Xylophones and more!

Kindergarten worked on playing two-note chords and repeated borduns while singing a different melody. It takes quite a bit of coordination to do this, and we certainly will be practicing this skill!

Grade 1& 2 matched rhythm patterns to different candy names by clapping out the syllables and experimenting how long each syllable was held for.
Can you guess which rhythm pattern matches the following candy?

Grade 3-6s continued working hard on ukulele songs using chords C, F, G7, and Am. It's hard work moving from one chord to the next in a smooth continuous motion! Next week on Thursday we'll be testing on a simple song. 

Finally, our Grade 3/4s are practicing a special piece for their Remembrance Day Assembly on Friday, November 8, at 11am. Parents who would like to attend are invited to arrive at 10:50am.

Yours in Music,

Mrs. Lim

In need of help!

Important Message from School Council

We need your help!

We are holding our casino on Friday October 18 and Saturday October 19 at Pure Casino.  We have run low on volunteers for the Vista Heights School Enhancement Society casino night. We are in desperate need of volunteers in order to hold our casino.  Casino Funds are used for a variety of things for our school which have included building our school playground, field trips, Artists in Residence.

Would you, your spouse, family or close friends be able to help out? 

The shifts are as follows:

Chip runner or Cashier: October 18 and or 19th 10:00am-6:00pm (day shift)

Chip runner or Cashier October 18 and or 19th 6:00p-2:00am (Evening shift)

Count room: October 18 and or 19th 11:00pm-3:00am (closing shift)

Last time this fundraiser brought in over $65,000! 

Please contact Justin Murray at justinm188@gmail.com if you are able to help out!

Thank you!

October Musical Highlights

Kindergarten students are working on singing with accurate pitch. They do this by singing specific tones repeatedly. But how do we get them singing the same line over and over again without tiring? We put it in a game. Kindergarten has been playing "Doggie, Doggie", "I Like Turkey", "Snail Snail", and our latest and greatest game, "5 Little Pumpkins".

We act out the song and then stand and bow to appreciative applause by our Kindergarten audience who is sitting politely with their (fake) popcorn and beverage. Of course, we continue to get our brains working and our selves ready for learning by starting each class with a Brain Dance, always accompanied by the most calming music of various genres.

Grade 1 & 2s have been practicing their sixteenth note rhythms in games and practice claps. Our most difficult game involves ear training: we listen to the spoken/clapped rhythm and try to recreate it using popsicle sticks!

Grade 1&2s also work on critical listening, analyzing the tempo and dynamics of a mystery piece, then illustrating what scene they imagine when they listen to the music.
Most young ears are highly intuitive when it comes to guessing what the scene should be!

Grade 3 & 4 are not only practicing a performance piece for the Remembrance Day Assembly coming up in November, but they are also perfecting ukulele mastery and reading tab diagrams. We have already swept through four different chords and incorporated them into various songs! We also have learnt a fun and spooky song about Trolls. It's full of staccato (separated, bouncy) and sforzando (marked, strong) notes, and it's also full of delicious vocabulary!

Grade 5 & 6s have continued their ukulele journey this year on harder strumming pieces. Each class we try to play a different, slightly harder song, and of course we continue to work on our island strum in order to play the first half of "Lava" from the Pixar short film. We also are singing a spooky song called "The Ghost Ship", and we're starting a Liberian piece on the xylophones, drums, maracas, and agogo bell. Hopefully we can synchronize our beats to play a lovely piece together!