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Welcome to the Music Classroom! I am very excited to work with all of you as we embark on finding your musical voice! We will learn about music through singing, dancing, and playing all sorts of musical instruments. The goal is produce life long music lovers who learn how to engage with the musical world around them. "Music has the power of producing a certain effect on the moral character of the soul, and if it has the power to do this, it is clear that the young must be directed to music and must be educated in it" Angela Lickiss Aleo angela@traversechildrenshouse.org Bachelor of Music, Middle Tennessee State University 2006 The Children's House Experience |
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Classroom Highlights
January 25, 2023 Sandra’s Class
Since returning from break we have started our new cycle on Folk Songs from around the world. The first folk song we have learned is Kookaburra, an Australian folk song. The students have learned the song, sang with a steady beat, and have put instruments with the lyrics. They have learned 3 percussion instruments with the music and played chords and the melody with the Boomwackers. They have had a lot of fun working in teams to play together. This week we are starting to shift to our new folk song that is from Japan.
January 11, 2023 Karin’s Class
We have started our new series of classes studying folk songs from around the world. The students are learning to sing the songs and then adding hand percussion and mallet Orff instruments. We started with the Canoe Song which is a Native American song. There will be a few more folk songs coming from Asia, Africa, and South America. The idea is that as we work on each new song the students will become more and more independent and confident in their own ability.
December 7, 2022 Sandra’s Class
This is an exciting time of the year! The students finished their first cycle on the piano. We have moved on to hand percussion with singing. They have begun learning the words to Simple Gifts and a few of the hand percussion parts. The goal is to be able to sing and play at the same time, this is a skill that takes practice. We are also working on their song for the Seasonal Sing that will be happening before we know it. This year we are focusing on winter and bells. The students are designing and creating the decorations that will be on the stage to create the atmosphere for their performance.
November 30, 2022 Nadine’s Class
This is an exciting time of the year! The students finished their first cycle on the piano and have moved on to hand percussion with singing. They have begun learning the words to Simple Gifts and a few of the hand percussion parts. The goal is to be able to sing and play at the same time, this is a skill that takes practice. We are also working on their song for the Seasonal Sing that will be happening before we know it. This year we are focusing on winter and bells. The students are designing and creating the decorations that will be on the stage to create the atmosphere for their performance.
November 9, 2022 Kindergarten
The Kindergarteners have started their ukulele journey! They have been eager to get underway playing and learning all about their new instruments. They have learned the name of several different parts of the ukulele, how to hold and strum, and are getting the hang of their first few chords. They eagerly ask when they are going to get a new chord to learn. So far we have several songs to play and sing for each chord individually a one song that they are learning how to change between three different chords. Ask them which one is their favorite!
October 26, 2022 Jamie’s Class
This has been an exciting beginning to the school year. The students have all started recorders and are well on their way to achieving their first milestones. Each student has individual check points and when they achieve certain goals they get to choose to try another member of the recorder family, the sopranino, alto, tenor, and bass recorders! They recently tried their first recorder choir piece and this week they chose their song to work on as a group. Ask your child which instrument they like the best and why.
October 12, 2022 Karin’s Class
This has been an exciting beginning to the school year. The students have all started recorders and are well on their way to achieving their first milestones. Each student has individual check points and when they achieve certain goals they get to choose to try another member of the recorder family, the sopranino, alto, tenor, and bass recorders! They are looking forward to getting to start their first recorder choir piece. Ask your child which instrument they like the best and why.
September 28, 2022 Sandra’s Class
This is always an exciting time of year! The students are eager to find out what we will start with first. This year we are starting with a study of the grand piano. They are listening to music each class while working on the first part of this study, the exterior parts of the piano. Ask you student what the fallboard or pedal box are. The last two weeks they labeled a real piano and transferred the parts names onto their diagram and this week they were able to label all the parts either individually or in a pair. The next step will be to explore the inside of the piano. How does it make sound?