Fingering Chart Displays

 

After seeing a fingering poster online that another orchestra teacher had created, I knew I wanted to make a set for myself.  I cut strips of black paper at various widths to show the strings from thickest to thinnest (1/4", 1/2", 3/4", 1"), laminated the poster, then used Velcro to mark where each note would go.  Each letter name bubble was cut out, laminated, and Velcro-ed.  I also taped a plastic baggie to the back of the poster to store the unused notes.  At one school, I have a strip of cork board above the white board, so I use a push pin to display the poster.  At the other school, I ran a couple strips of Velcro just above the white board, so I attach those posters with Velcro.

With beginners, I can have all the notes removed to just show the open strings, and then I can add the D string notes as we get there.  With the second-year students, I can start with the D Major scale notes, or show those low 2 notes, or whatever it is we're focusing on.  

This year I'm color-coding the tapes rather than just using black pin striping tape.  For violins/violas, 1 = red, 3 = black, and 4 = blue (no tape for 2).  For cellos, 2nd finger is red, and the rest are black (thumb goes behind red tape).  On bass, first position 1 and 4 are red, and third position 1 and 4 are black.  For the posters, I kept the red paper for the red tape notes and otherwise used blue paper.  Maybe I should have added an extra column for the finger numbers, but for now it's working to stick the numbers on a string that we're not using at the moment.

Open string labels (Word doc)

Open string labels (PDF)

Fingering chart note bubbles and instrument labels (Word doc)--should be enough for two sets; I printed the first page on red paper, the rest on blue--just double check it has all the notes you want

Fingering chart note bubbles and instrument labels (PDF)

Prepping Folders for Fall 2020

 In preparation for in-person and virtual students in the fall and the possibility of going totally virtual at some point, I prepped folders with all the music/handouts students would need through winter break.  A local music store kindly donates folders each year.  I color-coded papers as I normally would so students can find sheets faster.  To ensure students would have a pencil (as I won't be leaving pencils on the stands for students to share throughout the day this year), I bought boxes of pencils, sharpened them, taped a piece of yarn to them, and taped them to the folder.  To the pockets of the folders, I taped in a "Contents" list and a fingering chart.

So far they're working out fine--and only a few students have totally dumped all the papers on the floor when they were pulling out the pencil.  Not quite sure how they managed that :)

Update: Now, a few years later, I'm also including concert dates and a reference sheet.  During the school year, I tape in the concert order for each of our concerts as well.  It takes quite a bit of prep time before school starts, but I am happy with the result :)

Fingering Charts for Folders

 

This fall I taped fingering charts into the folders for my students as a helpful reference for both my in-person and virtual students.  For second-year students, I included all the notes they should have learned last year and will be learning this year.  For first-year students, I included bubbles for the notes they will be learning this year so students can write them in as they learn them.

I used Finale to make the notes, using the Alpha note feature to add the letter name to the note head.  I made the bar lines and time signature invisible and played around with the spacing to get it to match the fingering chart above.  Then I took a screenshot and pasted that into Word.  For the fingering chart, I used Word and copy/pasted circles for the bubbles and text boxes without a border for the note names.  These just fit on the inside of a folder.  Feel free to edit to include the notes that you would like!

• Fingering reference chart (Word document)
• Fingering reference chart (PDF)

See also: Reference sheet for folders

2020 Mask Bulletin Board

 

My district is planning an in-person return in September.  I'm nervous about this decision, but one small thing I knew I had in my control was the message in my back-to-school bulletin board.  Here's hoping this is the only year I'll have to use this one!

I found a website that lets you resize a picture of a mask to a photo that you upload, so I tried to add a variety of string players and composers. 

• Photos and text (Word doc)
• Photos and text (PDF)

Name That Tune--Concert Prep

For our last small group before a concert, we'll often play "Name that Tune."  First we rosin bows as I walk through the call time and concert details with the students.  Then, for "Name that Tune" I'll play a note or two or three of a part of one of their concert pieces.  Once someone correctly identifies the piece, I have students pull out their music to find the measure number(s) of the excerpt, and then we play the whole piece together and touch up whatever needs touching up.

A variation on this game is to make it rhythm only, and I'll clap a distinctive rhythmic pattern from each of their pieces.  Another variation (challenge) would be to include an excerpt or rhythm pattern that a different instrument plays--not a part that the specific kids in that small group play.

I'm often surprised by which students are quickly able to identify the concert piece--they're not always the strongest players--and the students like the game aspect of it (though we do not keep score in any way or recognize winners or anything).  It's also more of a fun way to review the different concert pieces than just playing through everything once more before the concert.

When we play through concert pieces on this day, I like to play a different instrument's part along with the students (like I'll play cello with a violin group or violin with a bass group etc.).  It helps to develop their chamber music skills and makes students more aware of what another instrument is doing while they're playing their part.  And there are always students surprised that I know how to play a different instrument than they're used to seeing me play :)  I also get students who look at the white board when they arrive and ask which song is "Name that Tune"...

At the end of this small group, we'll use a cloth to wipe the rosin dust off our strings and instruments so they're totally set to go for the concert, we'll get our music in concert order, and then I always ask which piece they're each most looking forward to performing at the concert.

What kind of lesson plans work well for you as you approach a concert?

Window Covering

At my schools, we need to have a window covering handy in case of a lockdown.  I taped a few pieces of construction paper together, laminated them, added stickers, and then used Velcro to attach it to the door: voila!  During the school year, I'll tape student compositions or pictures of students or music quotes so the door is more interesting to look at.

Hall Pass

I was cleaning out a cabinet the other day and came across these playing card hall passes I forgot I had made :)  These must have been from my first year or two of teaching.  Students come to full orchestra directly from lunch, so I would have made these for students to bring to lunch and show to the lunch supervisors as their hall pass to orchestra (and as a reminder for students not to head out for recess that day).  The playing cards are published by Alfred and feature a composer and bio on one side.  I added the hall pass info on the back side and laminated them.  Students would pick one up the morning they drop off their instrument in the band/orchestra room, and then return their card upon arriving to full band/orchestra.  Now I meet students in the cafeteria, so the cards are not really needed.

• Text for back of playing cards (Word document)
• Text for back of playing cards (PDF)

Since then, one of my schools has bought badge holders (something like this) to use for hall passes, so I color-printed this document double-sided (see below) and delivered a set to each classroom.  Students grab one out of their class basket as they leave for their small group for the week as their hall pass to walk to band or orchestra.

• Hall pass (Word document)
• Hall pass (PDF) 

 

Concert Repertoire for Beginning Orchestra

For winter and spring concerts at my schools, we have a combined orchestra, band, and choir concert that ideally lasts about an hour.  The orchestra portion tends to run about 25 minutes total, so a few pieces performed by the first-year orchestra, a few pieces by the second-year orchestra, and then one or two combined pieces rounds out the orchestra portion.  I meet with my students once a week for 30 minutes during recess for full orchestra and 30 minutes once a week during the school day for small group learning, so these pieces are representative of what students can comfortably have concert-ready.

Here is what my students performed last year at these concerts:

Winter Concert

Beginners:

• Bile 'em Cabbage Down (students plucked an open string harmony part while I played the melody on the violin)
• Slavonic Folk Song (pizz. open string harmony, then pizz. melody, then arco melody/harmony together)
• Serenata by Dale Brubaker (all open strings, arco)

2nd Year Students:

• Skaters' Waltz by Émile Waldteufel, arr. Richard Meyer (in preparation for the next month's district-wide String Fest)
• Sword Dance by Thoinot Arbeau, arr. Bob Phillips

Combined Orchestras:

• Blueberry Jam by Bonnie Greene (in preparation for the next month's district-wide String Fest)
• Jingle Bells by James Pierpont (my arrangement)

Spring Concert

Beginners:

• Ode to Joy (my arrangement)
• It's the Blues Man! (from their Orchestra Expressions book, complete with student soloists improvising the rhythms during their 4-measure solo)
• Student compositions (one four-measure composition per instrument)
• Royal Promenade by Don Brubaker (their first "real" full orchestra piece with independent parts)

2nd Year Students:

• Spring by Antonio Vivaldi, arr. Richard Meyer
• Student compositions (two eight-measure compositions--one for upper strings and one for lower strings)
• Fiddles on Fire by Mark Williams

Combined Orchestras:

• The Lion Sleeps Tonight (arr. Bob Cerulli)

This general format has been working well--in December, I like to start with something that's pizzicato open strings to show where the beginners started at the beginning of the year (and because students would be really comfortable performing that) and work up to something that's arco with D string notes.  And the 2nd year students tend to play fewer pieces (about two big pieces alone) because theirs are longer in length.  If we do only one combined piece at the end, 2nd year students may play three pieces alone; if we do two combined pieces, 2nd year students generally play two pieces alone.

Here are some of the pieces my students have performed for past winter and spring concerts listed in no particular order (student compositions are on every concert too):

Winter Concert

Beginners:

Pizzicato open strings (one piece)

• Les Toreadors (from Orchestra Expressions)
• Three Point Shot (from Orchestra Expressions) 
• Bile 'em Cabbage Down (from Orchestra Expressions supplement)

Pizzicato open strings/pizzicato D string notes/arco open string harmony plus D string melody (one piece played three times)...Or play one of these pieces pizzicato only (open string harmony/D string notes melody/choose melody or harmony third time) and play a second piece with the melody arco only

• Mary Lee (Mary Had a Little Lamb)
• Slavonic Folk Song
• Au Claire de la Lune
• Ode to Joy
• Bile 'em Cabbage

Arco open strings (one piece)

• Serenata by Dale Brubaker (a winter concert tradition!)

Second Year Students:
A round or something pretty simple (one or two pieces--some years I don't do one of these on the concerts and choose two full orchestra pieces instead)

• Hallelujah by William Boyce (easy round in D Major)
• Do, Re, Mi, Fa (easy round in D Major)
• Brudenell Waltz by David R. Bellwood (transposed to D Major with some extra lines added)

Full orchestra piece (one or two pieces--often one will be performed for String Fest the following month and the other one will not)

• I Got Rhythm by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin, arr. Michael Story
• Skaters' Waltz by Émile Waldteufel, arr. Richard Meyer
• Sword Dance by Thoinot Arbeau, arr. Bob Phillips
• Linus and Lucy by Vince Guaraldi (my arrangement that I got permission from the copyright holder to write--sorry, can't share) 
• Appalachian Hymn by Soon Hee Newbold
• Hey Fiddle Fiddle! by Brian Balmages
• Les Toreadors by Georges Bizet (my arrangement) 
• Blue Danube by Johann Strauss II (my arrangement)
• Ukrainian Bell Carol by Mykola Leontovich, arr. Sandra Dackow

 
Combined Pieces:
We always end with Jingle Bells!  If we do a second combined piece on this concert, it would be a String Fest piece

• Star of the County Down (melody for 2nd year students; harmony for beginners)
• Variations on a Sea Shanty (my arrangement)
• Linus and Lucy by Vince Guaraldi (my arrangement that I got permission from the copyright holder to write--sorry, can't share)
• Jingle Bells (my arrangement)

 

Spring Concert

Beginners:
Very simple full orchestra piece or a piece from the book

• New World Symphony Theme by Antonín Dvořák, arr. Michael Allen
• Ode to Joy by Ludwig van Beethoven (my arrangement)
• Twinkle Twinkle by W.A. Mozart (my arrangement)
• A Traveler's Song (from Orchestra Expressions--played Andante, then Allegro)

Piece from book with student soloists improvising their own rhythms (they play a 4-measure solo, deciding which quarter notes to change to pairs of eighth notes).  We play a total of four times--first and last times with everyone playing the melody, the second and third times with soloists to include 6 soloists total.

• It's the Blues Man! (from Orchestra Expressions)

"Real" full orchestra piece

• Medieval Kings by Soon Hee Newbold
• St. Lawrence Overture by Elliot Del Borgo 
• First Scale March by Mark Williams
• Royal Promenade by Don Brubaker

Second Year Orchestra:
Two or three full orchestra pieces, possibly one brought back from January's String Fest

• Dragon Dance by Michael Story
• Slavonic Dance No. 1 by Antonín Dvořák, arr. Michael Story
• Jupiter by Gustav Holst (my arrangement)
• Anasazi by John Edmondson
• Fiddles on Fire by Mark Williams
• Honor and Glory by Soon Hee Newbold
• Celtica by Brian Balmages (when I have an advanced violinist who can handle the solo part)
• Rite at Stonehenge by Elliot Del Borgo

Or something a little different

• The Blue Balloon from The Blue Book of Violin Tunes by Bonnie Greene (learned by ear)

Combined Orchestras:

• The 101 by Katie O'Hara LaBrie
• The Lion Sleeps Tonight by George David Weiss, Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and Solomon Linda, arr. Bob Cerulli
• Rhythm 'n' Blues by Soon Hee Newbold
• Spring by Antonio Vivaldi, arr. Richard Meyer
• Sailors' Song by Mark Williams
• Slavonic Dance by Antonín Dvořák, arr. Richard Meyer
• William Tell Overture by Gioachino Rossini (my arrangement) 
• We Will Rock You by Brian May, arr. Paul Lavender

Concert info to share with families (Google Docs):

• Winter concert info
• Spring concert info

Please see this post for a Google Sheet of repertoire options organized by unit/concert.

For a more in-depth look at my winter concerts including logistics and sample speaking parts, please see this post :)

Which pieces do you like to program for a beginning orchestra concert?  Which pieces should I consider for future concerts?

Beginning-of-the-Year Bulletin Boards

As I'm entering my ninth [edit: 14th!] year of teaching elementary orchestra, I'm starting to get a collection of beginning-of-the-year bulletin board ideas, so here they are all in one place (with links to each post below the picture):

Parts of a Note Bulletin Board

Conducting Bulletin Board

2020 Mask bulletin board

"Welcome" Bulletin Board

"Changes" Bulletin Board 

What Will YOU Create This Year? Bulletin Board

Take Part In A Musical Year! Bulletin Board

Together We Will SCALE New Heights! Bulletin Board 

Metronome Bulletin Board