Tuesday, March 8, 2011

The Sweet, Sweet Sounds of the Fourth Grade Orchestra




Tonight I went to my daughter's fourth grade orchestra concert.  I know, I know.... for most of you those words conjure mental images of screeching violins and off-tune instruments, but I am lucky to live in a school district that invests great resources in its performing arts programming. 

As I sat in the audience listening to the orchestra play their three songs, I thought about how far these kids have come since their first concert in December 2009.  At that point, they all played the same tune, with the same notes, no harmony, basic rhythms, and yes... many squeaks.  However, with patience, practice, and lots of coaching, these young musicians have grown by leaps and bounds. Teacher that I am, I of course thought about how I need to remind myself from time to time of those three essential elements when working with my students:  patience, practice, and lots of coaching. 

1 comment:

  1. Good words to remember for many situations. I need to have keep them in mind at all times. . . patience, practice, coaching.

    ReplyDelete