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All posts by Olivia Wexelstein
The Big Strum!
Fife Council Youth Music Initiative is currently running a pilot project using the ukulele to teach singing and musicianship skills to primary teachers and their pupils.
The project, involving over 60 teachers from 35 primary schools, is being led by Ann Rae, primary music specialist and ukulele enthusiast who has led twilights for participating staff throughout the session.
To celebrate all that has been achieved by children and their teachers during the year, all schools involved in the project are being invited to attend one of three “Big Strums” – held during the day on Monday 17th June, in the Rothes Halls, Glenrothes. Children will enjoy a packed hour of singing and playing, supported by their teachers.
Each of the three Big Strum sessions will accommodate just under 600 young ukulele players at a time – surely a first for Fife, if not Scotland! – with support by Fife Youth Music Initiative through transport subsidies for schools.
Adding to the excitement will be a multi-media presentation including use of cameras relaying live pictures to a large screen, in partnership with the Creative Industries Department from Adam Smith College.
Pictured, are young ukulele players from Denend Primary School who are all looking forward to the event!
For more information, please contact Sandra Taylor, Music Co-ordinator, Sandra.taylor@fife.gov.uk Education and Learning Directorate, Fife Council.
Enterprise Music Scotland – Traditional Arts Fund
Deadlines: 5 July 2013, 27 September 2013 & 28 February 2014
Enterprise Music Scotland has an allocation of £120,000 available for the funding of small traditional arts projects.
This fund is devolved from Creative Scotland and is managed centrally by Enterprise Music Scotland. It will provide grants of between £250 and £3,000 to support traditional artists and organisations to create, platform, tour and showcase their work, as well as supporting professional development projects.
Individuals, groups and organisations can all apply to this fund. The applicant must be able to demonstrate a positive track record and professional commitment to one or more of the traditional art forms: Scottish Traditional Dance; Scottish Traditional Music and Scottish Traditional Storytelling.
For more information visit the Enterprise Music Scotland website.
Creative Scotland Update
Youth Music Forum Scotland – May 2013
Historic Scotland – Activities for schools
Entertaining the Earl!
Aberdour Castle
Tuesdays by arrangement
FREE activity for schools (P4-7)
Discover what life was like at Aberdour Castle in the 16th century. Who lived in the castle and what did they wear? How did they spend their time? Tour the castle, try on some outfits from the period and learn a dance to take back to school!
Phone 01383 860 519 to book a session
A Sense of Dunfermline Abbey
Dunfermline Abbey
Dates in June by arrangement
FREE activity for nursery/schools (P1-3 )
Explore the five senses through the story of David, a young monk at the abbey. Discover sound in the nave, taste in the abbey kitchen, smell from the herb garden, light through the windows and textures in the dormitory by taking part in hands-on activities
Phone 0131 652 8155/56 to book a session
Scottish Book Trust – Treasures
This year’s annual campaign is Treasures, which is currently running on the Scottish Book Trust website. Stories submitted by the deadline of 31 July 2013 will be considered for inclusion in the Treasures book, thousands of copies of which will be distributed during Book Week Scotland – 25 November to 1 December 2013.
Together resource packs for schools and adult learning tutors are also available, which can be found in the resources section of the website. http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/reading/treasures/resources
Glow TV – Working in the Music Business, 5 June 2.00 pm
World of Work Wednesdays is back again! This event will give you a great insight into the real world of the music industry. The UK music business employs 150,000 people and is worth £3.5billion to the UK economy. We’ve brought together experts from all aspects of the industry including a manager, a singer, a record producer and a marketing manager.
To find out more information and to sign up to watch, click here.
Scottish Learning Festival 2013
Registration is now open for this year’s Scottish Learning Festival (SLF), which takes place on Wednesday 25 and Thursday 26 September in the SECC, Glasgow.
The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning will give the opening address to SLF.
In addition, there will be the keynotes from the following international renowned speakers:
- Prof Andy Hargreaves, Thomas Moore Brennan Chair, Lynch School of Education, University of Boston;
- Dr Avis Glaze, Edu-quest International Inc. and former Chief Student Achievement Officer of Ontario; and
- Dr Pasi Sahlberg, Director General, Centre for International Mobility and Cooperation, Finland.
As well as round table discussions led by:
- Prof Petra Wend; and
- Dr Bill Maxwell and partners.
The full programme of keynotes and seminars along with details of the range of additional activities are available on the SLF website.
Seminars which may be of interest
Finding their Voice: Engaging teenagers with poetry and debate through rap and performance
3-18 Curriculum Impact Reviews: Creativity 3-18
Launch of Education Scotland’s Building Capacity for Continuous Improvement strategy
Global Citizenship – Bringing It All Together
Learning experiences through Glow – Partnership working
Moving image education: Screening Shorts
Expressive arts: What’s on the third horizon?
English language class arts exhibition project: East Kilbride
Short & sweet: Short films as a route to developing modern foreign languages
Look, Capture, Create – B is for Biodiversity and Beauty, 4 June
During week 3 of the ‘Look, capture, create’ interdisciplinary learning experience we will be joined by a scientist/mathematician from Dundee University live in the Dundee Botanic Gardens to learn more about the importance of Scottish Biodiversity and how we can do simple things to help nature survive and grow. We will look in particular at the types and purposes of the beautiful patterns nature creates.
To sign up for this event, click here.
Find out more about this interdisciplinary learning experience below and visit the Look, Capture, Create Glow group here.