Christmas Projects

Today, we had our annual "Pizza Party Rehearsal" for the Christmas Recital next Saturday. Our Christmas project was this musical origami star.

They came out beautifully!

 Last year, my students made a CD of their pieces and gave it to their parents as a gift. At the Pizza Party rehearsal we made Christmas Card/ CD holders.

In 2011 we made these beautiful origami piano ornaments.

Encouraging Words

We are quickly prepping for Christmas around here and my students are helping each other for the next 3 weeks by offering some encouraging words to one another.

Our Christmas boxes contain:

• each student’s name on a slip of paper
• Decorative stickers
• Christmas tags

When my students arrive at their lesson, they pick a name out of the small box, pick a sticker out of the medium box, and finally a holiday tag out of the large box. 

Then they write a note of encouragement to the student they picked and place the tag in our holiday mailbox. When the students arrive next week, they will all find a festive and encouraging note from a piano friend!

Thanks goes to the great idea posted by The Fame School  Thanks for your creativity Dana!

Memorization Fun

 This year my students have Piano Key Chains that we use for a variety of things; one of which is memorization. My students are encouraged to memorize pieces they are working on. For each piece they can play from memory (with all the dynamics and articulations in place without prompting from me) they get a hole punched in their "Memorization Card" on the key chain.

Claire has already received 2 holes in her card for memorizing pieces. For each piece, my students receive a reward of 3 bonus beads on their practice chains. 

October Student of the Month

Every month during the academic year, I choose a special "Student of the Month". This award goes to the student who has gone above and beyond my regular expectations. This student maintains a positive attitude when corrected, comes to lessons always prepared,  and really shows improvement in their skill. I am careful to present the award to students who have actually done the work and earned the title.

Here is the studio blog write-up that my students and their families see:

Congratulations to Delaney for being my October 2013 student of the month.

Delaney has been working EXTRA hard for this month preparing several pieces for lessons as well as her Halloween piece. She sets a great example for other students with her positive attitude in lessons and her desire to improve her skill as a pianist. Great job, Delaney!

Delaney is in Middle School this year and is off to a fantastic start. In her spare time, she participates in competitive Irish Step Dance and has already won awards. Besides being a great classical pianist, she also plays French Horn and sings in chorus at school.

Delaney will have her photo on the wall of fame for the rest of the year and she will also receive a $10 Music & Arts gift card to spend on fun music or anything else she wants.
Want to be student of the Month next year? Here is what my students have to do-

• Have a lesson rating of 5 for each week of the month
• Have perfect attendance for the month
• Have an encouraging spirit toward other students
• Have a positive attitude in lessons

Halloween Party/Recital

SO MUCH FUN!!!