TEFL Adventures!

Have decided to take a 'sabbatical' and teach english abroad for the next few months! We're heading to Central America first (Nicaragua and Costa Rica) to teach and then travel round South America. Combining my love of travel and teaching, kind of realised that this is the time to go.

Thank you to each and every one of my students/schools/songwriting groups who have made my job so worthwhile. Enjoy your musical endeavours, I feel glad to have been a part of your musical journey.

With love,

Amy

Songwriting with Four Seasons Theatre, Suffolk

On the weekend of July 23rd/24th we will be running a weekend songwriting course in Ipswich! Four Seasons Theatre, Suffolk are having us in to coach their young people in songwriting.
We are also lucky enough to have the awesome Arianna coming all the way from Italy to sing! We will be performing a few songs together over the weekend.
For the workshop, together we will look at the theme the young people would like to focus on, and talk about influences and aspirations for how they'd like their song to sound.
After this, there will be some rhyming games and we will get stuck into writing the chorus and other sections of the song.

The end of the weekend will culminate with their song being performed live!
For booking please see the flyer below, places get booked up quickly so grab your place now!

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Fundraiser for Notivate London!

Hello everyone! 
Thank you so much for the text donations so far! I'm running the Hackney Half Marathon in just over a month (eek!) for Notivate London, a truly inspirational creative charity for young people. 

To donate, please visit my GoldenGiving page here: 

https://www.goldengiving.com/fundraising/notivatelondon

This is what Notivate are all about and more info below...

Their brilliant Singer Songwriter course is dedicated to young people to increase self esteem, willingness to take creative risks and the confidence to learn.

I have seen first hand the impact this programme has in these childrens' lives, and the experience stays with them for a long time.
Music has been massively prevalent in shaping me to the person I am today which is why I feel so passionate to do all I can to help give our next generation this opportunity. 

“Very successful in captivating and motivating the children.” (Children’s Fund)

“Brilliantly fantastico!” (Pupil)

Over the six weeks, the children have the space to express themselves, explore their feelings and perhaps try something for the first time.

They become more tenacious, team orientated and able to think creatively.
Isn't that amazing?
I'd love to spread the word and give this opportunity to as many young people as I can!

In case you missed it, here's the link again: 

https://www.goldengiving.com/fundraising/notivatelondon

Thank you so much!

If you feel that this resonated with you, please feel free to share the article with your friends.

With love,

Amy x

'Notivate London' children celebrate their debut song!

This morning we had a 'Notivate London' celebration assembly with the wonderful John Bowman - founder of the Notivate Trust, and heard the debut performance of Sir Francis Drake schools' awesome song! 

So proud of these children! Together they wrote, rehearsed and recorded their song on the theme of 'believe in yourself, never give up'. Lots of discussions were had on how they'd like  the production of the song, who their influences were and what to sing/rap in each section!

Their vocals were recorded at Atomic Studios, South Bermondsey, with thanks to Marcus our sound engineer. 
The song was mixed and mastered by Zoé Beckett for Left Handed Sound - brilliant! 
Here are some photos of their studio day... 

'Believe' by Sir Francis Drake Primary can be found on the website Notivate.org. 
Enjoy!

I'll leave you with a quote I absolutely love on creativity: 

"Why should we all use our creative power? Because there is nothing that makes people so generous, joyful, lively, bold and compassionate" - Brenda Leland

Please comment below and share this article to enable more children to be able to benefit from the brilliant work of Notivate. Thank you!

Fundraiser for Notivate London!

As many of you know, I am doing some work with an amazing songwriting charity called Notivate and have just delivered the first Singer Songwriter course into a south London school, over the 6 sessions, the children will write, rehearse and record their own original songs in a London studio.

Have a look at the singer songwriter course here: http://www.notivate.org/singer_songwriter

“A very imaginative and interesting programme.”
Paul Harris (Music Educationalist)

“Very successful in captivating and motivating the children.” (Children’s Fund)

“Brilliantly fantastico!” (Pupil)

As well as promoting this impactful course into schools, I'll be running the Hackney half marathon to fundraise for another course to be delivered.

Over the six weeks, the children have the space to express themselves, explore their feelings and perhaps try something for the first time.

I'm really passionate about the impact this programme has on the young people, and the lasting results are astounding. They become more tenacious, team orientated and able to think creatively.
Isn't that amazing?
I'd love to spread the word and give this opportunity to as many young people as I can!
To donate, please text NTVT16 followed by an amount of £1, £2, £3, £4, £5 or £10 to 70070.
Anything you can give, however big or small, is so appreciated. Thank you so much!

If you feel that this resonated with you, please feel free to donate my cause and share the article with your friends!

With love,

Amy x

Three amazing ways that creative encouragement impacts young people

Are you interested in getting the most out of the young people you work with?

It seems to me that there is too much emphasis on criticising a young persons downfalls than to praise their strengths. If we as teachers and parents took more time to reflect on their efforts and explorations then something powerful happens... Our young people would be more likely to grow up to be more grounded, authentic adults. 

What does encouragement mean? 
'The act of giving someone support, encouragement or hope" - Oxford Dictionary

So, how do we encourage the young people we come into contact with?
I wholeheartedly believe that the key to encouragement is getting down to the same level, where a young person can relate to you as an equal. Become childlike in your curiosity towards their learning, ask why, be open to their ideas and then watch how they flourish.

The definition of creativity:
"Creativity is the ability to challenge, question and explore. It involves taking risks, playing with ideas, keeping an open mind and making connections where none are obvious". - Victoria and Albert Museum of Childhood

Here are three ways that doing just that can positively impact young people:

1. Increases self esteem - emotions like fear, anxiety, stress and anger narrow focus and hinder concentration while when we create a space filled with encouragement and positive affirmations, their emotions will immediately switch to feeling more calm, relaxed and able to comfortably take on the task at hand.

2. Gives the confidence to take risks - when young people feel valued and acknowledged, it gives them confidence to try new things with the assurance that they haven't 'got it wrong'. This is a massive factor in cultivating creativity.

3. Builds on a sense of challenge - when a young person is gently challenged to reach a goal - often something they never saw themselves doing, they feel really empowered. You change the way they perceive their abilities which is a HUGE deal!

To conclude, praise impacts young people in a such a way that they can achieve so much more. Push their limits creatively through being challenged and they have the safe space to be the best they can be with positive feedback and a supportive environment. 

With love,
Amy x

The brilliant Notivate Anti-bullying Competition has a new judge!

It's been a great start to 2016 so far, currently heading up the first London based Notivate Singer/Songwriter course! We're in the recording studio on Friday to record the great song written by twelve young people at Sir Francis Drake Primary... More updates to come soon!

And there's more...

I'm super excited and honoured to announce that I've been asked on the panel to judge the annual Notivate Anti-Bullying Competition Final! Two years ago the young people from one of my community songwriting workshops made it through to the final and performed their song there so it will be great to be back again, judging along with some other great musicians and practitioners in the music industry.

26th February, Spinney Hill Theatre 6.30pm, come down!

Five benefits of the Songwriting Process

Over the last six years, we've discovered some amazing breakthroughs when running songwriting workshops, and we feel so grateful and humbled to be able to offer this service.
Writing songs brings huge benefits, and especially so for young people. 
So why is that? Keep reading...

1. Explore creativity
In many school subjects, for instance, maths and science, the answers given are either right or wrong, with very little in between. 
Writing a song is subjective, the process of coming up with ideas and taking risks without judgement or scrutiny is a massively liberating experience.

2. Work together 
Being able to discuss, share and bounce ideas off others is a great way for young people to feel part of something bigger. It brings in aspects of problem solving; (is there enough syllables in that line?) contributing; (you can write the lyrics and we can write the melody) and debate; (let's vote on which chorus to choose).

3. Express feelings
Songwriting provides an outlet for our feelings, and sometimes it's easier to sing about feelings than to say them. Writing a song is a way of working through both the positive and negative sides of our emotions. Yes, the words might not come easily all the time, but specifically singing about our passions is a very therapeutic experience.

4. Have a sense of accomplishment 
Being proud of what you've created brings an enormous sense of joy. This leaves a lasting effect on us and the people around us. There is the additional bonus of having ownership of your song and being able to share it with friends and family.

5. Grow in confidence 
The four points mentioned above all contribute to improving confidence and self esteem through songwriting. The process will often begin with feelings of nervousness in young people, as the idea of writing a song can be a scary prospect at first, but whether it be lyric, melody or music writing, young people are able to uncover their strengths, and feel proud of what they have created.

Writing a song is not about being the best, neither is it about being the first to finish the song. It's about the journey, the ideas that were thought of, collaborations made, thoughts realised, and ultimately the overarching feeling of happiness from creating a unique piece of art.

The aim in our ActuallyAmy Songwriting workshops is to help young people realise that in the songwriting process they can take risks, accept their individuality and watch the flow of creativity happen.

We are currently taking bookings for summer 2017! 
Our workshops are for youth groups, theatre groups, church holiday clubs, birthday celebrations or private sessions. We aim to tailor the time to your requirements and give you a day full of fun and expression without judgement.

If you like the sound of what we have to offer then please get feel free to get in touch.
Contact Amy on 07919525893 or info@actuallyamy.co.uk.

Much love