From Story To Stage, Creating A Performance From Children's Literature

If you've ever found yourself staring at a book, hoping ideas would jump out to you, this session is for you! We will use books found in our classroom shelves already and create programs you can start teaching to your kids come Monday. Teachers will go through the process of picking the perfect lines to tell the story. We will sing, speak, move, and play our way to programming successful programs. At the end, teachers will have a usable program and the tools to create many more in the future to help alleviate the stress of planning.

Debera Thompson 

Bayview Elementary School
General Music

Debera Thompson is the General Music Teacher at Bayview Elementary School in Fort Lauderdale. At Bayview, she is in charge of 500 students, ranging Kindergarten to 5th grade, Chorus, and Orff Ensemble. Her students have performed all over Broward County, from the Ft. Lauderdale International Airport, to the Coral Ridge Yacht Club, to the Coral Springs Center for the Arts.

During Debera’s time in South Florida, she has become actively involved in the Florida Music Education Association, Florida Elementary Music Education Association, Broward County Elementary Music Teachers Association, and South Florida Orff. In 2020, Debera was chosen as an Emerging Leader in Florida; in 2022 she earned her Orff Level III Certification at Southern Methodist University. She currently serves as President of the South Florida Orff Chapter and President-Elect for the Broward County Elementary Music Teachers Association.

The FMEA Professional Development Conference and All-State Ensembles receive support in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture.