I hope that you are all enjoying the beautiful weather on this Victoria Day long weekend!

This Saturday, everyone did an awesome job!

Beth and Mya – Level 2A, Lesson 38

• Today you spent some time working with Mrs Beach playing even more songs for both hands!
• You showed me how well you can read right hand and left hand notes written on the lines and spaces of the grand staff!
• You are beginning to look ahead as you play so that you can get ready for the next note in time. Well done!
• You played some rhythms with the woodpecker tapping out the time. These are beginning to improve as you are recognizing whole, half and quarter notes more quickly.
• To finish off, you played your favourite games in the Games Room and had some fun creating music in the Improvisation Room!

At Home this Week;

• If you didn’t get a chance to do this last week, then print off this sheet and see if you can add the missing bar lines!
• Visit Miss Melody and review lesson 38

Abigail and Sara - Level 2A, Lesson 35 and 36

• This week you looked at Treble Clefs (for the right hand) and Bass Clefs (for the left hand).
• Together, we had a go at drawing bar lines on the grand staff. You girls did a great job!
• Then, in lesson 36, you met a new teacher called Mrs Beach. She began to work with you on your note values and keeping time.
• The woodpecker made you play rhythms in time with the beat as it tapped away on the tree. This was very tricky, but each week you’ll get better and better! Great job, girls!

At Home this week;

• Visit Miss Melody in Lesson 36 to review the work you did this week
• Print off this sheet and see if you can add all the missing bar lines!

Andrew – Level 2A, Lesson 29

• This week you continued to review some of the techniques you have learned in MusIQ Club throughout Level 1A and 1B.
• Your ant tunnels are looking great!
• You are also beginning to recognize whole, half and quarter notes written as grown up notation.
• You clapped some rhythms with me, and showed me how you could hold your hands together and ‘dip’ them on the beat to show held notes!
• You had fun in the improvisation room and games room to finish off the lesson!

At Home this Week;

• Print off this wordsearch and see if you can find the words about Mr Dvorak
• Continue to improvise and have fun on your own keyboard at home!

See you all next Saturday!

Adele Merritt

It was great to see everyone on Saturday! I hope you are all enjoying the sunshine on this long Victoria Day weekend!

Craig – Piano Suite 8, week 6

•  This week, you tried to play some of your scales with both hands together, and over 2 octaves. This isn’t easy, because both hands follow different finger patterns and they thumb tuck at different times! However, you are making some good progress. G and Bb major were particularly good. This week, continue to work on C and F Major, and A and G minor.
• We also took some time to learn a new scale. This isn’t like the Major or minor scales, as it consists of just whole tone steps. C, D, E, F#, G#, A# and C. (Three white notes, followed by three black notes). The finger pattern for the right hand is 1,2,1,2,3,4,5.
• You read through some history notes about Debussy. He liked to write his music using the whole tone scale sometimes. These pieces felt as though they were neither in a Major or minor key.
• You worked on ‘Computer Cat’ and also tried to play a little of ‘Clare de Lune’ by Debussy.
• We finished with some rhythm dictation. You are beginning to understand compound time signatures, but we will work some more on this next week.

At Home this Week;

• Work on your 2 octave scales
• Practice the whole note scale in your right hand
• Continue to work on ‘Computer Cat’

Madeline and Parker – Piano Suite 3, Week 6

• We began with some technique review. You are both getting very confident at your scales, and your slur technique is improving.
• We reviewed triad chords on scale degrees. Great job finding them so quickly!
• We talked about tones, and semitones, and you were able to find me examples on the keyboard really well. Good job!
• You both got great percentage scores on ‘Ten Little Travelers’ this week, and ‘March Militaire’ is fantastic! It’s such a long song, and you’re both doing a super job!
• This week, you also began to work on Dvorak’s Largo.

At Home this Week;

• Work mainly on the left hand of the slur technique exercise, so that it’s as good as the right hand!
• Print out and complete this work sheet all about tones and semitones 
• In Piano Player, or using the sheet music that I gave you, work on Dvorak’s Largo, with hands apart.

Ryan – 3A, Lessons 65, 66 and 67

• It was great to have you back with us, and I’m glad that you had such a great trip to Ottawa!
• This week, you completed 3 lessons! Great job!
• You met your new teacher called Mr Scarlatti. He introduced you to sharps, and where to find them on the piano keyboard.
• You played through quite a few songs which had sharps in them!
• Together, we practiced drawing treble and bass clefs on the Grand Staff.
• Then I showed you how to draw sharp signs infront of a line or space note. You did a fantastic job keeping the sharp sign on the same line or space as the note itself!

At Home this Week;

• Visit Miss  Melody in the practice Room for lesson 67.
• Print out this sheet to practice drawing sharps on the Grand Staff

See you all next week!

Adele Merritt

This week was our 5th lesson of this 10 week term, and you are all doing a great job!

Beth and Mya – Level 2A, Lesson 36 and 37

• This week in lesson 37,  you began reading and playing Grand Staff songs for both hands with Mrs Beach.
• This helped you to practice reading and playing the treble clef notes C D E and F, and the bass clef notes C B and A.
• You also had a go at rhythm tapping with the woodpecker. He helped to keep you in time with the beat, but it was a bit tricky and I know you felt a little frustrated! With practice, you’ll master this in no time!
• I was very impressed with your hand positions, when you used your ant tunnels. Good job!
• To finish off, you had some time in the Games Room and Improvisation Room!

At Home this Week;

•  Print out this activity sheet and see if you can add the missing barlines! Remember, a whole notes is worth 4 beats, a dotted half note is worth 3, a half note is worth 2 and a quarter note is worth 1. Each measure must add up to 4 beats before you draw in a new barline. If you find the sheet too difficult, bring it to class next week and we’ll do it together!

Abigail – Level 2A, Lesson 34 and 35

• Great focus this week! You completed 2 lessons and practiced with Miss Melody!
• This week Mr Mozart helped you to practice some more songs written on the Grand Staff.
• Today’s lesson was all about the lower notes played with the left hand.
• You spent time learning about the Bass Clef notes C, B and A which you play with fingers 1 2 and 3 of your left hand.
• After playing through the songs once more with Miss Melody you were getting more confident at using your left hand. Well done!
• You had fun in the Games Room and Improvisation Room to finish off the lesson!

At Home this week;

•  Visit Miss Melody in Lesson 35.
• Keep improvising and having fun on your own keyboard at home!

Sara – Level 2A, Lesson 31 and 32

• This week Mr Mozart helped you to practice even more songs written on the Grand Staff.
• You played songs with the notes C, D and E in the Treble Clef. Well done!
• You also noticed how the green dots above the whole, half, dotted half and quarter notes helped you to hold them down for the correct amount of time.
• You had some free time in the Games Room and Improvisation Room for fun!

At Home this week;

• Print out this activity sheet all about the new way we write Middle C, D and E on the Treble Staff!
• Visit Miss Melody once more for lesson 32

Andrew – Level 2A, Lesson 28

• This week you reviewed some of the techniques you have learned in MusIQ Club throughout Level 1A and 1B.
• You played lots of songs using all 5 fingers of your right and left hands.
• You played whole, half and quarter notes, written on the lines and spaces.
• You worked hard in the Practice Room with Miss Melody too!

At Home this Week;

• Continue to improvise and have fun on your own keyboard at home!

See you all next Saturday!

Adele Merritt

This was our 5th lesson of this 10 week term, and I could see some great progress from all of you! Good job!

Craig – Piano Suite 8, week 5

• This week we concentrated on feeling the finger pattern when playing scales over 2 octaves. It’s sometimes tricky to remember when to bring over finger 3, or finger 4! The more practice you do each day, the more your fingers will begin to fall naturally, without thinking. Try for 10 minutes of scale work each day.
• You watched an animation in Theory Thinker about the different ways we can play chords. Remember, we can build them up as broken chords, or play them all together in a solid way.
•  You worked on ‘Computer Cat’ which is coming along very well!

At Home this Week;

• Work on these scales over 2 octaves, hands together; C, G, F and Bb major / A and G minor
• Continue to practice ‘Computer Cat.’

Madeline and Parker-  Piano Suite 3, week 5.

• This week we began by playing through the following scales, ascending then descending; C, G, F Major, and A minor. We also played through the chromatic scale on C.
• We tried hard to perfect the slur technique!
• We reviewed triads on scale degrees once more.
• In Theory Thinker you learned all about key signatures
• Then you worked super hard on ‘March Militaire’ and “Ten Little Travelers.’

At Home this Week;

• Continue to work on your repertoire pieces and technique exercises at home every day.
• Look through this activity sheet. It tells you all about the pentatonic scale.

See you next week,

Adele Merritt

This week, we got straight to work on the computers!

Sara – Level 1B, Lesson 24 and 25

Andrew – Level 1B, Lesson 26

• Good job, both of you did a great job in your Recital for all your level 1 teachers!
• You played through lots of songs using grown up notes.
• Your hand positions are becoming more relaxed and you are remembering to use both hands and all your fingers!
• Next week you will both start Volume 2 of Children’s Music Journey – Congratulations!

At Home this Week;

• Sara – work through the Practice with Miss Melody for Lesson 30.
• Andrew, work through Lesson 30.

Abigail – Level 2A, Lesson 33

• This week you learned even more about the Grand Staff.
• You looked at Treble Clefs (for the right hand) and Bass Clefs (for the left hand).
• Mr Mozart helped you to play some songs including whole, half, quarter and dotted half notes written on the Grand Staff! You are really beginning to recognize these notes quickly now. Great job!
• You also learned about the treble clef notes C, D and E for the Right Hand, and had a go at drawing treble and bass clefs with me. Good job!
• You had time in the Games Room and Improvisation Room to relax!

At Home this Week:

• Review the practice with Miss Melody for Lesson 33

Beth and Mya – Level 2A, Lesson 35 and 36

• This week you looked at Treble Clefs (for the right hand) and Bass Clefs (for the left hand).
• Together, we had a go at drawing them on my grand staff. You girls did a great job!
• Then, in lesson 36, you met a new teacher called Mrs Beach. She began to work with you on your note values and keeping time.
• The woodpecker made you play rhythms in time with the beat as it tapped away on the tree. This was very tricky, but each week you’ll get better and better! Great job, girls!

At Home this week;

• Work through the practice with Miss Melody for Lesson 36.

Have a great week! See you all next time,

Adele

It was a small class on Saturday, with only Madeline and Craig this week!  I hope Parker had fun at cub camp, and that Ryan is enjoying his vacation in Ottawa! We’ll see you both soon!

Craig – Piano Suite 8, week 4

• You began the class with some scale work. You found the relative minor scales very well and played A, D and E minor confidently. This week we also learned G minor (2 flats).
• You also played through several of your Major scales too!
• We spent a little time looking at the finger pattern for playing C and G Major, and A minor over 2 octaves.
• Together, we analysed some sheet music, looking at chord progression and key signatures.
• Then, you worked on your repertoire piece ‘Computer Cat.’ This is coming along very nicely! Good job!

At Home this Week:

• Print out this sheet to practice writing out some of the scales you know!
• Continue to practice ‘Computer Cat.’
• Work on C and G Major, and A minor hands together over 2 octaves. Try G minor, hands apart over one octave.

Madeline  – Piano Suite 3, Week 4

• We began with our scales; C, G F Major and A minor. Good job with all of these, Madeline!
• Then we checked our chromatic scale. You placed your thumb in all the right places today!
• Then you played through the 2 note slur exercise.  This is improving now that you have worked on your left hand. You also took care to notice the dynamic markings, such as mezzo piano, then forte.
• We talked about triad chords, these are 3 note chords which you play with fingers 1, 3 and 5. You completed a great activity sheet to demonstrate yur understanding of this!
• You took some time to work on your repertoire pieces ‘March Militaire’
• You also began to learn ‘Ten Little Travellers’ Good job!

At Home this Week;

• Continue to work on your repertoire pieces at home.
• Complete this sheet all about the chromatic scale.

See you next time,

Adele Merritt

This week we began with some musical math! You did some great adding and subtracting with grown up notes! You are getting so confident at recognizing whole notes, half notes, dotted half notes and quarter notes! Good job!

Then we used my tambourine to make some 4 and 8 beat rhythm patterns in our rhythm circle before moving to our computers.

Sara – Level 1B, Lesson 22 and 23

Andrew – Level 1B, Lesson 25

• This week, Sara visited Mr Villa Lobos for lessons 22 and 23 and Andrew played his recital for all the teachers who have taught him in Volume 1 of Children’s Music Journey! Good job!
• You both began by reviewing the grown up notes you already know, half notes (2 beats) and quarter notes (1 beat).
• Then Sara learned all about whole notes. These look like empty or white circles and you hold them down for 4 counts!
• Miss Melody helped you to play through some songs which used all these new grown up notes before you went to the Games Room and Improvisation Room. Good job, both of you!

At Home this Week;

• Print out this activity sheet and see if you can match up all those new grown up notes!
• Have a go at this worsearch about Mr Villa Lobos!

Abigail – Level 2A, Lesson 32

• This week Miss Melody helped you to practice more songs with the notes C, D and E in the Treble Clef.
• You are getting really good at reading the whole, half, dotted half and quarter notes and holding them down for the right number of green dots to appear above them!
• Your left hand is definitely getting stronger now, and you don’t need your right hand to help press down the keys anymore! Good job!
• You worked through a few songs and then had some free time in the Games Room and Improvisation Room for fun!

At Home this Week;

• Print out this sheet and try some music math at home!

Beth and Mya – Level 2A, Lesson 33 and 34

• This week you learned even more about the Grand Staff.
• You looked at Treble Clef (for the right hand).
• Mr Mozart helped you to play some songs using  whole, half, quarter and dotted half notes written on the Grand Staff! You are really beginning to recognize these notes quickly now. Great job!
• You also learned about the treble clef notes C, D and E for the Right Hand.
• You had time for some fun in the Games Room and Improvisation Room and the end of the session!

At Home This Week;

• Print out this worksheet to try some more music math!
• Have a go at this activity all about the lines and spaces on the Grand Staff!

Have a great week! See you all next time,

Adele Merritt

This week, we got straight to work on the computers!

Craig – Piano Suite 8, week 3

• You began with some scale work. We talked about the Major key signatures, and how to work out their relative minors. Remember, to find the relative minor scale, find the 6th degree of the Major scale. A shortcut to do this, is to move down 3 semitones from the tonic note.
• We also reviewed most of  your scales to date. You did a good job of playing C Major scale, hands together over 2 octaves!
• In Theory Thinker, you worked through some examples of compound time. Now you have a clearer understanding of the pulse in 6/8 and 9/8 time.
• You worked hard on your repertoire piece, ‘Computer Cat.’

At Home this Week;

• Finish working through the Level 7 Practice Written test
• Continue to work on your repertoire piece
• Practice C Major, hands together, 2 octaves.

Madeline and Parker – Piano Suite 3, Week 3

• We began with our scales; C, G F Major and our new A minor.
• Then you continued to work on the 2 note slur exercise.  Remember to press hard into the first note, and lift on the second. Both notes are to be played legato.
• You worked very hard on ‘March Militaire’ and made some good progress. Then we played a couple of other level 3 pieces, which were fairly tricky! Don’t worry, it will take time to get used to your hands moving around the keyboard a bit more!
• You finished off with some free time in the Games Room for fun!

At Home this Week; 

• Continue to work on March Militaire.
• Print off this 2 note slur exercise and practice it a little every day!
• Work on your new scale, A minor.

Ryan – Level 2C, Lesson 58 and 59

• Ryan, you have been working very hard and have almost managed to complete level 2C!
• We began by reviewing you note naming on the Grand Staff. You completed a sheet for me and got it 100% correct! Good job!
• You worked with Mr Chopin and Miss Melody playing pieces with running 8th notes.
• You can recognize notes which move in a stepping motion, or a skipping motion.
• You are very good at rhythm tapping with Mr Woodpecker, too!

At Home this Week;

• Review Lesson 59 with Miss Melody in the Practice Room.
• You did a good job of explaining to me how tied notes work. To practice some, print out and complete this sheet on tied notes.

See you all next time,

Adele Merritt

This Saturday, we began with an amazing rhythm circle. I brought my froggy guiro with me, and you all did a great job at clapping back 8 beat rhythm patterns. You then invented some of your own rhythms to challenge the group! You were very creative and thought of many different ways to play the instrument, aswell as thunking of how to play either forte or piano! Excellent job!

Sara – Level 1B, Lesson 20 and 21

• You began by working through the Practice part of last week’s lesson with Miss Melody.
• Then, in Lesson 21, you met your new teacher, Mr Villa Lobos!
• Mr Villa Lobos helped you to play more stepping songs for the right and left hands. Then he helped you to play ‘Ode To Joy’ which is a tune that Mr Beethoven used in one of his symphonies, years earlier! This was a long tune, and you had to focus for a long time to play it all the way through, and you did a fantastic job!
• To finish off the lesson you spent some time in the Games Room.

At Home this Week;

• Work through the practice part of lesson 21 with Miss Melody.  

Andrew – Level 1B, Lesson 24

• This week you met up with Miss Melody and reviewed everything that you’ve learned so far in MusIQ Club.
• You played through some more songs for both hands using grown up notes!  Good job, Andrew – you focussed for a long time today. There were some very long songs!
• Miss Melody reminded you that a whole note was worth 4 counts, a half note is worth 2 counts, a quarter note is worth 1 count and dotted half notes are worth 3 counts. Wow! What a lot to remember!
• Then you played through even more songs to show just how well you can play now!

At Home this Week;

• Work through the practice part of Lesson 24 once more. Next week you’ll be playing for all your Level 1 teachers in a recital on the computer during Lesson 25! Good luck!

Beth, Abigail and Mya – Level 2A, Lesson 32

• This week Mr Mozart helped you to practice even more songs written on the Grand Staff.
• You played songs with the notes C, D and E in the Treble Clef. Well done!
• You also noticed how the green dots above the whole, half, dotted half and quarter notes helped you to hold them down for the correct amount of time.
• You had some free time in the Games Room and Improvisation Room for fun!

At Home this Week;

• Visit the practice Room with Miss Melody to review all that you learned this week. Next week we’ll move onto lesson 33.

See you next time,

Adele

This week was a very small class, with just Madeline and Parker! To use Parker’s term – it was INTENSE!

Parker and Madeline – Piano Suite 3, week 2

• We began by reviewing the scales from Level 2.
• Then we learned a new scale called A minor. This had a sadder, almost Egyptian sound to it. Remember that the finger pattern is the same as C Major, but the notes are A B C, D E F G# A
• Then we worked on our new technique, the 2 note slur. Remember to press into the first note, making it louder. Then lift off the second note, making it sound softer. We will work on this some more next week.
• In Theory Thinker, you watched an animation and played some songs which taught you all about Ledger Lines.
• Then you spent some time working on a new repertoire piece called ‘March Millitaire.’

At home this week;

• Continue to work on the 2 note slur exercise
• Try the A minor scale, with hands apart this week.
• In Piano Player, continue to work on March Millitaire with hands separate.

See you both, and Craig and Ryan on Saturday!

Adele

This Saturday, we began with a rhythm circle. You are doing so well with clapping back my 4 beat rhythms, that I began to challenge you with 8 beat rhythms! You did so well! Good job!

Sara – Level 1B, Lesson 18 and 19

•  This week, you began to use grown up notes!
• Now you have 1 beat quarter notes on lines and spaces! If their tails are pointing up and they’re above the Middle C line then we play them with our right hand, and if their tails are pointing down, we are playing them with our left hand!
• You played through lots of fun songs to practice this new skill. Good job!
• Then you showed me how well you could say your Musical Alphabet! It is a bit tricky saying it backwards!

At Home this week;

• Review the practice with Miss Melody for lesson 19.

Andrew – Level 1B, Lesson 23

• This week you visited Mr Villa Lobos for lesson 23. You began by reviewing the grown up notes you already know, half notes (2 beats) and quarter notes (1 beat).
• Then he taught you all about whole notes. These look like empty or white circles and you hold them down for 4 counts!
• Miss Melody helped you to play through some songs which used all these new grown up notes before you went to the Games Room and Improvisation Room. Good job!

At Home this Week;

• Work through lesson 24.
• Print out and try this wordsearch all about Mr Villa Lobos

Beth and Mya  - Level 2B, Lessons 31 and 32

Abigail – Lesson 31

• Today you met a new teacher called Mr Mozart, and he taught you how to read notes on the Grand Staff!
• You learned that the Grand Staff has lines and spaces for the right hand notes, and lines and spaces for the left hand notes.
• You also learned where Middle C is drawn on the Grand Staff.
• Mr Mozart also showed you a new note – the dotted half note, which is worth 3 counts.
• You played through some songs which helped you to practise whole notes, half notes, dotted half notes and quarter notes written on the Grand Staff.
• You had time in the Games Room at the end of the session and played a new game called Metronome Soup!

At Home this Week;

• Print out this activity sheet all about note values!

Great start to the new term!

See you next time,

Adele

It was lovely to welcome you all back to a new fun filled term with MusIQ! This Saturday was our first lesson, and it was great to welcome two guests to our class – Bardia and his sister, Arianna.

Craig – Piano Suite 8, week 1

• We began by reviewing your scales, including your minor ones!
• Then you played through your chord progressions. You’re beginning to get a feel for these now!
• You spent a long time working on your new Level 8 piece, ‘Computer Cat!’ Good job!
•  You had some free time to finish off the lesson

At Home this Week!

• Try to print off Computer Cat so that you can work on it at home.
• Continue to practice your scales every day!

Parker and Madeline – Piano Suite 3, Week 1  (We missed you today, Parker! See you next time!)

• We began by reviewing your Level 2 scales and techniques exercises. Good job, Madeline!
• Then you worked on and played your repertoire pieces. You did a great job!
• We learned about triad chords. They are a chord made up of 3 notes (1st, 3rd and 5th degree of the scale).
• You began to look through 2 new Level 3 repertoire pieces.
• Finally, you had 10 minutes free time to end the lesson.

At Home this Week;

• In Piano Player, continue to look at your new songs, ‘Beethoven’s Pastoral symphony’ and Dvorak’s Largo.’ Begin this week with hands apart.
• Continue to play through your scales and legato and staccato technique exercise.

Have a great week, and I’ll see you next time!

Adele

CONGRATULATIONS!

This was the last lesson for this term, and I enjoyed awarding you all your certificates! It was lovely to see your moms, dads and grandparents in class!

Beth, Andrew, Mya and Abigail – All awarded Children’s Music Journey, Level 1B

Now, Volume One is all complete and this week some of you moved onto the first lessons of Volume 2! Good job!!

Registration is now open for next term’s classes, which begin next Saturday! To register online, follow this link;

http://www.musiqclub.com/register.php#

See you all next time,

Adele Merritt

CONGRATULATIONS!

This week was the last lesson for this term, and it was lovely to be able to award your certificates to you with your parents there to watch! Well done to everybody!

Craig – awarded Piano Suite Level 7

Luc, Madeline and Parker – awarded Piano Suite Level 2

Devon – awarded Children’s Music Journey Level 2B

Registration is now open for next term which begins next Saturday!

Here is a link to the registration page on the MusIQ Club website;

http://www.musiqclub.com/register.php#

Thanks so much! See you next time,

Adele Merritt

Reminder – our next lesson will be on March 31st.

We had a great lesson this Saturday! We decided to get straight on the computers and keyboards.

Andrew – Level 1B, Lesson 20

• This week, Miss Mendelssohn reminded you all about grown up notes!
• Remember, if the notes have a stem that goes up, you play it with the right hand, and if the stem points down, you play it with the left hand.
• You played through some more songs trying to use all five fingers of both hands. Great job!
• The notes are moving in a stepping motion, from one white key to its neighbour white key.
• You also reviewed the Musical alphabet today; forwards and backwards!
• To finish off the lesson you spent some time in the Games Room.

At Home this week; 

• Keep saying your musical alphabet, both forwards and backwards! How fast can you say them?
• Can you colour in the notes by their letter name on this activity sheet?

Beth, Abigail and Mya – Level 1B, Lesson 24 and 25

• This week you met up with Miss Melody and reviewed everything that you’ve learned this term in MusIQ Club.
• You played through some more songs for both hands using grown up notes!
• Miss Melody reminded you that a whole note was worth 4 counts, a half note is worth 2 counts, a quarter note is worth 1 count and dotted half notes are worth 3 counts. Wow! What a lot to remember!
• Then you played through even more songs to show just how well you can play now!
• Beth, good job on your recital for all your Level 1 teachers!

At Home this week;

• Print out and try this activity sheet all about musical math using whole, half, quarter and dotted half notes!

See you in a couple of weeks,

Adele