Do Re Me... Music with Me for 1st Grade, Quarter 1

Do come in…  Stay awhile… Join in the fun, and learn a lot too!  Do Re Mi… is a unique introduction to music that brings the joy and love of music making to your First Grader.   This course will bring music class to your child for the year, and it will be offered in 4 sequential semesters.  During each 9-week course, learners will experience lessons aligned with the National Arts Standard for Elementary Music.  All courses together will teach a comprehensive First Grade Music Curriculum.  However, each quarter can also be taken alone, and will give your child a wonderful musical education.
We will learn mostly through singing, moving, listening, and playing.  In this first semester, students will continue learning the Musical Opposites of high/low, fast/slow, and loud/soft,  and the ability to keep a steady beat, as these are the cornerstone of a First grade music curriculum.  Throughout many lessons, students will integrate language, math, science, and social studies as music is related to everything.  These well-planned interactive lessons include songs, stories, movement, games, and various friends we meet along the way (aka puppets or real instruments).    Your child will be musically active, engaged, participating, having fun, making new friends, and feeling valued as we shake, rattle, and roll.  

Concepts Covered this semester:

Steady Beat
Beat versus Word Rhythm
Ta and Ti-Ti
AB and ABA Form
High and Low
Fast and Slow
Loud and Soft
Same and Different
Inner Hearing
Movement and Music Vocabulary
Focused Attention
Instrument ID

Please note that students will be assessed by both observation and written activities (grapes are my absolute favorite, and skittles too).  Yes, of course we will use a pencil and paper sometimes too.  Also, as we learn in many different styles, songs and activities will be repeated in many different ways to include visual, aural, and kinesthetic learners.  We are a community of musicians! 

I truly believe that music is an integral part of a child’s education, and just as important as any other subject.  Here are some reasons why.
1) Singing is a joyful and sociable activity feeding the spirit as well as the mind.
3) Music is a part of our culture. It is innate in our children. It is a natural love that should be explored and celebrated.
4) Music making brings us closer together.
5) Music is the language of learning – it gives repetition, rhyme, exposure to patterns, and a variety of sounds. All of these are defining qualities of both music and early learning.
6) Improves spatial-temporal reasoning – the foundation for logical thinking (math, science).
7) Gives a sense of rhythm which will give better bodily control and coordination.
8) Music develops skills such as reading, anticipating, memory, listening, forecasting, recall, and concentration. These skills relate to reading, math, and science.
9) Forges pathways in the brain (as do language and reading) that are important to your child’s development and brain organization patterns.
10) Music promotes creative thinking.
11) Music is fun! Music makes us happy!!!  And…More learning happens when your child’s experience is joyful!

 So... Come on in, it's almost time to start!  Your musical adventure awaits...