December 13 is Violin Day
Today is violin day. At the Berlin Cosmopolitan School, students in the first grade can choose whether they want to learn the violin or the recorder in music lessons. The music lessons consist of 50% instrumental lessons. In an interview, we spoke to music teachers Bridget Kinneary and music teachers Benjamin Salsbury about teaching children and violins.
Yvonne Wende, founder and director of the Berlin Cosmopolitan School: “The violin is a complex instrument. In order to play a melodious note on the violin, the children practice very intensively in their classes. I have my workplace next to our hall, where music is also played. It’s nice to hear the progress with your own ears. Our teachers do great things here.”
To aid in finger placement, teachers mark the first and third frets of the violin. But primarily the children learn intonation by singing the songs. Bridget Kinneary says: “The children can memorize the note by the sound they sing. By playing the violin, they gradually begin to correct themselves.”
The focus of music lessons is not that the children only learn to play the violin. They gain an understanding of music, are taught perseverance and can apply their skills to other instruments and socially.
About the Berlin Cosmopolitan School, Preschool and Kindergarten
The Berlin Cosmopolitan School is changing the traditional way schools and kindergartens work with different approaches to learning in the areas of nature and environmental protection, sports, new work, culture, dance, music and art and much more. The aim of the independent school, preschool and kindergarten is to bring all students along according to their abilities.
“When school motivates, everyone learns more” is the conviction of the Berlin Cosmopolitan School. Regular outdoor learning, sports activities and competitions, digital projects such as robotics, internships from grade 6, music-making from kindergarten age, dance clubs, bilingual education and much more help the children to discover and develop their own preferences and abilities.
Important concerns of the Berlin Cosmopolitan School, Kindergarten and Preschool are social justice, equal opportunities in education and a balanced community. The school regularly awards scholarships to students and accepts refugees. Through its established network and internationally trained staff, the educational institution has the opportunity to explore new educational paths for every age group.
The Berlin Cosmopolitan School was founded in 2003 as a non-profit organisation by Yvonne Wende. In 2004, the first bilingual (English-German) kindergarten and preschool opened for Berlin-Mitte with 18 children. Shortly after, the primary school started and most recently, in 2009, the accredited bilingual Gymnasium of Berlin Cosmopolitan School 01P22. Since then, the number of students has steadily increased. Approximately 1,000 students from all over the world are now being taught on the Rückerstraße and Invalidenstraße campuses. The kindergarten has grown to a number of more than 300 children between the ages of 1 and 6.
In 2013, Berlin Cosmopolitan School was accredited as an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, first for primary school and also for the Gymnasium. The IB Learner Profile is about developing children and young people into lifelong learners. The school and kindergarten use primary experiences to design lessons.