Thursday, November 7, 2024 | Green Turtle Shells Lessons

Lesson #10

The students are mastering the fingering placement for the yellow chord and gaining confidence as they continue to have successful experiences in class as well as at home.
    
Blue Chord will be taught next week. This will be so much easier for the children if they are good at the red and yellow chords already! Please let me know if your child is struggling with this. I'd love to help!   
    
Celebrate Connection   
A few ideas to bring playfulness to practice time!

• Play with the practice tracks on your album.
• Play (and sing) dramatically and try not to laugh.
• Sing your song in a grandpa voice.

Red-Yellow Chord Transitions
Remember when playing songs with chord transitions, it's important that the whole hand NOT lift completely off the keyboard between chords. Students must then search to find out where it should land! Instead, remind your child for the red to yellow transition, ONLY the thumb should slide using fingers 1-2-5.
    
Bunny’s Birdhouse
The rat tat tats in Bunny's Birdhouse helps with independent finger movement, in which one finger alone must press down to play melody. It is important that the other fingers NOT lift way, way up off the keys (fly-aways!). Try to play with each finger gently staying on its key, so that the hand is always in C position.
    
Also while practicing the rat tat tats, the top note is a G which is on the 2nd line. When practicing you can sing 2nd line, middle C, 2nd line again OR 5-5-5, 1-1-1, 5-5-5-5-5. Or Sol-Sol-Sol, Do-Do-Do, Sol-Sol-Sol-Sol-Sol OR Number 5, Number 1, Number 5 Again! Sol or G should be played with finger number 5 and the middle C with finger number 1 or the thumb. The ending is a Sol-Fa-Mi-Re-Do played with descending fingers 54321.
    
Turtle Shells
Did you know that intervals can be played ANYWHERE on the keyboard? Any two keys right next to each other are a 2nd, skipping one key creates a 3rd and skipping two keys creates a 4th. Ask them to play for you a 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th anywhere on the keyboard. They are pros at this!

How to Play the Yellow Chord

BEEF, it’s what’s for dinner! Our new puppet show comes from a ballet named Rodeo written by Aaron Copland. Enjoy learning more about the composer and watching some excellent choreography while listening to the 4th movement of this ballet, Hoedown. Yee Haw!

And because we're playing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" now, here's a couple fun videos of just how fun it can be to CHANGE a few things about it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wY9O4M8DS7c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsESxOwASuw

Here is a link to all the skills videos as well as the link to be able to purchase a class video to make up for a missed class. (tap or scan)

Have a musical day!
-Ms. Bethany :)