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Available Online! A variety of classroom workshops integrating drama, dance, and music into classroom curricula for grades preK through high school. All workshops are designed to meet state standards and objectives in both the art form and the content area being addressed. Arts Education & Arts Integration: Classroom Workshops InterAct Story Theatre conducts a variety of classroom workshops integrating drama, dance, and music into classroom curricula for grades preK through high school. All workshops are designed to meet state standards and objectives in both the art form and the content area being addressed. Scroll down for a sampling of some of our workshop offerings for different age and grade levels. Or, contact us or request more info about designing a classroom workshop for you! Many of our classroom workshops can be expanded into 2, 3- or 4-day artist-in-residence programs. See our page of Classroom Residencies for more information . REQUEST MORE INFO Early Education Elementary School Middle & High School Students < Back to InterAct in Schools

Staff Workshops & Trainings. Professional Development for Teachers, Artists, and Care Providers. Online programs available. Staff Workshops & Trainings As experts in arts integration and linking the arts with classroom learning, InterAct Story Theatre provides professional development opportunities for teachers, artists, and child care providers. For information about professional development residencies, intensives and institutes, please click here . If you'd like to know about our 60-minute, 90-minute, 3 hour or full professional development workshops, please scroll down! InterAct Story Theatre is an approved provider of Core of Knowledge training through the Maryland Office of Child Care; if you are a Maryland provider or center interested in hosting a training, please contact us or request more info about which trainings are eligible for Core of Knowledge clock hours. New training workshops are being added. Please check back soon, or contact us or request more info ! REQUEST MORE INFO Professional Development for Teachers, Artists, and Care Providers Books Alive for Little Ones: Building Language and Literacy Skills through Drama and Music Grades preK-1 and early childhood care providers With Ali Oliver-Krueger Early Childhood teachers, Head Start teachers, and child care providers are asked not only prepare children for school readiness to provide expert care, but also to implement a wide variety of classroom curricula. In this workshop, participants will explore how imaginative exploration of books and stories through drama and music can help build language and literacy skills, and will learn techniques they can use to lead children in acting out stories in their own words. (OCC 3 curriculum clock hours) Creating Casual Opera in the Classroom: Building Reading Comprehension and Writing Skills through Music & Drama Grades K-5 and 6-8 With Ali Oliver-Krueger In this workshop emphasizing character traits and motivations, mood, emotions, and interior monologue (for older students), teachers learn techniques through which they can lead students in examining text, making inferences, and then applying those inferences to create casual classroom operatic scenes. This work is especially strong for Reading/Language Arts and Social Studies, and has been implemented successfully with students from ages 4 and up. Drama Games for the Student Brain Grades K-5, 6-8, 9-12 Available Online! With Ali Oliver-Krueger In this training, participants learn simple yet engaging strategies that can be implemented in the classroom and adapted or expanded to address a plethora of goals and objectives. Particular emphasis is placed on articulating the rationale for drama gaming in the classroom and on providing participants with concrete strategies they can use right away to promote learning and help develop a wide range of skills. (OCC 3 curriculum clock hours) Picture This: Creating Effective Classroom Tableaux Grades 4 & up With Ali Oliver-Krueger A hallmark among strong readers is the ability to visualize and develop mental images of the actions and events described in texts. The creative drama strategy of tableaux fosters visualization skills and encourages students to develop and present strong sensory images, thereby strengthening understanding of text and allowing students to gain a deeper connection to the text. This strategy can be adapted to a variety of content areas, and is especially valuable in working with informational text. This workshop is also available as part of a professional development arts coaching residency. Reader's Theatre for Young Readers: A Creative Drama Approach Grades PreK-2 Available Online! With Ali Oliver-Krueger Readers Theatre offers students opportunities to interact with text and build oral fluency. It provides repeated reading practice, which is a key factor in building fluency. Repeated reading practice also improves students’ and enthusiasm for reading and confidence in themselves as good readers. But how to implement Readers' Theatre with young readers whose skills are just developing? In this training, Ms. Oliver-Krueger leads participants through a creative drama-based process in which teachers develop and perform engaging readers' theatre scripts with their students. In this workshop, teachers discover how to create and host an imaginary talk show, "Books Alive!", in their classrooms. Students portray characters from a book and answer questions in role. The questions encourage the students to make predictions, draw inferences and examine the theme of the text. An amazingly fun way to achieve and assess reading comprehension! Jump Start Creative Writing Through Creative Drama Grades K-5, 6-8, 9-12, adult education Available Online! With Ali Oliver-Krueger Sometimes the hardest part of writing is just getting started! In this professional development workshop led by InterAct Story Theatre’s Executive & Artistic Director Ali Oliver-Krueger, participants learn by playing and creating stories on the spot, exploring strategies that spark creativity and address prewriting skills, oral composition and discourse, speaking and listening skills. We'll engage in warm-up activities for getting brains moving quickly and flexibly, and strategies for facilitating brainstorming and collaborative composition, and tips for dramatizing stories as a way to review and identify points of revision. These include concrete, easy-to-apply "bite sized strategies" that teachers can apply quickly in a few minutes, expand into full arts-integrated lessons and units, or even use to springboard students into creative projects and deeper exploration of content. Music Detectives: Practicing Inferencing Skills through Music and Active Listening Grades K-5 and 6-8 With Ali Oliver-Krueger The ability to look beyond what is explicitly stated in order to make inferences is one of the key characteristics of strong readers, and is consistently one of the biggest challenges faced by struggling and reluctant readers today. This powerful strategy combines active listening, movement, and music to give students valuable practice in making inferences. Participants will learn the process of a Music Detectives lesson: learning and applying basic elements of music to examine musical samples, searching for clues, reading between the lines to make inferences, and then citing specific evidence from the "text" to support their theories. By giving students a chance to practice making inferences away from written text, we help students gain skills in predicting, drawing conclusions, and hazarding educated guesses, so that they can bring those skills to written text with greater confidence. Reading Between the Lines: Building Inferencing Skills through Music and Drama Grades K-5 and 6-8 With Ali Oliver-Krueger This workshop combines the strategies of Music Detectives and Creating Casual Opera, offering teachers a comprehensive approach to building reading comprehension and writing skills through drama. Teachers learn techniques to prompt inferences through active listening, acting, and simple composition. These strategies can be learned and applied by non-musicians and music enthusiasts alike! Black Belt Tableaux: Advanced Tableaux Skills for Assessment and the Common Core Grades 3-5, 6-8, 9-12 With Ali Oliver-Krueger Tableaux and Living Statues are among the first creative drama strategies that many teachers learn for integrating drama with classroom curriculum. But are you and your students getting the most you can out of this powerful and endlessly adaptable strategy?Designed primarily for teachers who have had some exposure to Tableaux, Living Statues, and/or Artful Thinking routines, this workshop explores advanced adaptations and extensions such as Conflict Webs and Statues, Internal/External Conflict, The Human Video Feed, Tableaux games, and effective uses of Tableaux as Assessment. In the half-day and full day workshops, teachers also have an opportunity to discuss and workshop ongoing work with this strategy, to brainstorm with Ms. Oliver-Krueger and their peers for ways to fine-tune and freshen up existing plans. This workshop is also available as part of a professional development arts coaching residency. A Creative Drama Approach to Reader's Theatre Grades K-8 Available Online! With Ali Oliver-Krueger This workshop introduces simple creative-drama based techniques through which teachers can lead students in developing, planning and performing Readers' Theatre presentations rooted in literary text or content curricula. Readers' Theatre offers students opportunities to interact with text and build oral fluency. It provides repeated reading practice, which is a key factor in building fluency. Repeated reading practice also improves students’ and enthusiasm for reading and confidence in themselves as good readers. The process of developing and performing original Readers' Theatre scripts also gives students a fun, creative way to not only build their understanding of a text or topic but also demonstrate their understanding to others. Informational OPERAtunities: Exploring Informational Text through Music and Drama With Ali Oliver-Krueger Informational text can sometimes feel dry, and motivating students to dive in can seem like a daunting task. How can we inspire students to embrace informational text with the curiosity and zeal of artists? Many of the best composers, playwrights and performers dive into informational text and research to create artistic work by reading between the lines to imagine the actions, emotions, motivations and conversations. In this workshop, teachers learn techniques through which they can lead students in approaching informational texts like artists: examining sources, building knowledge, making inferences, and then applying those inferences to create casual classroom operatic scenes that breathe life into the topic through music and drama. A portion of the workshop is dedicated to brainstorming and planning practical applications for the classroom; teachers are encouraged to bring an example of informational text or curriculum planning materials they might like to explore with their students. < Back to InterAct in Schools

Ali Oliver-Krueger Ali Oliver-Krueger (she/they/Ali) is a teaching artist, director, performer and writer/composer. As a teaching artist and arts education professional, Ali has worked with schools, opera companies, and arts organizations throughout the country, and is a residency artist with The Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning through the Arts and the John F. Kennedy Center Education Department's DC Partnership Schools Initiative Community Program. Ali’s work as a teaching artist is rooted in creative drama, devising, and creative opera, a form of creative drama in which music and drama are fused together to tell stories and express thoughts, ideas and feelings. She presents at conferences on arts education and arts learning, and conducts professional development workshops and residencies on infusing content curriculum with the arts. Drama, Music, Opera, Storytelling, Puppetry Executive Artistic Director Back

Meet Our Team: Tina Canady We’re so proud of our community of artists who share their skills and talents with InterAct Story Theatre and the communities we serve! Although we can’t gather together and do what we love—performing and creating fabulous art with kids, families, teachers, and community members—we want to take a few moments to celebrate some of the amazing people who make up our merry band of artists and educators. Today, we feature the wonderful and talented TINA CANADY! Meet TINA! Tina Canady is a black, queer theater artist. Since earning her BFA in drama from NYU, Tina has worked with several theaters across Baltimore, including Single Carrot Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, and Submersive Productions, LLC, where she serves as an artistic associate. Tina is passionate about creating new works, arts integration and continuing to cultivate her black joy! When she's not performing or teaching, she can usually be found playing board games, laughing or buying new wacky socks! 1. What do you love the most about working as a teaching artist? I love sharing my passion for theater making and creative expression. As someone who struggled academically, the arts allowed me to not only feel successful or “smart,” but it created a space for me to be myself. 2. Do you enjoy teaching or performing more? That’s so hard! But I think performing because that’s when I feel the most alive. 3. What is your favorite grade to work with? Early childhood! Early childhood classes leave me inspired because there is consistently a sense of novelty. The students are fearless in their pursuit of joy and self expression. And they remind me how to access parts of myself that too, feel wondrous, magical and limitless. 4. What have you learned from the teachers in the schools you’ve visited as an InterAct teaching and performing artist? Teachers do not get enough credit for the work they do! They create and maintain structure for these kids all while making learning enjoyable and that’s no small task! 5. Favorite story your students have created in class? I had one class create an extension about Anansi, a trickster spider that played tricks on other animals by using a magic flying carpet. That was pretty epic. 6. Favorite moment with a student/young audience member? In InterAct’s touring show “Not My Monkey!”, I played Delia the Dazzler, a bearded lady who sang an awesome song about loving yourself and accepting yourself. And I will never forget the first time an audience full of K-6th graders started singing along with me as they celebrated Delia in all of her beauty. As a queer artist, you don’t always get the opportunity to show up to work with your whole self and that was definitely a moment of pure joy and wholeness. 7. Favorite Children’s Book? I was obsessed with any book about the Berenstein bears. I’ve collected over like 70 of their books! So hard to pick a favorite! I'll say The Berenstain Bears and Too Much Junk Food because I loved to snack! 8. Must-have Quarantine snack? Brownies with vanilla ice cream. 9. Favorite Self-Care Activity? Meditating outside. 10. Something you can’t wait to do when social distancing is over? Visiting my mom and giving her a hug! 11. Dream Role? Hmm, I’m not sure because I can’t even begin to imagine the wondrous roles yet to be written! 12. What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned this year as a teaching and performing artist for InterAct? One of the biggest takeaways I have as an InterAct teaching and performing artist has to do with the intersection of where preparation meets humanity. InterAct has prepared me to facilitate workshops in an academic environment while still encouraging me to bring my humanity to the classroom. I work with a vast variety of kids and they always come with goodwill and their own unique perspectives and my hope is to bring structured lesson plans and poses the flexibility necessary to bask in our shared humanness and just have fun!

Donate to InterAct Story Theatre Arts are for everyone ... and everyone learns through the arts! Every year InterAct is able to bring quality arts programs and arts-based learning experiences to more and more children, youth, and families, thanks to the generosity of donors just like you! With your one-time or recurring donation, you not only get the satisfaction of knowing you put a smile on a child's face and helped empower learning through the arts, you may also qualify for a tax deduction! InterAct Story Theatre Education Association, Inc. is a Section 501(c)3 nonprofit and your contribution may qualify as a charitable deduction for federal income tax purposes We hope you'll consider supporting our work by making a donation to InterAct Story Theatre. You can make a one-time donation or recurring gift by credit card through the webform on this page. If you're interested in making a donation by check or making an in-kind donation of goods or pro-bono services, please contact us ! Every little bit helps! We will put your donation to work right away bringing fantastic arts and education programs to children, families, educators and community members throughout our area. Thank you! Make-a-Donation-Top-Page Thank you to our Funders, Donors and Supporters! InterAct Story Theatre Education Association’s arts-in-education programming is made possible due to the generous support of our funders, donors, supporters, and volunteers. Thank you so much to these caring communitarians, and to those who choose to support our work anonymously. You help us bring our vision to life, and make sure arts are for everyone, and everyone learns through the arts! Visionaries Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County Citrix Podio Greater Washington Community Foundation & The Arts Forward Fund Adriana Hernandez Ali Oliver-Krueger Peter Oliver-Krueger Maryland Humanities Maryland State Arts Council Suzanne Milton (in honor of Anabel Milton and the teaching artists who keep InterAct going!) Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation Nora Roberts Foundation Matthew Williams Champions The Biosophical Institute John Carlock (in honor of Anabel Milton) Shoshana, Izi and Eric Colchamiro Mirza Donegan Karen Donelan (in honor of the Milton Family) Blair Eig Julie Fitzgerald Cynthia Hallberlin Rozann Hassell The Henry D. Kahn and the Laura Primakoff Charitable Fund (in honor of Anabel Milton) Adriana P. Hernandez Craig & Eileen Hollander John Jeffries Lenore Blank Kelner Jerry Kickenson The Milton Family (in memory of Jeff Hassell) Kathy and Randy Pherson (“Ali, you Rock!”) Maureen Roult Emily Townsend Rick Westerkamp The Westerkamp Family Adam Wise Steven Wolf Denise Young Advocates Mary Beth Bauernschub Valerie Baugh-Schlossberg Nora Benitez Eowyn Ellison Nancy C. Grant (in honor of Suzanne Milton) Terri Grant Susan Hutner Catherine Huntress-Reeve Vickey Kirkpatrick Marianna Martindale Laura Marvel Anabel Milton Sheri Moreen Mia Bell Porter Matthew Poti Nell Quinn-Gibney Hydeliza Revilla Maureen Roult Danielle Sultan Charles Vilade Kiersten Whitehead (in memory of Susan H. Drumm) Jenny Windstrup (in honor of Emily Townsend, "because she's a rockstar") Kent Woods Donate If you would like to support our mission by making a donation, you can make a one-time donation or recurring gift by credit card through the webform at the top of this page . InterAct Story Theatre Education Association, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) organization, and your financial contribution is deductible to the fullest extent permissible by law. Thank you!

Tom Teasley Tom Teasley, described in the Washington Post as “a multi-instrumental genius,” maintains a unique career as a solo percussionist, composer, and collaborator. He is a Drummie Award winner for “World Percussionist of the Year by Drum! Magazine. Tom is a multi Helen Hayes Theatre Award recipient for outstanding sound design (nominations in 2012, 2014, 2015, and 2019). Tom tours frequently worldwide, performing and presenting clinics for the instrument companies he endorses, including Yamaha, Vic Firth, Sabian, Remo, and Gon Bops. His educational book /DVD, An American Approach to World Percussion, is published by Alfred Publishing. Tom is a five-time WAMA (Washington Area Music Award) World Music Instrumentalist of the Year. A six-time recipient of a Fulbright-Hayes grant for performances in the Middle East, Tom collaborated with indigenous musicians and gave historic performances by invitation of U.S. embassies in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Iraq, Samoa, Oman, and Jerusalem. He has been an artist-in-residence at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Tom has collaborated with the National Symphony as both a soloist and composer. As an international collaborator, he has performed by invitation in Europe, South America, New Zealand, Samoa, and Korea. Tom earned the Artist-of-the-year award from Young Audiences of Virginia for his creative and educational presentations. His CDs receive international airplay and acclaim. He has been the subject of numerous feature articles in Modern Drummer Downbeat and Drum! Magazines. World Music, Drumming Teaching & Performing Artist Back

Tina Canady Tina Canady is a black, queer theater artist. Since earning her BFA in drama from NYU, Tina has worked with several theaters across Baltimore, including Single Carrot Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, and Submersive Productions, LLC, where she serves as an artistic associate. Tina is passionate about creating new works, arts integration and continuing to cultivate her black joy! When she's not performing or teaching, she can usually be found playing board games, laughing or buying new wacky socks! Drama Teaching & Performing Artist Back

Season 1 of Wheaton Family Theatre Series Wheaton Family Theatre Series Season 1: October, 2015 through February, 2016 The Hero of Everything October 2015 Kids and adults become superheroes for a day in this play about the importance of teamwork and the problems of trying to be The Captain of EVERYTHING. Diane Macklin November 2015 Have a hoppin’ good time with Master Storyteller Diane Macklin, sharing legendary tales of America’s folk heroes through this interactive, storytelling program for all ages. Drumming Through Time and Across Cultures December 2015 Join award-winning composer and percussionist Tom Teasley on a unique musical journey around the world, following the Silk Road from Italy to China and the Sugar Trade Route from Africa to the Americas in one unforgettable performance! Story Tapestries January 2016 Get ready to dance, sing, wiggle and giggle with the Giggling Wiggling Bookworm, Arianna Ross. Eat your fill of stories as the bookworm in you finds a new, exciting story to share. One Gold Coin - Una moneda de oro February 2016 An interactive, bilingual play for kids and families inspired by a Latin American story about the power of kindness and giving. One Gold Coin — Una moneda de oro tells the story of a great healer who comes to a village in El Salvador with a magical gold coin. Audience members "get into the act" right from their seats, singing, acting, and becoming the villagers of Regalo who see the coin pass through many hands as it works its magic. Season 6 Season 5 Season 4 Season 3 Season 2 Season 10 To keep up on the latest news about InterAct’s Wheaton Family Theatre Series Season 10 and get reminders about our next program dates, join our mailing list . We also invite you to check out our past seasons by clicking on any of the season buttons! < Back to Community Page Season 7 Season 8 Season 1 Season 9

Bobtail BONG BONG: A Monkey's Tale Click Here to read the review by Theatre Bloom Five Stars! October 29, 2019 “It’s quite the experience, an honestly beautiful learning endeavor that engages young audiences while they think they’re having nothing but fun and games in this great theatrical show. Bobtail Bong Bong: A Monkey’s Tail Tale is the exact theatrical experience InterAct Story Theatre has been attempting to achieve in years of late, and this new highly immersive and involved format is really working toward their overall company mission.” < Back to Press

Evan Simon Performing Artist Back

Parent-Child Workshops & Family Literacy Events. Available Online! Parent Workshops & Literacy Events InterAct Story Theatre's Parent-Child workshops and Family Literacy events offers parents and caregivers ideas they can use at home to build literacy and language skills through the arts. Parents observe teaching artists work with their children, and then learn how they can play, sing, and act with their children at home. A fun and educational experience for all! We are currently developing and piloting several new family programs rooted in drama, music, dance, and puppetry, so please check back! REQUEST MORE INFO Parent-Child Workshops & Family Literacy Events PARENT-CHILD WORKSHOP FOR GRADES PREK-1 Available Online Story Can Theater Parents and children participate in a delightful workshop in which a story is told through miniatures and toys (see Story Can Theatre Workshop description above). The children dramatize part of the story and the parents make several effective storytelling activities that they can use at home to promote literacy and thinking skills. This popular program is being used in schools nationwide. AN INTER-GENERATIONAL STORY SHARING EXPERIENCE FOR CHILDREN GRADES 3 AND UP AND ADULTS Building Dialogue and Community One Story At a Time Telling stories is a meaningful way to transmit history, values and cultures in families, schools and communities. In this workshop, participants tell, listen, and retell stories in a process designed to celebrate our stories and build community across the generational divide. This workshop enhances oral language, listening skills, prewriting skills, and builds bridges between storytellers from ages 8 to 108. PARENT-CHILD WORKSHOP FOR GRADES PREK-K Songbuilding Parents and children share in a rich music experience as they sing songs and learn about various musical instruments (See Songbuilding Workshop description above). The parents then create their own personal lullaby for their children. The lullaby focuses on their wishes, dreams and hopes for their family. A CD of both the songs sung in the workshop and the melody of the lullaby is given to each family. A warm, rich and meaningful family event. A LITERACY WORKSHOP FOR PARENTS AND CHILDREN Available Online Literacy Fiesta! Bringing Read-Alouds to Life Research shows that reading aloud with our children is one of the most important things we can do to help build strong readers. But how can we make read-alouds fun and engaging for you and your children? And what if we’re not so comfortable reading for ourselves? In this workshop, parents participate with children in fun arts-based activities with a book, then learn tips and techniques for engaging children in lively and fun read-alouds at home—even if you don’t love reading for yourself! Different workshops are available for early childhood, primary, and elementary school-age children and their families. < Back to InterAct in Schools