"Heer, ’n kleine kinderbende sing sy loflied tot u eer!"
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to explore how singing in a religious singing assembly once a
week contributes to the spiritual wellbeing of a group of learners from a primary school in
Potchefstroom. Creative applications of music as a school activity that supports the spiritual
wellbeing of the learners are explored. The literature study describes childhood spirituality in
a Christian context through an awareness of spirituality, the nurturing of spirituality through
group singing, the role of cognition and the relationship between individuality and spirituality.
Data collection involved multiple sources of information through observations and interviews.
Through informal discussions with learners and my own observations whilst accompanying
religious singing assemblies, data was analysed to compare learners’ experiences with the
relevant literature. Seven aspects related to spirituality in childhood through religious singing
were identified: prayer, creativity, praise and worship, emotion, joy, expression and connectedness.