My First Imagination Stage classes and workshops focus on children ages 1-5, providing fun and developmentally-appropriate experiences. Click the “register” button to find our course catalog.
Fall Classes are now on sale!
CLASSES
YOU AND ME
(AGES 12-36 MONTHS)
Be the flower while your child becomes the butterfly! These caregiver and child classes use props and materials to stimulate the senses and promote your child’s development of social and motor skills.
MY FRIENDS AND ME
(AGES 3-5 YEARS)
Older children are ready to play on their own! Students play together, develop relationships, and enter the world of make believe. Through the use of music, movement, and dramatic play, these classes ignite your child’s imagination while flexing their problem-solving, language, and physical skills.
WORKSHOPS
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SATURDAY SONG CIRCLE
(AGES 1-5 YEARS)
You and your child are invited to a fun, interactive musical experience! An Early Childhood teaching artist explores a popular children’s book with your family through song, musical instruments, and movement. Plus, you receive a list of all the songs to practice at home.
9/29 – Five Little Monkeys
10/13 – Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site
10/27 – Five Little Pumpkins
11/3 – The Pout-Pout Fish
11/10 – Sheep in a Jeep
11/17 – Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
12/1 – We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
12/8 – The Wheels on the Bus
12/15 – Frosty the Snowman
SUNDAY FUN-DAY
(AGES 1-5 YEARS)
We invite you and your child to bring your favorite stories to life through dramatic play activities, music, movement, and visual art. Each session you leave with a special take-home item we used or created that day, as well as a Parent Pack to extend the experience at home.
9/23 – The Very Hungry Caterpillar
9/30 – Down by the Station
10/7 – Knufflebunny
10/21 – Where the Wild Things Are
10/28 – Room on the Broom
11/4 – Mouse Paint
11/11 – Caps for Sale
11/18 – Where is Green Sheep?
12/2 – Roaring Rockets
12/9 – Bear Snores On
12/16 – The Snowy Day
EARLY CHILDHOOD + MY FIRST IMAGINATION STAGE
Q. What is My First Imagination Stage?
A. My First Imagination Stage is our program designed for ages 0-5, offering intimate, interactive arts experiences for the very young through professional theatre productions, early childhood classes, and single-session weekend workshops. These immersive programs use story and dramatic play to encourage creativity and expression, while also building on very important developmental skills such as problem-solving, spoken language, and teamwork.
Q. What are Early Childhood workshops?
A. Our Saturday Song Circle (SSC) and Sunday Fun-Day (SFD) Workshops are one-off, “a la carte” experiences designed around different children’s books. They offer an opportunity for families of young children to do something creative together in the style of our classes. Both workshops are designed for students ages 5 and under, though SSC is geared more to ages 3 and under while SFD is geared more toward ages 3-5.
Q. What ages are Early Childhood Classes intended for and why?
A. Our theatre classes are divided into two different age ranges.
In our You and Me classes, (ages 12-36 months) caregivers attend class with their child. Lessons are designed to be highly sensory in nature and to create moments of bonding between child and caregiver.
In our My Friends and Me classes, (ages 3-5 years) children attend class with their peers, and caregivers are not present. We provide creative, guided play experiences while also teaching children the beginnings of theatre vocabulary.
Q. What does an Early Childhood class or camp look like?
A. Typically we start every class with a gathering activity, such as coloring or building, to create a welcoming environment but hone focus. We then come together for a hello song and a series of warm-ups selected to meet the class’ needs and theme. In many of these classes, we then typically read a story, followed by bringing the story to life through dramatic play or movement. Oftentimes, this play will also incorporate use of song, instruments, dance exploration and technique, or a visual arts activity. Our class ends with a closing ritual and goodbye activity to help bring our activities to an end for the day.
EARLY CHILDHOOD STAFF
STACY STEYAERT
Program Liaison
Stacy Steyaert specializes in teaching first-exposure performing arts experiences for ages 0-10. Hailing from Littleton, Colorado, Stacy has worked as an arts administrator and educator for several organizations across the DC, Chicago, Hartford, and Denver metro areas, most notably with Victory Gardens Theater, Chicago Children’s Theatre, and Adventure Theatre MTC. Stacy was also the 2016 & 2017 Co-Coordinator of the Theatre for the Very Young Special Interest Group for the American Alliance for Theatre Education (AATE), where she founded the TVY SIG newsletter to feature North American work in theatre for ages 0-7. The conversations she mediated under AATE also led to the formation of the first ever Digital Festival for American Theatre for the Very Young, for which she now serves as a Steering Committee member. She holds a BFA in Theatre Management and her MEd in Early Childhood Curriculum and Instruction.