Tomorrow, Wednesday, our 4th and 5th grades will have feats of courage during the school day rather than their strings class (5th grade will of course need instruments for our dress rehearsal).
Middle School will miss their games class tomorrow to run the feats of courage. On Thursday, we will provide them a chance to play volleyball in place of our regular jazz orchestra class. Students do not need to bring instruments to school on Thursday.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
With Michaelmas coming up, students in grades 5 to 8 will need their instruments Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
4th graders will need their instruments on Monday only.
4th graders will need their instruments on Monday only.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Friday Michaelmas Rehearsal, What we are working on
Dear Families,
Students in grades 5 to 8 will need to bring their instruments to school on Friday for our first Michaelmas rehearsal.
Thank you to parents who have paid for their student's books. If you have not yet paid, you may put a check to WIWS ($7 for grades 4 and 5, $14 for grades 6 to 8) in the Finance Director's folder at the base of the tower. Please mark yourself off as paid.
All students have received their book (with the exception of 2 8th grade pianists). Middle school students will receive their 2nd book on Tuesday. A somewhat alarming number of students are forgetting their music books. I prefer not to take away from the experience of students ready to play music by doing a book inspection; please check in with your child to make sure that she or he knows where her or his music book is.
Below is what we are working on in class, and what students might do well to work on at home. Some students will need lots of help with our school songs; others would well working on different material in their private lessons so that they do not risk becoming bored in school.
4th grade
We will work on pages 9 and 10 of Strictly Strings next week. This will seem very fast for some students, and very slow for others. My intention is to move quickly through the exercises on pages 9 to 12 to move to the "Songs for Fun" on page 13. At that point, we will stay with those songs for a number of periods to allow students to catch up; more confident students will (ideally) enjoy playing familiar folk songs.
Especially if your child is not having regular lessons, you as a parent could really help by reading over the page with your child. The Strictly String series provides clear and useful information (perhaps too much without a parent or teacher helping) at the start of each page. I chose this series this year because last year's 4th grade parents found it hard to help their children at home unless they had a good deal of musical experience themselves.
5th grade
Our focus will be on "Oats and Beans" and "Jolly is the Miller Boy" for Michaelmas. Some 6th to 8th graders will be playing with us, so it is quite fine if 5th graders learn easier harmony parts. We will also work on Strictly Strings 2, page 4, exercises 1 and 4, and will begin the songs on page 5 (Jasmine Flower, Billy Bow, Carnival of Venice, and Touch of Blue).
6th grade
Our Michaelmas songs sound great. We will touch upon them but focus on new material. While we will review pages 2 to 5 of More Strings Extraordinaire, I will also distribute Jazz Philharmonic on Tuesday. We will work on the two songs, "Groovin' for the First Time" and "De Blues." This new series provides opportunity for improvisation; it also requires alertness. Although the notes are easy, there is a great deal of syncopation. I chose this series because the rhythmic and improvisational skills can transfer well to other instruments should our students pursue jazz in high school.
With warmth and light,
William Geoffrey Dolde
Students in grades 5 to 8 will need to bring their instruments to school on Friday for our first Michaelmas rehearsal.
Thank you to parents who have paid for their student's books. If you have not yet paid, you may put a check to WIWS ($7 for grades 4 and 5, $14 for grades 6 to 8) in the Finance Director's folder at the base of the tower. Please mark yourself off as paid.
All students have received their book (with the exception of 2 8th grade pianists). Middle school students will receive their 2nd book on Tuesday. A somewhat alarming number of students are forgetting their music books. I prefer not to take away from the experience of students ready to play music by doing a book inspection; please check in with your child to make sure that she or he knows where her or his music book is.
Below is what we are working on in class, and what students might do well to work on at home. Some students will need lots of help with our school songs; others would well working on different material in their private lessons so that they do not risk becoming bored in school.
4th grade
We will work on pages 9 and 10 of Strictly Strings next week. This will seem very fast for some students, and very slow for others. My intention is to move quickly through the exercises on pages 9 to 12 to move to the "Songs for Fun" on page 13. At that point, we will stay with those songs for a number of periods to allow students to catch up; more confident students will (ideally) enjoy playing familiar folk songs.
Especially if your child is not having regular lessons, you as a parent could really help by reading over the page with your child. The Strictly String series provides clear and useful information (perhaps too much without a parent or teacher helping) at the start of each page. I chose this series this year because last year's 4th grade parents found it hard to help their children at home unless they had a good deal of musical experience themselves.
5th grade
Our focus will be on "Oats and Beans" and "Jolly is the Miller Boy" for Michaelmas. Some 6th to 8th graders will be playing with us, so it is quite fine if 5th graders learn easier harmony parts. We will also work on Strictly Strings 2, page 4, exercises 1 and 4, and will begin the songs on page 5 (Jasmine Flower, Billy Bow, Carnival of Venice, and Touch of Blue).
6th grade
Our Michaelmas songs sound great. We will touch upon them but focus on new material. While we will review pages 2 to 5 of More Strings Extraordinaire, I will also distribute Jazz Philharmonic on Tuesday. We will work on the two songs, "Groovin' for the First Time" and "De Blues." This new series provides opportunity for improvisation; it also requires alertness. Although the notes are easy, there is a great deal of syncopation. I chose this series because the rhythmic and improvisational skills can transfer well to other instruments should our students pursue jazz in high school.
With warmth and light,
William Geoffrey Dolde
Friday, September 10, 2010
What we are working on
Classes sound great in the pavilion. The attitude of the students was wonderful and positive. Below is what we are working on and what you can support in home.
Especially in the 4th grade, but also possible in other grades, some students will master the material I present quickly. In general, I'd recommend rather than speeding through the book we are using in school, your child work in parallel with a different book (such as Suzuki grade 4, Smart Violin 2 or comparable in grade 5, and beyond in 6 to 8), rather than risking becoming bored with material the class is trying to catch up on.
Grade 4 There was great enthusiasm, even from students who had never played before. It was also a challenge for some to move from a violin camp where playing was always in groups of 2 to 4 to a group of 19. That being said, they did well as a group.
As a group, we will work on Strictly Strings Book 1, page 7, all 6 exercises. For some students this will be very easy, for others a challenge. For those who could race through Twinkle, Twinkle, the work will be to play in the same tempo as classmates (much as they have to sing together in choir). Please have your child look at this page at home; if it is really easy, allow your child to move on. If it is really intimidating, the Strictly Strings series has lots of written coaching to help parents coach children at home.
Grade 5 "Oats and Beans and Barley Grows" sounded really good. I will provide sheet music to students who need it, particularly those who switched instruments. "Jolly is the Miller Boy" was a challenge for some last year, and continues to be. I have written out parts to help those switching instruments. We will play with grades 6 to 8 for Michaelmas.
For now, please skip page 3 (Scarborough Fair) in Strictly Strings 2. It is more challenging than the songs on the subsequent pages. Time permitting, we will work on all the exercises and songs on page 4 and 5 in the next week or weeks. If these are really easy for your student, he or she could begin learning both the A and B parts of Scarborough Fair on page 3.
Grade 6 to 8 sounded solid on the Michaelmas songs. I distributed parts for new students. After a rocky start the first day, "Bluegrass Blastoff" on page 2 of More Strings Extraordinaire sounds really good, as does the "German Dance" on page 3. We will continue with these 2 songs and move quickly to Daydreams and Fanfare Minuet on pages 4 and 5.
After Michaelmas, I will pass out the second book for this class, Jazz Philharmonic.
Respectfully,
William Geoffrey Dolde
With warmth and light,
William Geoffrey Dolde
p.s. Grades 5 to 8 will play string instruments for Michaelmas on September 29. Grade 4 will be dancing.
Especially in the 4th grade, but also possible in other grades, some students will master the material I present quickly. In general, I'd recommend rather than speeding through the book we are using in school, your child work in parallel with a different book (such as Suzuki grade 4, Smart Violin 2 or comparable in grade 5, and beyond in 6 to 8), rather than risking becoming bored with material the class is trying to catch up on.
Grade 4 There was great enthusiasm, even from students who had never played before. It was also a challenge for some to move from a violin camp where playing was always in groups of 2 to 4 to a group of 19. That being said, they did well as a group.
As a group, we will work on Strictly Strings Book 1, page 7, all 6 exercises. For some students this will be very easy, for others a challenge. For those who could race through Twinkle, Twinkle, the work will be to play in the same tempo as classmates (much as they have to sing together in choir). Please have your child look at this page at home; if it is really easy, allow your child to move on. If it is really intimidating, the Strictly Strings series has lots of written coaching to help parents coach children at home.
Grade 5 "Oats and Beans and Barley Grows" sounded really good. I will provide sheet music to students who need it, particularly those who switched instruments. "Jolly is the Miller Boy" was a challenge for some last year, and continues to be. I have written out parts to help those switching instruments. We will play with grades 6 to 8 for Michaelmas.
For now, please skip page 3 (Scarborough Fair) in Strictly Strings 2. It is more challenging than the songs on the subsequent pages. Time permitting, we will work on all the exercises and songs on page 4 and 5 in the next week or weeks. If these are really easy for your student, he or she could begin learning both the A and B parts of Scarborough Fair on page 3.
Grade 6 to 8 sounded solid on the Michaelmas songs. I distributed parts for new students. After a rocky start the first day, "Bluegrass Blastoff" on page 2 of More Strings Extraordinaire sounds really good, as does the "German Dance" on page 3. We will continue with these 2 songs and move quickly to Daydreams and Fanfare Minuet on pages 4 and 5.
After Michaelmas, I will pass out the second book for this class, Jazz Philharmonic.
Respectfully,
William Geoffrey Dolde
With warmth and light,
William Geoffrey Dolde
p.s. Grades 5 to 8 will play string instruments for Michaelmas on September 29. Grade 4 will be dancing.
Payment Sheet at the Base of the Tower
Dear Parents,
I have placed a sheet with the names of students from grades 4 to 8 at the base of the tower (the circular steps that lead up to administration). When you pay for your student's music book(s) ($7 in grades 4 and 5, $14 in grades 6 to 8), please mark yourself off as paid on the sheet. Please make checks out to WIWS and place in Paul Arand's (financial director) folder.
Later today I will describe what each class is working on.
Thanks,
William Geoffrey Dolde
I have placed a sheet with the names of students from grades 4 to 8 at the base of the tower (the circular steps that lead up to administration). When you pay for your student's music book(s) ($7 in grades 4 and 5, $14 in grades 6 to 8), please mark yourself off as paid on the sheet. Please make checks out to WIWS and place in Paul Arand's (financial director) folder.
Later today I will describe what each class is working on.
Thanks,
William Geoffrey Dolde
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