metropolisnews

Acting Program Teaches About Harm of Racism

Arlington Heights Post

by Nick Katz | Staff Writer

December 13, 2007

In her memoir "Warriors Don't Cry" Melba Pattillo Beals recalls what it was like to be one of nine black students who integrated Central High School in Little Rock in 1957.

Now, 50 years later, students in Park View School teacher Jody Shelist's classes are studying that book to learn about the civil rights movement and integration.

But they have done much more than just read about it, working with an acting teacher to delve into the emotions behind the story.

Two of Shelist's Language Arts and Literature classes took part in the acting project this fall and the other two will do the same thing early next year.

The program incorporated elements of movement, improvisation and other acing skills that Shelist wanted her students to experience.

"It wasn't just acting, like you give a speech and somebody else says something. They worked together and used their interpersonal skills," Shelist said.

Shelist said the got the idea for the program when she learned that Metropolis Theater in Arlington Heights had a program that sent teaching actors into schools. She got approval from the district that brought actress and drama teacher Ashley Winston into the school for eight sessions to work with her seventh graders.

For one exercise Shelist's students chose a word that fit the book and said it out loud, words such as racism, love and anger. Then they tried to demonstrate those words visually.

"Each had a word that meant something to them," she said. "They built it into an acting piece where they visually demonstrated what the word meant."

Shelist said even students who normally are quiet in class and do not take a very active role got into the activity and became involved and outgoing. That also worked for normally shy students, she said.

"Some kids who don't show that much involvement were up and smiling. Their eyes were lit up. They were completely involved," Shelist said. "Some were completely different than the people I see in class."

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