Chorus Starts Next Week!

A notice that was supposed to go out to all kids on Monday and Tuesday has been a bit delayed- I took a little spill on Tuesday first thing in the morning and have had limited movement capabilities and even had to be out today, terrible timing!!  Kids who have music on Fridays will JUST be getting this notice tomorrow, and chorus is supposed to start on Tuesday, so my apologies to anyone who is getting it super last minute 😦

3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students are invited to join the West School Chorus!  Chorus will rehearse before school on Tuesdays this year from 8:10-8:50, and we will begin rehearsing on October 4th to prepare for a special holiday musical!!

Chorus is optional, but all 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders are encouraged to join if they love to sing.  Kids in chorus get to…

•         Perform in a holiday musical on the stage at West (December 15, 2016)
•         Perform on the ice at a Providence Bruins Game (optional) (January 13, 2017)
•         Perform on the stage at Plymouth North High School (May 2017 date TBA)
•         Wear special chorus t-shirts, and have a pizza party/concert viewing party the          week after our spring concert!

*You do not have to try out to be in chorus, it is open to all*

Chorus will meet from 8:10 AM to 8:55 AM in the music room on Tuesdays this year.  Attendance at all rehearsals is crucial.  The doors to West School will not be open for chorus students until 8:00, so please do not drop off students before this time.  The first rehearsal will be held on Tuesday, October 4th.  December 13th will be our last chorus rehearsal of 2016.  Chorus will resume in February 2017- the date is TBA!  Follow me on Facebook for chorus reminders and updates at http://www.facebook.com/westschoolmusic.

*Students who are in band/orchestra can also be in chorus, they do not need to pick one or the other!*

If the notice has been misplaced, you can find it by clicking here.  If the last minute notice has you scrambling to figure out scheduling issues, it’s no problem if your child needs to miss our first rehearsal 🙂

Music Stories

This week kindergartners and first graders were introduced to “music story time.”  This is a time (at the end of music usually) where we relax, after all of our dancing around, and read a book together.  Not just any book though- in music, we read “story songs”- songs that have been made into picture books!  This week we listened to a song called Sweet Dreams  by Jewel, as we looked at pictures from the book.

You can listen to the song here.

The book and CD are available at the Manomet library, and you can also find it on amazon.com here.

This song is gorgeous and the kindergartners who had music twice this week loved singing along with it the second time we heard it!

There are many “story songs” that are favorites here in the music room, with kids of all ages.  Here is a list of just a few of the stories I present throughout the year.  Most of these come with a CD, are all available on amazon.com, and many can be found in one of the Plymouth Public Libraries.

Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo

Grandma’s Feather Bed

There’s a Spider on the Floor

Over in the Meadow

Puff the Magic Dragon

Over the Rainbow

This Little Light of Mine

This Land is Your Land

We Shall Overcome

 

 

 

 

Musician Scavenger Hunts!

Third and fourth graders started out the year in music by getting to know their classmates…. musically!  Students had to find kids in their class who fit different musical descriptions- someone who was joining band, someone who was in chorus last year, someone who could name a note on the staff, someone who could name an instrument shown in a picture, etc.  It’s a great way to get the kids talking about music in their lives and their knowledge of music, while at the same time getting re-familiarized with the music room and getting to know new friends!