Tag Archives: Theater Arts Teachers

Wilma Melson Grant authors guide to theater programs

Posted on by

Retired elementary school teacher Wilma Melson Grant of San Pablo, California, has published an informative guide to running successful theater arts programs. Photo credit: Delta Kappa Gamma, International.

Many excellent educators are often more than willing to share their expertise with colleagues. This is true of Wilma Melson Grant, a retired elementary school teacher and theater arts director from California who has just published a guide book for establishing and running successful theater arts programs in the schools.

Elementary school teachers or parents of an elementary school student who love the theater but have no theatrical experience would benefit greatly from consulting the newly released book, entitled Children’s Theater: Setting Their Spirits Free!  Wilma authored the guide to give assistance to colleagues and others involved organizing and running a children’s drama program. In the volume, Wilma gives information for teaching students how to write their own script from their favorite book, and how to go on to write their own version of popular stories. She shows fellow teachers how to integrate drama and theater into their classrooms by providing tested strategies. She also shows how to assess and organize the skills of parents and faculty members into the essential roles of building and supporting a drama club.

Prior to her retirement, Wilma taught for many years at Tara Hills Elementary School in San Pablo, California. There she established and directed the Drama Club in 1990 as a response to multiple budget cuts which decimated arts programs in the schools.

For the many years she dedicated to working with theater arts programs in public schools, Wilma has earned many accolades. She has been inducted into Delta Kappa Gamma International, an organization that supports women educators. In addition, she garnered the KPIX5 San Francisco Jefferson Award in 2013. The Jefferson Awards are awarded at both national and local levels. Local winners are individuals who engage in extraordinary public service work without the expectation of recognition. This was especially true of Wilma, who continued her work of bringing a fully-formed drama program to school sites, even after she retired from the classroom.

To purchase Wilma’s book, click on this link to amazon.com or this link to Barnes and Noble. Enjoy!

Texas Theater Arts teacher Brad DeBorde named a 2020 Top Teacher

Posted on by

Middle school and high school Theater Arts teacher Brad DeBorde of Texas has been named a 2020 Top Teacher by Fort Worth Magazine. Photo credit: Brad DeBorde

I enjoy sharing stories about exceptional educators who have earned awards for their work in the classroom. One of these is Brad DeBorde, a Theater Arts teacher from Grand Prairie, Texas. He has been named a 2020 Top Teacher by Fort Worth Magazine.

Brad comes from a family of teachers. His father taught physical education to special needs students, and his mother served as an Athletic Director of DeSoto Independent School District. The honored educator earned his Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the University of North Texas in 2006. Currently, he teaches middle and high school Drama at the Oakridge School in the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District. In his spare time, he has directed productions at Ellis County Children’s Theater in Waxahatchie, Texas.

Brad says he sees a lot of parallels between himself and his students. They’re all growing together. “Those first five years as a teacher, you’re a young punk and think you know everything,” Brad confessed. “And then you settle in and realize ‘Oh, teaching is also a lifelong learning position.’ So, like your students, you grow and you mature,” he continued.

In addition to theater, Brad is also a writer of five fantasy novels for young adults in a series he dubbed Paydunor. Check out his publications on amazon.com. He also teaches a seminar course on independent publishing. “My students spend half the semester writing a novel or novella, and I teach them how to self-publish or find literary agents,” he described. “We’ve actually had about 12 students published now. It’s kinda cool that a kid can enter a college interview and say, ‘Hey, here’s my novel,'” he concluded.