Our October 8th Chapter meeting had Patrice Hunt sharing some of her "favorite" tips, tricks, and more.
She started out by sharing something she learned 5 years ago at a St. George Chapter meeting entitled, "Breaking the Curse of the Poor Sightreader." (You can search for the write-up by plugging in the first three words in the search bar on this blog.)
Starting with one of the strategies shared at that meeting, even though she initially thought it wasn't very useful information, she showed us a great way to teach note recognition. using just 30 notes of a deck of flashcards (C2 - C6). Her preferred flashcards are the double clef flashcards (white) by Jane Smisor Bastien sold at Daynes Music, Amazon (usually backordered!) or your favorite music store. Watch the chapter Zoom recording to see how this works, using three different ways for students to know and say all 30 cards in under 1 minute. It has made a big difference in Patrice's studio.
October Chapter Mtg Zoom Recording Passcode is: %nzE6&cj
Next she shared an easy way she teaches her students to learn to play two octave scales with hands together.
C-G-D-A-E all use the same strategy. "Start - doors - 3's- 1/2, 2-1 / 3's - doors - Thumbs - doors - 3's - 1/2 2/1 - 3's - doors- ends." Again, watch the video if you need more details. She also included "Scale hints" for all 12 major scales.
Patrice shared her "Practice chart" printed on mailing labels that she uses on her student's assignment book. They write in the minutes practiced each day of the week. This is good for their accountability and takes about 5 seconds to place on their assignment page for the week.
We also discussed "The Royal Household" and how it helps students prepare for recitals/evaluations.
King=Rhythm Queen = Dynamics Prince= A GREAT Ending
Along with this, Patrice shared Dr. Lynn Dean's "Maintenace Mode" of practicing a recital piece 4 times daily at Slow, Medium, Fast and Slow speeds.
Lastly we discussed some great pieces students love that are easily taught by rote initially: Nimble Fingers by Vandall; The Great Smokey Mountains by Glover; and Buzzing Bee by Nevin.
If you missed this, we hope you'll join us in November for another great chapter meeting!
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