At ISW, we devote hours and hours and hours to the performing arts. We present concerts of song and poetry for our extended families; we go out into the community on a regular basis to do community service performances. In the spring, our students prepare both poetry and monologues for adjudication, and we put on a musical.
Students take a very active role in choosing the pieces they perform. It is not unusual for students to organize ensembles of adults and students. At Thanksgiving, for example, we enjoyed Simple Gifts–with a student-teacher piano duet accompanied by a parent on the violin and a student vocal soloist. A student came up with that idea and made it happen!
Why in the world would we spend this much time performing? First and foremost, making music and learning poetry and creating plays are all endeavors worth the effort purely for the joy of performance. Our students end each academic year with a building appreciation of music and lyrical writing of all sorts–an appreciation which will deliver a lifetime of pleasure.
Beyond that, though, there are many, many benefits to spending time in the performing arts:
- Confidence and poise in front of an audience: confidence will pay dividends for years whether a student eventually focuses on business, or law, or technology, or education, or music. Sooner or later, most professionals find themselves in front of a group of people.
- Memory work: again, regardless of the career a student eventually chooses, sooner or later he or she will be called upon to memorize a large body of information. Brain research is very clear that building the “memorizing muscle” in the brain early serves students well in later years. Why not make building that muscle enjoyable?
- Spill-over into other academics: brain research also shows that when children are enjoying themselves, especially when they are involved in music, their brains are wonderfully receptive to learning of all sorts.
- Excellence: nothing motivates human beings like the knowledge the they will be standing before others and asked to “show what they know”! Our students routinely watch videos of their concerts with an eye to improving next time.
- Team work: performances work well only when every member of the cast or choir puts out everything they have. Just like the other life lessons in performance, learning to work with others will serve our students well for years to come.
- Community service: too often students are made to feel that they have little to offer to the world until they are “older.” How many times are young children told they are “too little” to do X, Y or Z? At ISW, we teach our children that, from Kindergarten on, they not only have the ability to give back but also the responsibility to make a difference in the world. We work hard to make their first experiences in making that difference both fun and rewarding.
At ISW, the bottom line on the performing arts is that it is not “an extra” or a “non-academic” subject. It is core, and we are willing to give it the time and attention it deserves.