"We should read music in the same way that an educated adult will read a book: in silence, but imagining the sound." (1954) Zoltan Kodaly
Grade 3 BRING YOUR PARENTS TO MUSIC CLASS WEEK all classes begin at 11:30 and end at 12:10
Mrs. Cleveland-Monday, June 8 Mrs. Costas -Tuesday, June 16 Mrs. Goldstein-Wednesday, June 10 Mrs. Hobey -Thursday, June TBA Mrs. Weeks-Friday, June 5
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In September, students in grade 3 will learn lots of new songs and games. The focus will be on having fun while reviewing many of the concepts learned at Fuller Meadow including fast/slow, high/low, long/short, loud/soft and heartbeat/rhythm of the words. Activities will be presented in a variety of ways including aurally, visually and kinesthetically. Using the Kodaly method, students will learn to sing and read music using solfa syllables and hand signs.
Recorder Expectations and Helpful Hints:
1. At-home practice: 4 to 5 days a week for 15 minutes. Students are developing their fine motor skills, hand/eye coordination and music literacy. The weekly 40 minute music class is the time to demonstrate proficiency gained at home and to introduce new notes and songs. Each time a student performs a song for the class, they receive a ribbon beginning with red and progressing to orange, yellow, green, blue and purple. Students can also earn gold ribbons for composing their own song, playing a duet with a friend, singing while a friend plays on the recorder, walking the heartbeat while playing, etc. The sky's the limit!
2. It is helpful to set aside a specific practice time rather than fitting it in if time arises. I find that an ideal time is just before dinner. Students are usually finishing up homework and may even be waiting to eat. This empty time is perfect for practicing the recorder.
3. Another strategy is having the recorder and music close by when doing homework.. When it's time to take a break, the recorder is right there, ready to be played. Playing shorter amounts of time more often is more beneficial than playing for half an hour the night before recorder class.
4. Students should be keeping their recorder and music (in a folder) in their backpack at all times. They should take the instrument and music out to practice at home and return them to the backpack when finished. The recorder goes to and from school everyday, This way, the recorder comes to school on music day.
5. Students are learning how to play an instrument for the first time but are also learning responsibility. The music room does not have extra recorders for students that have forgotten their instrument. Students receive a wooden replacement in order to practice fingerings along with the class. Students also need to keep track of their music packets and keep them in a folder. This could be the homework folder or a separate folder.
6. Each grade 3 class will be presenting an in-class informance for family members. These will be scheduled after April vacation and are a fun way for students to share what they have learned. Check back for more detailed information in the Spring.
7. Keeping your recorder clean: The recorders have three sections. To clean, simply use warm water and a small amount of dish soap. Let the water run through the instrument and rinse off the soap. Paper towel dry. This should be done at the end of each practice session. If your child has a cold or strep throat, use rubbing alcohol on a paper towel and carefully clean off the mouthpiece followed by a warm water rinse. This will kill any germs that may be present.
MOST OF ALL......ENJOY!!!!!
"Let us take our children seriously! Everything else follows from this...only the best is good enough for a child." (1941) Zoltan Kodaly
Grade 4 Grade 4 students will be increasing their repertoire of songs including game songs, canons, songs with ostinati, songs with dances, International songs and songs with student generated accompaniment. They will also learn lots of rhymes with movement. Students will then create their own concert programs to be performed in December during "Bring Your Parent to Music Class" week. Be sure to check the calendar page for the schedule of performances
BRING YOUR PARENT(S) TO MUSIC WEEK: Please join your child's music class in December to hear and see what they have been doing during the first trimester. Each class will present a program of their favorite songs, game songs and dances. Students will be creating their own unique program. Ms. Brown 12/15, Mrs. Church 12/16, Mrs. Deeley 12/17, Mrs. Jones 12/11 (please note that this is a week earlier) and Mrs. Magrath 12/19. All performances will be held from 12:20-1:00 in the music room with the exception of Mrs. Jones' class. Because of the early release, this class will be held from 10:40-11:20. Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and cannot remain silent. (Victor Hugo - Les Miserables)
Grade 5 What are the elements of music and how many are there? How are they used by performers and composers? Are they used in the music on my i-pod? Can I use them to compose and perform my own music? These are some of the questions that grade 5 students will be asking and answering this year. Integrating technology into the grade 5 music classroom for students to explore will enhance and enable student creativity. Students will also complete their solfa scale adding half steps to the known pentatonic scale. Complex rhythmic elements will also be added to make their quest for music literacy a reality.
Grade 6 Grade 6 students will have many musical opportunities this year. Beginning in September, the Sixth Grade Select Chorus will form. They will rehearse weekly with Mrs. Montani and Ms. Colby as they prepare for a busy December. Annual events in December include the Middleton Winter Festival, Middleton Board of Trade Holiday Luncheon, Senator Bruce Tarr Radio-a-thon, Howe-Manning Winter Concert and an all-school holiday sing-a-long assembly. Another annual tradition is the Sixth Grade Musical. All grade 6 students are encouraged to participate in the many on and off stage committees and crews. Students in grade 6 have been hard at work honing their music writing skills by hand and on the computer. They are very fortunate to have access to two music software programs. The first is Finale, a music writing program. The second is Mixcraft 6, a music production program. Working in small groups, students have produced their own exploratory "Anything Goes" compositions; created a template for the C-Blues piano chord progression and even done some experimenting with recording themselves. Many students have discovered how skilled they really are and how they can continually open doors to new musical discoveries and discover things about themselves along the way. It's all very exciting. Please be sure that all students have a set of headphones at school and a flash drive.. These are essential when working with these software programs.