Plays that change the way kids think.

Alan Gotlib Enterprises is dedicated to developing musical plays for children – plays that deal with issues such as bullying and prejudice. These educational resources are teacher-friendly and include issue-related language and drama activities.

Alan Gotlib has spent over 25 years teaching in elementary schools in Ontario. He recognized the many benefits of using drama to deal with important social issues in a context in which children can relate. To that end, he has developed these unique resources designed to help teachers to produce plays with children and support them with language and drama activities which provide a number of "ways in" to dealing with critical themes such as bullying and racism.

A musical play affords students several ways into an issue. Children gain insight into these issues through the drama and the music incorporated into these plays. They can identify with the situations presented in these plays, which, in turn, deepens their understanding of the issues involved. Through the musical genre, not only do the performers gain a better understanding of the issue, but so do the audience members

Having used these plays and activities with his students before publishing them, Mr. Gotlib has been able to ensure that they are engaging and fun for students, both as participants and audience members, while proving to be effective in addressing these important issues. He has always welcomed input from the students, which has often led to modifications of the script. This openness to input from the students also stimulates creativity and this is a commodity that many children have in abundance. As well, it gives the students a greater sense of ownership of the play because their ideas have been included in the piece.

Play Packages

"B" is for Bully: An Innovative Approach to Dealing with Bullying

"B" is for Bully is a musical play in which bullying that occurs in a classroom is mirrored among the objects in students' desks. The play includes 4 songs and creatively sends the message to both participants in the play and audience members that children must speak up when they see or experience bullying.

PACKAGE DETAILS

 

In Harmony: An Innovative Approach to Dealing with Prejudice

In Harmony is a play in which musical instruments who don’t get along grow to realize how much better they can be when they all play together. The play includes 8 songs and creatively sends the message to both participants in the play and audience members that we should value and celebrate the differences within our peer groups.

PACKAGE DETAILS

 

What do these packages include?

Teacher's Edition – $34.95

The teacher’s edition is designed in such a way that it can be useful even if you want only to use small portions of the play in a classroom context.

The Teacher’s Edition includes the following:

  • the complete script of the play
  • the complete musical score for the play
  • a variety of ways to use the play or portions of it to initiate classroom discussion about the issue
  • detailed suggestions of how to produce the play
  • a comprehensive bibliography of resources for education related to the issue
  • over twenty-five activities related to the issue, including art projects, language projects and drama activities

Scripts Pack – $30.00

The scripts of the play, which include the lead sheets for the songs that are part of the play, are available in classroom sets of 16.

Accompaniment CD – $10.00

The CD of the accompaniment for the songs is available as well.

NOTE: All prices are in Canadian dollars. There is an additional cost for shipping.