Johanne Wolfgang Von Goethe said, “Instruction does much but encouragement does everything.” There are thousands of reasons I could choose to encourage my peers to attend TheatreFest 2017. However, no two reasons stand out to me more than the instruction you will acquire and the encouragement you will receive from your peers.
Looking back, as a young teacher, I remember attending TheatreFest in Dallas and Austin. At the time I had no idea what an impact those workshops and connections would have on my future productions, classrooms, departments, and students. Now, as a tenured educator, I have found very few conferences that include so many wonderful and applicable workshops in one setting. From my previous years at TheatreFest I have acquired an overflowing file cabinet and cloud storage. Inside are wonderful lesson plans, classroom management techniques and many more useful sharables that have added to the value of my classroom year after year.
Additionally, the connections I have made at TheatreFest have made a huge impact in the quality of my teaching. I have gained mentors that have lent their ear numerous times, when this young teacher did not have the answers. I have also had the opportunity to be the mentor teacher and reach out to my fellow Theatre teachers, tenured and newly certified, giving them tried lesson plans and advice on the many obstacles that can face an educational Theatre professional. In the past thirteen years as a Texas Theatre educator I have built a network of TETA friends that have been a tremendous support system.
Lastly, and shamelessly, I can not write this article without mentioning my favorite workshop at TETA, Middle School Madness. Middle School Madness is a workshop where Theatre teachers bring in their favorite lesson plans to share with the room!!! Each teacher gets up and shares their lesson plan with the group and their reproducibles are shared with the attendees via Google Drive and the TETA file cabinet. This workshop, alone, has provided me with multiple semesters worth of material over and over again! If you are interested in presenting at Middle School Madness please contact me at k12.msinterest@tetatx.com
As the Middle School Interest Chair of the K-12 Committee, I am excited to share a few K-12 features for TheatreFest 2017:
- Middle School Madness
- New workshops specifically geared for the K-12 classroom
- K-12 Interest Meetings
- Information on CPE Hours
- Announcement of 2017 SummerFest location and details
Thank you so much for attending SummerFest 2016 at Texas State University! Attending events like SummerFest and TheatreFest display your passion for enhancing the quality of education in your district, campus and classroom!
Also, Please consider finding a way to give back to TETA. Serving as a volunteer and a chair person has been one of the most fulfilling aspects of my career in education! We have several quality individuals who have been nominated for multiple positions and voting will take place at the K- 12 interest meetings at TheatreFest.
Please join us for TheatreFest 2017: Moody Gardens Galveston!
Don’t delay…register now! https://tetatx.wildapricot.org/event-2297743
In your humble service,
Reina A. Johnson
TETA K- 12 Middle School Interest chair
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