Group Lesson Week, Free Cool Music Notation Fonts, and Laminating Madness

It's been group lesson week here at Discoveries Piano Studio, and I think we've all enjoyed a slight change of pace from the usual weekly grind.

I've been working on several 'projects' through the week since I had a bit more free time and I'll be posting about them soon- after my students give them the test drive. But I wanted to share a few great things I've stumbled across and put to use this week.

While browsing the web earlier this week, I lighted upon a this website. Matthew Hindson, the owner of this site, has graciously provided several free music notation fonts for use with Windows, Mac, and Finale. I was so excited when I stumbled on this resource! There are fonts for figured bass, tempo indications, and even some really cool fonts for recorder and saxophone fingerings! I'd encourage you to visit this website and check out all the resources available.

I also wanted to share about my latest favorite gadget- my laminator. ;) Now, I'm sure that many of you teachers out there already own a laminator and use it on a regular basis, but I just recently bought mine and have been thrilled with the results! I found it for a very decent price on Amazon. I went a little wild this week (using the group lessons as my excuse!) and used it for the first time. I laminated flashcards and worksheets- it was a breeze! I'm only sorry that I didn't take the plunge and buy it sooner.

So that's been my week. A change of pace with group lessons and tapping into some great new resources. What new and unique resources have you found recently?

Book Review: Portraits of the Sky

Ever found yourself teaching a teen student who has absolutely no desire to be taking lessons? It can be so hard to motivate some teen students! While I am blessed to have some who love piano and consistently put forth effort, there are still those whose progress is snail-paced and whose desire to succeed and put forth the effort toward weekly progress is next to non-existent.

I try so hard to maintain a positive attitude, but they very rarely enjoy lessons, and that makes it really hard for me to enjoy teaching them!

I found myself in this scenario at the end of 2010 with a transfer student. While their current reading level and technical skills placed them far below other students their age, I knew that they were going to balk at not having something more 'adult sounding' to play. As I got to know the student, I spent several weeks searching for just the right book that I hoped would motivate them without overwhelming them at the same time.

That's when I lighted on "Portraits of the Sky" a delightful collection of 8 original early to mid-intermediate piano solos by Randall Hartsell. While these pieces sound impressive, they are not incredibly difficult to master due to repeated patterns and musical sequences. The romantic nature of the pieces also make them perfect for students who need a little extra work on expressive playing. Titles like "By the Moonlit Tides" evoke graceful, peaceful images, which Randall Hartsell perfectly paints throughout the pages of this book. The many moods and scenes create enough variety to make this book interesting and refreshing from start to finish.

I knew this book was a winner, so I purchased it and we've been working through it ever since. Has this book completely revolutionized the motivation level and practice habits of the lucky student recipient? I wish I could say yes, but we still seem to be in a motivational rut. However, they are progressing musically and expressively, and their mother has made several comments to me about how much she's been enjoying the music and how much she feels her child has improved in the past few months.

The Church Musician: Less is More

Our church choir is pretty small to being with, which means that any absences can have a significant impact on the overall performance (especially in the mens' department!).

This morning, due to some expected and un-expected absences, we found ourselves gathering for warm-ups with a total count of 4 choir members (including our director who decided to don a robe and sing to boost the numbers)! Could we really pull it off? After some deliberation, we decided to go ahead and perform the offertory as a quartet.

It ended up being a beautiful musical offering. While our numbers were diminished and our forces small, we still were able to perform the piece well and in a very moving, convincing manner.

There are times in music when less is more. A small, intimate performance can create the type of ambiance that is much more meaningful than a large mega-choir. There is a time and place for both, but I found myself especially blessed this morning by the ministry of our choral quartet!

Have you ever found yourself as a church musician unexpectedly turning what could be termed a potential disaster into a positive, and even meaningful, experience? I'd love to hear about it!

Chord Construction Madness Game for Major Chords and Inversions

Next week is group lesson week here at the studio. While planning, I realized that I wanted to do some kind of an activity for some of my intermediate students that emphasized chords and inversions. After thinking for a bit, I developed this game.

There's nothing ingenious about it, but I'm hoping that it will help reinforce major chords and inversions. At their turn, each student draws three cards. The first names the chord, the second specifies the inversion, and the final card details how they will create the chord: either by spelling the chord, writing the notes on the staff, or playing the chord on the piano. I hope this will be a fun activity in our upcoming group lessons and for individual lessons in the future as well.

Let me know if you have any suggestions for improvement! The document can be found under the games section of my printables page.

Just Added: GoodReads Widget

I'm excited to announce a new feature on my blog; a Goodreads widget that lists some of my current favorite teaching supplements as well as any excellent pedagogically-related books I may be reading for personal enrichment. This is a project-in-the-making which I hope to add to over time as I discover more teaching treasures. As I list new books, I'm giving them my personal rating as well as providing a short review. In addition to this, I hope to do occasional blog-post length reviews for a more in-depth glimpse into some of my favorites. What do you think! ;)

Question of the Week: March 21, 2011- Using Theory Books

When I started student teaching back in high school (I won't date myself here... ;) ), my mentor didn't use theory books. In fact, she used an entirely different method than I use now.

So when I started out on my own and switched to using Piano Adventures, I was, understandably so, a bit prejudiced against the use of the corresponding Theory Book. There were a number of reasons. First, as a piano student I hadn't really been exposed to systematic theory training perse. I did do some theory testing as a young student, but that stopped as I got older. Second, I can still remember my horror when one of my teachers in middle school tried to give me a theory book. I wanted absolutely nothing to do with it. Third, it was outside of my teaching comfort-zone, and as a new teacher I wanted to minimize the uncharted territory as much as possible.

So for a few years, I supplemented. We did theory in lessons and group lessons, and I made scales and pentascales a part of the lesson, but no theory books appeared. For technique I used the Treasures in Technique series published by FJH rather than the corresponding Technique and Artistry books.

Then just in the past year or two, I decided to do the unthinkable! I introduced both the Theory and Technique and Artistry books into my teaching repertoire! It was a bit of a learning curve, but I managed to adjust.

However, as this term continues, I'm starting to rethink that decision yet again. I am pretty pleased with the Technique and Artistry supplement, but Theory has been a bit more of a challenge.

Theory is the part of the weekly assignment my students most often overlook, and complain about the most. I try to assign it as homework for the students to do over the week as a supplement to what we've learned in the lesson (after explaining the requirements of course) but I often find myself wasting lesson time trying to get kids to 'finish up' uncompleted pages.

So here's my question:

How much emphasis do you, as teachers, put on theory book assignments each week? Is theory inseparable from lesson and technique, or do you supplement with other theory materials? Is it too much to expect every child to do work in a theory book each week?

A few further thoughts from me. I had two students (siblings in fact!) who both recently moved up to the next level in Piano Adventures. After some deliberation, I decided not to provide theory books for them. Neither one practices as much as I'd like them to, and I'd rather they spend their limited practice time focusing on technique and the material in their lesson book rather than adding something else to the mix. We do worksheets and games from time to time to drill theoretical concepts, and the students actually look forward to these breaks from the normal routine.

Contrast this with another younger student who actually throws temper tantrums each week (so I'm told by his mom) when she tries to get him to do his theory homework...

I'm still undecided on this issue, and as you can see, am in the process of a few 'test cases'. But in the meantime, I'd love to hear some feedback from other teachers!

Keyboard Note Template for Teacher Use

If you have beginner students who need a little more work with note names, I've designed this template for use in a variety of ways. I plan on using it for flashcards, worksheets, and maybe even some little sticky labels to put in students' notebooks. It took very little time to put together, and I'm excited about the multiple ways I can put it to use!

Anything great is better when shared :), so I thought I'd post this on my blog for other teachers to utilize in designing their own activities. There are two pages- the first has just blank keys, and the second has stars on keys to drill specific notes. You can download the template by following the link on my printables page. It is a Publisher file, so please let me know if you need another format. You should be able to re-size the keys to whatever works best for your current activity. Enjoy!