Becoming Part of the School - Beyond the Music

Tales of Music Mentoring from Giles, a Music Practitioner in Cornwall:

So it’s lunchtime, I’m starving and looking forward to 30 minutes of peace and quiet in my music room. Why on earth shatter this peace by going into a busy staff room of people I don’t know that well?!?

Well!

The roles we take as Music Leaders, Music Mentors, outside service providers, school visitors and peri-teachers can often make us feel like we’re on the outside. Before we begin, we have felt a disconnect from the institution we are working within. Perhaps this could also be to do with the way the Arts are rarely prioritised in the education system. Perhaps this is also due to the habits in my behaviour in a school.

Previously, I had been used to working as a Music Mentor for one, 2-hour session a week in a PRU, with a set number of sessions. Usually 10. I have also worked as a deliverer of other 10 week programmes in a schools over a number of years. I was always starting or finishing in the setting I had been working in.

At the start of the school year in 2018, I began a year working in a primary school for a whole day per week as a Music Mentor for Cymaz Music. This was a wonderful opportunity to embed myself in the school.

To put this into context, just before starting my first year at the school, I completed my 10-day TIS Practitioner training. The schools induction was excellent. I found myself in a separate building to the rest of the school. Applying my fresh TIS training, and full of enthusiasm, I completed the first term.

The Programme has been very well received by the school. The students benefitted from the sessions and everyone was happy. The school then lost their ‘Behaviour Support’ worker at Christmas. I was offered the role. After some lengthy discussions and some shadowing of the previous behaviour support worker, I added a self-employed role to my hats within that school.

This has enriched my role as Music Mentor. A greater number of staff members now know me from working with children in their class. It is possible to feel involved in the day-to- day activities, after-school clubs, student social circles, staff room chat and much more. I have made a lot of changes in the way I now work. Previously I took my lunch break as a chance for seclusion and rest. Now I always take my lunch to the staff room and have some of the most useful conversations there.

Having a presence at the school for close to 2 years is such a different feeling to the project work I was used to before. I find that people value me more and are prepared to ask advice, offer advice or simply have chat much more often. I was even asked to help teach ‘Silent Night’ in German for the Christmas play! A great bonding experience for myself and Mr Withers!! I feel more grounded as I work and in turn, the work feels deeper and more effective.

I have been able to sustain relationships with mentees past the 1-2-1 sessions through nods or high-fives in the corridor, occasional chats in the lunch hall etc I feel the spark that happens in these sessions is less likely to fade so quickly. Where I used to shy away from the larger team of staff, I am now attracted to the group and want to be part of it. After nearly 2 years of working at the same school I have;

• Accompanied and taught the choir in the school Christmas play • Performed at the Hen party of a member of staff! • Advised on how to manage a live band in a primary school • Helped deliver staff training

Staff now realise I am a resource and consult me about students I have worked with or am working with. I am also asked for musical assistance when needed.

I wonder about other’s experiences of moving from working in many settings, to having a long piece of work at one setting. In many aspects, the work mode or model is the same, but the value of the work goes up to another level when I become part of the school. I would love to hear of others experiences around this topic.