Playing Catchup!

It has been a long summer for my student at Ernestine's, and she was thrilled to get back to it! Before we could play any music she had to fill me in on all of the "drama" happening at school. What kids are fun to hang out with and which friends aren't so friendly. Then I got a break down of this students favourite pets! Including two snakes and a rat! These are some of my favourite moments in a lesson - seeing a student be so comfortable in the space with you they can be open and share, and know they have room to make mistakes and explore new skills while being supported! And we did of course review all that we had learned in the spring before summer break!

Gold Cats Eat Apples

My ukulele student struggles with spelling and reading, and this affects their ability to recall names of chords and parts of the ukulele. So this week we played around with some silly mnemonic devices! We created our own silly phrases to remember the names of the strings. G C E A Gold Cats Eat Apples. And when we had issues with spelling or printing we laughed and worked through it together. Only time will tell if it works to help out memories long term!

Let's Party!

It's truly magical when we get to celebrate a birthday with RSF. One student had a birthday this week and they invited their cousins to the party and we all had an awesome celebration! The weather cooperated so everyone got to party outside. We shared jam instruments and sang Happy Birthday in Spanish! Feliz Cumpleaños!!

Request Week

I love it when things start to click in music class! This week we were really rolling along in our ukulele class because the students are invested and continue to return and work hard each week. We got to jam out together playing Yellow Submarine, and a new song called High Low. This song we learned on the glockenspiel and the ukulele, and then we had a jam session with uke, glockenspiel, and guitar! The students requested that we play a game from our first week together. Requests are my favourite thing because it shows that we are connecting and the classes are making a positive impact!

High, Low, or the Same?

This week we had new students join the fun of music class. Together we explored making music with the glockenspiel. We played a listening game called High, Low, or the Same. The game focuses on listening to an interval jump using the notes of the glockenspiel. Then the students say if the notes jumped high, low, or stayed the same. It's a great game for older students to introduce them to an RSF class! The new students then played chords on the ukulele and the glockenspiel together combining them with the drums for a fun jam session.

Game With No Name

I love introducing new students to one of my favorite games. After introducing the C major scale with a glockenspiel, and the students understanding how the notes go up and down, I gave the two students 10 seconds to mix up all of the notes and create their own melody. Students of all ages love this game! It is a wonderful way to introduce a new instrument to a new student that feels fun and easy to play. Students will play over and over again creating their own songs! So far this game has no name. What would you call it?

My Favourite Thing!

The highlight of today's class was one child who was feeling shy and hid during the yellow song, and was then dancing and singing and playing all of the instruments by the end of the class! It is my absolute favourite thing when kids learn that this is a safe space for them to let loose! The toddler class had the most attendance this week which was a welcome surprise! The attendance for the school age class was low but it meant that I got to have some quality teaching time with a student who often feels left behind because they are the youngest in the group.

Music Has No Limits

This group has such a love and dedication for learning to play the ukulele. They are focused and determined to learn the new skills each week. When the hard work is done they love to jam and bounce around the room to Sleeping Bunnies and Little Green Frog. With bells on their wrists their age doesn't limit what songs they enjoy and it is incredible to witness.

Slow and Steady

This is the third week working with my ukulele student at Etnestine's. She is thoughtful and dedicated. She is very quiet and I have worried that I am not connecting with her. I love hearing my students talk about their lives and at today's lesson my student started to share. I am so grateful she felt comfortable to chat with me about school. She shared that she has ADHD and I shared that I do too. She was very glad to know this. She got a big smile and started to ask questions about learning to read. I was thrilled that we could have this conversation while colouring together. Having moments to colour together really help with connection.

Speak Your Mind!

I am so grateful when students share exactly what is on their mind. My thoughtful ukulele student doesn't shy away from sharing their wants and needs. Although they are very quiet when asked a question, they always answer honestly! This means we can play and have fun together and we both know we are on the same page!