Rapping, scratching and breaking are not the usual ingredients of an elementary school assembly program but students at Whiting Elementary School responded with enthusiasm as Jairus Green and Giovanni Avelar of The HipHop Handbook explained and demonstrated these elements of the urban form of music known as hip-hop.

Green mixed a little bit of the history of how hip-hop developed with demonstrations of techniques.  Both Green and Avelar thrilled the crowd with their acrobatic break dancing moves and Green was blown away by the ear-splitting response he got from students in a demonstration of a call-and-response rap performance.  But it wasn’t all about Green and Avelar – some of the students also got into the act.  One group tried scratching, a technique that involves manipulating records on a turntable to make scratching sounds.  Another group made up their own rap, and another learned a short break dance routine.

Marjorie Stevens, Principal of Whiting School, was delighted with the program that she booked as part of the school’s observance of Black History Month.  “The children absolutely adored it.  It was very interactive and showed how the culture of music spans all groups,” said Stevens.