Many thanks to all of you who attended our joint Black History Month concert with Frederick Douglass Christian School on February 22, 2013. The program was a great success and the students from both schools were pleased with and inspired by their performance and relationship. I greatly appreciate all of your support and enthusiasm as we continue to nurture the friendship between these two very special schools.

In Kindergarten and first grade, students were very proud of their ability to learn songs at a level sophisticated enough to join their friends in the upper grades for the joint concert in February. They have also been anxious to learn new repertoire with dramatic movement whenever possible. The children have really enjoyed putting their conversation to melody as we have been training our ears and refining our accuracy of pitch. When we return from spring break we will be working on age appropriate rhythmic reading and preparing for our May concert.

In second grade, we have been learning about the families of instruments of the orchestra and are advancing our abilities to identify individual instruments in classical repertoire. This very enthusiastic group loves to sing and incorporate movement whenever possible.

Third grade students enjoyed their first visit to the Kimmel Center for a Philadelphia Orchestra youth concert. Their response to "Beethoven Lives Upstairs" was enthusiastic and their demeanor was polite and attentive. We are currently preparing to advance our rhythmic reading skills by transitioning from chanting rudimentary rhythm symbols to learning names and time values of the actual notes used in rhythmic notation.

Fourth grade students have just completed a music history unit on the Classical Period and are developing an understanding of the formal structure which is followed by the master composers. This knowledge will help our students develop listening skills that will enhance their experiences as consumers of music. We have also been working on "placement" of our voices when performing to avoid straining or using our voices in unnatural and harmful ways.

In fifth grade, we have begun reading melodic notation and applying our skills to playing the xylophones and metallophones. We are aiming to showcase our playing of these instruments at the spring concert. We will also be working on writing a song that we will save as a surprise later in the year. Of course, we are always working on new repertoire for this industrious and enthusiastic group of girls!

In "Sing!" we are preparing for our spring concert which we hope will delight and entertain you. Please mark your calendars for May 15th!

In friendship,
Teacher Charmagne