The joy (and exhaustion!) on the faces of young people in Song Room classrooms across the country right now, makes every effort this year worthwhile. In January, we could not have imagined how complex a year it was going to be for school leaders, teachers and education support staff, including our team.

As we complete a full year back in schools, the smiles of students sharing their learning at performances and school events show us that in spite of the challenges, there is a lot to celebrate as we come to the end of 2022.

This year The Song Room worked across six states providing arts learning to school communities who would otherwise miss out.

Over 21,000 students took part in Song Room programs.

Over 230 schools participated. That’s an increase of 67% on last year.

Our incredible education team, including 105 Teaching Artists, supported almost 500 generalist primary school teachers.

Nationally, we provided approximately 2,969 days of in-class support and professional learning in our programs, as well as over 100 hours in additional sessions to help teachers to develop their skills and confidence.

Teachers who participated in a semester long in-class mentoring and modelling program in the arts each received over 25 hours in professional learning. Double the hours teachers receive in Australian undergraduate degrees.

17 schools from 4 regional areas completed the 3-year Transformational Learning Through Creativity (TLC) program. That’s 12,800 students, 550 teachers, 32 school leaders and 3,000 parents/carers who took part in arts learning, which strengthened their school communities.

Our programs are full of examples of rich learning outcomes for students, teachers and entire school communities.

Hear more about the benefits of TLC from our Teaching Artists in Tasmania, Isaac Gee and Elisse Kleiner, who beautifully describe the program in an ABC Radio interview on Your Afternoon with Jane Longhurst. Learn more and listen to the full interview here.

Learn about the five-school performance in Western Australia, where students came together to celebrate their learning, community and Culture. The performance was a way of acknowledging the strong, connected communities that they have built through the arts. Read all about it here.

Thank you to everyone who supported us in 2022. You have helped to enhance the education, personal development and community involvement of young people across Australia through arts learning at a such a critical juncture in their education following a global pandemic. We couldn’t be prouder of the effort and the impact that we have made together.

Right now, thanks to the generosity of the Gaudry Foundation, all donations received will be matched up to the total value of $10,000. It’s the perfect time to support more young people to thrive in 2023 through a gift to The Song Room.

Thank you again to all friends of The Song Room. We wish you and your family a safe and happy festive season.