Learning

WAF is thrilled to deliver a Learning & Engagement programme which provides singing opportunities to around 200 children in our surrounding villages.

↓ SCROLL DOWN TO THE BOTTOM FOR 2026 CHILDREN'S CHOIR RESOURCES ↓

Our objective is to offer fun, accessible and inspiring musical opportunities to all children in our community, regardless of their prior musical experience or socio-economic background. Our workshops aim to encourage enjoyment and participation in music from an early age, and to promote values of teamwork and collectivity through group singing.

Following on from singing workshops delivered in local primary schools by our dedicated in-house team of education specialists, local children then have the opportunity to perform in our WAF Children’s Choir, taking to the stage alongside our professional artists during the Festival itself in September.

We are particularly proud of the close links forged between our Learning & Engagement programme and our Composer-in-Residence scheme. Each year we invite one of the UK’s most exciting young composers to be resident at WAF and compose several pieces of brand new music for the Festival. As well as writing for our professional performers, the Composer-in-Residence also composes a song specially for the WAF Children’s Choir, which then receives its world premiere in one of the Festival’s principal concerts.

We are delighted to partner with seven wonderful local primary schools to provide these opportunities to children in our community.

We are absolutely committed to providing our Learning & Engagement programme at no cost to the children involved or their schools, and we are hugely grateful to our Festival Supporters for helping us to achieve this.

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WAF CHILDREN'S CHOIR 2026 - RESOURCES

The WAF Children's Choir is made up of children from the seven schools listed above, who will be in Years 5 & 6 in September 2026, along with members of the local home-educated community. They are learning five songs, which they'll perform as part of the festival in September. They learned most of this music in workshops we delivered during July, and we will return just before the festival in September to recap and teach the remaining material.

Below are some resources which children, their families, and teachers can use to help learn & remember the songs in advance of the performance in September.

SONG 1: Buzzing A-Round!
wordsheet // audio track

SONG 2: A Cat Called Alexander
wordsheet // audio track

SONG 3: Minibeasts
wordsheet // audio track

SONG 4: Run run run *
wordsheet // audio track

SONG 5: Manx Lullaby
wordsheet // audio track

* Run run run is a brand new song, composed specially for the WAF Children's Choir by our 2026 Composer-in-Residence Kerensa Briggs.

The WAF Children's Choir will perform all five songs (including the world premiere performance of Run run run) as part of Concert 2: All Creatures Now on Thursday 17th September at Moretonhampstead Church. Parents/Guardians of children performing in the concert can either book a ticket in advance here or "pay what you feel" for your ticket on the door.

If you'd prefer to view all the above resources together in one folder, you can do so by clicking HERE.