This project is a part of the Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month celebration because
it supports a Latino teacher or a school where the majority of students are Latino.
My Students
Ask anyone about their earliest school experiences with music, and they will probably tell you that they "played the recorder in 3rd ." Right now, we do not have enough instruments to teach the entire grade level.
My wonderful students attend a high-poverty, inner-city Title 1 elementary school, of mostly Latino demographic.
The entire school qualifies for free lunch. Class sizes of 30 students are not unusual. Many are immigrants, refugees, and ELL/ELD students. Budget constraints in our district have made acquiring supplies for the arts a daunting task.
My Project
Recorder units are a fun way to acquire the basics of music literacy. The students learn to read a full octave (two octaves with tenor recorder), and get practical application of articulation terms and vocabulary. Recorder also is a gateway instrument , inspiring many students to play wind instruments in later grades.
Acquiring recorders would help tremendously. This past year, during our recorder unit, a sizable percentage of class time was spent assembling, dis-assembling, and cleaning the recorders in preparation for the next class. Having another classroom set of recorders, with each one assigned to individual students, would allow for more time to be spent with actual instruction and playing. This would also give advanced players, and the more serious-minded music students, the opportunity to take the recorders home to practice for assessments (several children asked to do that this year, but we simply could not spare the instruments)
Think back to your elementary school days and the first time you played recorder, the satisfaction received from mastering your first little ditty.
Give our students the gift of music and donate today!
More than half of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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