Washington D.C. teacher and philanthropist Azel Prather Jr. has released an educational Hip-Hop album for children!
As an elementary school teacher, Prather wanted to find ways to help his students not only retain information, but he had the desire to help them outside of the classroom as well. In 2019, Prather did just that, setting the stage for a long trajectory of helping his students.
For a self-care day for his students in time for the holidays in 2019, he brought in local barbers, hairstylists, and nail technicians, to pamper 40 of his kindergarten students to usher in holiday cheer with the “Holiday Hook-Up”.
Fast forward to 2020, when the world came to a complete stop as a result of the pandemic, Prather lead his students in virtual dance parties via Zoom, encouraging not only his students, their parents, but other teachers as well to get creative to keep the students engaged.
Prather has done it again with the release of an educational Hip-Hop album for children, “Move With Mr. Prather,” in addition to creating a 501c3 The Prather Foundation, with the mission to help families in underserved areas. All of the proceeds from album sales go back to the The Prather Foundation to help with the cause.
“The inspiration for “Move With Mr. Prather” came from there being a lack of us in the children’s space. By us, I mean Black educators. I know a lot of teachers across the globe rely on YouTube and music for their children to learn, but I also know a lot of the time it’s from people who don’t look like us,” Prather said in a recent interview.
He continued, “It’s people appropriating our culture, monetizing off our likeness, and truly have no real passion for children. Yes, it’s catchy, and yes, it may work, but it wasn’t us. They needed real representation. Something not only the kids could relate to, but the parents as well.”
Recently, Prather sat down with Voyage ATL to talk a little more about himself and his foundation. To read the full interview, click here.
And most importantly, make sure that your kids are moving with Mr. Prater! They will be having so much fun that they will not realize that they are learning too!
