By Geraldine Inoa | Development Associate
It’s an exciting time at ETM! Our new and returning partner school students are busy settling into a new school year, embarking on a journey of self-discovery and insight; navigating through their new classes and friendships; and learning important skills and knowledge along the way. ETM’s weekly in-school music classes are off to a great start, filling students’ school routines with joy and wonder as they begin to tap into newly discovered talents and abilities. Your commitment to music education has made this new beginning possible for our students! Engaging with music as part of well-rounded education can have a profound impact on the lives of young children. Not only do they increase their achievement in the classroom, but music class also serves as a healthy outlet encouraging self-expression and strengthening their social and emotional capacities. This is especially true for Kendrick, a third-grade partner school student in the Bronx. Music class is helping him cope with painful losses in his home life and driving him toward success in school.
Kendrick is in foster care and was recently separated from his brother when the two were placed with different families. The absence has been very hard for Kendrick, who frequently talks about how much he misses his brother, and the burden has caused his academic performance to suffer. In most classes, Kendrick is very distracted and needs to be constantly redirected to his school work—except for music class. In music, Kendrick is fully engaged with lessons and shows an eagerness to learn. His music teacher, Mr. Washington, shares that Kendrick is, “most responsive in music class,” where “he is just as focused as his peers.” During one recent lesson, Mr. Washington was introducing body percussion and steady beats to students. Kendrick was so enthusiastic about the lesson that he helped Mr. Washington create a game based on improvised movements. After the game was created, Mr. Washington asked the class, “What should we call this?” and Kendrick—bursting with inspiration and excitement—said, “Mr. Washington, we should call it Get with the Beat!” Mr. Washington thanked Kendrick for his contribution and used Get with the Beat for the entire week. Mr. Washington notes that the two things Kendrick talks most about are his brother and music class. Music is encouraging Kendrick to apply himself in school, giving him the inner strength and motivation he needs to move forward in spite of his personal hardships. Mr. Washington said, “I am happy that I could bring something as positive as music into his life. It is moments like these that remind me why I became a teacher.”
Kendrick is just one of the over 25,000 students ETM’s partner school program is reaching this year. Because of supporters like you, we were able to expand our reach tremendously this year to serve even more children! Thank you for helping to provide deserving children with the opportunity to learn the self-confidence and critical skills they need to succeed in life. Your investment is building brighter tomorrows for inner-city students across New York City—like Kendrick, whose passion for music is steering him toward a positive direction in his life. Share this report with your friends and family and show them the life-changing impact they can have on children by supporting their music education!
Links:
By Geraldine Inoa | Development Associate
By Geraldine Inoa | Development Associate
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
