Poetry Slam! performance of the week: J.C. Nalle Elementary School

Each Wednesday during the year, we will highlight one of the 41 performances from the 16th Annual DC SCORES Poetry Slam! that took place Dec. 4-5, 2013. The event is the largest youth poetry slam in the District and highlights the original poems of our 1,500 youth. To view any performance from the Poetry Slam!, visit our YouTube channel. You can also read recaps of the event on our blog: Westside; Eastside. 

Today we highlight J.C. Nalle Elementary School, the 2012 Eastside Golden Mic champions. At their second Poetry Slam!, the Eagles were the first team to perform at H.D. Woodson High School on Dec. 5, and put together a complete performance that demonstrated the creativity that's at the core of the DC SCORES Power of Poetry curriculum.

With half the team wearing black shirts featuring hearts and the other half sporting Tie-dye shirts, the Eagles spoke in unison about the senseless violence in their community, asking the audience, "Where is the love, y'all?"

J.C. Nalle ended its powerful performance by imploring all to "start celebrating our differences on this beautiful land." It was the perfect beginning to a night of self-expression that did just that!

Watch J.C. Nalle's full performance by clicking on the embedded video.

2012 Poetry Slam! video of the week: J.C. Nalle Elementary School

 

NOTE: Each week, we are featuring a school's performance from the 15th Annual DC SCORES Poetry Slam!, the largest youth slam in the District! During the two-night culminating event of the fall season -- held Nov. 28 at Columbia Heights Education Campus and Nov. 29 at H.D. Woodson High School -- 35 schools had the opportunity to perform original group and solo poems and songs in front of their peers, families and community members. At the end of each night, teams were called back up on stage to receive trophies.

We hope you enjoy this glimpse into the self-expression DC SCORES instills in youth. 

On the second night of the Slam!, the J.C. Nalle Elementary School Eagles put on a show for the ages -- winning the Golden Mic trophy for elementary schools with a performance that belied their rookie status on the stage at H.D. Woodson High School.

Decked out in brightly colored shirts of different colors, the Eagles' performance was dedicated to presidents past and future. They began with an ode to former U.S. presidents, with one student after another grabbing hold of the microphone and speaking about the impact FDR, Abraham Lincoln, George H. Bush, Barack Obama and other presidents have made.

Then the students took turns speaking about what they would do if president.

"I would make healthy food cheaper and bad foods more expensive so the average American can live longer," one student said. 

Another spoke about the importance of curbing pollution, stating, "No one should have to breathe in unclean air."

The amazing debut performance for the Eagles was capped off by a solo poem inspired by Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr.

To view any performance from the Poetry Slam!, visit the DC SCORES YouTube page.