At Orana Steiner School, we are very fortunate to have a new, beautiful, and functional music centre officially opening on Wednesday 27 March. Students and staff are already settling in as lessons began in the new building from the first day of the school year.
Like many schools with such buildings, this structure serves as a showcase – a statement about the importance of the arts in our school. However, this is really only a small part of the picture. The real work is in the teaching and learning of music and through the arts.
In Steiner education, we often talk about learning through the arts, but what does it mean? At Orana, we learn through the arts in many ways. We see the child as a whole human being, and all our teaching and learning is based on the idea that the child needs to work with their hands, their heart, and their head each day in every lesson. Artistic work doesn’t just occur in art, drama, and music lessons; it is consciously incorporated into all subject areas including mathematics, sciences, history, languages, and physical education.
Our hope as Steiner educators is that all children, whether they attend a Steiner school or not, have the opportunity to experience the arts and see themselves as an artist, scientist, craftsperson, carer, leader and athlete. We hope they have opportunities to experience artistic work, not just because it will improve outcomes in other academic areas, but as a wonderful part of being a healthy human being.
The music and arts programs at Orana are based on the premise and expectation that all students participate, no matter what their ability, and they all have opportunities for practice and performance. Our emphasis, both in music and all our endeavours, lies in the process of learning rather than the final outcome. The exceptional final results often achieved are a testament to the insightful reflections inherent in the learning process, making it much more enjoyable and meaningful.
We are proud to have very accomplished artists and performance groups of students who show a special interest and talent. While there is individual brilliance, the real magic of the program is largely unseen. It is the practice and engagement of whole classes of students enthusiastically playing music and being artistic. They all have the opportunity to experience the rich music and arts programs and the many social, psychological and physical benefits this brings.
The high level of engagement is a credit to the specialist music and art educators and also the artistic practice modelled by the teachers, no matter what their specialist subject. All teachers at Orana work on their own artistry. Teachers sing, dance, paint, draw, write and recite poetry, design, build, and garden. They participate alongside or in front of students and share their journey, including challenges, of their artistic work. This is all part of being in a healthy community where everyone is encouraged to enjoy giving things a go.
If you would like to see what learning through the arts looks like in practice, please come and visit us by booking to come on a tour of our school via our website or even joining our weekend craft group. We are very happy to share the joy that artistic work brings to us all.
