Last week, I drove to the BEAUTIFUL city of Malibu to spend time with 46 5th-graders at Point Dume Marine Science Elementary School. Performing in their very own Variety Show at the end of their school year, the kids had plenty of great questions about Ishaara’s experience on America’s Got Talent. The best part, though, was that they decided they wanted to perform a Bollywood dance for their show!

All of us, teachers included (special shout-out to Ms. Jennings!), made our way to the “cafetorium” (cafeteria + auditorium) where I fiddled around with the speaker system, jumped on stage, and played the song they were about to dance to… Dhinka Chika! I chose this song because in true Bollywood style, it’s a love song, but one with a chorus easy to lip synch and lyrics (in Hindi) suitable for 10 year olds. But more importantly, as a song that was made to be danced to, its upbeat tempo seemed to be a perfect match for a whole group of highly energetic kids.

After about an hour (and a GREAT workout), we were done! I was surprised at how excited they were to try out steps they’ve never tried before, how quickly they picked up the moves, and how much they enjoyed the dance, asking repeatedly if they could practice from the top over and over again. I also thought it would be fun at the end to give all the girls bindis they could wear on the day of their actual performance. Once back in the classroom, I spent a little time with them, learning about their state projects (I remember 5th grade…  my state was Minnesota!) and looking at some of their slideshows, then said goodbye as they ran off to their last class of the day: Physical Education. Wow, kids have so much energy!

Overall, I had a great day and it turned out to be a wonderful experience. There is nothing I love more than kids taking such an interest in a different culture, and having fun at the same time. Unfortunately, I will not be able to make it to watch their final performance in 2 weeks, but I wish them all the best of luck and can’t wait to see a video of the performance!

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Malibu 5th graders get a taste of Bollywood Written by on 1st Jun, 2010 in Newsfeed
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