News from our Specialists

Performing Arts

Junior School Performing Arts

Foundation students have been moving and grooving! They are working on a special dance using lots of different parts of their body! They have also been developing their sense of beat, using different parts of their body to reflect the beat in music they hear.

Grade 1/2 students have started Term 2 by exploring the world of rhythm and how it can enhance musical pieces. As part of their learning, students have been creating ostinatos to accompany a familiar Aboriginal song, building their understanding of repeating rhythmic patterns while also linking this to their maths learning. Students have also been experimenting with unconventional musical instruments - cups - discovering the many different sounds they can create through tapping, scraping, and striking. They have loved exploring how these unique sounds can be used to add layers to familiar songs. It has been wonderful to see students experimenting with confidence and the excitement they show when they or their classmates discover a new way to use these ‘instruments’!

Senior School Performing Arts

Grade 3/4 students have continued their learning about Body Percussion from last term and have been busy composing their own body percussion pieces. Using a combination of claps, stomps, clicks, and other percussive body sounds, students created original symbols and actions to represent their musical ideas. They developed compositions using these actions and explored how musicians record and notate rhythms. It has been fantastic to see students showing creativity and collaboration while discovering the many ways music can be made using only their bodies as the instrument.

Our 5/6 students took full advantage of May the Fourth be With You, learning how composers use music as a storytelling tool and exploring the work of John Williams. They have also picked up the ukuleles, making some real 'THUNDER'  with their chords and chord transitions!