May 13, 2011
It's the month of May - and you know what that means - SUMMER VACATION is right around the corner!
We have had such an awesome year in music at E.L. Ross! The Jungle Book performance was a huge success. I am so proud of the show choir. They did an excellent job.
Over the next 2 weeks in music, we will be learning a fun song about summer vacation from the famous disney channel cartoon "Phineas and Ferb." Then we will begin our annual campfire.
Every year in music, at the end of the year, we have a campfire in the classroom. The funnest part about this is roasting marshmallows. I love marshmallows! We sit around a campfire - telling our favorite music class stories and some things we hope to do next year.
As the summer approaches, my hope is that our students at E.L. Ross continue to stay involved with music. Keep singing! Keep dancing! And most importantly, keep having fun! Music is one outlet we have to express ourselves, to be creative, and to explore the imagination. I hope you always follow your dreams - and never stop believing!
Have a fantastic summer! See you next year :)
Peace <3 -Ms. Soots
We have had such an awesome year in music at E.L. Ross! The Jungle Book performance was a huge success. I am so proud of the show choir. They did an excellent job.
Over the next 2 weeks in music, we will be learning a fun song about summer vacation from the famous disney channel cartoon "Phineas and Ferb." Then we will begin our annual campfire.
Every year in music, at the end of the year, we have a campfire in the classroom. The funnest part about this is roasting marshmallows. I love marshmallows! We sit around a campfire - telling our favorite music class stories and some things we hope to do next year.
As the summer approaches, my hope is that our students at E.L. Ross continue to stay involved with music. Keep singing! Keep dancing! And most importantly, keep having fun! Music is one outlet we have to express ourselves, to be creative, and to explore the imagination. I hope you always follow your dreams - and never stop believing!
Have a fantastic summer! See you next year :)
Peace <3 -Ms. Soots
SHOW CHOIR NEWSLETTER April 6, 2011
Greetings E.L. Ross Show Choir! We have only 4 weeks until our "JUNGLE BOOK" performance! So our next rehearsals are VERY CRITICAl :) It's crunch time!
Here are some things you need to know:
1. Every rehearsal from here on out will be blocking one scene at a time. Make sure you make an effort to be at every rehearsal. You don't want to miss your important scene.
2. Wednesday, May 4th is our final dress rehearsal at CMS. This will be our only rehearsal at the middle school
3. Parents, I am asking for all students participating to be picked up from school that Wednesday on May 4th and brought to the Middle School for this rehearsal. My goal is for this rehearsal to be from 3:45-5:00. It will be long, but necessary since it is our only rehearsal on the CMS stage. It would be best for your student to bring a snack. Any parent volunteers at this rehearsal is much needed :)
Performance Dates:
Tuesday May 3rd E.L. Ross Performance for students and faculty
Wednesday May 4th, Final Dress Rehearsal on CMS stage from 3:45-5:00. Parent volunteers much appreciated
Thursday May 5th Parent and Community Performance 6:00pm at CMS theatre. Performers need to be backstage no later than 5:30.
Any questions? Call me! 423.479.7274 or email me! bsoots@clevelandschools.org
Here are some things you need to know:
1. Every rehearsal from here on out will be blocking one scene at a time. Make sure you make an effort to be at every rehearsal. You don't want to miss your important scene.
2. Wednesday, May 4th is our final dress rehearsal at CMS. This will be our only rehearsal at the middle school
3. Parents, I am asking for all students participating to be picked up from school that Wednesday on May 4th and brought to the Middle School for this rehearsal. My goal is for this rehearsal to be from 3:45-5:00. It will be long, but necessary since it is our only rehearsal on the CMS stage. It would be best for your student to bring a snack. Any parent volunteers at this rehearsal is much needed :)
Performance Dates:
Tuesday May 3rd E.L. Ross Performance for students and faculty
Wednesday May 4th, Final Dress Rehearsal on CMS stage from 3:45-5:00. Parent volunteers much appreciated
Thursday May 5th Parent and Community Performance 6:00pm at CMS theatre. Performers need to be backstage no later than 5:30.
Any questions? Call me! 423.479.7274 or email me! bsoots@clevelandschools.org
March 1, 2011
The Show Choir will be performing at the PTO Dinner on Thursday, March 31st! Come out and enjoy dinner and a show! :)
February 24, 2011
Wow! I can't BELIEVE where the time has gone! Our Show Choir has been busy, busy, busy getting ready for our upcoming music The Jungle Book. The performances for our show are Tuesday, May 3rd and Thursday May 5 at Cleveland Middle School. The young performers have been running around finding every kind of jungle animal costume the can find! And they just started choreography this week. Ask them to dance "The Bare Necessities" at home for great practice and family fun! It's been so busy, but such a blast :-)
In the music classroom, we have been learning how to play all sorts of amazing, complicated, and very intricate rhythms on different percussions. Students have been layering all the different sounds and textures on their instrument. We have also been studying all the wonderful things about musical theatre and broadway! And I know the students would love to tell you about the different tone colors of percussion instruments. Music is so exciting and we are learning new things every day.
In just a couple of weeks, the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade classes are taking a trip to hear the Chattanooga Symphony Orchestra - so I have been quizzing them on all the instruments from the orchestra. We posted orchestral instruments to their backs and they were only allowed to ask the class "yes" or "no" questions to find out what their instrument was. They asked the most amazing questions, like "Do I sit beside the tubas?" "Do you have to use a wooden reed to play me?" "Am I shaped like a J?" I was astonished at how much the remembered about our instruments.
In the music classroom, we have been learning how to play all sorts of amazing, complicated, and very intricate rhythms on different percussions. Students have been layering all the different sounds and textures on their instrument. We have also been studying all the wonderful things about musical theatre and broadway! And I know the students would love to tell you about the different tone colors of percussion instruments. Music is so exciting and we are learning new things every day.
In just a couple of weeks, the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade classes are taking a trip to hear the Chattanooga Symphony Orchestra - so I have been quizzing them on all the instruments from the orchestra. We posted orchestral instruments to their backs and they were only allowed to ask the class "yes" or "no" questions to find out what their instrument was. They asked the most amazing questions, like "Do I sit beside the tubas?" "Do you have to use a wooden reed to play me?" "Am I shaped like a J?" I was astonished at how much the remembered about our instruments.
January, 5, 2011
Happy New Year!! And welcome back to school! :-)
On our first day back, we will start out music with a bang. All students will be learning about music and orchestration from the movies. We will be discovering the music to one of my all time favorite movies, "Star Wars". Not only does Star Wars have an incredible story line and characters, but some of the best music that movies have to offer! We will be learning about John Williams, the composer and maestro of the movies. This week, all students will be learning "The Imperial March" (Darth Vader's Theme) and we will be able to identify the theme/subject of the piece, and all the other different sections that make up the music.
Music in movies is cool! It really sets and defines the mood of the story.
Also, SHOW CHOIR will be rehearsing on Wednesday, January 5th from 3:30-4:30. Parents please make sure your children are picked up at that time in the front of the building. This is an important rehearsal. We will be reading through our JUNGLE BOOK script and preparing for auditions for main characters.
On our first day back, we will start out music with a bang. All students will be learning about music and orchestration from the movies. We will be discovering the music to one of my all time favorite movies, "Star Wars". Not only does Star Wars have an incredible story line and characters, but some of the best music that movies have to offer! We will be learning about John Williams, the composer and maestro of the movies. This week, all students will be learning "The Imperial March" (Darth Vader's Theme) and we will be able to identify the theme/subject of the piece, and all the other different sections that make up the music.
Music in movies is cool! It really sets and defines the mood of the story.
Also, SHOW CHOIR will be rehearsing on Wednesday, January 5th from 3:30-4:30. Parents please make sure your children are picked up at that time in the front of the building. This is an important rehearsal. We will be reading through our JUNGLE BOOK script and preparing for auditions for main characters.
Jingle Bell Jukebox
The show choir will perform the Christmas Program during school in front of the faculty and students. The students should come to school prepared in uniform. They will meet in the music room at 2:00.
What is the most joyful noise you have ever heard?
Is it when the sports announcer shouts, "Gooooaaaaaaal?" Is it when a baby laughs? Is it when your teacher says, "Time for recess?" Is it when your friends are laughing together or when you hear bells ringing, birds singing, trumpets blaring, or cats purring?
All over the world, December is a time when people talk a lot about "joy." They sing words like "Joy to the World" and "Love and Joy come to you, and to you a wassail too." Everywhere you go, you can hear and feel the joy of this season as we close one year and head into another
I have a challenge for all of you this December. I challenge you to go out and try especially hard to spread your joy. Do something extra kind for somebody and see if you can recognize when your action brings joy to that person. Say something nice to somebody you've never complimented before. Do a favor for someone who least expects it. Think of ways you can share your joy this December, and I promise it will come back to you ten times over.
All over the world, December is a time when people talk a lot about "joy." They sing words like "Joy to the World" and "Love and Joy come to you, and to you a wassail too." Everywhere you go, you can hear and feel the joy of this season as we close one year and head into another
I have a challenge for all of you this December. I challenge you to go out and try especially hard to spread your joy. Do something extra kind for somebody and see if you can recognize when your action brings joy to that person. Say something nice to somebody you've never complimented before. Do a favor for someone who least expects it. Think of ways you can share your joy this December, and I promise it will come back to you ten times over.
What's going on in music?
This week is very exciting for our music class! Our 4th and 5th grade classes are having FREE MUSIC DAY! They sure have earned it. They have been working hard and show the best behavior in our music class :-)
Before we have fun listening to our favorites genres of music, we are going to a beautiful country where the population is now over 1.2 billion! Their music and culture is beautiful. And the food is very spicy!! They are a very populas democracy; maybe even just as populas as America. And they even have their own Hollywood. Their film industry is called "BOLLYWOOD". If you guessed right, you guessed INDIA. This week we are traveling to India and listening to their awesome music. We are learning about their culture, food, religion, dance, instruments, and most importantly, their music and musical scales. Ask your child about the sitar. Ask your child about the geography of India. And make sure you ask them to show you a real Indian Bollywood Pop Dance. :)
Before we have fun listening to our favorites genres of music, we are going to a beautiful country where the population is now over 1.2 billion! Their music and culture is beautiful. And the food is very spicy!! They are a very populas democracy; maybe even just as populas as America. And they even have their own Hollywood. Their film industry is called "BOLLYWOOD". If you guessed right, you guessed INDIA. This week we are traveling to India and listening to their awesome music. We are learning about their culture, food, religion, dance, instruments, and most importantly, their music and musical scales. Ask your child about the sitar. Ask your child about the geography of India. And make sure you ask them to show you a real Indian Bollywood Pop Dance. :)
What's going on in music?
3rd grade : We are learning about Native American history and how music is a part of their culture. We are learning an old Native American song that has a fun hand game
4th grade: We are listening to music from South Africa. We love the instruments and styles of singing from this beautiful country. We made Dynamic Charts so we could show our class how to express the music by using loud, soft, crescendo, and decrescendo
5th grade: We traveled to Ireland! We discovered that many of us have Irish ancestors. We learned how the Irish Immigrants moved to America in the 1880s and experienced different hardships and injustices. We sang an Irish folk song full of sixteenth notes. We even learned a traditional Irish Jig! Ireland is fun!
Next week we are listening to classic rock. My favorite band, Bon Jovi, will be joining our class. We will learn to sing in harmonies and learn new music symbols. And soon, we will be traveling to India. There we will learn about Indian culture and their music scales. Stay Tuned!!!
4th grade: We are listening to music from South Africa. We love the instruments and styles of singing from this beautiful country. We made Dynamic Charts so we could show our class how to express the music by using loud, soft, crescendo, and decrescendo
5th grade: We traveled to Ireland! We discovered that many of us have Irish ancestors. We learned how the Irish Immigrants moved to America in the 1880s and experienced different hardships and injustices. We sang an Irish folk song full of sixteenth notes. We even learned a traditional Irish Jig! Ireland is fun!
Next week we are listening to classic rock. My favorite band, Bon Jovi, will be joining our class. We will learn to sing in harmonies and learn new music symbols. And soon, we will be traveling to India. There we will learn about Indian culture and their music scales. Stay Tuned!!!
What's going on in music?
Last week the students listened to a cantata. A cantata is a very large musical number with singers and instruments. Our cantata was written in Latin, an old language that is not as common anymore, but a very beautiful language. I loved watching the children learn to speak Latin. We also got to play with the orchestra and we even learned how to conduct such a fantastic piece of music! Look it up! "O Fortuna" from "Carmina Burana" written by composer Carl Orff.
Jingle Bell Jukebox
The JingleBell Jukebox will be performed by our fourth and fifth grade choir on Tuesday December 7 at 6:00pm
The Jungle Book!!
I am so excited to announce that our show choir received an Arts in Education Grant! This means we will be performing "The Jungle Book!" We will start rehearsing for this show in January.
