376. Unlocking Social Emotional Learning with Hip Hop: Featuring David Spellmon

About this episode

Joshua Stamper interviews David Spellmon about integrating hip hop into social emotional learning curricula.

What if the key to unlocking social emotional learning for your students has been playing in their earbuds all along? In this episode of Aspire to Lead, Joshua Stamper sits down with David Spellman, also known as the Positive Archer, an unorthodox educator who built a unique book and curriculum called Just Like Music: Social Emotional Learning Inspired by Hip Hop after years of recognizing a deep disconnect between the SEL strategies schools were using and the students they were trying to reach. David unpacks the powerful connection between the five elements of hip hop and the core competencies of social emotional learning, walking through how his curriculum uses hip hop lyrics from artists like Common, Jay Electronica, and A Tribe Called Quest to teach self-awareness, relationship skills, reading comprehension, and so much more. Each chapter of the curriculum is structured as a workshop built around a city, an artist, a lyric, and activities that bring SEL to life in a culturally responsive and deeply engaging way. The conversation also explores how school leaders and teachers can push back against the stigma of using hip hop in the classroom, why culturally responsive teaching…

People in this episode

Host: Joshua Stamper

Guest: David Spellmon

Topics covered

• social emotional learning
• hip hop education
• culturally responsive teaching
• student engagement
• educational strategies

Keywords

• social emotional learning
• hip hop
• education
• culturally responsive
• curriculum
• student success
• workshop
• relationship skills

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Just Like Music

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