Pupils at Tottenham school help create music video celebrating the Coronation

The Brook On The Broadwaters pupils helped put together a tribute for King Charles III, reports Olivia Opara

Pupils Kayden and Jaylen with music teacher Maria (credit Olivia Opara)

Three Tottenham primary pupils star in a new song dedicated to King Charles III.

Special needs school The Brook On The Broadwaters has released the song in celebration of the Coronation this weekend, featuring a music video with drawings and animations created by the students. Staring on vocals are eleven-year-old twin brothers, Jaylen and Kayden Iyolo, while eight-year-old Sofiya Ahmed also features.

The Brook On The Broadwaters is a special educational needs and disabilities (Send) primary school that is part of the Broadwaters Inclusive Learning Community in Haringey.

The song, titled Coronation Song, was produced by the students in collaboration with music teacher Maria Preftitsi. It is a combination of musical motifs that reflect what the students associate with the royal family, such as Buckingham Palace and the Crown.

Maria, who is also the expressive arts lead at The Brook, told HCP that students enjoy participating in the creative extra-curricular activities as it helps them develop self confidence and esteem, social skills and empathy. “Jaylen, Kayden and Sofiya had learnt and recorded the song in 30 minutes,” said Maria.

“This is something that they are very proud of as they know that this is their work.”

Jaylen, who wants to go into music as a career, told HCP that he likes the chorus the best, while Sofiya said that she likes “the trumpet and the beats of the song”.

On Friday, students from The Brook will be joined by their parents, Willow School and Broadwaters Children’s Centre to celebrate the coronation weekend where they will sing the Coronation Song together.

“We are very excited to celebrate the coronation on Friday,” said Jaylen.

Alongside teaching music, Maria also teaches drama, in which she works with the students to produce short films in collaboration with other schools. The Brook has won multiple awards for its films such as the National and European Quality Label and the National Award from the British Council for its Oceans SOS film which raised awareness about the United Nations’ sustainable development goals.

In December, West Lea School in Enfield and Specialenheten Laholms Kommun School in Sweden collaborated with The Brook to create a Christmas movie, The Magic Spells of X-Mas, in which headteacher, Maureen Duncan, stars as the wicked witch.

Since then, Maria has received a lot of praise and support from parents for the school to enter film festivals and competitions – with the students getting ready to shoot another film this month.

“The [creative] work that the students do changes them and sometimes it’s hard because it is extra-curricular but they love doing it,” said Maria.

Watch the music video for Coronation Song below:

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