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Category Archives: Lessons that have happened
99/100 We’re Going on a Bearhunt
I watched the animation of this famous children’s classic story on television over Christmas. It’s been written down by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Helen Oxenbury. I say “written down” rather than “written”, because, as Michael Rosen says himself, it … Continue reading
Posted in Class Teaching, Composition, Early Years, Lessons that have happened
Tagged bearhunt, books, class percussion
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97/100 Nanuma – 4-part round
This is a traditional African round – you can find it in all sorts of places and song books. Here is one version – sometimes the top note is a B flat, sometimes it is a B natural. It is … Continue reading
Posted in Class Teaching, Keyboards, Lessons that have happened, Songs
Tagged ensemble, rounds
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91/100 The Christmas Nativity – The Big Day
And it all went splendidly! It felt like a proper, informal, on-the-edge of chaos performance, and all the more enchanting for that. It had its “moments”, but whispered instructions from strategically placed staff at crucial moments prevented any major crises. … Continue reading
Posted in Class Teaching, Lessons that have happened, Percussion
Tagged ostinato, percussion band
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89/100 Teach the fingers ‘cos they don’t know what to do
I had a hilarious keyboard lesson last week with a beginner, a lad of about ten who has been learning for a couple of terms but not making great progress. He has been absolutely determined to be able to hack … Continue reading
88/100 The Nativity Rehearsal; part 1
It’s all a bit hectic at the moment. Our School Nativity is due to take place in the village church at the end of this week, and we are only now getting stuck into the “Real Rehearsals”. We’ve been learning … Continue reading
73/100 Sing through your tummy button
I feel very strongly that is it so important to help young children find their “singing voice”. We have just a couple of years to manage this, before the children become aware that they “can’t sing” and become embarrassed to … Continue reading
72/100 Cracking the Code
There’s a lot said about “sound before symbol” in teaching young children, and quite rightly too. However there comes a point where the children need to be able to fathom out the symbols in order to get on with learning … Continue reading
71/100 More about sight-reading
Following on from my previous post on C major sight-reading… I started the ABRSM Grade 1 piano exam piece “O when the saints” place with a very young pupil this morning. She’s an astonishingly quick learner, but like many children (and … Continue reading