Music for Little Mozarts - Bring Out The Music In Every Child Aged 8 – 12years

Sligo Music Education Partnership (SMEP) is a collective of Sligo based, professionally trained musicians and primary school teachers in partnership with two lead organisations Sligo Arts Service of Sligo County Council and Sligo Education Centre.

Established three years ago as a direct result of the Live Music in the Classroom programme, an initiative of Sligo Arts Service, the partnership in its current form is now calling on all Senior Classes, 3rd to 6th classes in county Sligo primary schools to apply for the Live Music in the Classroom 2010/2011. 

This is an opportunity for up to twenty-one schools to become involved in a programme that develops general music education for children in  listening (music appreciation), singing, playing classroom instruments (rhythmic activities), and structured and expressive movement.

Children, along with the teacher and the musicians will explore a variety of ways of listening and responding to live music and the children will use rhythm patterns they have learned to construct compositions and in effect, compose music. In addition to this, no prior knowledge of music is required!

The Live Music in the Classroom programme is designed to address the music curriculum for children in senior classes in primary schools. The school plays a very important role in the success of the programme and there are many opportunities for teachers to link the musical ideas with other classroom subjects and learning.

Following preparatory work by the teacher, a group of professional musicians deliver two performance based workshops each of one hour duration, in a senior classroom, during the school year in either classical, jazz or traditional music.  Participating teachers will leave the workshop with a lesson overview, an increased capacity to share the arts with children and a renewed sense of their own creativity. 

A letter has been issued to all schools inviting them to apply before Monday 24th May 2010.  Depending on the number of applications it may not be possible to respond positively to all schools – decisions will be notified by mid June.  The programme will be available to Junior Classes for the school year 2011/2012.

Sligo Music Education Partnership works with a panel of 21 trained professional musicians from Sligo who have already delivered this exciting programme to 21 enthusiastic schools in County Sligo over the past three years as part of the Live Music in the Classroom programme.  

For further information contact
Sligo Education Centre on 071 913 8700; info@ecsligo.ie
or
Sligo Arts Service, Sligo County Council on 071 911 1823; rmcgrath@sligococo.ie.

The programme is funded by Sligo County Council, Sligo Borough Council, the Arts Council of Ireland and Sligo Education Centre.