Santee Teacher Creates Children's Musical 'Alex in Math Land'

Submitted by the Santee School District

When Daisy Delacruz saw California Teacher of the Year Alex Kajitani speak at a local STEM education conference about his Rappin’ Mathematician music, she couldn’t concentrate for the rest of the conference. She just knew she needed to turn his songs into a show for the children in her Project SAFE program.

“The way he used music to make the math so fun and understandable, I just knew it had to be a musical,” said Delacruz, Out-of-School Time Programs Site Lead in Santee School District.

Delacruz, who has a background in performing arts, has directed Project SAFE’s after school drama club for six years, and she produced her first musical for students last year, which also combined STEM and the arts. It was called Space School Musical by Kellee McQuinn (sponsored by NASA). 

Delacruz’s student production was so well-received at Project SAFE that Delacruz and the students were invited to perform at Petco Park’s San Diego Science & Engineering Festival. Delacruz says making the connection between STEM and the arts is eye-opening for many students.

"I struggled in school with math, being totally right brained, was great in the arts but struggled in other subjects,” she said. “When I did Space School Musical with the kids, they were coming up to me and telling me songs from the musical were helping them understand concepts in science class. I realized I wished I had this when I was in school, music to learn these concepts, and I wanted to do more of it.”

When 2009 California Teacher of the Year Alex Kajitani showcased to STEM teachers how he used original rap songs to teach math concepts and times tables in his former classroom -- which evolved into two popular Rappin’ Mathematician albums and a student activity book -- Delacruz saw her next project. She asked Kajitani for his blessing, which he gave happily, and she went to work writing the musical.

What she created is Alex in Mathland, which uses songs from the Rappin’ Mathematician albums and has a storyline based on Alice in Wonderland. The musical is only 30-45 minutes, Delacruz says, as her Project SAFE students are K-8.

“They all know the math now, and they sing the songs to their friends who learn it too,” Delacruz said.

Two performances of Alex in Mathland will be held at Chet F. Harritt School in Santee on June 5.

Kajitani, who many San Diegans followed in 2009 as he became a top-four finalist for National Teacher of the Year and who now travels the country training and motivating teachers, couldn’t be happier to see his songs on stage performed by students. 

“These students are like so many I’ve taught, they just light up when they see how math relates to their real lives,” he said. “Middle school students have made award-winning videos of my songs and now I can’t wait to see elementary school students use them on stage. However they use them, if my songs get students excited about math and active in their learning, I’m just thrilled.”

Educators nationwide are looking for connections between STEM and the Arts, and a new term has arisen: STEAM. Alex in Mathland is surely bringing STEAM to Project SAFE students in Santee.