Music Classes After School

The Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District on Monday decided to stand by its plan to offer instrumental music classes for elementary schoolchildren after school next fall.

Friends of Music, a nonprofit group, sought to have music classes taught during the school day, as the district has been doing. Under the “pull-out” program that has been in effect, students are taken out of regular classes for music lessons during the school day.

District spokeswoman Nancy Mahr said the change to an after-school program is being made for budgetary and educational reasons. The after-school program will cost about $36,000, contrasted with $101,000 for the pull-out program, she said.

Teachers at Silver Spur Elementary School spoke in opposition to the pull-out program Monday, saying that it causes youngsters to miss required studies, Mahr said.

The district will try the after-school program next year as a pilot project and will consider modifications based on how it works, she said.