
Our Work with Children & Families
Learning and EngagementOur Work with Children & Families
We present a number of year-round creative projects that engage children in school years up to Primary 7 with music, theatre, opera, visual art, literacy, and health and wellbeing.
Young Music Pass

A performance of Dido's Ghost at Edinburgh Academy Junior School
© Jess ShurteDiscover a world of classical music for free.
Every year some of the world’s finest musicians, orchestras and ensembles come to perform in Edinburgh at the International Festival. With a Young Music Pass, you can see them for free!
From world-class orchestras at the Usher Hall, to breathtaking soloists, singers and instrumentalists at The Queens Hall, the International Festival’s classical music programme has something for everyone. Every year we give away hundreds of free concert tickets to local young people, so why not take up the opportunity to experience the best classical music from around the world on your doorstep?
Play On: Stages

Pupils from Hermitage Park Primary School enjoying the stage built in their playground as part of the Play On: Stages project
© Ryan BuchananIn place of the stages left empty in August 2020, when the International Festival was cancelled in a live sense and
moved online, our Play On: Stages project has seen outdoor stages built in the playgrounds of four primary schools in Edinburgh. Built in consultation with teachers and pupils, stage structures were gifted to Hermitage Park Primary, Leith Primary, Lorne Primary and St Mary’s RC Primary (Leith), and were designed to bring theatricality to the schools, supporting young people to play, perform and learn outdoors.
Alongside each structure the International Festival has provided a number of online resources and a programme of engagement activities to support creativity and learning. This has included a story creation workshop with performers Ruxy Cantir and Sarah Rose Graber, and a heroes workshop with comic book creator Etienne Kubwabo.
More information on the stages and our full Play On: Stages resource can be found here.
Previous Projects
Image gallery
A gallery carousel of 12 items

Primary 7 pupils participating in our Art of Listening workshops
© Credit : Ryan Buchanan
Pupils participating in the focused listening exercise as part of Art of Listening
© Credit : Ryan Buchanan
Singing exercises for P7 pupils as part of Art of Listening
© Credit : Ryan Buchanan
A pupil from Corstorphine Primary School hanging up a telegram she had designed as part of our Five Telegrams Schools Project to support the Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event: Five Telegrams in 2018
© 2018 Credit : Ian Georgeson
Pupils creating their artwork as part our Soul Boxes project for Primary 6 pupils
© 2017 Credit : Mihaela Bodlovic
Dancers from Cas Public delivering a family workshop in support of their show 9 presented at the 2019 Edinburgh International Festival
© 2019 Credit : L&E Team
Pupils showing off the stars they created as part of our Heart of Hollywood project in connection with the Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event: La Phil at Tynecastle
© Credit : Ryan Buchanan
Pupils from Tollcross Primary School participating in our Heart of Hollywood workshops that explored film and orchestra through music making and visual art
© 2019 Credit : Ryan Buchanan
Pupils from Trinity Primary School animating their stories as part of our My Festival, My Story workshop that explored storytelling in support of 1927’s Roots, presented at the 2019 Edinburgh International Festival
© 2019 Credit : Ryan Buchanan
Pupils from Trinity Primary School creating characters for their animations as part of My Festival, My Story, a project connected to 1927’s Roots presented at the 2019 Edinburgh International Festival
© 2019 Credit : Ryan Buchanan
Winners of the 2019 Virgin Money Fireworks Concert Poster Competition with Arlene and Boogie from Forth One
© 2019 Credit : Ryan Buchanan
Primary 7 pupils from across Edinburgh enjoy the Scottish Chamber Orchestra performing in Princes Street Gardens for the Virgin Money Schools Concert 2019
© 2019 Credit : Ryan Buchanan© 2017 Mihaela Bodlovic