 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Katrina
Date: 2006-01-12 03:42
I don't remember ever seeing the topic of students' forgetting their lesson materials. So not having had time to search, I'm posting anyway. (Sorry GBK & Mark...)
Any suggestions/war stories/ways to prevent the kids from continuing to forget???
Katrina
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Author: BassClarinetGirl
Date: 2006-01-12 04:09
Personally, I am a very forgetful person, as organized and together I may pretend to be.
I got a soft briefcase for christmas, and it soon became a clarinet bag, and has been a big help for me. In the main pocket, it is the perfect size for my clarinet case. There is a slot right in front of the main pocket that is the right width to drop my folder (the large, black school folder style) in. There is also a zipper pocket in the back where I keep other books and papers. There is plenty of pocket room for extras. There is also a flap that comes over the top of it all and has two clasps at the bottom. (The whole thing is also actually very waterproof, which is also nice.)
I put everything back inside after each time I use the clarinet, so all I have to do is pick it up and go. I haven't forgotten anything (so far!). You could suggest this, or a "gig bag" style bag to put everything in, and keep it there at all times. Will this work or not for younger students? I don't know, but it sure helped me. I'd forgotten folders, music, books, (clarinets...) before I had a handy bag to put it all in.
Oh, and the briefcase is big enough for my Eb case as well! Talk about convenient.
My sister, who is in 3rd grade, also keeps her voice and piano books in a tote bag at all times when not going to a lesson or practicing. My mother also checks it before she leaves the house to go to every lesson, and makes sure it is all there. If these are younger students (ie: can't drive so parents bring them to lessons) you could try showing the parents the materials they need every week, and explaining that the child will have a hard time progressing if they do not bring their materials, so lessons where they forget books and music are money going to waste...
Well, now you've got my $.02!
BCG
BCG
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2006-01-12 05:15
I'm not taking lessons, but I like to keep a lot of the music I play (but never the horns) in my car, so I never forget it when going to a gig.
Steve Epstein
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Author: Mike Clarinet
Date: 2006-01-12 08:35
Katrina - by 'materials', are you referring to sheet music, instruments etc. or what should have been practiced that week? (How can anyone can go to a clarinet lesson and forget their clarinet? ;-)
I had a piano teacher who insisted that I had a notebook. In it was written what to practice for the week and what was intended for the next lesson. As this was referred to daily, it put in mind what would be needed for the next lesson. My sister had the same teacher and our lessons were consecutive so Mum would drop us off before my sister's lesson and pick us up after mine. This meant that we reminded each other about remembering stuff.
If kids forget their music, then a whole lesson if scales and technical exercises (octaves, tongueing, other nasty stuff) with the odd comment about "if you had remembered your music.." may frighten them into not forgetting. As for adults, they should know better!
(Puts on flameproof vest as every teacher on this board reaches for the napalm...)
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Author: Rick Williams
Date: 2006-01-12 11:02
Flogging comes to mind or if they are really bad you could duct tape them to a chair and force them to listen to a Yoko Ono CD!
Seriously, probably an instrument over case with storage space works well because it keeps the instrument and music together. Short of punishments such as Mike suggested, that keeps my stuff together.
Best
Rick
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2006-01-12 11:35
>>If kids forget their music, then a whole lesson if scales and technical exercises (octaves, tongueing, other nasty stuff) with the odd comment about "if you had remembered your music.." may frighten them into not forgetting. As for adults, they should know better!
>>
Might work, but I'd hate to see scales and technical exercises used as punishment. Teaching kids that these necessary tools are "nasty" and avoidable can only retard students' progress.
I like the way my piano teacher handled things. He required a parent to attend the child's first lesson. He asked the parents to supervise children's preparations, and explained to the parents and the child what a waste of *their* lesson money it would be for kids show up unprepared. He let the parents decide how to punish the kids for wasting the family's hard-earned income. I was one of those compulsively-organized, Hermione Grainger types, but I remember how Mr. Eisler dealt with the student who forgot his music at the lesson just ahead of mine one day. When I came in toward the end of the lesson, the two of them were finishing up a lesson on improvisation. Mr. Eisler assigned the boy to remember and write down something he'd composed during the lesson. The student, grinning, said, "I should forget my music more often!" One day when he did forget again, Mr. Eisler gave him a lesson in sight-reading technique.
If a student consistently showed up unprepared, Mr. Eisler explained to the parents that the child was not really interested in music, was not yet emotionally mature enough to take lessons seriously, and was welcome to come back next year and try again, but for the time being, bye-bye. Those kids were wasting *his* time, too--and who needs the hassle? He kicked out several students during the decade or so I studied with him. Some of the parents went ballistic, but his attitude about that was, "Tough kishkas."
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: allencole
Date: 2006-01-12 14:34
Most of my students have no problem remembering their stuff, and everyone has an assignment book that I issue them. I encourage them to get a valise or a cloth grocery bag for their materials and most do.
But there are a few who just can't get it together. So we do the scales/arpeggios/chromatic thing, also using the scales to play songs by ear, during the lesson. We'll use them to take an easy song or two and move them through different keys. This can be more like a game, and I would avoid framing it as punishment. It's just the only thing that we can do with no books.
Job #1 is to have a productive lesson no matter what, and I use this opportunity to remind students that knowing their scales and arpeggios has allowed them literally to make music out of thin air.
At the end, I remind them that we need their lesson materials to do other important things. If it happens twice in a row (or otherwise often) I remind their parents.
If it starts to notably interfere with progress, I have copies of most lesson books in my truck, and will pull out something to work with. I want to train them to be responsible, but it can't turn into a grudge match. Student and teach still have a job to do.
Allen Cole
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Author: ginny
Date: 2006-01-12 15:30
As above said above a lesson on technique, scales, arrpeggios. Have some sight reading handy.
A bag to keep lesson materials in is good, some bags from shops work well.
Do you have a single chronic offender? Did they fail to practice as well?
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Author: Gandalfe
Date: 2006-01-12 15:43
My grandson, who is ten, forgets his materials often. So we work on rhythm exercises, scales, long tones, and vocabulary (bends, glisses, and the like). I am trying to make the lessons as unstressful as possible. We also listen to recordings of famous players and discuss some of the more interesting effects that make that song a success. It should be fun.
For my older students I have over fifty books to choose from so we work on site reading, improv, and scales. Again, I try to make it fun. And if they really needed to work out a part for band that week, but they forgot to bring the part, I sympathize with them. ;o)
Jim and Suzy
Pacifica Big Band
Seattle, Washington
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Author: Katrina
Date: 2006-01-12 21:17
My original post was indeed prompted by one particular student who forgot her lesson books for about the third time at her lesson yesterday.
She's in 6th grade, and her dad picks her up right after school to come to the lesson. She's using a different book in lessons from that which she uses at school and apparently that's the problem.
I mentioned the seriousness of the problem to her dad last night, and she knows it's a big deal, since the music store where I teach was sold out of one of the books she's working on. Most of the lesson was sight reading, and that can be ok, but not three times in 4 months, IMHO...
Katrina
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Author: stevensfo
Date: 2006-01-12 21:40
-- Flogging comes to mind or if they are really bad you could duct tape them to a chair and force them to listen to a Yoko Ono CD! --
That's a disgusting thing to say!
How can you suggest that we treat children like this?
Have you any idea of the effect it would have on them?
Besides, these CDs are banned by the Geneva convention.
Steve
PS The flogging part is a good idea though! ;-)
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Author: pewd
Date: 2006-01-13 01:08
>(How can anyone can go to a clarinet lesson and forget their clarinet? ;-)
middle school kids are brain dead at times, you'd be suprised how often they forget to bring their clarinet to school
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: 3dogmom
Date: 2006-01-13 01:32
I bribe 4th and 5th graders with candy. Yes, I'm serious. Irresponsible, yes, but it works. I have group lessons at school, some outrageously large, as well as band. If everyone is prepared, they all get something. If even one person isn't, nobody does. They are very happy with this system and pressure each other to remember. It really works.
So much for work ethic.
Sue Tansey
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Author: allencole
Date: 2006-01-13 05:14
Actually, I think that the incentive thing is a good idea. I have been interested in schemes involving prizes and rewards, but have not pursued them because of their possible effect on my tuition rates.
Incentives might make a good new topic.
Allen Cole
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Author: stevensfo
Date: 2006-01-13 12:18
-- middle school kids are brain dead at times, you'd be suprised how often they forget to bring their clarinet to school --
A saturday morning last year. Our trumpet playing 12 yr old son is getting ready for a very important concert at school in aid of the Tsunami relief fund. A typical 12 yr old, he rushes round ensuring that he has the 'important' things: comb, mp3 player, mobile phone, gameboy etc.
We leave in the car. Ten minutes later, a scream from the back. Trumpet has been left at home!
Kids!
Steve
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2006-01-13 13:04
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I bribe 4th and 5th graders with candy. Yes, I'm serious. Irresponsible, yes, but it works. I have group lessons at school, some outrageously large, as well as band. If everyone is prepared, they all get something. If even one person isn't, nobody does. They are very happy with this system and pressure each other to remember. It really works.
So much for work ethic.
Sue Tansey
----------------------------------
Rewards are good and they help create that work ethic.
Happens all the time in Business
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Author: ginny
Date: 2006-01-13 16:12
I have also used the reward system, although in my area candy was a little iffy with the moms, I used it on my kids. They both have a great work ethic, and it became internal so I'm not giving out small autos or even $1,000 bills when they do well. Candy or cookies do work, and they didn't seem to create a problem with weight for my thin kids or any thing. However, when my clarinet son finished one of the Rose books we went to See's Candies and selected his favorites to celebrate. But this doesn't happen weekly obviously.
I actually had my students (guitar not clarinet) collect awards to be able to select a small prize after getting 'points' (physically stickers) for regular practice, good about bringing materials and such for a period of time.
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Author: bcl1dso
Date: 2006-01-14 21:29
Most of the time it is probably not forgetting. If a student doesn't not have a certain part of there lesson prepared, the will % ally" forget that book. Personally I would talk to the parent first about being very firm with the student and if the parent says it is ok really have a firm(not harsh ) tlak with them.
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Author: GBK
Date: 2006-01-15 04:05
bcl1dso wrote:
> Most of the time it is probably not forgetting. If a student
> doesn't not have a certain part of there lesson prepared, the
> will % ally" forget that book.
You obviously have not taught junior high school kids.
Remember their instrument and lesson material?
Most don't even know what day of the week it is ...GBK
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Author: 3dogmom
Date: 2006-01-15 16:34
There's another factor to consider here. Many of my best players are right-brained, multi-faceted kids. Quite a few of them have attention issues. Some have central auditory processing issues - they truly cannot remember from one step to the next what they were supposed to do, despite the best of intentions.
I don't fight this issue about having music anymore. Yes, I do reward for having equipment, reeds, etc. However, I keep copies of everything we're working on and just dole them out as needed. You can probably tell the difference between a kid who really wants to play and one who is being "passive-agressive" about his stuff. The latter are the ones to call home about. The others, I help out.
Again, the above probably depends on the age group with whom you're working.
Sue Tansey
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