Bonita Springs Elementary has started out the school year with a new pair of shoes walking around the campus.
Jamie Pisci is the new drama and dance teacher who is putting a spring in students’ steps by offering ballet, jazz, yoga and plays that are sure to get the community involved in a new way.
“I think we have a lot of potential because these kids are great. They love it and I’m so happy they love it,” said Pisci, 25, who is currently living in Cape Coral but looking for a place in Bonita Springs. “The principal is giving me all the creative freedom to run the program and that will help.”
Creativity in dance and the arts comes naturally to Pisci who has always done productions and danced for 20 years.
“It’s in me to do this and I love the kids,” said Pisci, whose favorite dance is modern and contemporary.
She also taught at a school in Fort Myers but took the new position in Bonita Springs because of its potential.
And, that potential for dance and her students was obvious on Pisci’s face during her first beginner’s ballet class with her first and second graders.
“They take a little time to get dressed so we didn’t have much time to do ballet but they will get better,” Pisci said.
She got certified to teach kindergarten through sixth grade at the University of Nebraska and claimed her place in the dancing program by having a minor in dance as well.
“Here at Bonita Springs Elementary we have always been interested in the arts and every month we do some kind of performance,” said principal David Short. “But now we can do even more with Mrs. Pisci.”
The program is the result of 12 years of working to develop a program that would allow kids to be artistically creative.
“Drama and dance get kids right out in front of the audience and opens a whole new world for them,” said Short, whose school was granted the program themed “Dance and Drama” by the school board. “She is doing a great job and she has a lot of support from the school.”
Support is going to go a long way for Pisci and Short who admit that the community’s help is imperative for the program to get off to a good start.
“Doing productions can get a bit expensive but we are looking for donations of any sort really,” Short said.
Pisci is working to take every grade level through a different experience including reading, writing plays and learning about the technical side of the stage.
“I’m working to produce a puppetry unit with the third graders and students from FGCU to come and help out with it,” she said.
In an effort to expand the kids understanding of dance and drama, Pisci is going to contact the city and possibly use the amphitheater at Riverside Park for one of her productions.
“I’m working on four performances for this year. Two will be done with the music teacher and two by me in April. We will be doing lots of rehearsal until then,” Pisci said.
The kids at Bonita Springs Elementary are buzzing with excitement about the new program and Short is confident Pisci is just the person to make the program successful.
“She has the support of the school, the parents and the kids are very excited about it,” Short said. “Drama and dance builds confidence and that’s what we we want for our students.”
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