In Grigny, music makes the heart of the Educational City beat

At the Lanterns night, the Classical Percussions Class of the Conservatoire rhythm the evening

Saturday, September 21st, Grigny, city for Peace, celebrated the International Day of Peace with a program combining conference, readings, projection of a documentary and exhibition, with for guest of honor: Latifah Ibn Ziaten, president of the IMAD (association for youth and for peace that bears the name of his son killed by a terrorist in 2012).

The day ended with the Lanterns of Peace ceremony, set to music by the Conservatoire Classical Percussion Class and the classes with schedules arranged for music (CHAM) of Sonia Delaunay Middle School.

Classes with schedules arranged for music are a driving force for school success for the children of Grigny

The project to create the CHAM classes, initiated in 2014, was implemented during the winter of 2015 in the aftermath of the Paris attacks. This preventive approach, created at Sonia Delaunay Middle School, allows Grigny children to access excellence through music. Today, every level of this Middle School has a CHAM class. Thus, music education for pupils, enrolled in this device, is an integral part of their schooling. It must be emphasized that pupils in these classes are among the best in the Middle School.

Give a taste of music to neighborhood children

The collective teaching systems set up by the Conservatoire underwent a major renewal of their staff due to mid-term abandonment of the cursus. The objectives that the conservatory has set itself in the framework of the URBACT On Stage project are to increase attendance and improve student assiduity, by keeping them for a long time and avoid losing them after one year or two. This duration is too short to enable the Children's Symphony Orchestra (OSE) and the Children's Nomadic Orchestra (ONDE) to play an effective role as promoters of excellence.

Giving children a taste for music and convincing families to let them pursue these musical and artistic paths are the two concerns of the Conservatoire team and teachers. The local support group is considering, among other things, the solutions needed to increase these two objectives. But, it seems that it has found a way to make children aware of music …

And the music entered the school of Reindeer ...

Until June 2019, the three collective musical education devices (OSE, ONDE and Mastery) took place on a extracurricular time, in the presence of the teacher and animators of the city. The Conservatoire team was convinced that teaching music at school during school time would be a means of improvement.

This will be done by November 2019. The National Education accepted that an experiment would be conducted in the elementary school of the Reindeer. The children will receive twice a week, an teaching of on hour and a half, both on extracurricular and school times. Three teachers from the Conservatoire will participate in this experiment and the disciplines taught will be stringed instruments and perhaps clarinet. Classes will be held in the presence of the teacher and the animators of the city. This is a great first, since music becomes a taught subject, as mathematics and French are.

To perfect their practice, the pupils participating in this workshop will meet every two months to other pupils participating in the workshops of OSE and ONDE, scattered about the city, but taking place on extracurricular time.

This new device is a response to our goals of increasing attendance and assiduity. It allows the evolution of our project by bringing music into the school curriculum.

The Conservatoire of Grigny, an asset for the Educative City of the town

Grigny was at the origin of an innovative initiative in the field of education, starting from the African precept that a whole village is necessary to educate a child. This initiative involved all partners in a same process: National Education, arts education, sports, associations, elected officials, families and municipal services.

This initiative set an example, taken over by the government which declined it in 80 cities in France. Grigny is now labeled "Cité éducative" and the Conservatoire lessons are an important part of the children education.

The alliance of music, science and nature: the “proteodies” as an educational support

Given the educational difficulties faced by pupils from disadvantaged neighborhoods, the Conservatoire wanted to develop an emancipatory educational offer. At the border of music, he opened workshops sensitizing children to unusual and especially innovative areas, such as wood, electronics, environment, sustainable development and science. Discovering these areas allows children to choose career paths, rather than endure them.

“Proteodies” or the influence of protein music on plant growth fully fulfills this objective and is an integral part of the "Cité Educative" device. Proposed in 2018 to two third classes at Pablo Neruda Middle School, this project is evolving this year. It will be the turn of pupils from an elementary school to have the opportunity to experiment this technique.

This project will be one of the "Demos Actions" developed by the Conservatoire of Grigny as part of the Urbact project and in accordance with the wishes expressed by the ULG.

The project to study the growth of peas in music, and in a controlled environment, will thus become an educational support for most school subjects and in accordance with the program laid down by the National Education.

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Text by Cécile Hussonnois and Pierre Gernioux (for the Proteodies). For further information please contact cecile.hussonnois@grigny91.fr

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