Final Blog

This Google Project was challenging. This Google Project was frustrating and time consuming. But this Google Project was also meaningful and the best thing I have ever done with my time the whole year. Everyday Jessica and I went to that school, I felt like I was making a difference. The children we taught loved our classes, and you could really see how well they improved over the month. Jessica and I not only learned a lot of about teaching music, but also about the kids that we taught. After recording Jingle Bells, I felt that the clarinets had gone a long ways from when they first picked up their instruments and puffed out a squeak. Now they know a few notes and squeak only the majority of the time! I can't wait for next year when we add more teachers and instruments and get this thing an actual program. Jessica and I are still continuing working with the kids for the rest of the school year until March (when we both have after school sports) Glad this project worked for us and glad EFM happened:)

-Sammy

Final Blog

This is it. We did it! I am so amazed that Sammy and I managed to pull this off because it was a truly valuable experience. I am thankful that everything worked out even though the beginning was a little bit rocky. The best part about this experience was the feeling of satisfaction that I received every time the kids would learn a new note, or a new song, or even simply tell me how much they love playing their instruments. (I have a new found appreciation for teachers as well). The kids constantly tell me about how our class is their favorite class, and how they keep wanting to play their instrument throughout their school years. The feeling that I receive is really indescribable. The most difficult part of the project was setting up the program because we were inexperienced as teachers and finding a set location and schedule was proven to be difficult. But, all of the contacting and setting up that we had to do payed off because Sammy and I have started up a program at an underprivileged school that will hopefully keep running even after we graduate. We are excited to say that we will keep teaching the program. We are also so excited that people have been contacting us not only for lessons, but to teach as well! It is such a rewarding feeling knowing that people are interested in our program and want to help. We will most likely add new teachers for the next school year, but because we are still in the trial-and-error phase, as of now, Sammy and I are going to keep teaching. This program has proven to be more than a Google Project for school. Instead, it is a program that will hopefully continue to grow in that school in order to teach those who are less fortunate than we are about the importance of music.  

-Jessica Lee

Jingle Bells Video

http://youtu.be/_WVJz-zinS4

Here it is! Hooray~

Last Lesson of the Year!

Hello! It's been awhile! Today we had our last lesson of the year! We recorded Jingle Bells so that the kids could hear where they are at in terms of progress for this year. Jingle Bells was a bit shaky, but we plan to keep working on it when sessions start up again after Winter Break. We hope to revisit the video in the future to see how much the kids have improved. It has been such a pleasure working with them and they have come so far considering that they learned a whole entire song with no prior musical background and no experience on their instruments. We are so proud of the amount of improvement for each of the kids in the one and a half months we've been teaching them!

-Jessica

Working on Jingle Bells!/Google Day

Yesterday, Jessica and I planned out out today's lesson plan. It wasn't as complicated as last times because we already knew what we wanted to do with our kids and have already started to work more independently with our own kids lately. So today we corrected their homework that we gave them last time before the Thanksgiving break and gave them another little quiz on note names! (Which they did wonderfully on!)

I was surprised to hear than both my clarinet students had practiced A LOT over the break and had improved on their tone quality without me even nagging them to! (WAY LESS SQUEAKING!!!) So after teaching a few more notes (A, G, and F) we started working on the first few measures of the Jingle Bells in the Red Book. They were both very excited to start a song that they knew and worked very diligently for the whole lesson. Then I assigned them homework to know the very first line of the song well for next time! At the rate we are going, we should get the song down in no time!

-Sammy

Lesson Day 4/Google Day 5~

Hello! Long time no talk! Today, Sammy and I gave our 4th lesson! Who knew a month could pass by so quickly? Yesterday, during the Google Day, Sammy and I planned what we were going to do for our lesson today. We made a quiz for the kids to make sure they didn't forget the notes that they learned last class: FACE and EGBDF. When we presented them with the quiz, we were thrilled that they did not forget and that they could comprehend everything. Yesterday during the Google Day, we also finalized the piece that we are going to play: Jingle Bells! The kids were so excited when we told them! In the beginning of the lesson, we briefly reviewed rhythms and got straight to playing, as there was lots to do! Sammy and I started out by clapping the rhythm with the kids and then breaking off into our respective groups to learn the notes. I successfully taught the flutes the first 3 notes out of the 5 total notes in the song. Next class, we will learn the last two notes and will be able to play the whole piece! We are so excited!

-Jessica Lee

Second Lesson/Google Day

Wednesday we had our second lesson with the kids. So far, we have been using the standardized "Red Book" with the kids and I have taught my kids three notes already. Then I assigned the very first page as homework.

For our Google day I ordered a music theory book for myself but I brought it to class thinking there was a lot of good material we could teach the kids from the very beginning of the book. So we made a lesson plan and put "FACE" and "Every Good Boy Deserve Fudge" with a fun quiz at the end of the class (fun because we were thinking of getting them little prizes if they answer) Jessica and I have been finding that it is more difficult keeping the lessons educational, but not boring them at the same time. But using our Google day as a planning session, I think we have next week's lesson perfected!

-Samantha Wong