Mersey Reporter - #Merseybites #News

CHILDREN at 8 Primary Schools across Merseyside have benefitted from a pioneering new music education programme that has been designed to nurture musicianship during the early stages of their learning.

Research has shown that learning piano before the age of seven improves IQ and has an overall positive impact on a child's cognitive ability. Now, Merseyside's pre-schoolers are being given a healthy creative boost thanks to a piano course known as the Dogs and Birds Piano Method.

Created by Elza and Chris Lusher and delivered by SoMi Academy CIC, the method uses animal symbols and puppets to represent notes on the piano, helping children to learn how to play the musical instrument.

The method is tailored to children between the ages of three to seven. It provides an innovative teaching system that creates an immersive, fun, and colourful learning experience that helps pre-Schoolers develop their musical language skills even before they have been introduced to the alphabet; and it has already produced some remarkable results.

More than 300 young creatives across Merseyside are now playing piano, composing, improvising, and reading and writing music; with children as young as age four exhibiting extraordinary piano and music composition skills.

"I constantly witness children growing in focus and concentration, learning to work as a team and discovering a shared passion for making music together. We are so happy to be working with the talented educators at SoMi Academy as they spread the approach to more Schools in the area." says Creator Elza Lusher.

Linda Stalker, a Teacher at St William of York Catholic School in Thornton, Liverpool, added:- "It's inspirational to see children so young playing and reading music!"

The programme was delivered by SoMi Academy CIC who successfully piloted:- 'Dogs and Birds for Small Ensemble' with children from LIPA Primary School earlier this year.

In the 10 years they have been working together, SoMi Academy and LIPA Primary School have cultivated an award-winning Music and Performing Arts curriculum. More than 60% of their pupils between the ages of 4-11 experience the advantage of focusing 1 to 1 and small ensemble instrumental lessons which are supplemented with daily singing.

Greg Parker, Executive Headteacher of the LIPA Multi Academy Trust, said:- "The music provision at LIPA Primary & High School has transformed over ten years since the School started, to something I've never seen or witnessed elsewhere. It's exciting and it makes a massive difference to our children."

Jamie Turner, managing director of SoMi Academy added:- "This pioneering initiative represents the next phase in our plans to impact children across Merseyside using the magic of music making. We are delighted with the progress the children are making and look forward to celebrating the outcomes at our celebration event at LIPA in July".

Now, with funding from Arts Council England and in partnership with SKY Music Hub, SoMi Academy is planning to implement its innovative Early Years programme across further Schools in Merseyside and beyond, inspiring the next generation of great musicians and composers, as they seek to replicate the transformative results seen across the county so far.

For more information about the not-for-profit company, which specialises in music and performing arts education provision, for children, please visit:- Somi.Academy.