Newsletter for the Rotary Club of Western Endeavour - Issue No.: 1116 Issue Date: 21 Apr, 2024

This week we had a visit from Julia Hayes of Be Kids Australia who told us about their latest project in Australia - "Don't Stop the Music". We have previously been informed about their very successful project in Kenya where they have enabled 14 students to attend university with several going on to graduate and become valued members of their community.

The Don't Stop the Music project is a televsion series and social impact campaign addressing the lack of access to the life changing outcomes possible through quality music education in schools.The benefits of  structured music learning on brain function has been proven to be of great benefit to learning in general. Dr Anita Collins who is a music educator and collaborator on the project highlights this in her TED Talk - "How Playing an Instrument Benefits Your  Brain". This talk can be viewed here.

The Project has commenced with the Chair of Be kids Australia, Joan Peters producing a social impact documentary in collaboration with students from Challis Community Primary School Armadale WA, international stars Guy Sebastian and James Morrison, Musica Viva, Dr Anita Collins, The Salvation Army, ABC TV, WA Academy of Performing Arts, University of WA Conservatorium of Music, Australian Society for Music Education, Artemis Media and Be Kids Australia.

Challis Primary School was selected due to its large number of children from disadvatgaed backgrounds who could benefit from the project. The project kicked off with a concert at the Perth Concert Hall in May 2018 and showcased the 125 students taking part in the music program and was filmed by ABC TV.

The ABC will screen a 3 part series commencing in November 2018 which documents the progress of the project and will lead in to Be Kid's social marketing and musical instrument donation campaigns. Be Kid's are apealling for support to finance an end of year concert, provide for salaries for music teachers at Challis School and general running costs.

Ultimately it is hoped that a successful campaign will provide a platform for public engagement to begin improving the accessibility of music education for Australian children.