Music, Empathy, and Action: How NBPS Students Made a Difference Across the World

For the 2025-2026 school year, North Broward Preparatory School's previous third grade and now fourth grade students worked to support a group of young musicians they had never met.

What began as a lesson about the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura became a service project centered on innovation, empowerment, and global citizenship. On October 12, that journey came full circle when members of the internationally renowned orchestra traveled to NBPS to perform for students and receive the proceeds from a year-long fundraiser.

"We began the year playing violin, but by the end, our students had become confident, empathetic, forward-thinking young musicians who learned to carry the values of music beyond the classroom—using creativity, collaboration, compassion, and their voices to make a positive difference in the world," said Reenat Pinchas, Lower School Strings teacher. 

Last year, our third-grade strings class first learned about the Recycled Orchestra. The orchestra, whose members are school-aged, began in Cateura, Paraguay, anunderserved community sitting on a landfill. To play music, they used creativity and ingenuity, recycling trash and turning it into instruments, such as using a pizza dish as part of a violin, or water pipes for the base of a saxophone.As Flavio Chavez, Music Director of the Recycled Orchestra, says, "The World Sends US Garbage, We Send Back Music." Inspired by their shared love of music, students gained a deeper appreciation for the instruments and opportunities available to them and felt compelled to act when disaster struck the orchestra.

On September 4, 2025, a landslide rocked the Cateura community, including the school where the Orchestra was housed. Over 50 instruments were destroyed, and the music room lay in ruins. With the support ofReenat Pinchas and Lower School Art teacher Kalyn Rothaus, our studentsgave back.

Students posted QR codes around campus and throughout the local community to share the story of the landslide in Cateura and raise awareness about the challenges faced by children their age in another part of the world. Our learners created wind chimes out of recycled material, putting themselves in the shoes of the Recycled Orchestra to understand how to create instruments out of recycled materials. These experiences culminated in our students putting on a fundraiser throughout the school year, resulting in a $5,000 donation which was given to the Recycled Orchestra during their visit to NBPS. These experiences brought learning to life and emphasized to our students that they can make a positive change in the lives of others.

The culmination of these efforts came when the Recycled Orchestra traveled to NBPS. More than a performance, the visit gave students the chance to meet the young musicians they had spent the year learning about and supporting. Through renditions of songs such as Viva La Vida by Coldplay and Imagine by John Lennon, NBPS students and members of the Recycled Orchestra were brought together through a shared love of music. For some orchestra members, the visit also marked their first time traveling to the United States.

“It was a wonderful experience and a great opportunity. It makes me and our orchestra very happy to be able to perform for the students here. We are very grateful to NBPS for having us today and we are very happy to bring a little joy to the students. We love music but what we really love doing is bringing joy and spreading the message about the Orchestra.” said Johann Kajatt, a17-year-oldSopranoSaxaphone player.

Having the Recycled Orchestra play for our students demonstrated the five values of our school, mission, and vision. Through innovation, empowerment, and meaningful engagement, students discovered what it means to be a global citizen and how their actions can create positive change both locally and around the world.