Education, social justice joined at the hip…hop

The arts curriculum she studied makes use of four elements of hip hop: DJ’ing (using a microphone or other technology tools to fashion music), MC’ing (creating lyrics), graffiti (visual arts), and break dancing (rhythmic physical activity). Each of those elements offers an opportunity to educate students, she said.
• To master MC skills, students learn about pitch, tone and rhyming words in order to increase their vocabulary. Their goal is to improve their ability to rap or offer impromptu poetry that fits the musical accompaniment.
• Within graffiti, students learn respect for property (understanding when graffiti is inappropriate), as well as the history of political and social movements. Students learn how art can be used to visually express social justice issues.
• Through break dancing, students learn creative movement as well as ways to express thought and feeling through physical activity.