concert is scheduled during the school day, the primary cost burden falls to the school for transporting students to and from the concert.
Your Backyard. Invite music en- sembles from your middle school or high school to give performances or informances at your school. Extend an invitation to parents and caregivers to attend. Not only will elementary school students enjoy music by older students that they admire, a bond is created within the greater school com- munity.
Collaborations that Build Community
Collaborations may take more time to build, but the returns of such programs for students, music teacher, and the community organization allow for “going deep” into some aspect of music. The following projects have en- joyed success among their participants and are potential models for engage- ment.
iSong Club. Having obtained a tech- nology grant from a local service orga- nization, an elementary general music teacher used the funds to purchase mini-iPads. The music teacher, work- ing with three songwriters from the local songwriters club, developed the iSong Club. They created a program in which the songwriters visited the school each week over the duration of two marking periods. Guided by the songwriting mentors, upper elemen- tary students who participated in the Club wrote songs that were eventually set to accompaniments created on the iPads. In this collaboration, the stu- dents learned how to write songs and use technology in a creative, purpose- ful way. Moreover, the songwriters came away gratified, having shared the musical art of songwriting with the students.
ProjectMUSIC (Music Uniting Students Inspiring Communities).
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A service-learning collaboration that I advise at the University of Delaware, ProjectMUSIC has music engagement projects with two elementary schools near its campus. The first, Project- MUSIC Ensemble Program has three student-managers who make connec- tions with the music teacher, adminis- trators, and parents at one elementary school. In this collaboration, under- graduate music majors work with the elementary general music teacher to develop music lessons that align with the school district’s music curriculum. Although the project began five years ago with one ensemble, it has grown so that a specific ensemble is assigned to each grade: string quartet (Grade 2), woodwind quintet (Grade 3), brass quintet (Grade 4), and percussion ensemble (Grade 5). The ensembles go into the school and co-teach music classes with the music teacher. Largely run by college students, they compose and arrange music for the ensemble classroom visits and develop interac- tive lesson plans. The ProjectMUSIC Ensemble Program runs throughout the academic year, with the ensembles making five visits to the elementary school. At the end of the year, all of the school children come to the university music campus for Project- MUSIC Day, a celebratory day for school students to experience a variety of music performances culminating with a mini-concert by the university’s wind ensemble. Through this col- laboration, the school children have deep musical learning experiences and the university students learn organi- zational, musical, pedagogical, and public speaking skills. ProjectMUSIC is highly supported by the elementary school’s administration and classroom teachers as well as the university faculty. A grant from the university’s service-learning office helps to offset expenses for student travel.
ProjectMUSIC Opera! Under the umbrella of ProjectMUSIC is Pro- jectMUSIC Opera! The aim of this project is to produce a children’s opera
involving both an elementary school and university music majors. Over the course of the academic year, two student-managers work with the music teacher to produce the opera. One marking period is dedicated to plan- ning the production, set the cast list, and musicians. Two marking periods are used to rehearse, involve parents with creating the set and costumes, and locate props. The opera generally incorporates 30 to 40 children from the 4th and 5th grades of the elemen- tary school and 15 to 20 university stu- dents. Three performances are given— two at the elementary school so that the school students and parents or caregivers who work in the afternoon or evening have an opportunity to see the production, and one at the univer- sity so the children can perform on a “big stage.” Subsequently, the general community is also invited. In its fourth year, ProjectMUSIC Opera! has been featured on public television, in the local newspaper, and is an annual collaboration that both the elementary school and university students look forward to. As with the ensemble program, a grant from the university’s service-learning office helps to offset expenses for student travel.
Professional and Community Orchestra/Band Programs. An extended version of the educational partnership, this collaboration has an in-depth focus on the children’s concert. Musicians, often grouped by instrument family, go into schools that have contracted with the orchestra for its students to attend the concert. Extensive educational materials are published to establish a context for the musician’s visits and concert. Students learn about the instruments they will see and hear upon attending the per- formance. Included with the concert may be an instrument petting zoo, in which children try out the various in- struments they will see at the concert. In this context, general music teach- ers work with program developers to craft a program unique to the school
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