Knoxville News Sentinel!!! Canaan's a star at Ball Camp!!

Hi everyone! Just in case you don't receive the paper on a daily basis - there is a wonderful "Drama Kids" article in today's "School Matters" section with a HUGE picture of Canaan from Ball Camp!! I'm so excited and wanted to be sure to share the link with all of you!!

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/dec/07/more-drama-please

If you have found your way to our blog through the article - we would love for you to join us! You can either visit www.dramakids.com/tn1 or call 865-947-5427 for more information!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Hi Drama Kids families!!

I wanted to be sure to take a moment to wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving! I also wanted to let you know that YES, classes will be held Monday and Tuesday this week. However, we will be closed for the holiday, the rest of the week. Remember, we follow Knox County Schools' calendar, therefore we are closed when they are closed. Also - this time of year is a time to remember what we are thankful for. I want to be sure to let you all know how thankful I am to have you as a part of the Drama Kids community! This whole adventure started almost a year ago for me and has grown and become a true blessing in my life and that is due entirely to YOU! Thanks so much and may we have a dramatic rest of the school year!!

Acting Academy and a BIG WELCOME to Amherst Elementary!!

I'm just so excited with the Acting Academy I could burst! The pictures here show the students working on a script where William Shakespeare was being denied entry into his own play! Needless to say, the kids were GREAT! I am also looking to add additional Academy locations, for those of you who are hoping for afternoon classes! I also want to be sure to extend a HUGE WELCOME to our newest Drama Kids location - AMHERST ELEMENTARY!! We will be there with bells on every Monday from 3:00 until 4:00. Please call 865-947-5427 for more information. I also want to make sure that everyone recognizes our new "Lead Teacher," Jamison Stalsworth, or "Mr. Jamie" to the kids. Please say "Hello!" when you see him!

Also - don't forget to clear your schedules the week of January 28th for "Parent Presentations!" It's your student's chance to shine in front of you and show you what they have been up to in class! This is for ALL Drama Classes, including the elementary school classes, which have already begun putting together pieces of this performance.

HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD!!

Whew!

Greetings All!!!

We have had a couple of back-to-back whirlwind weeks! First, the DKI Acting Academy is growing and we are having soooo much fun on Tuesday evenings at Christus-Victor Lutheran Church! I also had the opportunity recently to visit the hotbed of entertainment - HOLLYWOOD! I'm also thrilled that I've received information regarding the big Spring Performances and will be sharing that with students this week in class! As you can see, students at Halls are having a great time, as are the students at Karns! Each week I notice students becoming more and more confident in their speech, especially in articulation and projection! We also would like to welcome Amherst Elementary into the Drama Kids family! A new class will be starting there on Mondays, beginning on November 16th and our newest teacher, Mr. Jamie will be assisting me with the instruction as we open the new location! Don't forget to bring friends to class - they are also welcome and the classroom door is always open to new faces!

The Acting Academy!!!!!

Wow! What fun! I'm so thrilled to be working with such a talented and enthusiastic group of kids at the new DKI Acting Academy!! I especially loved the improv and mini script this group has put together! I look forward to seeing you all next week. I have also hired another teacher to help me out as the program grows! His name is Jamison Stalsworth (or Mr. Jamie to the kids) and he is phenomenal as a Drama teacher! He will begin to join me in classes so that all the Drama Kids may get to know him better. He will be subbing for me, in the event my children become ill. Eventually, he will be running classes concurrently with me and we will switch groups every week. As the classes build, I would eventually like to divide the groups at each school into Lower Primary and Upper Primary classes. One week I will have the Lower Primary and Mr. Jamie will have the Upper Primary. The next week we would switch. I know the students will benefit from having 2 instructors with different styles of teaching! :) I hope everyone is having a wonderful week and I can't wait to see you all in class!!

WOW!! The Acting Academy is on its Way!!!!

I'm soooo thrilled to announce that the DKI Acting Academy for middle and high school students will launch officially on Tuesday, October 20th!!! Woo hoo! It will be held on Tuesday evenings at Christus-Victor Lutheran Church from 6:30 - 7:30. For those of you wondering "Where in the world is that church?" - the address is 4110 Central Avenue Pike, Knoxville, TN 37912. It is just off Merchant Drive, just North of the I-75/I-640 split. I will be attending training at the Drama Kids' corporate offices from 10/15 until 10/18 and we will hit the ground running upon my return! As always, do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns you may have! Drop me an e-mail @ KnoxDramaKids@gmail.com or give me a call at 865-947-5427!

Forgot to mention......

We had a great time at Brewster's last Thursday evening! We are also donating $10 from each new enrollment from Brewster's to the Brickey-McCloud PTO!

What a Great Week!!

Wow!! What a fantastic week last week! I'm also excited to say that not only do we have new Drama friends joining us at Halls, Brickey, and Ball Camp, but we also have new studios at Karns & Sterchi Elementary Schools! As you can see from the pictures, the students had a great time with "Snippets" last week! This week, I am sooo excited about the surprise lesson, I just can't stand it!! I just hope that we all can stay healthy and flu-free! Remember we follow Knox County School schdules, should any closings due to illness arise.

And we're off!!!!

Drama Kids got off to a booming start this week in Knoxville!! I'm so happy to have such an enthusiastic group of students!! I have to admit, I had a little "stage fright" myself on the first day at Brickey-McCloud Elementary School. By the end of the week, however, everything was running smoothly and I can't wait to get to work. For those of you following my blog, you should know that we are now in 5 different Knox County Schools and will be adding locations constantly as the school year progresses. The current schedule is as follows:

Mondays - Sterchi Elementary School, 3:00 - 4:00
Tuesdays - Brickey-McCloud Elementary School, 3:00 - 4:00
Wednesdays - Ball Camp Elementary School, 3:00 - 4:00
Thursdays - Halls Elementary School, 3:00 - 4:00
Fridays - Karns Elementary School, 3:00 - 4:00

Next week we will be welcoming new students and I know everyone will be very excited about the lesson. I won't tell what it is going to be, just yet - it's a SURPRISE!!! :)