Just completed a drum residency at Camp Long which is just outside of Aiken, SC.
I was hired to first instruct teachers how to teach West African drumming and then to conduct a week long residency with the kids that were there at the time.
Camp Long, run by Clemson is "The Youth Development Center, through the S.C. Department of Juvenile Justice,(that) helps low-risk, nonviolent offenders succeed through behavior modification, innovative learning programs, personal development and career planning." It is actually a place where kids that have gotten in trouble are "sentenced" for usually 90 days. It is one of those tall pine and sandy hot spots in SC with cabins, a lake and mess hall.
When I asked about how many kids I would have, the coordinator said there were about 30 boys aged 12 - 17. I asked about girls and she said "oh you want to teach the girls too?" I guess there is a perception that girls don't drum. uh Wrong!
I had two classes of boys and one with about 15 girls.
At Camp Long the girls and boys are separated at all times. They are not even suppose to be in eyesight of each other. As you can imagine this creates an unnatural obsession beyond normal teenage hormonal intrigue, so from day one it was with interest I observed their over zealous curiosity of what the opposite sex was up to.
The first day one of the teachers said "Do you know what you are getting yourself into?" Having taught "at risk" kids many times what I knew was that these kids were gonna love it and respond positively if I did it right. Positive Repercussions is what my drum teacher Faisal named this program years ago. Observing him as a teacher, I learned skills to teach drumming to all ages and how to incorporate life lessons like listening, teamwork, and embracing cultural diversity.
Carol, one of the VERY enthusiastic teachers! AND she can drum!
Although everyday, at any moment I could feel the potential for some sort of outburst or confrontation between certain kids, things moved forward and they stayed focused. The outbursts never manifested. The kids became immersed in the activity of drumming and creating something that they had never experienced. They listened, they were engaged, they even gave positive remarks to each other.
The absolute coolest thing was to see the light come on in their eyes. Sure there were the few that would disengage, put their head in the hands and refuse to participate. BUT usually the next day they were back in it.
There was one girl that had a blank stare the first couple of days and sat off to the side. At the end of day two I asked her why she didn't want to participate, she said she had migraines every day. I told her my daughter also suffered from headaches and that sometimes if she drank lots of water that would help. She finally looked me in the eyes and just seemed to be confused as to why I was giving her attention but completely grateful.
The next day, she participated and was quite vocal about what we were doing.
By the third day, all classes were fully engaged, getting the rhythms and some of the most cynical, listless, seemingly angry kids were SMILING. They looked so completely different when they smiled. I commented to them how fabulous their smiles were and how they should use them more often. (wish I could show some pics of smiles but can't show their faces...)
I told all classes that we would perform for the camp on our last day.
The big question was "would the girls (boys) be there?!"
It took some finessing to work that out...but finally the camp director agreed for them to all be in the mess hall at the same time.
I was a little concerned about how that could turn out and whether they could be supportive of each other and so on so I told them how important it was to me for this to be a positive experience for everyone.
Once we all got into the mess hall and set up - the first group went, nailed it and were met with great applause and accolades as did the second group and the girls went last.
They all did an awesome job, stayed focused and the smiles, laughter and congrats were abundant. WHEW.
One of the more outspoken and very talented, dedicated girls presented me with a decorated paper that read:
"Mrs. LeAnn Thank You. We have enjoyed the djembes & dune dunes. The way we work together is a miracle and a blessing. And we got these things, learned these thing because YOU. Girl Dorm." That was the icing on the cake for me.
These children have for whatever reason found themselves in a life that was probably molded by unfortunate, unrelenting circumstances. I sat at lunch with one 14 year old girl who was meek and sweet and so innocent looking. I didn't know what she had done to get sentenced to this camp. It didn't matter. I had prayed everyday that I'd be given wisdom, the right words and understanding to teach these kids something. Anything positive. I'm thankful for the opportunity.
