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These women made a conscious decisions to master one of the 19th century’s foremost technological advances for pleasure, mobility, sport and visibility. Nearly 87 years ago, five friends; Marylou Jackson, Velva Jackson, Ethyl Miller, Leolya Nelson and Constance White biked from New York to Washington, DC during Easter weekend.

https://nmaahc.tumblr.com/post/115126897360/a-historians-perspective-black-women-bicycling

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Rolling Roots & Roses: An Elementary Atelier & Music collaboration

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Rolling Roots & Roses: An Elementary Atelier & Music collaboration

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In this collaboration, Mr. C and Mrs. Davis will work together with the children to make original music compositions inspired by Shantell Martin's art and to make a continuous line drawings inspired by their original musical composition.

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Racines et Roses: An Elementary Atelier, Library, & French Connection

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Racines et Roses: An Elementary Atelier, Library, & French Connection

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This is a collaboration between Madame Greif, Ms. Fravel, & Mrs. Davis. We will be looking at the book, Magnolia Flower. The end goal is for children respond to the book & create inspired by a special place. They will also read biographies about African Americans. Children will make hanging wall decor, a felt pennant flag with symbolic flowers, and write their scripts in French.

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PreK4- Ms. Hannah                Identity 

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PreK4- Ms. Hannah                Identity 

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We are exploring the idea of identity looking at at the many gradations of skin tones, and learning about what makes you, you.
Starting with making self portraits using multiple artistic languages we will study the work of Bisa Butler looking at light and shadow as well as the connections between colors and emotions.

Bisa Butler's quilts connect to our exploration of Gee's Bend and our visit to the East Wing of the National Gallery to learn about the Gees Bend quilters.

We are making connections between Gee's Bend and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. through the book, Belle.

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Using Black visual artists to display civil rights heroes who worked along side Dr. Martin Luther King.

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The fourth graders will explore the song: Tomorrow the Robins Sing and view the lyrics through the lens of social change and hope.
Theme: Social Change and Hope

1. Identity: Students will consider what gives them happiness and hope for a better tomorrow.

2. Skills: Students will write a personal narrative to detail a moment where they realized hope for the future.

3. Intellectualism: Students will learn about the robin bird, its characteristics and habits.

4. Critically: Students will consider the inhumane social conditions that led to Stevie Wonder creating this song.

5. Joy: Students will listen closely to the musicality of Stevie to determine why he used the metaphor of the robin bird to speak of tomorrow’s hope

We will create robins/birds of hope.

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Another focused artwork for the elementary atelier by Harmonia Rosales

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By Harmonia Rosales… one of the focused art works in the elementary atelier.

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Blooming flowers are supported by their roots. So many African Americans have bloomed because of their ancestors. We are our ancestors wildest dreams. We didn’t have a chance to give our ancestors their roses(honors/thank you) while they were here…so we will do it through our art.
In the Elementary Atelier, children will connect contemporary African American visionaries with trailblazing African American visionaries within the same genre. They will observe a connection between Dr. Tanisha Williams(DC black botany week), Farmer Gale Livingstone(agriculturalist) are blooming from the roots of George Washington Carver(agriculturalist scientist) with all of them being connected to Africa & the activism of Wangari Maathi.
By the end of the project, children will make two collage portraits(of a contemporary and a trailblazing visionary in the genre)inspired by two paintings that use roses to honor black beauty. They will respond to the wondering… How would you make a portrait collage that uses flowers as symbols to show honor to a contemporary visionary(trailblazing visionary)?
Children will make a hybrid weaving and embroidery that resembles roots to connect the portraits together.
Our focus artists are Charly Palmer, Harmonia Rosales, & Amber Robles Gordon.

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We will do a character study on King T'Challa (Black Panther) and his sister Shuri(The new black panther. We will then write opinion papers on how having a woman superhero can be inspiring to future generations.

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We will begin with George Washington Carver and build the thriving world of black environmentalists, farmers, gardeners and those who are trying to heal the earth.

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The lyrics and meaning from Turn The World Around By Harry Belefonte will be the Common Thread for connecting all grade level Projects. Click link to see all the artists, meaning making, materials and the spiral of research and making planned.

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Inspired by the student activists in "Let the Children March," students will continue to explore how they can craft a better world today in their Library time. After reading "Because of You, John Lewis" (a D.C. 3-Star book nominee this year), students will have learned about another student-activist and think about contemporaries who inspire them and the historical figures who inspired their heroes. Connections between classroom projects will hopefully fit into this project. Going into March, I hope to continue the connection into Women's History with "Stacey's Extraordinary Words," another 3-Star book.

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We plan to look at and explore Sharon Kerry-Harlan's Portrait of Resilience, from the Flag Series.

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Music: Performing at SWS in March: The Side by Side Band (Metropolitan Police Dept)

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Music: Performing at SWS in March: The Side by Side Band (Metropolitan Police Dept)

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Get ready get ready get set get set...they're coming to SWS in March.
Haven't heard of them? Here's some info:
Under the guidance and vision of Chief of Police Peter Newsham, Patrol Chief Lamar Greene, Commander William Fitzgerald and Commander Michael Coligan, the Side By Side Band was revitalized in 2018 with a focus on building stronger community policing relationships and engaging with audiences of all ages. Because music is a universal language and a popular outlet among residents of the District, performances by the Side By Side Band create a natural way for the police department to connect with the community.

Since its revitalization, the Side By Side Band has performed at multiple Beat the Streets events, numerous community fairs, and a variety of DC events and pop-up shows. The band has made special appearances at landmarks like the Nationals Park Stadium and DC staple, Ben’s Chili Bowl. The band has also performed on the DJ Flexx GoGo Live 95 show on WPGC 95.5 for the local Washington community.

The School Safety Division regularly partners with the Side By Side Band to coordinate musical performances during Officer Friendly presentations at DCPS elementary schools. Through the Officer Friendly Program, officers visit schools throughout the District and present important age/grade-level appropriate safety lesson plans. The Officer Friendly Program, along with the Side by Side Band performances, provides an opportunity for young people to interact with law enforcement officers in a safe and positive environment.

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Burundian Jams for all to enjoy/make connections to Burundi in your classrooms: FEEL LOVE

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Burundian Jams for all to enjoy/make connections to Burundi in your classrooms: FEEL LOVE

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MUSIQUE de Burundi

https://supamodu.com/2020/music/music-from-burundi-part-one/

https://supamodu.com/2020/music/music-from-burundi-part-two/

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WHAT'S GOING ON: Burundi is one of the lesser-known gems of musical history on the African continent, although it's given the world wildly influential percussive patterns and some striking singers. It's been going through a renaissance of sorts lately, with exciting new musicians popping up and a whole industry building around both local iterations of Afrobeat, hip-hop, and R&B, as well as Christian music. And because any country deserves to be known for its cultural output, we compiled a showcase of Burundi's newest musical accomplishments. We'll revisit the wealth of musical heritage that Burundi has to offer in the future, with the honors paid to the grand-dame Khadja Nin, among others. But now we must kick off with some fantastic fresh tunes from young and emerging talents. They're a wildly diverse bunch, some born in Burundi, others elsewhere, mostly in the tragic Civil War years. But all of them have one thing in common: they're giving the country, which has long been suffering from inter-ethnic conflict, war, and poverty, a new cultural identity. And culture, because it teaches to process and reassess, can heal all wounds.

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An Anthology of the Best New Music from Burundi, Part II: Keeping Up With Kirundi

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Burundi has it all: afrobeat, gangsta rap, golden-voiced goddesses, bongo flava and boy bands. Come for them, stay for the zip bag suits and Cassava-themed trap anthems FROM BURUNDI and UNITED STATES WHAT'S GOING ON: Burundi is one of the lesser-known gems

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PK3: Circular Weavings Inspired by Amber Robles-Gordon

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PK3: Circular Weavings Inspired by Amber Robles-Gordon

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Draft Plan:
-Engage in a See-Think-Wonder around Amber Robles-Gordon "Wired" woven sculpture series.
-Invite families to collect and send in fabric from home.
-Create/paint fabric inspired by the life of Amber Robles-Gordon.
-Process fabric into long strips and weave their own sculptures.

Questions:
-What is the framing for individual kid weavings? Is it about inspiration or joy or something?

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This display is in the 2nd floor hallway outside the music room. The photos and text came from Teaching for Change. Students will spend time with it during music class, but it's meant to be seen/used by everyone in the building. Please check it out and add a note/question/message.

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In PreK4 we are continuing our study of Gee's Bend and their famous quilters.  We visited NGA in December to see the quilts in person and began reading Belle: The Last Mule of Gee's Bend.  We created our own paper quilts at NGA and are displayed in the hallway by our door.  We've connected to our study of Dr. King and his legacy as well since he visited Gee's Bend while he was alive.  Next we plan to continue our learning through additional stories like Stitchin' and Pullin' and stories by Gee's Bend legacies like Tangular Irby.  We plan to create a quilt like installation from donations of used but meaningful fabrics from families attached with stories.  We will tie it into Crafting a Better world exhibit at the Renwick. I'll also be using Gholdy Muhammad's framework to create lessons around Black Joy with her 5 principles: Identity, Skills, Intellectuality, Criticality, Joy.

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Listening, dancing, playing, studying go-go music, DC's own music genre. After exploring Black musicians whose work built the foundation upon which go-go was built in January, students will zoom into the birth of go-go in DC and the individuals, bands, politicians who contributed to its birth and popularity. This link is to a project by Teaching for Change and includes amazing resources.

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Teaching for Change is honored to work with D.C. area schools and the authors of The Beat! Go-Go Music from Washington, D.C. to develop lessons on the rich and unique history and music of go-go and to bring renowned go-go performers into D.C. area schools.

Teach the Beat: Go-Go Goes to School is designed to ensure that students learn the history and the various stylistic elements related to the go-go music genre, drawing on the vast array of performers in D.C., scholars, and the experience of teachers who grew up with go-go.

Go-Go Artists in the Classroom

Teach the Beat brings go-go performers and scholars into D.C. area schools to provide coaching in music, social studies, and language arts classrooms. Students perform with expert guidance, ask questions, and wear out the performers with requests for photos and autographs before they leave. Read about our classroom visits.

Lessons

Teaching for Change has developed lessons that teachers can use to introduce go-go music to their students, including:

Meet the Beat introduces students to key people and issues in a unit of study on go-go in the DC metro area. The lesson format is a "mixer" or "meet and greet" where students take on the role of a key person, place, institution, or object.

The Go-Go Gallery Walk explores the history of go-go using text and images. The gallery walk includes information about bands, instruments, clubs, and other components that make up go-go.

Resources

Visit our website at teachthebeat.org to learn more about go-go, including people and groups, and book and video resources.

We recommend Unsung: Chuck Brown and G0-Go, the TV One documentary about Chuck Brown and the birth of go-go in Washington DC.

Background

Teach the Beat launched in July of 2011 with a forum for teachers at the Anacostia Museum with featured presenters Sweet Cherie and Sugar Bear. In 2013, the D.C. Commission on Arts and Humanities funded and hosted a groundbreaking full day seminar for DC teachers called Teach the Beat: Go-Go in DC. See video highlights below.

Making it Possible

Funding for Teach the Beat has been raised at special events and from individual donors.

Chuck Brown was the featured guest at house parties at the home of Steve and Sonya Coleman and the home of Charles Stephenson and Judith Burrell. There was also a go-go concert under the stars at the Anacostia Gallery. The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities provided funding for a teacher institute in 2013 and to pilot classroom coaching visits by go-go artists in 2015. DC Public Schools funded 13 classroom visits in 2016.

Fill out my online form.

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Teach the Beat: Go-Go - Teaching for Change

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Teaching for Change is honored to work with D.C. area schools and the authors of The Beat! Go-Go Music from Washington, D.C. to develop lessons on the rich and unique history and music of go-go and to bring renowned go-go performers into D.C. area schools.

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Ketty Nivyabandi, Burundian activist and poet

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In French, we'll be extending our project about MLK, exploring people and ideas that help honor his legacy today into a focus on Burundi, our Francophone country of study this year.

Ketty Nivyabandi is a Burundian activist and poet, in exile in Canada since 2015, who continues to speak out about civil and human rights.

We will explore Ms. Nivyabandi's poems in both English and French and create our own poems of justice and joy.

In Ms. Nivyabandi's words:

"I believe we all hear a calling inside of us to give our life a broader dimension than our individual journeys, and I want to encourage us to listen to that voice. Most of the time, we are afraid to act because it means losing a lot of our acquired comforts. As someone who has lost a lot, I want to say that I found greater purpose and meaning, and my life has never been richer. So my words would be to encourage anyone who hears that calling not to be afraid and to go out there and do what they are called to do. It cannot only be the work of a few people we highlight and profile. We must all do the work to get to our shared humanity to a better place.

we seek freedom
like yellow diamonds
through dust
through stone

our naked hands
bleed on rocks

we breathe in coal
but exhale hope

- Ketty Nivyabandi

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4th Grade --Portraits inspired by the work of Kehinde Wiley

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4th Grade --Portraits inspired by the work of Kehinde Wiley

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In 4th grade, we will explore the work of Kehinde Wiley to understand the thinking behind his portraits. Then, we will learn about various Black Americans and create portraits of them in the style of Kehinde Wiley. We will pay attention to backgrounds and symbolism to make sure that it aligns with the portrait's figure.