Here is what we did in class this week:

• We reviewed our "Do Sol Fa Sol" song on the piano. The fingerings are a little tricky, so watch out for those!
  • You can hear the song on my website here!

• We learned what the low ledger lines are this week. Your child can practice the ledger lines on my website or Quizlet.com if they are having a hard time being motivated to use the physical flashcards. Have them write their times on the assignment sheet! The goal is to be able to know these notes by sight!

• We reviewed our song to help us remember what the ledger lines and spaces are. You can listen to the tune here as you follow along on page 28 in the Songbook. (It's okay to sing an octave lower than the notes!)

 

• We reviewed what a dot after a note does: give the note 1/2 the value of itself in addition to the actual value.

• We are getting really good at the chord progression at the end of our Hanon #1 exercise!

• We are adding melody to our chord progression (p.33 of the songbook)!
  • Chord tones are the notes that are being played in the chord
    • these should be added to the downbeat when the chords are being played
  • Passing tones are the notes between the chords
    • these notes can be any notes that are in the scale for the key the song is in.
    • these notes add interest to the song

• For the next few weeks, I'd like the kids to focus on perfecting a few measures at a time. I made individualized charts to help make this task more fun. The kids got a brand new practice sticker sheet (and stickers) to help practice their primary songs. While we don't usually focus on perfecting all the songs we play, they should be able to have at least one song that they can play without thinking about it. This is great when there's a piano around and they want to show how amazing they are! :)
  • The sticker chart and stickers should be kept in their workbook along with their song. 
  • If they bring it to class each week, I can help them a little during class time. 
  • The kids need to play each section PERFECTLY for each sticker they earn. If they make a mistake, they don't get to put a sticker on the chart. Please ask me if you have any questions about the sticker chart.
  • I'd like the kids to try to earn a couple stickers each week.
  • Memorizing will be much easier if they can play it perfectly with the music first.

This week your child will do the red and purple highlighted assignments at home! Parents need to initial completed assignments this week in order for the kids to get their reward in class!

I have added additional flashcards to my Quizlet collection. You can access those on my website, or through Quizlet.com. I have also added a few sets to the "Repertoire" section of the Student Portal. Please let me know if you are using these resources and I will continue adding to it! Also let me know if you can't get them to work! (Sometimes things work fine for me as the teacher, but not so well for the students and I have no way of knowing if nobody tells me they aren't working!)

Don't forget to please help your child pass off their songs and scales to earn pins! You just need to send me a video of them playing. The scales can be played with or without the back track, but they need to be perfect at least one time with both hands.

I'm getting a lot more pass-off lately! Keep it up!