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Fine art develops a child’s creativity—the skills they learn because of painting and doing crafts can spill over into academic achievement. A report by Americans for the Arts highlights young people who participate regularly in the arts (three hours a day on three days each week through one full year) are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement, to participate in a math and science fair or to win an award for writing an essay or poem than children who do not participate.
Fine art and craft curriculum serve as a participative activity outside the classroom. It intends to provide opportunity for authentic learning that engages the body, soul, and mind. This programme enables children and young people from poorer back-grounds and those marginalised ‘on free school meals’ to have a better start in life by participating regularly in artistic education that supports and nurtures the development of cognitive, social and personal competencies.
Consultation in 2018 showed significant high numbers children in deprived areas of Derby cannot access physical or arts activities due to costs involved. The cost of travel, a child’s lunch, and full paying lessons makes these activities out of reach for so many families as such widening the skills and opportunity gap between children. Our aim, therefore, is to provide very low-cost activities for children and young people at their doorstep making participation more fun and easily accessible.
Other reasons for providing music tuition locally is due to the fact that physical and mental benefits of playing music have long been recognized. The piano has been an unparalleled outlet for those seeking escape, creative expression, and simply fun and joy. Recent years have only seen more evidence of the benefits of piano come to light, linking music making to a healthy body, a healthy mind, and a healthy life. (Steinway and Sons)
Research suggests children and young people who take part in piano lessons have better general and spatial cognitive development. In younger children piano lessons helps to develop fine motor skills that are necessary for the development of other skills related to moving and handling. Meanwhile, mastering an instrument increases and boost confidence, individual awareness and self-esteem.
These lessons have been subsidised by local and national partners including, Foundation Derbyshire, Derby City Council, Derby Association of Community Partners (DACP), Central England Coop, and One Stop Shop.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, we have bought more Yamaha Keyboards to make sure each child has their own individual equipment while in lessons and maintain social distancing.
DanceFitt Tots is a fun and creative class aimed at pre-schoolers 2- 5-years old and is taught by a qualified teacher with 20 years’ experience teaching dance, gymnastics and sport to all ages. Classes provide training for parents and careers on how to use body movements in the form of dance, gymnastics and aerobics to promote emotional and physical development in 2- 5-years old to enhance school readiness.
The classes enable children to learn simplistic elements of different styles of dance such as tap, ballet, rock n roll and freestyle through enjoyable routines to exciting motivational songs that they will want to listen to at home. The lessons also incorporate the use of props (ribbons, scarfs, tap sticks, shaker eggs, hoops, animal masks plus many more) that encourage creativity and develop children’s co-ordination. Many songs are linked to young children enjoy at this age such as Disney, well know characters including pepper pig and baby shark.
DanceFitt Tots is not just about dance, gymnastics or aerobics sessions, the aim is to create opportunities where children can acquire basic skills that are crucial for learning. This includes following and leading instructions, questions, response and a difficult one for the age group learning how to share.
Hip-hop/street dance is a high energetic and interactive fun class with a combination of styles like popping, locking, choreographing, and performing. These classes are for children above 8, they allow participants to gain group work skills, confidence, and participation tendencies which they might find difficult to develop in other settings.
These dance sessions are becoming more therapeutic for children and young people as participants report that dance has helped them to manage mood swings, anxiety, and loneliness. This supports research findings and studies including those of Oxford University suggesting, dance or moving to music with others encourages an increase in social bonding, an outlet for creativity and a means to build inward happiness.
Drumming has been used throughout history for many great reasons, some cultural and other for celebrations. In Africa and other parts of the world, drumming is still being used as a means for communication between communities and sometimes for healing purposes. Likewise, in the Western World drumming is used to make music, played in festivals, and as well as churches using drumming for communal worship.
Robert Lawrence Friedman, author of The Healing Power of the Drum, describes seeking solace from drumming as a child when he was bullied by a local gang in his Queens, N.Y., and neighbourhood. “[Drumming] would get out my anger, frustration and sadness,” he recalls. When he later became a psychotherapist, Friedman wondered whether drumming would help other people the way it helped him.
He started teaching drumming at a health spa, and found that after the workshop was over, no one wanted to leave the circle. Participants felt simultaneously energised and relaxed. Numerous studies have shown that all types of drumming can reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and enhance your immunity.
Drumming can also be fun, engaging and has been known to stimulate creativity in children and young people.
Drum lessons are also subsidised by local and national partners including, Foundation Derbyshire, Derby City Council, Derby Association of Community Partners (DACP), Central England Coop, and One Stop Shop.
To be Covid-19 secure we have recently purchased additional WHD drum pads and stand bundle to allow children to have a practice pad each during the lesson. Therefore, participants could easily socially distance and use individual equipment.
Accessing gymnastic training sessions are very costly and expensive for disadvantaged families. When you are a single mother, low income family or your children are on free school meals attending gymnastics lessons becomes only a dream for many children and young people. Our localised gymnastic training is an opportunity for children and young people from all backgrounds to have easy access to subsidised gymnastic classes which are enjoyable, fun and very much interactive. We provide two types of gymnastic training Aerobic and Rhythmic Gymnastics.
The aim for our Aerobic Gymnastic session is help children and young people to:
Like Aerobic Gymnastics, Rhythmic Gymnastics enable participants to develop or enhance the following:
Fitness
There is something for everyone in our fitness classes, children and young people working with their peers to stay strong or learning to co-ordinate snappy movement patterns with their arms and legs.
Besides, fitness is particularly important for good body and mental health and can help protect people from different types of sickness and diseases. When children and young people start developing the likeness for fitness at a noticeably young age, it is more likely that as they grow this can become a lifestyle.
Fitness sessions support children and young people to refrain from sedentary behaviour patterns and provides the possibility for those involved to meet the national guidelines for physical activities.
Start Active Stay Active recent report on physical activity suggests: All children and young people should engage in moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity for at least 60 minutes and up to several hours every day. Physical activity has an important role to play in promoting mental health and well-being by preventing mental health problems and improving the quality of life of those experiencing mental health problems and illnesses.
Team-based sport involving stunting, jumps, making pyramids and dance in a sequence. There are several advantages when children and young people take part in cheerleading and the benefits go far beyond simply winning competition. Some of the skills learned enables confidence in balance and coordination for young developing body. Team building, hard work, discipline, and sportsmanship are other ways that the sport can help participants to achieve their full potential.