As a teacher with 31 years of experience, Mary Ruth McGinn has always sought innovative ways to meet the needs of each of her students. She has spent her entire career in schools where a majority of students speak English as a second language and where poverty significantly impacts the...
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In order to create a realistic story and bring it to life, it is imperative that we research the setting of our opera . . . a bowling alley. Thanks to Bowl America in Germantown, Maryland, we were able to do just that. Half of the company had never been bowling. What we learned from the experience far exceeded our expectations. From bowling techniques to historical facts and anecdotes about the sport, we listened as Jackie and Mr. Robinson led us through the technical aspects of the game. As Jackie explained how to select the proper shoes, Nii asked, “Can old people bowl?” Without saying a word, Jackie quickly escorted us to lanes at the opposite end of the alley where a league of senior bowlers gathers weekly. Just as the company made its way to acknowledge their elders, Jim, a ninety-eight year old member of the league, bowled a strike. Everyone cheered. The kids looked on in disbelief. From that moment on, Jim became our inspiration. On his next frame, he bowled yet another strike. The other members of the league asked that we stay, for we had brought them luck. As we made our way to the lanes to try our own luck with the pins, we were inspired to give this game our all. Thank you, Jim.
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About Mary Ruth McGinn
As a teacher with 32 years of experience, Mary Ruth McGinn has always sought innovative ways to meet the needs of each of her students. She has spent her entire career in schools where a majority of students speak English as a second language and where poverty significantly impacts the learning experiences and opportunities of students and their families.
Nineteen years ago she had an experience that changed her life and altered her professional path in a profound way. She attended training sessions at The Metropolitan Opera Guild in New York City, spent nine intense days living the process of creating an original opera and learned how to replicate the experience with her students. She then began creating opera with her students and using the process of creating the opera as a vehicle to teach curriculum and life skills. The authentic purpose for learning coupled with the arts provided the perfect stage on which to construct a love for life-long learning.
The profundity of the work, the transformation of the students and a desire to “bring to light” new ideas in education, inspired Mary Ruth to share this way of thinking and learning. In 2006 she was granted a Fulbright Scholarship, sponsored and funded by Teatro Real and Fundación SaludArte in Madrid, and a sabbatical from Montgomery County, to travel to Spain to develop and implement a similar program there. She lived there two years training teachers and working side by side with teachers and students in their classrooms. The reception of the project was overwhelming. Mary Ruth returns to Madrid every summer to train a new team of educators and artists in the process. In the summer of 2018, she joined forces with The Kennedy Center to offer the opera training for teachers in the Washington Metro area. She currently teaches third grade at Stedwick Elementary School in Montgomery Village, Maryland where she is implementing a classroom curriculum based on the principles of authentic learning.
Read more of Mary Ruth's blog Learning for Real.
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