{ INDEPENDENT SCHOOL GU I DE }
AHOY STUDENTS! STORY PIRATES BRINGS WRITING ADVENTURES TO THE STAGE BY RICH MONETTI / PHOTOS BY STORY PIRATES
the staff writers at home and puts story development in the hands of the students. “The story that you wrote, the characters, props and ideas that came from your head are celebrated and become this joyous occasion. You’re king for the day.” Story Pirates visited 130 schools last year. The program leaves children in prime position to make the intended extrapolation. “If their stories are good enough to be taken seriously by world class artists, it adds extra emphasis on how important it is to take their own writing seriously.” Story Pirates instruc- tors and classroom teachers then take full advantage of the momentum. “It brings a shot of adrenaline and excitement into the process,” says Salka. He certainly knows something of that. “I worked Off Broadway and in big commercial movies for a number of directors,” he says. The idea to create a crossover occurred when he taught playwriting at a school in the Bronx. “I had a transformative experience with those kids, and so Story Pirates is a combination of a desire to inspire the next generation of writers and also create really high quality content.” But back to school, Story Pirates offers professional development to teachers. “We give teachers more tools to bring their lesson plans to life,” explains Salka. “The kids who have the most trouble putting pen to paper can’t stop writing.”
IN THE CLASSROOM, FROM AN EARLY AGE, CHILDREN QUICKLY ALIGN THEMSELVES AS MATH OR WRITING STUDENTS. BENJAMIN SALKA, CEO OF STORY PIRATES, BELIEVES THAT ONCE CHILDREN UNDERSTAND WRITING IS PRIMARILY MEANT TO COMMUNICATE IDEAS AND EXPRESS FEELINGS, EVERYONE BECOMES A SCRIBE. STORY PIRATES, A NEW YORK AND LA-BASED WRITING ENRICHMENT PROGRAM, OFFERS A PLATFORM THAT CLEARLY GETS THE MESSAGE ACROSS. By pairing world-class teachers with first-rate actors and comedians, Story Pirates offers a variety of tools to make learning more engaging and effective. The group is best known for the Idea Storm Program, a master- class writing workshop that brings teaching concepts to life, followed by a musical sketch comedy show featuring stories by students and performed by professional artists. Salka is certain that showing up with so-called “kiddie performers” just wouldn’t have the same affect. “We believe fervently that kids know the difference.” A rare occasion might even land the likes of Jon Stew- art, Stephen Colbert or John Oliver, who often perform fundraisers and public shows for Story Pirates. Staffed from a troupe of 300 of the best improv comedians in New York and LA, these roving buccaneers take to the stage at the school auditorium to perform a SNL-like skit that leaves
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