Crestline third grader develops dance camp to raise money for disadvantaged youth

Community service was all that was on Sessions Robinson’s mind when her enrichment teacher, Kendra Bierbrauer, assigned a 20 Percent Project last spring.

With some guidance and a lot of brainstorming, Sessions decided on incorporating her love of dance into a day camp format. The camp was held on Aug. 1 in the Crestline Elementary gym. Close to 30 young girls between the ages of 5 and 10 attended. The girls learned moves from several dance genres, enjoyed crafts and snacks and even performed a dance for parents, composed by Sessions herself.  

Early on in the project, Sessions, her teacher and mother Katie Robinson met with Reverend Josiah Rengers of St. Thomas Episcopal Church. Together, they partnered for the event and raised almost $1,000 in donations for Sawyerville Day Camp. The camp offers enrichment opportunities for children in poverty in Hale County and surrounding areas in Alabama.

The 20 Percent Project originated with companies such as 3M and Google. As a way of enriching the work experience and encouraging creativity in their staff, employees were encouraged to pursue pet projects during 20 percent of the workweek. Since then, the concept has been extended into classrooms in order to foster innovation, creativity and intrinsic motivation.

Submitted by Alison Nesmith