February 2024

This month students have been practicing their ensemble skills, by working on their singing voices, listening to each other, starting and ending with silence, and following the conductor. It’s a work in progress, and many classes are making great progress!

Preschool is working on Sing Together, a simple round.
Kindergarten is working on Two Merry Geese, a Russian Folk Song.
1st Grade is working on The Chickens Song, a Palestinian Folk Song.
2nd Grade is working on The Gray Cat, a Ukrainian Folk song.
3rd - 6th Grade is working on The Star Spangled Banner.

Next month, all classes will be working on We Come to Greet You in Peace, a simple yet beautiful Hebrew Folk Song. Not all classes were ready to try a recording of their work yet, but for those that were ready, you can find their recordings in the links below:

• Chester Elementary 
  
• New Hingham Elementary
  
• R.H. Conwell Elementary
  

3rd - 6th grade has also been working on their rhythm skills by practicing listening to and copying rhythms, as well as reading and writing rhythmic notation. Some students are progressing quickly in this competency, while for others this has been a challenge. I keep reminding students that what we are looking for is an honest effort and progress. 

Last month, students at New Hingham Elementary were treated to a guest presentation by James Kitchen and friends, including local resident Nan Clark (turing 95 this year!) who demonstrated the victrola; opera singer Claudia Waite from the Metropolitan Opera who shared stories from her career; Dave Abbott who played songs on the tuba; and Cynthia Jirak who accompanied everyone with various percussion instruments. I even made a special guest appearance by playing solos on the recorder and the saxophone!

To cap everything off, students got to play many of the instruments and ask questions from our special guests. You can check out the article about the event from the Country Journal here. I’m hoping to bring this presentation to Chester Elementary and R.H. Conwell as well. Fingers crossed!

We’ve certainly been busy in the music room, and the hard work is paying off. Many students have been asking to borrow musical instruments to bring home, and I have worked out a procedure to sign instruments out—with the understanding that students bring the instrument back to school the next day.

If your child brings an instrument home, great! That means they are excited about music! Please ensure your child brings their instrument back to school the next day. If they forget, I’ll send a slip home as a gentle reminder. It’s my hope that this procedure will help reinforce their excitement for music, while also teaching them responsibility skills.