Big teaching day

My co-workers from Progressive Arts Alliance and I just finished a five week Smart in the City summer camp. It concluded with a tremendous performance and presentation from the approx. Fifty 3rd through 6th graders. They performed their own group song composed on six turntables, played their claymations, and had parents browse their own websites and blogs. Pretty exciting. We helped the students explore their identity through media. It was challenging and rewarding.

It was the end of week one of Progressive Arts Alliance’s Rhapsody Summer Hip-hop Camp. The middle and high schoolers did a group jam, complete with impromptu MC battles. Most of the students learned some hip-hop history along with some nice scratch skills complete with forwards, babys, stabs, militarys, transformers, and drags. They’ve also been learn to b-boy/b-girl, create grafitti, and write/record their own raps.

This evening concluded with me DJing the teen night at Playhouse Square after Mama Mia. Four of the older students from hip-hop camp came with to learn how to DJ live creating a nice mix and trying make people dance and have fun. We did OK, but this 31 year old DJ is losing touch with what teens like. So I joke with them about taking over these kind of gigs for me.

I’m proud of all my students and love teaching for Progressive Arts Alliance.

~ by deejaydoc on August 9, 2008.