8/3/2021
Education and Outreach
Cassie Barnes believes dance, like music, helps bring people together.
That’s why the Bracken Elementary School teacher was among the first to sign up for “Hip Hop Body Rock with Paige Hernandez,” one of The Smith Center’s virtual arts experiences for the 2020-21 school year. As a nonprofit, the center provided this at no cost to schools, thanks to generous donor support.
“Anything to help create a bond with my students during this year of distance learning, I embraced,” Barnes says.
And this virtual event offered a bonding experience few could forget.
“Hip Hop Body Rock” featured interactive dance experiences crafted by Hernandez, a widely celebrated performer and educator who has previously performed dance-themed student matinees “Havana Hop” and “All the Way Live!” on The Smith Center stage.
Students learned two-part, basic dance routines from the critically acclaimed “Havana Hop,” while listening to the original jazz music of Kris Funn’s “The Cornerstore.”
Most of Barnes’ fourth and fifth-grade students were aware of hip-hop, she says, but they had little idea where it started. So, she prefaced the virtual show with a brief overview of hip-hop and its origins to deepen the experience.
“My teaching philosophy is to always provide context for the students, so they know how music and dance come from all around the world,” she says. “This is what really gives understanding and brings people together.”
Sharing the Experience of Hip-Hop
Barnes shared the “Hip Hop Body Rock” virtual experience with her students during the first week they returned to campus from distance learning.
“This was the first time we were in the same room, so being a part of something together in person at the same time was so joyful,” she says. “We got to follow the steps and do the dance together, which made it special after many months of distance learning.”
A music specialist at her school, Barnes has been actively involved in The Smith Center’s education and outreach programs since the center’s opening in 2012.
“I always try to sign up for everything,” she says, adding that The Smith Center allows every teacher to expose students to the arts, not just art or music teachers.
“We are so fortunate as a community to have a resource like The Smith Center, which makes the arts available to as many as possible,” she says.
Keeping Young Audiences Engaged in the Arts
Until The Smith Center can again provide student matinees and additional live arts experiences on its campus, the center’s Education and Outreach team continues to work with performing artists in presenting high-quality, inspirational and culturally relevant programming for young students, all at no cost to schools.
With each virtual arts experience, the center provides a variety of teacher resources to help introduce the experience to students.
The “Hip Hop Body Rock” virtual arts experience included lesson plans and guides for participating classes, plus a glossary and links for six different videos. It was also offered in a flexible time window, allowing teachers to select the best dates and times to share the experience with their students.
“Teacher resources really add value to the experience, and we encourage all teachers to make use of them,” says Rebecca Boyd, The Smith Center’s Education and Outreach program manager.
For Barnes, the combination of resources and Hernandez’s engaging personality that came through the screen made the virtual experience a winning one for her students.
“It was extremely fun and highly educational, all at the same time,” she says.
For more information about The Smith Center’s education and outreach programs, click here.