Elementary school drumline inspires and builds community

(The HUB) – A drumline with dancers, typical in a marching band, is not a common part of the elementary school experience – but that didn’t stop Andra Birdsong from making it happen at her school. Birdsong, a music teacher at Daniel Webster Elementary School, first got the idea when her students were invited to participate in a community parade after Justin F. Kimball High School’s boys varsity basketball team won the state championship in the spring of 2023. Kimball is the high school into which Webster feeds. Related Stories Nearly a year later, she has at least 25 students performing as either part of the drumline or as dancers. Birdsong, who used to be part of a drumline when she was a high school student, wanted to bring that experience to her students. She got the idea when she saw some orange paint buckets and turned them over to convert them into drums. She purchased more orange buckets and already had a small drum set – and that’s what she used to begin the student drumline. After a while, she realized her students were ready to advance. She then borrowed some percussion instruments from Jimmie Tyler Brashear Elementary School...