The sound of children’s excitement and the overlapping of melodic pianos playing filled the halls of Carroll Elementary. A new opportunity for these young minds is established within the walls of this school.

On September 18th, Carroll Elementary officially opened the doors to their brand new piano lab. With the assistance of FISD’s School Board President, John Classe, this great idea, made into a reality that will impact these students in the long run. Attending the opening event, Waldrip, proudly cuts the ribbon outside the piano lab door, from there forth improving the education and creativity of students of Carroll Elementary. Each morning a different grade level comes to the piano lab during what they call ‘enrichment time.’ Within this enrichment time, students learn fundamental piano skills that help with such things as coordination and basic music abilities. These students are instructed and guided by Carroll Elementary’s very own music teacher, Dawn Coday.

When asked about the future of this program, Coday explains that they “have some piano books ordered, so they can actually start reading the music.” She hopes to have the piano lab worked into the school’s curriculum and become a bigger part of the student’s educational lives. She claims that this opportunity “bridges the gap between the left side and the right side of the brain” because “their brain has to look at the music while they’re playing at the same time.”

With the implementation of this piano lab, it provides an outlet for kids with potential musical aspirations and opens up a door of new possibilities from this day forth for students of Carroll Elementary School.