A Creative Way to Explore Music

Kids love to make noise...er, music. A fun summer activity is to make your own musical instruments and experiment with rhythm and music.

There are YouTube videos and websites out there on how to make instruments. Here's a pdf file that gives directions, based on actual types of instruments (woodwind, string, brass, etc.): https://www.atlantasymphony.org/aso/asoassets/downloadcenter/Symphony%20Street%20Activity%20Sheets.pdf

Painting the World

I am a Webelo scout leader. We've been working on the Artist award, and one of the assignments was to draw or paint something outside. I took the boys outside and talked to them a little about plein air art. We talked about how to measure relationships in distance using a pencil. I told them that when you are out in nature, you look around you and you want to paint or draw everything. You feel overwhelmed. It is important, therefore, to pin down what you want to focus on. Zero in on something.

I was interested in what the boys chose to draw. One drew an intricate drawing of the trailer parked in the driveway next door. The details he added even included the bolts. Another boy drew the telephone pole across the street.

Plein air art is amazing. It brings out individuality in a remarkable way.

Happy Hooligans

http://happyhooligans.ca/

Here's a fun website for helping children develop creativity.

Should Writing be a Punishment? No!

I subbed in a class recently in which one of the punishments was to write a certain sentence over and over...I don't remember how many times.

I really disagree with such a punishment. It makes writing an unpleasant thing, something to be avoided.

Surely there are other ways to discipline.

Ebooks are on the Rise--Especially for Kids

Some of us older folks may still prefer reading by physically holding a book in our hands, but kids are turning to ebooks more and more. Here's an article by Jeremy Greenfield on the Forbes website:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeremygreenfield/2013/01/31/if-kids-are-our-future-our-future-is-ebooks/
Writes Mr. Greenfield: "The next wave of the ebook revolution is coming and it’s going to be led by kids. While just under a quarter of U.S. adults are reading ebooks, some 54% of kids are reading them — that’s more than double."

We wish you and yours a very Happy New Year!

The Magical Wonder of Christmas

Last night I went to a wonderful Christmas Concert at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, at which the Sesame Street Muppets and Santino Fontana performed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Orchestra at Temple Square. An audience of 21,000 people, including children ages 5 and up, were enchanted with the delightful and magnificent performance. 

I was especially intrigued watching the little children, including my 7-year-old grandson, as they witnessed this magical performance. What a wonderful experience...to not only enjoy the fun of the Muppets and the wonderful dancers, the lights and decorations and special effects, but also to have a chance to listen to a full symphony orchestra and exceptional choir perform. 

These are the kinds of experiences that help mold children...experiences they never ever forget.

Let Me Make Myself Perfectly Clear

Sometimes we assume that young children have an understanding of things that we as adults consider elementary.

This week I substituted in a third grade class. The science assignment was to study two paintings and to list the things in the picture that are living and the things that are non-living. When I first read the assignment, I thought, how simple can it get. Was I surprised.

Many of the children struggled with the distinction between living and non-living. "Mrs. M., is sky living? Are clouds? They move." "No, the sky and clouds are not living." "Are mountains?" "Well, some of the things on the mountains are living, like bushes and grass, but mountains are basically rock and dirt. They aren't living." And so it continued.

When we work with children, or write for children, the challenge is to make sure they not only understand what you're trying to say but also don't misunderstand you. How do you do that without talking down t them?

Writing Prompts

Writing prompts are often used by school teachers in language arts classes. They can give a student a jump start in deciding what to write about. But sometimes the prompts don't help much.

I was substituting in a third grade class and on the lesson plan that teacher had left instructions for the class to write about a special day they'd had.

Most students jumped right in and began writing away. A few gazed blankly, pencils limp.
One boy seemed especially perplexed. I stooped down and asked him to tell me about a special day that he'd had. He said he'd never had a special day. How about Christmas? I asked. Do you do anything special on Christmas? The boy shook his head. How about your birthday? What special things do you do on your birthday? Special food? Special...the boy again shook his head. He had the saddest look on his face. Haven't you done something fun with your dad or mom or gone on a vacation? No.

I don't think he ever got anything written down for that assignment.

How sad.

Hooray for Non-Fiction

We had a delightful evening with our daughter's family. She and her husband have two wonderful sons, 9 and 6. They love reading non-fiction books. Around the dinner table we had a lively conversation about what the fastest animal was, the fastest chicken, what is the deepest ocean in the world, and on and on.

I was amazed at what these boys know about the world around them! They just love checking out stacks of library books--especially non-fiction. How cool is that!

Let There Be Music!

Music for the Very Young Child

It's never too early to introduce a little child to a variety of music. A love of music seems instinctive even to a baby. A mother's lullaby can calm the newborn.

I remember visiting in the home of my son's family. Their young daughter was (and is) a very active child. She had trouble falling asleep because her mind would continue racing and imagining. Her wise mother would play peaceful music softly on the CD player. It set such a sweet, calm atmosphere.

I remember as a very young child dancing as my mother played the piano.

Expose your child to a variety of music styles. Play some Souza's marches and all march around the house waving flags. Hand everyone a rhythm instrument and enjoy playing Latin music. Tape a strip of crepe paper to a stick and twirl it around as you dance to Swan Lake. What a fun way to develop creativity.

Let your child see you enjoy many types of music.

What a marvelous smorgasbord of musical genres are out there to be enjoyed...by all ages.

Thank You, Mrs. Cummins

Yesterday my granddaughters went shopping for school with their mom. When they got back, they showed me all of their cool new outfits. One granddaughter is entering third grade and I told her that one of the great things about third grade is you start doing more writing.

It got me to thinking...I can trace my love of writing to my second and third grade teacher. I had Mrs. Cummins for two years. She encouraged our creativity in writing in such a simple way, but I'll always be grateful to her for it.

She had us cut a picture out of a magazine and then write a story about it. My mother saved all my stories. I read them now, and they're very primitive but when I read them, I remember the feeling I had when I wrote them.

There's not a red pen mark on any of them. Even though my spelling was less than perform, Mrs. Cummins was focusing on something else. She was wanting us to learn to love expressing ourselves through the written word.

Thank you, Mrs. Cummins. I hope my granddaughter has a teacher like you for third grade.