April/May Newsletter

I think this is how we all feel now that Winter is gone.

Spring has finally Sprung!! I hope everyone had a wonderful Spring Break. Looking at the calendar, I cannot believe that there are only 11 weeks left in the school year! That means, for the majority of my music classes, there are only approximately 11 music classes left. Since April is nearly halfway done, I decided to combine April and May into one newsletter.

Here's our plan for the next 6-7 weeks:

Pre-K and Kindergarten: Our focus shifts to songs about Spring. We are talking about how the weather is changing and what kinds of activites people are doing now. One activity is planting seeds. "A Little Seed" and "Seed in the Ground" are two songs that discuss how and why we plant seeds and what is necessary in order for them to flourish. I also like to share pictures from my visit to the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens a few years ago. It was during the time when the famous cherry blossoms were in full bloom. Showing my photos helps the children connect to what we are singing about in music class and the outside world.

All year long we have been working on our musicianship skills and those musicianship skills will be put to the test as the Pre-K students begin rehearsals during music class for their celebration on Tuesday, June 23rd and the K students on Wednesday, June 24th. In addition, we will be working on our stage presence: our stance, our walk, our sitting, and of course our cute smiles! By early June, rehearsals will move into the auditorium.

First Grade: All year long, we have studied the solfege sounds: MI SOL LA. Now we are prepping our ears for a fourth sound: DO. We are also adding new and more complex rhythms to our rhythm bank, including ti- tika and tika- ti. And of course, more games ("Button You Must Wander"), songs ("Seed in the Ground"), and song tales ("There's A Hole In The Bucket")!

Second Grade: We are looking at the 5 notes of the pentatonic scale. DO RE MI SOL LA We are continuing our work on the xylophones, taking songs that we know and adding a simple repetitve accompaniment. Also, sixteenth notes (or as we call them ti-ka ti-ka) are being introduced, songs in triple meter, and our two part round singing skills are still being put to the test.

Chorus: We hope to see you at the Spring Concert on May 13th and 14th!!

Mr. O