About Us
Our Team
Our Impact
FAQs
News
Contact Us
Corporate Programs
 $

My Wishlist

Successes
Here is the technology that Courtney Halliday-Oro has acquired through Digital Wish:
Here is the grant that I have won through Digital Wish: End of School Push - 11/2008
Mrs. Courtney Halliday-Oro
Add Me as a Friend!
Jotham W. Wakeman PS #6
Hometown:
New York City
Class Information:
Room Number: Drama Basement
Students per Class: 27 per class; 500 total
Class Description:
I'm the Drama Specialist at a large Elementary School in Jersey City, NJ. To promote literacy at an early age I link the Language Arts program with my Drama Program. The students perform Reader's Theater, Musicals, Poetry, Short play adaptations of popular children's novels and fairytales. The children write thier own puppet shows and perform them for each other. The children act out impovisation scenes, role play with character education themes and use thier imagination to create different characters and movement. I incorporate art in my class as well with sets, photography for head-shots and productions and computer animation to promote plays and make posters and programs.
Position:
Drama Teacher
Needs:
My students are from a low income area, most of them don't know how to use digital cameras and have limited computer use--library computers and one home computer. It would be an invaluable tool for them to be able to learn how to incorporate digital camera technology into thier presentations and how exciting it would be for thier parents to have a lasting memory and record of all the interesting things thier kids learn and perform in drama class. The class would become more meaningful and would boost thier self esteem to have a fantastic momento of thier work. The use of digital camera technology would open up a whole world for them.
Personal Information:
About Me:
I've been teaching Drama for five years in Jersey City. I started out my theater career as a struggling actress in New York City. I trained in London at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. After years of struggling to make a break in New York City,I decided to change my career path. I always had a dream of bringing my love of acting to children and I knew how much storytelling and theater are linked. I decided at 30 that I needed to change my profession from actress to drama educator. I discovered that Jersey City has a fanastic program to promote literacy in schools through Drama class--I was lucky to get a positon and become one of the first drama teachers in the Jersey City School District.
College and Degrees:
Bachelor of Arts Drama/ Liberal Arts Marymount Manhattan College 2 Year Acting Residency at Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Arts, London England
Activities:
Playing with my beautiful 3 year old--exposing her to lots of theater and classical music. Helping my husband in his catering company--Mobile Cafe. Learning Spanish--my husband is Cuban and my daugher will be bilingual so I need to learn Spanish too!
Favorite Books:
Gone With the Wind--by Margaret Mitchell An Actor Prepares--by Constantin Stanislavski
Favorite Quotes:
"It is not out abilities that show us who we truly are, its our choices".... Harry Potter
Interests:
Dancing,Music, Art, Gourmet Food
Employment History:
Jersey City Board of Education LehmanBrothers, NYC Manhattan Theater Club
Why Do I Teach?:
I love to nuture children's imaginations and open them up to world of theater. I enjoy playing with them and exploring characters with them. The children teach me everyday.