The Creative Arts Team's Early Learning Through the Arts: New York City Wolf Trap Program actively involves Head Start and pre-kindergarten through first grade students and their teachers in interactive drama activities designed to explore human, social and curricular issues. Within the context of a story that unfolds over a series of days, CAT's professional actor/teachers, together with the children, play characters that address and resolve dilemmas raised during the drama sessions. The decisions the children make impact the evolution and outcome of the story, offering young people the opportunity to examine the consequences of their actions within a fictional context. Through their contributions, the children also come to learn that they have the ability to positively affect themselves and those around them.

The Early Learning Through the Arts program is particularly effective in supporting and developing emergent literacy skills, providing children with early preparation for reading and writing and laying the foundation for literacy in later grades. Each drama session is carefully designed to build such skills as observation, sequencing, projection and symbol recognition. The strategies used also develop listening and speaking skills, while the issues addressed in the stories encourage group problem-solving skills, cooperation, creativity and critical thinking.

In addition to our direct services to students, ELTA offers a powerful teacher-training model that supports the professional development of teachers in the use of drama in the classroom. Through modeling, mentoring and implementation, teachers are able to practice and reflect on their work with the ongoing support of the actor/teachers.