Rationale
The city of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania is one of exhilarating history and tradition. It’s known for its industry, innovation and tenacity as well as its artistry and performance, with many stage and screen actors and other performers hailing it as home. The Pittsburgh Public School District is no different and has been forging trails for its students for over a century.
Pittsburgh Dilworth Traditional Academy is an arts and humanities magnet school within the district and is distinctive in its student population. With roughly 400 pupils and a staff of veteran teachers as well as young innovative instructors, it is a quaint school with a neighborhood feel. There are about 219 African American students with approximately 127 Caucasian students. With smaller percentages of Asian and Hispanic pupils, our school is one of the most diverse in the district. The Title I percentage is about 76%.
The rationale for this particular curriculum unit is that students functioning at all levels will partake in the reading, discussing and listening of non-fiction materials (developmentally appropriate), to information surrounding the solar system and the portion on exoplanets and dwarf planets. As previously stated, the goal is for the children to explore more of their creative side by synthesizing the information learned into individual Science Fiction tales that will end up as scripts.
With Dilworth being an arts and humanities traditional academy, many of our students continue to the Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) middle and high schools within the district. They need to build a strong portfolio that showcases their talents in the field/major for which they are applying. This is inclusive of writing and theater. Even without heading into the world of creative and performing arts, the rich relationship that integrating lessons from multiple subjects provides is an invaluable educational component that will enhance any portfolio. Building the skills needed for children to attend to lessons and orchestrate writing artifacts is one that teachers should not be afraid to expand upon. Creative writing in this genre has the potential to produce lifelong skills and strategies in a myriad of subjects and topics.
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