The new academic year has well and truly kicked off, little ones are settling into their new environments and adventures have begun. The Take Art Early Years Team wishes you all a healthy, happy and fabulous term.
The sounds of music continue throughout the South West this autumn as our SoundWaves Network SW programme continues to bring music residencies to settings and offers CPD opportunities to early years staff.
Music CPD Opportunities
Maybe you managed to join us at our recent Music in the Early Years: Enabling your Music Environment workshops that took place in Draycott, Somerset and in Torquay, Devon at the end of September. If you did, thank you for joining us, if not, no worries, we have more opportunities coming up!
Building Confidence Using Music in EYFS
We are offering our tried and tested six week, online, early years music training course, starting after half-term. This course allows you to dig deeper into how to enable music in your early years environment, builds your skills, knowledge and confidence and aligns with the Prime Areas of Learning.
7.30 pm – 9.00 pm Wednesdays for six weeks from 1 November – 6 December 2023 inclusive. Cost: £20 - £50 dependant on status.
We can offer this at a subsidised rate due to funding by Youth Music and partners – a big thank you to them!
Booking is open now via the Take Art website, places are limited to ensure the best learning environment so don’t delay if you want to join in. To find out more click here.
It’s given me a great insight into how to observe children making music - practical skills for listening, observing, note taking and also delivery. I learnt some new songs which were really useful. Also ideas for equipment to use. I had limited knowledge of this before so it’s been great to learn.
Participant
About our trainer, Jane Parker
Jane is our early years music specialist, who shares her deep knowledge with an understanding of the challenges you face, a real desire to enrich and improve your skills and enjoyment of music making. Her courses are always delivered with warmth and humour in a safe learning environment.
Sometimes Jane is joined by other experienced early years music practitioners who share our pedagogy and have a passion for sharing the joy of music.
Music Residencies this term
We are delighted to be delivering two x 10 week early years music residencies this term, one in a Somerset setting and one in Torquay, Devon.
Welcome to our new music practitioners
We extend a really warm welcome to six new music practitioners who were recruited over the summer and have joined our ranks to strengthen the early years music workforce in the southwest. Four of these musicians are being supported by bursaries to undertake the year long accredited qualification Certificate for Music Educators: Early Childhood. In addition, they will join our experienced early years music practitioners in delivering residencies at settings.
What is happening with the Making & Believing project?
It is amazing to know that the delivery phase for this project has now completed. We have delivered 20 x 10 week creative residencies plus organised 83 days when specialist early years shows were performed to children, staff and parents in early years settings and theatres! Phew, we need a sit down when we think about it!
At present we are taking some time to collate information, reflect and review. Dr Susan Young, project researcher, is scrutinising the material and information collected throughout the last two years and is preparing the action research finding. These will be shared when completed.
Coming Soon!
Keep your eyes and ears open for your invitation to a final Making & Believing event. Shhh …. Don’t tell everyone!
What else is the Early Years Take Art team up to?
We may be a small team, but we are a busy one. We are passionate about continuing to support the early years workforce through learning and experiential events and programmes. This, in turn, impacts on the learning of the very young children who are in their care – we want them all to share fulfilling, rich, interesting and accessible experiences.
We spend time talking to others, often from across the country and sometimes internationally, about what is needed and how we can make things happen. We create partnerships to extend our reach. We identify, develop, finding funding and then enable excellent creative and cultural early years training and events - this is what we are here for and what we do.
Stop Press! We are delighted to share that we have recently secured an additional 12 months of funding from Youth Music for our SoundWaves Network SW music project. This will enable our early years music workforce development to continue into 2025. At present we are speaking to current partners to explore extending activity even further.
