Crawford Elementary Students Receive New Drums ARCADIA, LA – Thanks to your donations, Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation raised $422 to purchase brand new REMO drums for elementary students at Crawford Elementary in Arcadia, Louisiana! “At my elementary school, I teach Pre-K through 5th-grade general music,” says Mrs. Katelyn Vining. Katelyn teaches music at Crawford Elementary School. Click here to visit Crawford Elementary on Facebook “My students come from low-income households and deserve the best music education that I can provide to them. In my classroom we usually sing but [singing in groups together] has been put off due to Covid restrictions. However, we study music history, music around the world, and famous composers. [In addition,] we also make music with body percussion and bucket drums. My students are my passion. They are so excited to be back at school because students really enjoy music class in addition to the new activities with drums we are doing this year.” Making a Difference In drum circles, participants bring any form of percussion they can find. This includes bongos, objects that chime, things that shake, and anything that makes a sound. If there aren’t any solid objects available, one can clap or use their bodies as drums, too! Mrs. Vining’s elementary class has their own way of forming drum circles. “In a drum circle students choose their instrument and have an opportunity to explore. Students learn to keep a steady beat, match, mirror, and echo rhythms played by others, and have fun. Building social skills is an important part of school’s unwritten curriculum. Children often learn through modeling skills and behaviors. Some examples are sharing toys or crayons to accepting and appreciating the differences in other students. Drumming provides a hands-on demonstration of how to work as a group, interact on an equal level and become a full part of the cooperative illustration that the myriad of drums can provide as students each add a unique voice to a collective song. These social skills help build self-confidence and a feeling of belonging among peers. What’s the big deal? Music and drumming give the player the ability to interpret joy into upbeat rhythms or anger into the heavy and rapid pounding of the drums. Drumming can be especially beneficial for students facing depression, emotional crisis or trauma. In addition, music provides a healthy way to process difficult emotional responses. Those emotions can otherwise erupt into destructive behaviors.” By funding Mrs. Vining’s project, KTBA proudly steps in to provide her and her classroom much needed support as they manage to produce eager young musicians using a very limited school budget for music and arts programs. Not only do we support the bottom (green) line but we also provide emotional support as students look forward to participating in this group setting with their peers. Attitude of Gratitude Thanks to music lovers like you, Mrs. Vining and her students are able to enjoy these drums together. Your donation made approximately 300 students happier and fulfilled! Mrs. Vining expresses her gratitude: “Dear Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation, Inc., Thank you so much for your generosity and support of my classroom! The drums you have helped us receive are going to add so much value to our music room for years and years to come! Percussion instruments have been a lifesaver in our classroom due to covid restrictions on singing. We appreciate this gift so much. With gratitude, Mrs. Vining” Every week, Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation donates to a school in need of music supplies, instruments, sheet music and more! To help us fund next week’s project, please click here to make a donation: CLICK HERE