“We came to realise that if we stayed with the fun of exploring music…the children learnt much more in a relaxed and unhindered way.” Music Leader
 
Project Background
126 young children benefited from the Music for Everyone! project, learning to engage with music on various levels.  Participants were drawn from various places including the 2 state maintained nursery schools, a primary school, a mother and toddler group, the Autism support group and a council run project for pre-school children with special needs.

Project Details
The project ran 54 workshops in total at the Batford Nursery and later at the Sauncey Wood Primary School.  This change of location was due to the refurbishment of the Nursery School building, the move turned out to be hugely beneficial: Batford Nursery is a feeder school to Sauncey Wood Primary so many children had the chance to experience their future school in a relaxed and familiar context.  The workshops were an entirely new experience not just for the children but also for the parents and carers who had a chance to interact with their children on a musical level. 

What Happened?
The project was structured around a box which the music leaders called the Magic Monkey Box.  For each session the box was filled with a different object, in order to open it the children had to create a spell consisting of phonics or sounds (e.g. Rr, Tt and Sh).  When the box was open the children had to use their imaginations to make a story about the object.  This type of free exploration provides all sorts of emotional vents and educational learning possibilities; because the story is a creation of their own the children feel a strong sense of ownership over the story so engage with it on a higher level.  Music came in when the children ‘made the story come alive’ with an instrument of their choice.  

The music leaders recognised the importance of independent learning for the children involved so that a climate of choice was created.  Every workshop started with warm-up games where children were encouraged to take the lead and conduct a group.

What was Achieved?
• The children from the Monkey Club Toddler Group generally come from economically disadvantaged families where, because of financial restraints, music making was out of reach.  Music for Everyone is true to its title and provided these children and their carers with a rewarding musical experience. 

• For one child, who had previously been identified as having possible learning difficulties, Music for Everyone! was particularly positive: after a few sessions their symptoms disappeared, suggesting that the child was under- stimulated.  A programme is now in place to encourage further progression. 

• All children have an increased confidence and ability with words, melodies and rhythm.  Parents have reported great enthusiasm in their children for the workshops, some have been heard singing songs from the project outside of the nursery.

What Next?
Music making continues across all of the organisations involved, some trainees and members of staff have gone on to run specific workshops based on the structure of the Music for Everyone! programme. 

Words:  Lizzy King