Art & Music
We sing, make music and are artists!
In elementary school, we strive to encourage joy and interest in music in children at an early age and to stimulate them to actively and consciously engage with music. Therefore, the focus of music lessons is on singing, making music and moving to music together. This makes an important contribution to loosening up the children’s intellectual work in the core subjects and thus refocusing their concentration.
A large part of music-related professional competence in the subject of music results from active doing and is closely linked to the development of methodological, social and personal competences. Singing and making music together promotes teamwork, empathy and concentration. Getting to know music from different styles awakens interest and thus leads to tolerance towards unfamiliar music.
Once a week, the elementary school choir rehearses. Each Advent Monday begins in the amphitheater with the singing of Advent carols together. On the last day of school before the summer and Christmas vacations, all classes perform the traditional Christmas or Summer Singing together for their families – a wonderful opportunity to experience first-hand the strong sense of community in our elementary school.
Music lessons in elementary school are divided into different learning areas:
- Shaping and experiencing music (song and voice, instrumental music-making, music culture, media)
- Listening to and understanding music
- Making music visible (music and movement, music and signs)
Instrumental lessons:
After regular classes, your child has the opportunity to learn an instrument on our premises. These are instrumental lessons offered by external music teachers. A list of external teachers and possible instruments can be found after logging into the parent portal. The school is not liable for any learning content imparted within the framework of the private offers.
We develop your child’s creativity with a variety of artistic working techniques and materials, in intensive theme projects in art lessons, in numerous afternoon activities, in the handicraft lessons of our fourth graders, during learning excursions into nature and to the excellent museums in and around Brussels. Our own creative work is always in the foreground.
In this way, the school walls regularly change their face: seasonal, large-format or artist-related works by the children also help to influence the atmosphere in the school building. An incentive for many of our young artists is also participation in competitions that challenge their artistic talents. Like impressionists in the studio, our students can thus practice sketching and drawing outdoors to prepare their presentations for painting competitions.
Handicraft
In the handicraft lessons, the students are taught how to work with different materials and tools. Among other things, they work with wood, metal, fabric and suitable tools such as files, saws, cutters, sewing and crochet hooks. The goal is to develop and improve the dexterity of each child according to his or her abilities. Things are produced (e.g., photo wood puzzles, felt flower pots, “hot wire”) that the children can take home as gifts, toys, or mementos. Many students find the handicraft lessons exciting and relaxing at the same time, as they mainly address creativity, perseverance and manual dexterity.
Encouraging little artists in the all-day program
Creative minds who still want to be artistic after class can weave baskets, draw their own picture stories, build soapboxes or model mythical creatures, bowls and masks out of clay, which can be finished directly in the school’s own pottery kiln.
