Sing Street - #100DayProject - Day 072

On Saturday night, I took a little time to myself and watched a movie I didn't think I'd get to see in the theaters, Sing Street. Right down the street from our hotel in Philidelphia, was a movie theater that showed some very small and more indy movies and that location was perfect for me. 

Above is the trailer for the movie so you have the basic idea of the storyline. I first heard about the movie a month or two ago and immediately fell in love all the songs that were available on YouTube and would watch them over and over again. Why did I want to watch it so badly? I'm not fully sure other than the fact that I too have been in bands and understand the desire to write and perform music. But I think it was also because I could feel a bit of what the lead character is going through, not completely, but a little. 

Without ruining the movie for you, because I want you to go see it, I wanted to write about one aspect, how we see the fellas in the band change throughout their musical journeys. As someone who has been in a number of bands, this is normal for bands and part of the fun. When the guys start out, they are just straight up copying some of their favorite bands and then as they find their own voices it's fun to see how they've changed. This is often how our students are as well. They start out their educational careers just going with the flow and wanting to do what their older siblings (or friends) have done. By the time they hit 4th and 5th they start to find their own voice and want to do things their own way. 

Just as every good film needs an antagonist, Sing Street doesn't fail to disappoint. I won't go into any more information about this "villain" but it made me question if I was the bad guy for my students' learning. Are we helping to encourage our students in their search for knowledge or are we the teacher who forces them to do the same old thing in the same old manner? One of the things I'm most excited about after watching this is that I now want to re-think my everything to make sure I'm able to give my full support to students for their own growth. It also reminds me I need to pick up a number of great 80s albums. 

Go forth and help your students learn and grow without excessive distractions. That and go and see Sing Street if it's available in your area.