Mangawhai Beach School

Students at Mangawhai Beach School will be strumming their hearts out with a new set of ukuleles funded by a $900 grant from the Mazda Foundation.

The school currently has a limited music department consisting of borrowed musical instruments, limiting the students who all share a keen interest in music.

Ross Perkinson, Chairman of the Mangawhai Beach School Board of Trustees, says, “We are so excited to introduce the students to a full set of ukuleles.

“We think that learning to play and perform a musical instrument is a very important part of the curriculum, especially as many children do not have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument at home.”

Selected students will be taught to play by two talented music teachers. By next year the school hopes to take the students to the New Zealand Ukulele Festival.