Making Books Sing’s interactive, anti-bullying performance and workshops:
Alice's Story—(1st-5th grade)
This 45-minute interactive theater performance and workshop tackles the issue of bullying and aims to create safe learning environments for all students. Children will function as audience members, critical thinkers and actors as actor-educators empower them to be agents of positive change. Alice’s Story has had over 200 performances in school classrooms to date, reaching nearly 10,000 students.

#Normal—(6th-8th grade)
#Normal focuses on biased-based bullying in which individuals are targeted and harassed specifically because of an identifiable trait, choice or physical characteristic—this could include someone’s sexual orientation, religion, gender identity, race or physical appearance. #Normal explores social justice, cyberbullying and civic responsibility. Middle school students are encouraged to deconstruct stereotypes and examine both their relationships and the roles they play within these issues. They will reflect on their personal sense of individuality while also examining the unspoken cultural and/or societal definitions of “normal” vs. “different.” #Normal will premiere in the summer of 2012 in New Jersey.

Though the content of the two programs is slightly different, Alice’s Story and #Normal have the same basic structure and use applied theater techniques.

Problem

When empathy is absent, bullying persists. One in every 4 kids is bullied. 8 percent of students miss one day of class a month for fear of bullies. One out of 5 kids admits to being a bully, or doing some bullying. Two-thirds of students who are targets become bullies. In schools where there are bullying programs, bullying is reduced by 50 percent. By working with over 7,000 K-8th grade students in over 300 classrooms annually, MBS provides students with practical solutions to bullying through theater and kinesthetic learning.

Solution

Alice’s Story and #Normal, Making Books Sing’s interactive anti-bullying performance and workshops, are designed to appeal to students’ empathy and creativity in solving real-life bullying problems. Two actor-educators visit a classroom and facilitate a 45-minute interactive theatre workshop. The workshop includes moments of scripted performance, guided discussion and improvisation. The program seeks to create a safe learning environment for all students, to create communities of respect and inclusion, and to empower students to be agents of positive change.

Example

Our program works as follows: Two teaching artists visit a classroom and facilitate a 45-minute interactive theater workshop. During the workshops the students fulfill three roles – audience members, critical thinkers and actors. The students begin by viewing short scenes performed by the teaching artists that illustrate different forms of bullying. This story explores how bullying can range from subtle taunting to outright aggression, and it also looks at the important role bystanders play in these situations. The students are then engaged in a conversation, brainstorming effective ways to counter bullying and what to do when it happens. Finally, the students have the opportunity to become the actors in the skits, implementing the countering strategies they developed as a class.

Marketplace

Several organizations in NYC, including PFLAG, FIERCE and City Kids, are working to put a stop to bullying. Most anti-bullying programs in NYC are lecture based and engage students as passive audience members. Alice’s Story uses strategic theatre techniques to actively engage students in the learning process. Students become stakeholders in the outcome of the program—this empowers them with a sense of ownership while also validating their own experiences, insights, emotions and solutions. The workshop does not provide students with a script of what to say in a bullying situation. Instead, students integrate words, empathy and actions into their bodies through guided discussion and improvisation. Our peers make for great partners, allowing us to reach more children in the community.