My students need keyboards to learn how to play the piano. This instrument allows them to play the notes and rhythms we learn in class, and sing the solfege syllables while hearing them as they play.
I teach at both Title I elementary schools in our county, allowing me to make music with approximately 730 students, ranging from PreK-5th grade. We are proud to live in a "small town", closely-knit rural community. One of the drawbacks of living in such a rural area, however, is the lack of businesses and funding. The closest fine arts theatre is 60 miles away, and for some of our students whose families don't own a car, 60 miles may as well be 1,000.
The 700 students in our high poverty elementary schools deserve a chance to not only hear and learn about music, but to fully immerse themselves in it.
This project will provide an opportunity for these students, and students in years to come, to have a hands-on opportunity to read and play music. Our classroom currently has a few hand instruments, xylophones, and buckets (for bucket drumming), but that is all we have. We would love to add full keyboards to our instrument collection!
My Project
There are volumes of scientific studies that demonstrate the beneficial effects of music education for children.
In a study published by the American Psychological Association in 2006, research shows that children who have one year of instrumental music study have significantly higher IQs than those who don't have music lessons.
Using the keyboards from this project, we can bring one or more years of instrumental music to our small high-poverty area. My hope is that elementary students will become excited about music and go on to middle and high school with positive emotional and intellectual memories of music, wishing to continue on their musical journeys.
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