There is nothing as good for the soul as a bit of singing and dancing - something which the pupils at Ceara School know all too well! While Covid restrictions have prevented us from making music together in person for some time, this spring we were delighted to be able to deliver our Ceara Schools Online Workshop Project following its success in 2021. We welcomed back freelance project presenter and cellist Cecily Smith-Nesbitt, along with several familiar Ulster Orchestra faces, to facilitate these sessions. The participating pupils were encouraged to actively engage with the workshops through the creation of percussive music and communication accessibility was facilitated through the use of Makaton signing.
This year’s project was themed around 'Dance' and afforded a great opportunity to share some World music and traditional dances, which are highly gesturally stimulating, easy to follow and easy to take part in. The pupils particularly enjoyed Taba Naba, a children’s song and dance originating from the Torres Strait Islands near Australia. The workshops were delivered by video to four classes of Ceara school students aged eleven to nineteen over the course of several weeks. Each week, participating classes were filmed interacting with the music so that their engagement could be amalgamated into the following week’s workshop, for them to watch and enjoy.
As well as offering the pupils a chance to express themselves through music and dance, the workshops also gave opportunities to listen to short performances given by the orchestra musicians, with these quieter moments of music appreciation helping to improve wellbeing and promote relaxation for pupils and teachers alike.
This project would not have been possible without the generosity of our funders Ulster Carpets and the Enkalon Foundation, who truly value the impact of music education in SEN schools. But don’t just take it from us – a picture is worth a thousand words, after all! The joy evident on the pupils' faces tells us everything we need to know about the value of music education in enriching the lives of young people. Learning to make music together is essential, and it is pure magic.
The pupils really enjoyed elements of the workshops, especially the dance!I understand it is so much harder to deliver a project over a video, hopefully next year we are able to go back to face-to-face sessions!Thank you for all your efforts and hard work that went in to delivering this project for our pupils.Thank you so much for your hard work with the pupils in my class! The team were very helpful and quick to respond to any queries etc that we had! Thank you!Thank you to all at the Ulster Orchestra for the wonderful work and commitment to this project. Class 14 have thoroughly enjoyed it.
