On December 14, 2015, fifth grade students of PS 17 in Astoria had the pleasure of hosting four staff members from HBO – who had generously donated books and time to these students at a CWP Holiday Party. CWP programming at PS 17 was made possible in part by The New York Community Trust and our collaboration with Zone 126.
Each class period started with our HBO guests, including CWP Board Member Marcus Turner, sharing why they where so excited to be a part of the day. Many times they became visibly moved sharing their stories about being alumni of NYC public schools while our curious and smiling students looked on.
Together, the students, guests, teaching artists and classroom teachers all played classic theater games like “Zip, Zap, Zop” and “Pass the Face” and, as is always the case with animated theater games, everyone had a great time. The adults were just as excited and invested as the kids! Students then received their gift – a copy of “I am Malala” by Noble Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai.
It was heartening to see how well our students handled discussing the serious themes in this book and how well they responded to the feedback and advice from our HBO guests. It was a special day that everyone will remember for a long time.
