Music is an almost always present part of life in society. In the student council music, it is our goal to instruct our pupils to use music in a reflective way, beyond pure consumption. This happens on the one hand in music lessons, but also during making music in the working groups. Practical music making is already a main focus in music lessons, where we work with rhythm instruments, flutes, Orff instruments, etc. In addition, there is singing and dancing. In the working groups, with which we want to reach as many pupils as possible, we pursue similar goals, here detached from any evaluation of the pupils. Concentration ability, perception, but also the training of fine motor skills are supported and improved in the sense of individual competence expansion by singing or learning an instrument. The pupils find it enriching to make music together and to communicate with each other in a musical context. In doing so, they experience a strengthening of the self and social interaction. As the main pillar of our work we offer the lower school choir, which can be supplemented with singers from middle and upper school or instrumentalists. At Thor-Heyerdahl-Gymnasium there is also the Combo, a swing and jazz ensemble open to all students who play a suitable instrument. An additional beginnersʻ course for saxophone is also offered. The different musical groups are used for various school events. Here, our pupils share the responsibility for success together; some more, others less, a role in which one grows into. We are sincerely pleased when our students develop into unprejudiced and open-minded individuals, not just with regard to music.
The project will involve students thinking about their favourite books when they were younger and thinking about which books interest them now, then sharing this information with students in the other country.
