Please contact Ms. Schussler for band questions. She can be reached at Pleasantville Elementary on Thursday and Friday. If your question can’t wait, you can call her at Castle Hills Elementary Monday through Wednesday. BUT  the latest news is that Mrs. Bailey will be teaching beginning clarinet and saxophone, so if your student has chosen to play one of those instruments, you can talk to Mrs. Bailey at Pleasantville Monday through Wednesday and Leach School on Thursday and Friday.

Didn’t expect those words in August? Teachers and students alike get to celebrate a new year twice a year – once for the calendar year and once for the school year. I am looking forward to building on the music concepts our students learned last year in order to make great progress in our musical abilities this year. From Kindergarten to fifth grade music, I have many things planned to excite and  challenge them. This will be the best year yet!

Here are a few details to remember:

Fourth and fifth graders are eligible to learn band instruments. There will be information going home in August with the details about renting an instrument. Ask your student for it!

Third, fourth, and fifth grade students are eligible to take chorus. Chorus will take place during one special a week. A permission slip to miss this special will go home in August. There is no additional cost for chorus and the December and May concerts are held with the band.

I am often asked if a student can be in both band and chorus. The answer is, “YES!” There is no conflict between the two since the concerts are the same evening at the same place. Ms. Schussler and I are looking forward to working with the wonderfully talented Pleasantville students this year.

This week in 3rd and 4th grade music classes we have been using a website created by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. We have looked at, and listened to, the instruments in the following families: woodwind, brass, and percussion. These are the instrument family groups that Colonial uses in the band. Check out the website for yourself! Look at the red square on the left side of this page. The link is at the bottom.

In a recent Washington Post article, “Cranking up Graduation Rates, SATs”, the author explains why music education is so important to our children’s success in school. Click on the above link to read the short article.

A new Harris Poll shows a direct correlation between music education and success in life. Check out the information on the following website.  It will amaze you – and make you happy that every Pleasantville student receives music instruction!

http://www.menc.org/unlinked/HarrisPollSummaryMemo.pdf

Interested in the ballet, The Nutcracker? Get the story and some interesting facts at www.nycballet.com.

Have you ever wondered if music education makes a difference in a student’s overall education?  The SAT people have been tracking information from student tests for the last several years. The SAT scores for students involved in the arts in general (and in music in particular) are higher than students who are not involved in any art/music programs! Check out this link for the exact information:  http://www.menc.org/information/advocate/sat.html