Post Messenger Recorder -

The Overture Center, anyone? While the COVID pandemic shut down almost everything imaginable, it also halted many school-related activities – including field trips. Now with the cost of everything on the rise, many school districts are having difficulty bringing these wonderful student experiences back as public places reopened this year, providing a new normal once again for folks to experience the arts. Some of the extra expense for student field trips is in the cost of bussing – districts who have to charter transportation in addition to the daily routes of getting students to and from school do not have the extra dollars to add a special outing like going to the Overture Center. Passing that added expense on to the students is just something most schools are not willing to do, so field trips are not making an easy comeback in many school districts to enrich the educational experience of most K-12 students. However, Belleville is lucky in this regard.

The School District of Belleville staffs its own pool of experienced and caring bus drivers under the direction of Jannan Kosak, the District Transportation Director. Having their own pool of bus drivers keeps the cost of transportation down and provides the Belleville schools with flexibility that other larger districts do not have. In this regard, Jannan Kosak diligently schedules not only the standard bus routes taking students to and from school, but she also works with the District's Athletic Director to schedule sports team busing for away meets, as well as coordinating transportation for the building principals to make field trips happen for students' enrichment. Kosak says, "It's a juggling act, but we get it done for the good of our students."

This winter Elementary Principal Kelsey Schmit is excited to be bringing her students back to the Overture Center for the Arts, which is the first time Belleville students have been since the pandemic hit, halting many great arts experiences for the public.

Field trips are not just entertaining, they are a valuable educational experience for school-age students. A recent article by Ruthie Fierberg in Parents magazine notes that attending theater can help boost test scores, "Kids who watch theater productions are exposed to a wide variety of spoken and lyrical language, which can help your child pick up skills that help with mastery of language and expanded vocabulary." (https://www.parents.com/kids/development/benefits-of-introducing-your-child-to-theater/)

So what might seem to many post-COVID as a day spent away from classroom learning, actually provides needed educational opportunities for children's overall success and why the School District of Belleville is making it possible for students K-6 to make it back to the Overture Center this winter. Each grade level is finding its way to the theater to attend an age-appropriate production, and it is delighting the senses of students and their teachers to be back doing what used to be normal, now made so much more special as many school districts have not yet found the resources to make this type of field trip experience possible for their students.

This last week provided Belleville's first graders with the opportunity to be theater-goers. They attended It's Okay to be Different, a play adaptation of three picture books by author/illustrator, Todd Parr. It is put on at the Overture Center for the Arts by Mermaid Productions, which uses puppetry set to music to convey a beautiful message for young audiences. Todd Parr is known for writing and illustrating over 40 books for children and helping to bring to life the Emmy-nominated TV show ToddWorld™, as well as short films developed for Sesame Street. It was a delight for students and teachers alike and a thrilling experience to make field trips possible again for students in Belleville!