Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Now winter has arrived....

Special Request -
If you are waiting here during your child's lesson and it's after dark, please switch-off your headlights while you wait so they don't shine directly into my neighbor's windows. You can also wait on Plymouth then circle back when it's pick-up time. It would also be helpful when picking up after class if you'd turn your interior lights on so students can see you when dismissed.

Snow -
If there is 1" or more of snow, no parking is allowed on streets. Waiting is fine but if the snow plow comes, you'll need to temporarily move. Don't go for a walk and leave your car unattended on a snowy day!

Snow Cancellations -
If there is a big storm, call my piano line 847.948.7554 for a recorded message AFTER 2:00 the day of your lesson. I will also send out an email notice about the same time. I don't cancel classes unless it's blizzard conditions. Sometimes it won't be snowing here and it is where you are. Sometimes school is canceled in your area, but not here. I try to make the best call for everyone concerned. I do not make-up snow cancellation dates. Instead, I spend class time emailing assignments and or preparing assignments that need to be mailed.

December Holiday Concert Assignment-
As you know, students have been learning holiday songs. It's time to choose a December date for your child to perform a short concert for your family. It's fun to invite friends and relatives and serve a simple refreshment. Please fit this in during December, before leaving on a trip, otherwise it doesn't get done. Please post a note in your child's autograph book to show me in January. (We forget about these books!) If your child doesn't have an autograph book, send a short note telling me about the evening. Children could also design a simple program sheet.

Musical Gifts-
If you are looking for stocking stuffer type music gifts for your child, jewelry, t-shirt, books, etc., you might like to check out this source. www.friendshiphouse.com. They have fun things.

Warm- up Cold Fingers Service Opportunity-
We talk a lot about fingers in piano. I would like students to think of fingers on the hands of less fortunate children, most who only dream of becoming pianists. If any one would like to bring a new or gently used pair of mittens or gloves (child - adult sizes) to piano by Dec. 19th, I will see that they are given to an organization needing them. A mitten tree will be placed in the piano room where students can hang their gift.

Winter Break Assignment -
I will not be assigning new music during break. If students are around, they can enjoy holiday songs, review from any book, practice with CD's, just have a good time playing any old thing!

Returning in January -
Clean out book bag and binder pockets. (If you didn't see a Report Card, it was sent home the last class in November or 1st class in Dec. if you missed.) Leave holiday books home unless you are returning a lending library book. Bring the books you were previously using before holiday time to your first class in Jan.

Thank you for making the first months of our piano year a special experience for your child. We've had good times learning and growing together. I'm looking forward to continued progress in the new year.

Blessings to you and your family,
Rebecca

My love for piano started at age 5 with my grandmother as my teacher.

My love for piano started at age 5 with my grandmother as my teacher.

SUMMER PIANO

Registration is open for Summer Piano beginning June 7 through July 30. Email your dates and window of time. Fee: $40 - 1/2 hr. private.

SPRING PIANO

Spring Session April and May.

FEBRUARY - MARCH 2010 CALENDARS

FEBRUARY

Monthly Piano Tuition Payment due Feb. 1st


NO CLASSES are scheduled for students attending on these days:
Monday: Feb. 15
Tuesday: Feb. 16
Wednesday: Feb. 3
Thursday: Feb. 4
Friday: Feb. 12 and 26
Saturday: Feb. 13

IN-Class Sharing Times:
Mon. - Feb. 22
Tues. - Feb. 23
Wed. - Feb. 24
Thurs. - Feb. 25
Fri. - Feb. 19
Sat. - Feb. 27
__________________

MARCH

Monthly Piano Tuition Payments due Mar. 1


NO CLASSES are scheduled for students attending on these days:
Monday: Mar. 1
Wednesday: Mar 10
Thursday: Mar. 4

The final day of scheduled classes for this semester:
Mar. 22 - Mar. 27th. Sharing Time will also be this week.

Spring Quarter - TBA

January 2010 Calendar

Monthly Piano Tuition Payment Now Due.

Classes are cancelled Fri., Jan. 29th.

Inclass Sharing Times -
Mon. - 25th
Tues. - 26th
Wed. - 27th
Thurs. - 28th
Fri. - 22nd
Sa.t - 30th

Snow cancellations? Call 847.948.7554 after 2 p.m. the day of your class for a recorded message. I'll also email.

Calendar to the end of 2009!


Final Tuition Payments are due Dec. 1

Monthly Tuition payments are due Nov. 1, Dec. 1, Jan. 1

My address for mailing : 14 Sheffield Court Lincolnshire, IL 60069.

Thanksgiving Break begins Nov. 24. Students return back to class beginning Nov. 30. Happy Thanksgiving!

Winter Break begins Dec. 19. No classes until the week of Jan. 4. Happy Holidays!







O.C.T.O.B.E.R

2nd Tuition payments are due Oct. 1st.
Monthly payments are also due Oct. 1st.

The only cancelled class for the month is for Monday students on Oct. 12th.

Spooktacular Sharing Times will be Oct. 26 - 31st.

QUOTES ON PRACTICING

"If you can dream it, you can do it."
~ Walt Disney


"The most valuable practice aid is patience."
~ Howard Snell,
The Art of Practice, Pen Press, 2006, p.75


"If you have played six times wrong, one time right, the problem is not quite corrected."
~ William Westney,
The Perfect Wrong Note
Amadeus Press, 2003 p. 92


"Every day you don't practice, you're one day further from being good." ~ Ben Hogan


"The best way for a student to get out of difficulty is to go through it." ~ Aristotle


"There will never come a time when you don't have to practice." ~ JJ Johnson






SEPTEMBER

NO CLASSES on the 5th, 7th and 29th

Monday students will miss Sept. 7th due to Labor Day. Enjoy the long weekend and see you back Sept. 14 REALLY WELL PREPARED with 2 weeks to practice a very small start-up assignment!

Saturday students will miss Sept 5 due to the Labor Day weekend. See you back Sept. 12 with a REALLY WELL PREPARED lesson. You will have had two weeks to practice a small assignment too!

Tuesday students will miss Sept. 29 for observance of Yom Kippur celebrations. Tuesday students will return the following week on Oct. 6th.

SEPTEMBER SHARING TIMES:
Monday Students - 28th
Tuesday Students - 22nd
Wed. Students - 30
Thurs. Students - 24
Fri. Students - 25
Sat. Students - 26
Continuing students are perfecting a Disney tune from summer to play. New students can choose any song they've recently learned.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit."
~Aristotle

AUGUST

Aug. 1 - Tuition and Fee Statements will be emailed.

Aug. 11- Final day of Summer Piano

Aug. 25 - 1st Payment is due

Get excited for your first day of piano!!!!!
Aug. 24 - First day for Monday students
Aug. 28 - First day for Friday students
Aug. 29 - First day for Saturday students
Sept. 1 - First day for Tuesday students
Sept. 2 - First day for Wednesday students
Sept. 3 - First day for Thursday students
"Music is a higher revelation than
all wisdom and philosphy.
Music is the electrical soil in which
the spirit lives, thinks and invents."
__Ludwig van Beethoven


Teaching Experience...

I am celebrating my 33rd year of teaching! It brings a smile to my face when I think of the thousands of students I've nurtured, families I've met, friends I've made, accomplishments of students and new songs I've created. It's been my good fortune to be an award-winning composer always encouraged by my wonderful husband and children to share my talents through teaching, performing and composing.

Research...

The benefits of music study over the last 20 years cannot be ignored. Research shows that learning to read music and play an instrument improves reading and math ability, physical coordination and eye functions, improves thought processes, logical thinking skills, organization and memory skills. It bolsters self esteem, improves social skills, ability to achieve a goal as a group through indiviual efforts.
Therea Villec, President MusicMakers...for Life, Inc.

Students who can perform complex rhythms can also make faster and more precise corrections in many academic and physical situations.
Center for Timing, Coordination and Motor Skills 2000.

Students who are rhythmically skilled also tend to better plan, sequence and coordinate actions in their daily lives.
TCAMS Professional Resource Center 2000

Rhythm students learn fractions better.
Neurological Research Mar. 15, 1999

In a 2000 survey, 73 percent of respondents agree that teens who play an instrument are less likely to have discipline problems.
American Music Conference 2000

College Admissions officers continue to cite participation in music as an important factor in making admission decisions. They claim that music participation demonstrates time management and creativity, expression and open-mindedness.
Carl Hartman, Associated Press, Oct. 1999

Music Students score higher on SAT's.
Profiles of SAT Achievement, College Board 2001


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