The average daily census in NYC homeless shelters of children through June 2003 is 16,641.
– New York City Department of Homeless Services, 2003
- Portals Of Wonder’s community cultural arts workshops and performances evoke joy, inspiration, hope and a healthy cultivation of a child’s imagination.
- They are powerful motivational weapons to combat and alleviate depression, despair, drug abuse and a continuing sense of helplessness.
- Programs uplift and empower a child to move through and passed hardships with optimism, resilience and courage.
Our arts education workshops reintroduce hope into young lives that may have lost it.
Based in a social group work setting, our in-school and after-school programs engage a child’s participation by using elements of magic, music, myth, mime and vaudeville to sharpen critical thinking skills, increase academic skills in literacy, math, science, history and computer skills, and foster cultural awareness.
Our creative approach to education brings curiosity and wonder into the lives of students while building self-esteem, social-emotional development, and increasing their sense of connection to their community.