Earlier
this school term, the class of 5/6S from Padstow Park Public School
participated in an eight week program called Sing out Loud Together. This program is a literacy and cultural program for primary
school children in Years 5 and 6 and elders generally aged between 70 and 90. It
was facilitated by the Arts Health Institute. The elders were from the
aged-care facility IRT Peakhurst. These two groups formed singing buddies over
eight weeks and worked towards a concert. The sessions provided opportunities
for the students to learn songs from the elders’ youth while they also learnt
about each other. This program was led by the enthusiastic Rose Grayson
from the Arts Health Institute who was the Maestro of the program. She kept
everybody engaged every week because she was so full of life.
A week prior to
commencing the program, Rose came to meet us and gave us information about what
the program was about, how we had to behave, hygiene information, information
about the ageing process and dementia, what some of the songs would be etc.
It all started
on Wednesday 16th of October when the nervous, yet excited students
arrived at the location of the program which was Peakhurst IRT. So in they went
to what was called the Bonnet Centre of the IRT and already there were some
elders eagerly waiting for some fresh young children to greet. Also waiting was
none other than Rose Grayson, the Maestro. As it was the first week, none of
them knew who their elder buddy was. The elders’ age ranged from their 70s to
one person being 101 in one case. Some elders had one student and some had two.
Firstly the students presented their elder with a letter that they wrote on the
week Rose spoke to them. After that they got down to business and began to learn
some of the songs the elders learnt in their childhood such as Kiss me
Goodnight Sergeant Major, Wish Me Luck As You Wave Me Goodbye and You Are My
Sunshine. Morning tea was also provided by the IRT staff. The same process was
repeated with the introduction of new songs until the 7th week where
the students had a dress rehearsal for the concert they would put on the
following week. The students had to wear black and white clothes as Rose had
instructed them the week before. Already they had developed a good rapport with
their elder buddy compared to the 1st week. They had already
organised the program, the special acts and most importantly, the songs.
The week after
that, it was show time. The hall was set, the glorious afternoon tea that was
made by Mrs Weldon and Mrs Luxton was set up and by lunch, Rose had arrived.
Not long after, the elders arrived and everyone scrambled onto the seats that
were set up on the stage and the floor, but not before they took care of their
elders and giving them the afternoon tea. The classes, teachers, parents and
grandparents soon arrived and it began. The afternoon went on with songs, piano
playing and even poetry.
In the end, it
was a fantastic afternoon of performing and we sadly said goodbye to the elders
and Rose but not before giving them gifts. It was a fantastic program and
thankyou to Mrs Sharp and Rose Grayson for organising the program, to the IRT
staff for providing morning tea, to Mrs Weldon and Mrs Luxton for making the
scrumptious afternoon tea for the concert, to Mrs Graham for helping us make
the gifts, to Mrs Lister for decorating the hall with lovely flowers from her
garden and finally to the elders for participating in the program. What a
wonderful experience we all had.
