Buy Back the Block

I'm always doing lessons differently for my students. Teaching Black boys with special needs keeps me on my feet professionally.

One of the things I did during the months of November and December was introduce music by artist P. J. Morton to my scholars. His latest album features a song untitled "Buy Back the Block", which tributes late rapper and entrepreneur, Nipsey Hussle.

The majority of my scholars are aware of his music but not his mission. So I took the opportunity to expose them to a new artist, a different song that connects to a hip hop artist they listen to and like.

Here are some reasons why P.J.'s music is motivating youth of this generation.

a. It connects soul to hip hop
b. The music has a message
c. The instruments help bring the words to life

The lesson was simple. We reviewed important elements such as theme, tone, point of view, main idea and imagery.

I split the scholars up into pairs and groups. We listened to the song twice during the lesson although over the last three weeks they have been exposed to the song. The following lyrics are what hooked by Black boys to P.J's song.

I was talking with a lot of people out here who are very upset
They are hurt that Nipsey Hussle was shot and killed
They say he was here to give back to the community
He donated a lot of his time and money
He was trying to make his community a better pace
(We gotta buy black the block, let's do it)

Bringing words to life is what hooks Black boys to reading and writing. This particular activity was most exciting for my students with autism. P..J.'s song brought this powerful message to life connecting words to music.

Using music for motivation works in the classroom to motivate Black boys to excel in learning. The art of storytelling, often demonstrated in rap and hip hop songs, is a great strategy to connect engage Black boys in learning.

By the end of the activity, my Black boys were able to interpret the song, explain the inferences being made and tell how they plan to buy the block to carry out the vision of empowering our Black communities.

I'm encouraging other Black male teachers to check out P. J. Morton's latest album Paul on music outlets today! My next lesson will be on the song, MAGA.