Christmas left overs

My sweet friend Rebekah gave me this great for your leftover bubble wrap. For each review piece or or repetition, let your child pop a bubble! What kid won't love to do that?! 

Count Your Blessings

...name them one by one...

I was asked to give a talk in church about GRATITUDE this past Sunday. As I was preparing I  was humbled and have seen the Lord's hand in the details of my life in grater abundance. A short video I watched about living in Thanksgiving daily, said something profound.... 

Our minds have the capacity to notice the unusual. The opposite is true as well. The more we see the same beautiful things, the  more they become invisible to us and this is why we take things for granted. 

At Thanksgiving dinner, my Grandma always puts a cornucopia at each place setting. Each is filled with yummy treats and one in particular that is my favorites.... CANDY CORN. Yummy! :) I remember hearing that there is some hiddin meaning behind candy corn, so I googled it and sure enough I found something! Lois Graham put it this way

Count

All your blessings!

Never

Doubt

Year-round that

Christ Jesus

Offers

Rest in His

Never ending love.

I found this Candy Corn Game at Target. I thought of a few different ways you could fill in all the pieces.

1. As you practice with your child, and they do a practice spot correctly 5x (or whatever the assignment is), tell him why you appreciate him playing the violin or why it is a blessing to you or your family. 
2. Have your child why they are grateful to play the violin or maybe why they like playing the violin
3. Use it as a review game and have each pin be a different review piece and take turns saying why you like that piece. 

My hope is that we can all see the blessing that music is in our lives and how our Heavenly Father has blessed us with talents to make music and bless the lives of others as we use our gifts for good. 

Perfect Practice Makes Perfect

This past year I have had the amazing opportunity to participate in the 

Suzuki String Mentoring Program 

with 

Pat D'Ercole 

through the 

University of Wisconsin at Steven's Point. 

I have learned so much and I have made so many improvements in my teaching. Pat is so knowledgeable in helping a student do the work required to obtain the necessary skill while keeping her mind engaged. The most fascinating thing to me is that she dresses all of this up in a "game" and the student doesn't even realize how hard she is working! I have done a lot of the 10x spots and had my students get 10 pennies in their pile, etc. While this game is similar, there is a slightly different mindset that Pat has helped me to understand and apply. These things really help the student to think about what she is doing and keeps even the youngest mind active in the practice process so there isn't mindless repetition happening.

No one likes to fail. Set your child up for success. 

This is easy to do! 

• Make CLEAR parameters for how the child will win a chip. 
• The child must understand the task at hand and it needs to be fairly objective. 
• Skills that can be easily accomplished can have a higher number of repetitions. Larger tasks should have a lower number of repetitions. 
• If you have a younger child, you will need to reward them sooner. Example: put a bead in their pile after each repetition (or let them do this). With an older child, you could have them do 3 correct repetitions before they put 3 beads in their pile. 

CHIP GAME RULES

• The parent and child each get 5 chips (this number can be more or less depending on the situation as mentioned above). 
• Define the task. Example: play a note, measure or phrase with a round pinky on top of the bow. 
• If the child is successful in completing the task, she gets a chip from the parent's chip pile. If the child is not successful in completing the task, the parent gets a chip from the student's chip pile. 
• The first person to get all of the chips in their pile wins the game! 

I can see a difference in my students as I set them up for success and play the chip game with them. This game has made a tremendous difference for my studio and I owe it all to Pat! 

In honor of Halloween, I've been letting the kids pick to play the chip game with spiders or ghosts with table scatters I found in the dollar aisle at Target.

101 ways to say "VERY GOOD"

1. You've got it made
2. That's RIGHT!
3. You're on the right track now!
4. That's GOOD!
5. You are very good at that.
6. That's coming along nicely.
7. That's much better!
8. GOOD WORK!
9. I'm happy to see you working like that.
10. You're really working hard today.
11. I'm proud of the way you worked today.
12. You're doing a good job
13. You've just about got it. 
14. That's the best you have ever done.
15. THAT'S IT!
16. Congratulations
17. I knew you could do it.
18. That's quite and improvement.
19. Now you've figured it out.
20. You are doing that much better today.
21. Now you have it.
22. Not bad.
23. GREAT!
24. You are learning fast.
25. Keep working on it, you're getting better.
26. Good for you!
27. I couldn't have done it better myself.
28. You make it look easy. 
29. You really make my job fun. 
30. That's the right way to do it.
31. One more time and you'll have it. 
32. You're getting better everyday.
33. You did it that time!
34. That's not half bad!
35. WOW!
36. That's the way!
37. Nice going.
38. Now you've figured it out. 
39. SENSATIONAL!
40. You haven't missed a thing. 
41. That's the way to do it. 
42. Keep up the good work. 
43. That's better. 
44. Nothing can stop you now!
45. That's first class work. 
46. EXCELLENT!
47. PERFECT!
48. That's the best ever. 
49. You're really going to town!
50. FINE!
51. TERRIFIC!
52. You've just about mastered that!
53. That's better than ever.
54. Nice going.
55. OUTSTANDING!
56. Now that's what I call a fine job!
57. You did very well.
58. You must be practicing!
59. FANTASTIC!
60. You're doing beautifully.
61. You're really improving
62. Right on!
63. SUPERB!
64. Good remembering!
65. Keep it up!
66. You did a lot of work today!
67. You've got that down pat!
68. You certainly did well today.
69. TREMENDOUS!
70. You're doing fine.
71. Good thinking!
72. You are really learning a lot. 
73. Keep on trying!
74. You outdid yourself today. 
75. I've never seen any one do it better.
76. Good for you!
77. Good going!
78. I like that.
79. MARVELOUS!
80. I'm very proud of you.
81. That's a good boy/girl.
82. I think you've got it now.
83. Good job (name of student)
84. You figured that out fast. 
85. You remembered.
86. That's really nice.
87. Its a pleasure to teach/practice when you work like that.
88. You're right!
89. CLEVER!
90. That makes me feel good.
91. That's great!
92. That's it!
93. Way to go kiddo! 
94. Well, look at you go!
95. Now you have the hang of it!
96. Congratulations. You got (name the behavior) right. 
97. You've got your brain in gear today.
98. That was much better!
99. WONDERFUL!
100. Super!
101. You're making great progress

*Adapted from: Family Living. Newsletter from Colorado State University. 

Online Flash Cards

Does this look scary or what?! 

If you are a Suzuki parent and aren't a musician yourself, having a teacher tell you that you have to read music could be a little overwhelming. If you need help knowing how to read music and how that coorilates to where and when your child is suppose to put his fingers on the violin, these flashcards will be your new best friends!
Here are some online flash cards for you to use. The computer will give you instant feedback and you'll be reading like a pro in no time ;)

7-11

It's FREE Slurpee day!!! 

Out here in the country, our local 7-11 is a few hours away so my husband and I settled for the next best thing - shaved ice. Although it wasn't free, it still did the job on this beautiful July afternoon! 

If you are having a hard time getting your student to practice, tell them you'll go get slurpees as soon as they've done their practicing! Works like a gem and the best part is that you didn't have to spend any extra money :) 

Slow Down Turbo!

I have some students that love to play as fast as they can. Although it's fun to see those little fingers fly and see the smoke from the bow, it doesn't get them to the end any faster. It actually slows them down. When learning a new piece, it is important to play the rest of the piece at the tempo you can play the hardest part the piece correctly. I tell my students this, but it's hard for them to play the piece "slow"so they can get the tricky passage correct and play them in the same tempo as the rest of the piece.

I know how fun it is to listen to the recordings of the Suzuki pieces, but the hard part comes when students try to play with the recording and they can't keep up. These tempos are a little too fast for most players, but with this app, you can slow down the entire piece so the student can play with the recording! This gives the student's fingers enough time to get where they need to so the bow can play them when it's time.

Music Trainer

This app is $3.99 and worth every penny of your investment!  It allows you to access your entire music library and it will save all the pieces that you slow down at the tempos that you choose. One of the great features of this app, is that you can "cut" the music in any way you like. Let's say your teacher assigns measure 21 as a preview spot. You can cut the music and it will play only measure 21. If you need to do that measure 10x a day, then you just push the "loop" button and you're well on your way to getting your 10x spot done lickity-split! If there is a spot like this in a lesson and I want the student to practice it at home, all I have to do is push the "share" button and it sends an email with the attachment. 

Slow Down Music Player 

This app will do the same thing as the Music Trainer app, but it will only allow you keep 3 pieces at the tempos you want. I had to do a lot of erasing and re-entering the piece I wanted and at the tempo I wanted. Although this app is FREE (and I am a BIG advocate of FREE-99), it has been definitely worth it to me to pay the money to upgrade to the Music Trainer app. No questions asked! 

I have seen great success with my students with these apps! They can play the pieces all the way through and not get tripped up by the tricky spots. 

Spring Bouquet

I am spoiled by my husband! He frequently surprises me with fresh flowers. While these flowers don't have as much life as the ones my husband brings me, they can still hold a lot if meaning.

You can get artificial flowers like these at any craft store or at my personal favorite-the dollar store For each day your child practices, he/she will earn a flower and pretty soon you'll have a beautiful spring bouquet to put on your kitchen table!

March Madness!!!!

It's a little late for March Madness, but the game will still work!

I have found this game to be the most popular for boys 8-10. This basketball game last for the entire practice session. You keep track of what your points are each day after you practice and you see if you can beat your score from the day before. I usually have a practice spot for each piece or a practice point (a skill I want the student to focus on while playing a review piece). So this is how the game works. For each repetition/for each review piece that is played with the correct skill (ex: straight wrist), the student has the opportunity to shoot a basket for 1 point OR the child can save up his points and go for a 3-point shot or even a 5-point shot. I set the basket up a wall and then put masking tape at the 1-point line, 3-point line, and 5-point line. 

For example, if the child does 5 correct repetitions, then he can choose to.... 

• Take one 5-point shot. 
• Take one 3-point shot and two 1-point shots. 
• Take five 1-point shots. 

The child could also do a couple practice spots and save all of those repetitions so he has multiple opportunities to shoot from the 5-point line in a row.

This game works for a gem for those who need a little break and some time to move and wiggle before getting back to work!

The Wipeout Game

Let me tell you about the best night of the week - 

Thursday!!! 

First and foremost, it's donut day at my husband's work (p.s. if you need a bulk commodity grain trailer, click here). There are always extra donuts Friday morning when he gets to work - and who wants a day old donut that's been sitting out and is hard? No one does! So these donuts stay in the break room all day Friday and the get put in the trash that night. So there they are - just sitting there in the break room waiting to get eaten. Now, you have to understand that donuts are some of my favorite treats in this world! I would get really sad when I would talk to Ben on Thursdays and he would be eating a donut while we were chatting or he would tell me about the donut that he ate that day. One day he came home from work and he had a surprise for me in his lunch bag - it was my very own donut that he had smuggled out of the break room! 

Now, for the other great thing about Thursdays - WIPEOUT is on!!! 
Jill Wagner, John Henson, and John Anderson are comedians hosting a show were 24 contestants complete a course consisting of 3 levels of obstacles. This will make you laugh! Good times to be had by all! 
So there you go - the Thursday Tradition was born - Watch an episode of Wipeout while eating a donut. YUM. 

WipeOut while Practicing!

So there is a little game I have in my studio called WIPEOUT where all the student has to do is play the practice spot 3 times correctly and then they are done with that spot. 

...Did I mention that those 3x are... in a row?!!

So that means that even if the student plays the first two beautifully, and on the third try misses the last note - they go back to zero. No questions asked. Sorry. 

I really like this game because it gets concentration focused and in turn, gets the job done.  

Although, I've used this game for a long time in my studio, I haven't had a name for it - we just do the "challenge." Thanks to Heather Watson Hardie , I got the cute name from a video she made for the SAA's Parents as Partners 2013. 

Celebrate Abe!

Happy Birthday Abe

February 12 is Abe Lincoln's Birthday

A few fun facts about Abraham Lincoln...

• 16th president of the United States
• Born in Kentucky
• Died in Washington DC
• His head is on the Penny 
• 4 children with his wife Mary Todd
• Author of the famous Gettysburg Address (Four score and seven years ago...)

To celebrate this great man, use pennies to count all of those 10x spots your teacher assigns. Maybe if you're feeling extra generous, your child can keep the 10 pennies that he/she has been using to count repetitions today as a little party gift from the little celebration you just had to honor this great man!

DON'T TOUCH THE HORSE HAIR!!!!!

*How many hairs are needed for a bow?

*How come some cello and bass players have black horse hair?

*Why do the hairs on my bow break?

*How much does horse hair cost?

*Is the horse that my bow hair came from a boy or a girl? 

As I was looking at the SAA website today, I found this great article filled with fun horse hair facts by Susan Baer.