The familiar lyrics “my country, ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing” are a reminder that one of the most rousing ways to demonstrate our American spirit is through song. Since our nation’s founding, music has served to promote unity and pride, and W.T.

Moore Elementary is carrying that tradition forward.

The entire third grade, nearly 100 students, lifted their voices to celebrate our country in a production titled “Sing Out America.” Spanning a wide range of musical styles and genres, the program included patriotic standards, folk music and marches.

Students spent several months learning the material and polishing the sound as part of the music curriculum.

Some students found that it stretched them creatively, and the amount of work involved surprised Adyson Glass.

“I learned that it’s kind of hard to get to where we are now,” she said.

Amor London-Johnson reflected on what she enjoyed most about the performance. “The melody is my favorite.

It’s the tune and when you sing songs it sounds really good.” The production also featured several different kinds of percussion and Orff instruments. John Morgan got to play the triangle. “It makes a high-pitched metal-on-metal sound,” he explained. “I like playing the instruments and I like hearing the different sounds they make.”

Taj Ali admitted that though he is sometimes shy, “I have a guitar and I write my own songs.” He believes that music brings out the best in us all and has experienced that himself. “I was born to be with music,” Taj said. He feels strongly that it will continue to be part of his life forever.

That is exactly what Tina Mason wants to hear. She has taught music at W.T. Moore for 28 years. and her main goal is “to help children become lifelong lovers of music who are purposeful about including music in their lives as they continue to grow and learn. While they’re falling in love with music, while they’re learning that they can create music, they know they have a voice with them that they can always use.”

Mason is also the chairwoman for the school’s Kids Voting committee, and the message of that initiative mirrors her teaching philosophy, making her work doubly meaningful. An election year adds extra significance. “The purpose of Kids Voting is to let the children know that they have a voice and we want them to use their voice.

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