Past projects 44
Amazing Grace
Funded Mar 2, 2022Thank you for supporting the biggest Broadway Books First Class guest artist event yet! It was a sweet homecoming for my former team teacher, Lauren Ridloff, on November 4th. Lauren went on from teaching to earn a Tony Award nomination for the Broadway revival of Children of a Lesser God and also became the first Deaf superhero in the MCU with The Eternals.
Her visit brought much excitement from the school community and everyone wanted to participate. She read AMAZING GRACE to students in kindergarten, first, and third grades - almost 60 children! The message of the book, YOU CAN DO ANYTHING, was personified by Lauren herself. It was an important visit for the Deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing children with Deaf parents. They had an opportunity to see the value and beauty of American Sign Language. It was a joyous visit.
Each child was able to take home a copy of the book signed with a message from Lauren due to your kindness and generosity. Thank you for supporting my dream to help children celebrate literacy and the arts with your donations.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
This classroom project was brought to life by Valhalla Foundation and 3 other donors.The Giving Tree
Funded Oct 21, 2021Thank you for supporting this project. This wonderful book, THE GIVING TREE, arrived and is safely awaiting our guest artist Daniel Durant.
Daniel's schedule suddenly exploded this spring with the critical acclaim his movie, CODA, received. This was great news for him, but is made it difficult to schedule his guest artist visit! We had to delay his visit until the fall.
I apologize for the delay, but am confident we will meet our goal of celebrating literacy and the arts with this wonderful book and performer soon.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
This classroom project was brought to life by Dollar General Literacy Foundation and 7 other donors.It Fell From the Sky
Funded Oct 21, 2021Thank you for your support of this project. There have been some shifts in the plan for these books. Originally, they were to be read by David Staller, but he read a book entitled SPENCER'S PET instead. So, I reserved the copies of IT FELL FROM THE SKY for Tony Award Winner, Donna Murphy.
Unfortunately, Donna's schedule was unpredictable. Every time we thought we had a date set, she had a work conflict. We simply couldn't work out her guest artist visit before the 2021 - 2022 school year ended.
The good news is she will be visiting with us in the 2022-2023 school year and the books are all set and ready for her to share with the students. I apologize for the delay, but am confident that we will achieve the goal of celebrating literacy and the arts with this fabulous book and performer soon.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
This classroom project was brought to life by Dollar General Literacy Foundation and 11 other donors."Big Al" Read by Big River Star Daniel Jenkins
Funded Apr 3, 2022We had a wonderful visit at the end of May with Daniel Jenkins (Tony Award Nominee for Big River).Daniel chose to read the book Big Al by Andrew Clements and Yoshi. It tells the story of a large, scary looking fish who is lonely because his appearance frightens the other fish. Big Al tries everything to hide parts of himself and alter his looks, but nothing works. It isn't until all of the little fish are caught in a fisherman's net and Big Al saves the day that they all realize he is more than meets the eye. It is a heartwarming tale with beautiful illustrations.
As Daniel read, I looked around the classroom to witness how the story was registering with the children. This energetic bunch was suddenly quiet. All eyes on Daniel and ASL interpreter, Lynnette Taylor, in an impressive show of what can only be called, "rapt attention."
After the reading, Daniel put his considerable ASL and fingerspelling skills to use by autographing books for all of the students. With messages of "Peace" he engaged with each child, giving them a moment to be seen and feel valued.
Your donations made all of this possible! I can't thank you enough for your support.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
The One and Only Dylan St. Claire
Funded Oct 21, 2021I want to give you an update on this project. The books you helped purchase have arrived and are ready to go! They were personally selected by Broadway actor Joshua Castille (Spring Awakening) for his guest artist visit with Broadway Books First Class. (You can see Josh signing the book in this YouTube Video https://youtu.be/CDwvj8I2yUM).
There have been some scheduling delays in planning his visit to NYC to read the book. We are working together to find a suitable date, which means coordinating the visit with his travels to New York from California and working around the DOE calendar.
It will happen! It's just taking longer than either of us expected (Covid related issues have not made it any easier). Until then, the books are stored safely and patiently waiting to step into the spotlight. I am confident that when all scheduling gets worked out, this event will be spectacular. Thank you for understanding and thank you for your generous donations in support of the event.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
This classroom project was brought to life by Dollar General Literacy Foundation and 3 other donors.Emmanuel's Dream
Funded Dec 9, 2021Thank you for your generous support of this project. The celebration of storytelling through children's books, dance, and theater ignited a spark of joy and inquiry for the students. We were led in this by Broadway dancer Oneika Phillips (also known as "the first Grenadian woman on Broadway!") as part of my Broadway Books First Class program.
After face-to-face introductions, Oneika read the story Emmanuel's Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah by Laurie Ann Thompson. The book shows it is possible to achieve difficult things with persistence, grit, and the support of others. This is something Oneika knows a bit about! She returned to Broadway in SpongeBob SquarePants the Musical after she was told she may never dance again as a result of an injury. Through the book and Oneika's story, the students were able to share their own hopes and challenges.
Oneika then talked with each child as she signed the books with a personalized message. It was wonderful to see the children sitting with their books. Each adding to their home libraries and creating memories of cherished lessons taught in their pages. I am so grateful you made it possible for them to experience all of this.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
The Pigeon Has to go to School!
Funded Oct 24, 2021The books you provided set the foundation for our Broadway Books First Class visit with Karen Mason. The pigeon books by Mo Willems are full of color and fun. The humor came through in THE PIGEON HAS TO GO TO SCHOOL as Karen read to the children. Their laughter, shouts, and gestures of response reminded me that the best storytelling is interactive (even if the interaction is sometimes silent - wide eyes, open mouths, etc.).
Each child was able to take home a book - signed with a personal message from Karen Mason - to enjoy again and again. This was made possible by YOU! The lovely thing is that there are more books in the Pigeon series, so you've opened up a door to sustained reading and discovery. I cannot think of a better gift.
I know that there are so many projects, so many worthwhile enterprises/charities to support and I feel honored you chose to support mine. You raise me up and I am filled with gratitude.
You can read more about the visit by following this link http://www.broadwaybooksfirstclass.com/a-visit-with-karen-mason.html”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
This classroom project was brought to life by An Anonymous Funder and one other donor.Tony Award Winner Danny Burstein Reads to Students
Funded Dec 1, 2021Tony Award winner, Danny Burstein, visited with the kindergarten and second grade students this week as part of my Broadway Books First Class program. He read Harold and the Purple Crayon. This book is an old favorite from his childhood and one he used to read to his own children. He shared this with the students before he read - establishing the gift that is reading - and dove into the story with animation and movement. Every so often, he'd stop to ask questions as he expertly built the momentum. With each page the kids leaned in a little closer and became more invested in the story. This storyteller knew how to work an audience (as his Tony Award suggests).
Later, Danny signed copies of the book for each child. This was made possible through your generous support. Together, we are helping children grow their personal libraries with favorite books they can reread again and again. It is a great feeling to think that we are giving children the chance to embrace words and permission to let their imaginations soar.
Thank you for that wonderful gift.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
This classroom project was brought to life by The DonorsChoose Community and 7 other donors.Celebrating Literacy and the Arts
Funded Oct 25, 2021You helped purchase books so that more students could be involved in the guest artist visits with my program Broadway Books First Class. The first of those visits took place this past week with with Tony Award nominee Jessica Hecht.
In the weeks leading up to her visit, I studied her work with the kindergarten and second grade students. We uncovered themes across the shows relating to conflict, oppression, self-worth, and the importance of family. It was interesting to note that the children's book she read, SYLVESTER AND THE MAGIC PEBBLE, connected beautifully with the family theme.
The children developed questions to ask Jessica based on our discussions. They wanted to know how the families in her shows resolved conflict, why she wanted to be in these shows, and how her own family has supported her in her career. She also answered their questions about her favorite costume and how she felt the first time she stepped out on a stage.
Finally, they asked her to sing! Jessica bravely took us through her vocal exercises and played DO YOU LOVE ME? from FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. Here, ASL interpreter Lynnette Taylor did an extraordinary job capturing the emotional impact of the song. This was a visit filled with all kinds of linguistic beauty.
The cherry on the top of this visit was the book distribution. Each child took home a book, signed with a personal message from Jessica, to enjoy. I thank you for making this important aspect of the program happen.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock
This classroom project was brought to life by An Anonymous Funder and 4 other donors.Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
Funded Sep 16, 2021We had the loveliest guest artist visit with Tony Award nominee Jessica Hecht. In the weeks leading up to her visit, I studied her work with the kindergarten and second grade students. We uncovered themes across the shows relating to conflict, oppression, self-worth, and the importance of family. It was interesting to note that the children's book she read, SYLVESTER AND THE MAGIC PEBBLE, connected beautifully with the family theme.
The children developed questions to ask Jessica based on our discussions. They wanted to know how the families in her shows resolved conflict, why she wanted to be in these shows, and how her own family has supported her in her career. She also answered their questions about her favorite costume and how she felt the first time she stepped out on a stage.
Finally, they asked her to sing! Jessica bravely took us through her vocal exercises and played DO YOU LOVE ME? from FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. Here, ASL interpreter Lynnette Taylor did an extraordinary job capturing the emotional impact of the song. This was a visit filled with all kinds of linguistic beauty.
The cherry on the top of this visit was the book distribution. Each child took home a book, signed with a personal message from Jessica, to enjoy. I thank you for making this important aspect of the program happen.”
With gratitude,
Dr. Wellbrock