"We have made wonderful discoveries! This unique system of teaching has had a positive effect on my classroom and has formed a strong connection between me and my students. We have grown together to become one. As we support and help each other, the classroom becomes a strong, powerful place to acquire and retain knowledge.

As in past years, my class is comprised of "low-achieving students." As an educator, I have the responsibility to remediate their skills, to teach them the skills for the grade level, and to bring up test scores. It is a huge task. At the beginning of the year our test scores for Open Court, our reading program, were the lowest among the 5th grade classrooms in our school. I was frustrated and becoming more disillusioned with teaching.

At the beginning of the program, many of my students lacked focus and concentration. They were hesitant to participate in class lessons and had difficulty completing assignments. Within the first two weeks of the program, most students were participating in lessons with much enthusiasm. Students have written in their journals and orally shared that they are more focused and concentrate more. Due to the heightened level of focus and concentration attained from rhythm, more class time is spent on teaching and learning.

Through the drumming process, students learn to relax, feel, and trust. My students feel safe in the classroom to express their concerns and experiences. They now feel comfortable to voluntarily share their experiences with me. Drumming also serves as a nonverbal way for students to handle and release emotions. Many children don't know how to express in words what they are feeling, or how to ascertain what they are feeling. By releasing their troubling emotions through drumming, their attention can then be directed toward learning.

In the process of discovery, my students have blossomed academically and emotionally. Class assignments and test scores are drastically improving. Students who were more reserved are now exuberant. Several other teachers who work with my students have observed this, and remarked that my class is calm and relaxed.

One student who has had difficulty accepting responsibility for his impulsive actions (resulting in daily behavior problems), has discovered the effects of rhythm. He has told me that he feels the drumming helps him because he "hasn't gotten in trouble in a long time." He has thanked me for incorporating the drumming into the classroom day.

My students now feel self confident. They see how the focus and concentration they have developed has led to accomplishment in their schoolwork. Their self-esteem has soared. Several students are sharing their drumming experience with their family.

During a test or class assignment, I have observed some lightly drumming on their desks to remember a concept we learned. Some will use a rhythm to calm themselves during or after a trying situation. They have internalized the process and are using it to help themselves learn and grow.

The Rhythm of Learning program has given me new energy and enthusiasm for teaching. I have grown as a person and as an educator. I have discovered that who I am as a person can affect my ability as an educator. I am better able to deal with the academic and behavioral challenges my students present. The energy of the class has become a productive learning energy. With fewer distractions and discipline problems, I am more relaxed and less stressed; therefore, more teaching and learning occurs. Our scores have shown drastic improvement each testing period. I attribute all of this to the effects of rhythm. I have a new sense of empowerment -- that I can, and will, make a difference in their education.

I hope to see The Rhythm of Learning program implemented in other classrooms. It has become "the way I teach," for I have experienced and seen its positive impact. I am certain that my students will keep the techniques and self-esteem they've discovered with them -- for use throughout their future schooling."

Evelyn Soo
National Board Certified Teacher - Grade 5