Voices from the Valley: Plays by the Fourth Graders of Garcia Elementary School

In the spring of 2014, DC-based arts education nonprofit Young Playwrights' Theater launched its flagship In-School Playwriting Program at Graciela Garcia Elementary School in Pharr, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley.

Over the course of 12 weeks, YPT Teaching Artist Catherine DiSanza guided Garcia's fourth graders - 81% of whom are classified as of Limited English Proficiency - through the process of writing and revising their own plays.

The results are what you see here: 33 magical, inventive, funny and heartfelt plays. We hope that you enjoy them, and that they inspire you to share the joy of the arts with a young person in your life.