Drumming & Creativity – $2,685

Curricular Area: Arts
Grant Focus: Professional Development, Equipment
Schools: W&P Stevenson Intermediate, Henkle Middle School
Items Purchased: Tuition for "The Art of Improvisation", 10 Remo Drums

This grant enabled the Intermediate and Middle School music teacher to attend a week-long, summer professional development program, "The Art of Improvisation", and the purchase of 10 Remo hand drums (adding to the 6 already owned by the school). The objective is to encourage divergent thinking and creativity in all music classes, and expand the curriculum by encouraging students to truly OWN their music and providing differentiated learning opportunities for all music students. From the applicant, "I want students to understand (experientially) how melody, rhythm, form, and listening all come together to create beautiful music. As a teacher, I want to learn more ways to skillfully guide my students to use improvisation as a means of authentic self-expression, which leads to excellent musicianship, as well as over-all better health and well-being. The techniques, taught experientially in this program, foster skills in listening, communication, team-work, and leadership, all of which are powerful and extremely useful 21st century life and professional skills. These skills ultimately lead to the creation of improvised solos (individual and group) that have measurable substance and structure."