Group Admins
The Group’s Purpose
We’re here to engage diverse learners, bridge learning barriers, and reveal a path to experience learning success.
A school classroom is a study in diversity. There are bright, eager learners. There are shy, pensive ones. There are ones whose skin colour differs from the others. Some come to school hungry; some, to find safe harbour. All come to learn.
But, not everyone learns in the same way, or at the same pace. A child’s learning success depends on having experienced a history of smaller achievements along the way.
For the child who cannot sit still in class —their brains race, out of control, like a Ferrari without brakes, unable to slow down— these smaller successes can be few, and far between. In extreme cases, dropping out of school becomes a reality.
By combining dance and literacy into one pedagogy (the ‘DARE-2-Danzkool’ program), a child encounters learning in ways that involve the whole person: body, heart and mind. A fully immersive learning experience.
Studies draw a correlation between having a curriculum rich in the arts, and keeping kids and youth in school. In a similar vein, curricular dance classes have been linked to better academic performance.
Sadly, the arts are the ‘poor cousins’ when it comes to school budget priorities … which is why your donations are making a huge difference, for the kids. Thank you for donating.
How to Help
Sponsor a child - $150 sponsors a child for 12 weeks of dance-enriched learning.
Adopt a school - Help us to make Dance-and-Literacy Education available to more schools. Let’s start the conversation.
Refer a teacher — Know a teacher who’d like to know more about Dance-and-Literacy programs? Please connect us.
About the Organizers
How to tell an introverted Engineer from an extroverted one? The introvert stares at her/his shoes when talking to you; the extrovert stares at “your” shoes.
Why tell this joke? Because I’m an Engineer. But wait, the story gets better. After seeing how a few dance lessons could help underprivileged and learning-challenged kids do better in school, I went out to more schools, and taught. I morphed into a dance educator.
But, schools located in 'hard knock' neighbourhoods don’t get a lot of access to learning enrichments like dancing. (Not compared to schools in more affluent ‘hoods.) For some of these kids, the reality is, just coming to school everyday can be an achievement. I can say this because I used to be in their shoes, tattered and laceless as mine were.
Working with Charitable Impact, we’ve raised over-$75,000 and enabled over-500 children to experience learning success through Dance-and-Literacy Education.
“This is one of the best enrichment programs I’ve seen.” – Trevor Ludski, retired-Superintendent, Toronto Schools.
“This program details a road map to learning success for the most vulnerable kids.” — Krystyna Niziolek, educator, Vancouver School Board.
“Learning to dance trains cognitive disciplines needed for higher-Executive Function.” — Adele Diamond, Professor of Neuroscience, University of British Columbia.
Schoolography: Sir James Douglas Elementary, and Annex. Cascade Heights Elementary. William Bridges Elementary. Hastings Community Elementary. Queen Alexandria Elementary. Prince Of Wales Secondary. Lord Byng Secondary. Steveston Secondary.
Contact Tim via this website, http://Danzkool.ca .
