June 16: Sweet Cherie at School Within School

Cherie “Sweet Cherie” Mitchell-Agurs visited the kindergarten classroom of elementary school teacher James Castaneda at School Within School. The students sat patiently on the floor as their teacher introduced Sweet Cherie. Cherie gave the students an overview of what go-go is by playing a few songs as examples. The students were immediately engaged. When their teacher asked if they wanted to play music with Cherie, they all yelled “Yes!” and began to line up for their instruments.

Once students were given their own instruments, the music began. Cherie separated the young musicians into groups based on which instrument they had.  After they were given specific instructions, the students were ready to play.

After having students join in with go-go classics such as “Sardines,” Cherie asked students if they had any songs that they would like to sing. The room became full of melodies from Bruno Mars and Frozen, all with a go-go beat. When the class came to an end, the students asked their teacher if they could continue to play, calling out popular songs to perform. When Cherie asked what they would tell their parents they learned today, students called out that they would tell them that they learned about go-go. One student shouted, “Sardines and Pork and Beans.”