In the summer of 2007 HCEF offered to the shelters it serves a series of week-long "camp" experiences for their resident children. One of the camp opportunities was the Pittsburgh Dance Ensemble's African Cultural Expression workshop. Part of HCEF's Customized Accelerated Programs for Education (CAPE) and funded by corporate contributions received through Pennsylvania's Education Improvements Tax Credit (EITC) program, the camp introduced children to African culture, arts, and history through drumming as well as movement and language.

Here's but a portion of what the children learned over the week.

We start with the "Five Qualities":

be focused,
be disciplined,
have self-control,
show respect,
and have a positive attitude
in all that you do
here in this place, at school, at home.

Limbering up in a disciplined way is the first step toward readying ourselves for focused concentration.

Step 1 – Sitting quietly leads to Step 2 – simple arm movements.

Step 3 – On our feet, using our whole bodies, we follow the movements of the teacher and the rhythm of the drum.

Step 5 – We practice self-control so that we can play the drums with respect.

These West African drums are
the jun jun, the kenkeni, and the jembe (djembe and djun djun in French)

The rhythmic beats of our hands on the goat-skin covered jembe are the bass, tone, and slap in various combinations, like

and with sticks on the cowhide covered jun jun and kenkeni, combinations like

Because of our positive attitude, we have learned how to play the drums, to do a simple dance, and also to speak many phrases in Wolof, the language of Senegal: my name is; yes; no; thank you; you're welcome; I'm listening/I understand; how are you, I'm fine.

What we heard back from shelter staff members:

"Yes, I would definitely consider this a success at our site. One of the parents sat in for the first evening, and she responded positively to the activities. She commented later on in the week that her daughter was really enjoying it and practicing at home. The kids that were shy really came out of their shells and comfort zones. They had a blast!"

"Most of the parents observed the activity. They enjoyed it because they saw their children enjoying it."

"Our children absolutely loved the instructors! I loved the fact that they instilled their 'Five Qualities' in our children: focus, positive attitude, self-control, discipline, and respect. All of our children walked away from this camp possessing all five of these qualities."

"That was just the best ever! They taught the kids discipline, responsibility, patience, and respect. It was good for the kids and good for us. I would like to do this everyday! All the parents came down on the last day to watch the final performance, and some came down during the week as well because their children had talked about it so much."

Return to Our Work - CAPE