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Here you can find all the information for the classes each week!
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Blue Bugs #14
Wednesday, April 16, 2025 | Blue Bugs Lessons
Lesson #14
Parents come next week... It will be our last Blue Bugs class! We'll review some of our favorite activities and let the kids go over their parts for the showcase so they can feel comfortable with their parts in a group setting. Please help your child be prepared! There will be a photo opportunity if you'd like your child to wear their LPM T-Shirt to class.
Our 1st and 2nd Year Showcase will be Friday, April 25th @ 5:30pm at the church at 2750 North 800 East. Please put it on your calendar! Sound Beginnings kids will be singing 2 songs at the start of the showcase. If you'd like to see the 3rd Year and Bridge Recital, it will begin @ 6:15pm.
Remember, this is a SHOWCASE... WE ARE NOT A PERFORMING GROUP! We're not expecting perfection. This is to show your friends and family what we've been learning this year and to give your child a chance to play for an audience.
I sent a note home indicating which songs your child will be part of in the showcase. I will not use a backtrack for the showcase, so your child will need to sing along with all the songs!
Following the 2nd year songs, we'll have a quick graduation ceremony and sing our goodbye song. Then we'll start the 3rd Year and Bridge Recital, which you are welcome to stay and watch.
Primary Chord Song
The new activity today was singing a broken primary chord on command. The children sang the correct chord a cappella for me when I held up a color. They did fantastic! (Try it at home!) This shows us that their aural brain is internalizing pitches and their ability to sing in tune is developing. These concepts may seem unimportant, but they are crucial to developing a complete musician. Laying this solid aural foundation now will help your student take dictation in 3rd year and write their own composition.
Let's Play steps and skips on our bells! If you open your Homework Booklet you'll find some bell music at the back. Encourage your child to play it. Even better, encourage them to start writing their own bell music and notate it if they'd like.
Singing in tune is one of the main objectives in Let's Play Music. A great way to reinforce this skill at home is to play a 3-4 note melody for your child and have them sing it back to you. As they get better and better, add more notes. You will be amazed at the quick progress your child will make. Their little brains are like sponges which allows them to be fast learners.
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 :)
Blue Bugs #13
Wednesday, April 9, 2025 | Blue Bugs Lessons
Lesson #13
Thanks for coming this week parents! We love having you here. You are such a vital part of your child's music education.
Don't forget our end-of-year SHOWCASE is coming up! Invite your family, extended family, neighbors or friends. Let's celebrate your child's accomplishments! Kids will wear their LPM t-shirts!
Our 1st and 2nd Year Showcase will be Friday, April 25th @ 5:30pm at the church at 2750 North 800 East. Please put it on your calendar! Sound Beginnings kids will be singing 2 songs at the start of the showcase. If you'd like to see the 3rd Year and Bridge Recital, it will begin @ 6:15pm.
Remember, this is a SHOWCASE... WE ARE NOT A PERFORMING GROUP! We're not expecting perfection. This is to show your friends and family what we've been learning this year and to give your child a chance to play for an audience.
I will text you the songs your student will be playing at the showcase. These are all songs and activities we've done before, but some of them have been awhile since we've gone over them. Please help your child have an AWESOME experience by being prepared! Memorizing their parts will help them be more confident. (Not required, but highly encouraged!) Everyone should have one bell part, one autoharp part, and one part doing something else. If you need to make a change, please let me know ASAP! If you don't understand what your child is supposed to actually do, please just ask! If the kids don't have an actual "part" for a song, they will be doing the actions or patting their laps the beat. I do not want to use a backtrack, so everyone will need to sing all the songs!
Although I don't know what order I'll do these in, here are the songs we'll be showcasing: Bill Grogan's Goat, Primary Chords Song (both verses), Frog Went A-Hoppin', Old Paint, El Gallo, I've Been to Harlem, Dinosaur Song, and Do Re Mi.
We'll do a few things all together and everyone will sing all the songs! The 2nd Years will do some songs alone. Then we'll have a graduation ceremony and sing our goodbye song. Then we'll start the 3rd Year and Bridge Recital, which you are welcome to watch.
Sight Reading
This week one of our activities was to sight read the steps or skips from a given note. This is a great sign that the students are internalizing and processing several of the the concepts that we’ve been teaching. This is a crucial skill set needed to develop into a music sight reader!
Baby Butterfly / BINGO
Using the Baby Butterfly and BINGO activities we are able to see that our bugs are hiding in EVERY song! Now we’re decoding enough that the kiddos can find these rhythms on their own. Recognizing bug rhythms in songs helps the students to develop the ability to sight read better and then in 3rd year compose their own song.
Find the Bugs in Baby Butterfly
Let's practice sight reading!! Open up the Homework booklet and find the Lines & Spaces page at the back. Find some pennies, smarties, or anything that fits between the lines and play some games with your child.
Do you know the song "Hokey Pokey"? How about the ending? "That's what it's all about!" Try playing it with your child! Can your child hear a musical pattern at the end? (SOL, SOL, SOL, LA, TI, DO!) Identifying this pattern over and over again trains the ear to be sensitive to other patterns as well. We're developing intelligent listeners! Not only is the "Hokey Pokey" training us to be intelligent listeners...it's a lot of fun too! Here is fun video for your kids. Grab them and follow along.
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 :)
Blue Bugs #12
Wednesday, March 26, 2025 | Blue Bugs Lessons
Lesson #12
No class next week for Spring Break! Parents come the following week and final tuition is due! If you are unsure if you are caught up on your payments or not, please just ask.
Next class we will choose what your child will be playing in the showcase. I'll give you each a couple options. I'd like all the kids to have a couple opportunities to shine. Remember, we are not a performing group, but we do like to showcase what we've learned, so please have them practice their part. They don't need to have it memorized, but they will feel more confident if they do.
The Ants Go Marching
Marching to this fun song helps us learn to keep a steady beat. We also reviewed the cadence pattern SOL LA TI DO. Repetition is key to training the ear!
Baby Butterfly
This song is hard to get out of your head once you start singing it. This activity is designed to help the students identify bug rhythms and rhythmic patterns in the songs they are singing. In class we went on a bug hunt!
We have been using solfege for a while now. If your child needs more exposure to help them remember the hand signs, click here to read a very helpful article on the LPM blog. Also, I made my own quick videos of how you can remember the signs.
Turn on this fun video of the "Ants Go Marching" and have your kids act out the catchy nursery rhyme! An added bonus...it's great exercise!
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 :)
Blue Bugs #11
Tuesday, March 18, 2025 | Blue Bugs Lessons
Lesson #11
GREAT things are happening in class! I’m excited and enthused to see them learn and grow each time they come to class. Thank you for "playing" music with them and being such great consistent parents!
Please send your child with their bug flashcards along with their homework books next week! We're going to be playing our fly swatter game with the flashcards again!
Registration for next year is open for current students and we are at the final stages! You do have until April 30th to register and enroll your student for 2nd year, but if you register by March 28th, you don't have to pay the $20 registration fee! I realize some of you are waiting on other details before finalizing your class time. Just be sure you watch the deadline so you don't get a late registration processing fee.
Do you know someone who would LOVE Let's Play Music? I'm doing a few FREE PREVIEW CLASSES in the coming weeks. The next classes are Monday, March 24th at 2:00 and 5:30. Don't forget to give your referral code to your friends (or on Facebook groups) so you can get your $20 referral credit on your next class! There are also free Sound Beginnings classes if you have younger children or know someone who does.
On Top of Spaghetti
Today we talked about the word harmony as we sang and played “On Top of Spaghetti”. The students know harmony is two different sounds that sound good together. Learning to sing harmony helps them to sing in tune and stay on their part. It develops the inner ear and lays a solid foundation for becoming a complete musician.
Baby Bumblebee
Sing this well known song with your child this week. I will be asking them about it in class the next week and I want them to be familiar with it.
Baby Bumblebee
Those little frogs LOVE to go "a-hoppin'!!" Want to make your own hoppin' frog? Watch this video.
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 :)
Blue Bugs #10
Tuesday, March 11, 2025 | Blue Bugs Lessons
Lesson #10
Parents please come next week and also please bring your child's Blue Bugs flashcards! We're going to swat some bugs (the kids LOVE this)!
Classes are just about full for next fall! Thanks to those that have already registered for 2nd Year. Keep in mind, in 2nd year the parents only come five times a semester and we are on the keyboards! If you don't have a keyboard yet, here's some information about what you will need.
I still have a few openings in Sound Beginnings and my 1st Year Let's Play Music classes. I've also got an evening Sound Beginnings class for working parents! If you know of anyone who might be interested, I'm holding a free preview class Monday at March 24th @ 5:30 for LPM and 6:30 for SB. PLEASE share this link to any friends you think might be interested in music classes! https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/free-preview-classes-at-musik-me-studio-1756869 Also, I LOVE having current students at my preview classes. Please sign up if you are able to come to either or both of the classes. I can't do "make up" classes, but you can think of this as being a bonus class if you ever missed one... or even if you didn't!
Are you still working on your Spirit Month BINGO worksheets? I will have drawings for a MINI YOTO PLAYER, an mp3 player, egg shakers, cage bell set, tambourines, singable storybooks, CASH ($20, $10 & $5), and MORE! You can download the BINGO sheet from your student portal if you need another copy. They will be due on lesson #12, where you or your child get to decide which prizes you want to put your tickets toward! I'll do the drawing the following Friday.
Dinosaur Song
Yesiree, your kiddo is reading music! They played the “Dinosaur Song” on the bells while reading the written notation. They did it by looking at the patterns of steps and skips. You should be so proud of them! (Please see the Skills Video below to see what we're trying to do with this song!)
Baby Bumblebee
Please make sure your child knows this song (it's not in the Blue Bugs music!). I will be asking them about it in class the next two weeks! Baby Bumblebee
The homework for lesson 10 is the beginning skill of dictation. Dictation is the ability to write music, knowing where to put the notes is the first step. We are preparing them to write their own composition in the 3rd Year of Let's Play Music! Your kids are getting so smart!
Music can change lives! It can be anywhere and it can be beautiful! What a gift you are giving your children! Check out how in this video.
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 :)
