The first picture is from a one-room schoolhouse near Placerville, California, very close to wear gold was first found. I was so excited to see a piano in the schoolroom. Last spring I discovered a piano in a storage closet at school. I got permission to store it in my classroom instead. For those last few weeks of school we used it very little. We did sing happy birthday when appropriate and we learned a few songs about worms during our study of those creatures. I really want to use the piano well this year but I have not had any epiphanies about how to do so.
Any thoughts? Advice? Great music? Anything?
6 comments:
Dear Jenny,
I remember Mrs. Treutle from 5th grade--her voice grated a little bit, but her enthusiasm for singing songs she enjoyed singing have stuck with me decades even decades after she died.
Just sing. Really. A lot of children rarely see joyous adults anymore.
Wow! A piano! I'm with Doyle. Play and sing and embrace the noise/music. I'm happy for you! Sounds like your classroom is going to be a joyful place!
I like the idea of using a piano in the classroom more but I'm drawing a blank on the best way to go about it (?) I bet the kids will be enchanted with whatever you attempt ;)
Back in the day they wouldn't let you teach kindergarten unless you played piano and there was one in every classroom. There's research that shows that singing something helps kids remember. So play away, and use old tunes with new words for anything you want them to learn.
"where" gold was found
Use it as a reward for work well done. Not only would it be a reaffirmation that music can be fun, but you might also spark the kids' interest in learning about music and maybe even how to play a simple tune or two on the piano. Nice find and good luck!
stu
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