nomination tag in the palm of it's hand! I am fortunate that I took the time to look at my spam folder instead of deleting the entire folder, as I usually do.

A great big thanks goes out to all the people who thought me worthy of such a distinctive honor. You know what that means; right?! That means that I had better shape up, because you need a blog writer, and your sights are set on The Glass Box. Yes, I better shape up and keep your reading eyes satisfied!!!!

  

Win =.)