One teacher aimed to remix the day-to-day curriculum by weaving in a lesson on a staple item in the black community. Stationed in the nation’s capital, Patrick Harris gathered his precocious students to walk them through a step-by-step process on how to successfully tie a du-rag, which helps in achieving waves or locking in a certain style.
“Every Black kid should know durag fundamentals,” Harris captioned the video that amassed over 20,000 retweets.
Every Black kid should know durag fundamentals. #BlackHistoryMonth #100thDayOfSchool pic.twitter.com/HaSx5hBEzx
— Patrick (@PresidentPat) February 8, 2017
According to Blavity, Harris makes it his daily mission to share the accomplishments of his students, one memorable moment stemming back to June 2016.
What happened? The guy underneath moved up a reading level. #love #blackboymagic pic.twitter.com/ULqvRwsM2q
— Patrick (@PresidentPat) June 2, 2016
He swiftly received support from other social media users, who stated that this is a form of mentorship, and learning how to tie a du-rag is up there with mastering how to tie your shoes.
This almost as important as learning how to tie your shoes https://t.co/mteuHqo49A
— Don Corleone (@trap4don) February 9, 2017
Those of us w/o experience with black hair might laugh at this but this man is doing a service. Hardcore. #MAGA https://t.co/6eXzUvnsxy
— History started B4 U (@KenKommando) February 10, 2017
Forget teaching them to tie a tie. This is what mentorship looks like. #LifeSkills #blackhistorymonth https://t.co/IQtXPDRAsI
— C.E. Little (@ItsMrLittle) February 9, 2017
These kids are taking mental notes, not missing a beat! https://t.co/xRnXBHemCI
— kuf kurry. (@__NIGERIANhair) February 8, 2017
The teacher also shared a little bit of backstory on his decision to share this knowledge with his students.
Y’all think Black History is just Rosa Parks and MLK. Black History is teaching ALL parts of Black culture to our kids in positive ways.
— Patrick (@PresidentPat) February 8, 2017
Here’s what y’all don’t get… School is about educating the WHOLE child.
— Patrick (@PresidentPat) February 9, 2017
When people say they should learn how to tie a durag instead of a tie… Take that Uncle Tom shit out of here lol
— Patrick (@PresidentPat) February 9, 2017
The minute you make school about THIS or THAT is the moment you lose them. It’s about the both and. That’s how I reach my kids.
— Patrick (@PresidentPat) February 9, 2017
We also did the Durag lesson at lunch because had a few extra minutes before the lunch aides were ready to serve.
— Patrick (@PresidentPat) February 9, 2017