The Symphony Goes to School program was created to enrich the music education program in the Iowa City Community School District. Each fall, nearly 1500 3rd and 4th grade students in the district are exposed to classical music, presented in its best form–live and in an auditorium built for this type of presentation. In 2018, the symphony experience was presented in the new University of Iowa Voxman Music Building by students and faculty of the School of Music.
The Symphony Goes to School experience is continued each spring when musicians from Orchestra Iowa visit each elementary school and perform live and in small ensembles, teaching students about the instruments of the orchestra. This year, first graders were treated to a brass quintet, second graders heard a woodwind quintet and third graders experienced a string quartet. The performances link directly to the elementary science and general music curricula.
My son, a fourth grader at Mann, attended Symphony Goes to School at City High this fall. He thought it was great! He rarely tells me about his day at school. I have to dig for every bit of information. When he came home from Symphony, he told me EVERYTHING. The program included lots of historical information with visuals and he latched on to every detail. It was a memorable day for him.
