GILES COUNTY, Va. – Music is a lifelong joy, and in Giles County, it’s Music Monday!
Students from Virginia Tech and the Moss Arts Center are spreading the fun of music to local preschoolers at Macy McLaugherty School, where preschoolers are engaged in music activities all day.
“This is so important for students to be able to get their hands on music at this young age where they are real,” said Bethany Costello, engagement manager at the Moss Arts Center.
For the second year in a row, students from Virginia Tech and the Marching Virginians are in Giles to give kids a day of music.
“It’s something that will hopefully stick with them so they will continue to enjoy music through school,” Costello said.
Costello, one of the organizers, said each station for the kids offers a small peek into the world of music.
“We have some baton throwers,” she said. “We have some early childhood music exploration with tambourines, some scarves, and students are making an instrument way far in the back of the gym. We are playing with parachutes with different games involving musical instruments and ideas, and of course, some bucket drums going on.”
Lauren Powell, a member of the color guard for the Marching Virginians, is teaching the kids the basics of baton.
“They will pick up on anything. You show them a trick; they will do it,” Powell said. “That is just another thing with them being so resilient. They will just keep trying until they get it.”
Local high school students are also participating, playing music during each station.
“It’s a very hands-on experience, and I think that’s a really cool thing,” said Rachel Hart and Molly Morris, seniors at Giles High School.
Leaders with the Moss Arts Center and Virginia Tech said they hope to continue this for years to come.
