TED prize goes to educator

Readers,

If you haven’t seen the TEDTalk yet, go check out why Sugata Mitra deserves the $1,000,000 TED prize.

Mr. Kozak

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Rush and mixed meter

In your Music Journal, write in one sentence a little bit about the meter in The Rite of Spring and how it made you feel.

Your homework is to find and listen to a mixed meter song by the Canadian rock band Rush and tell me the meter in your Music Journal.

Mr. Kozak

Japanese music teachers – stop teaching fixed Do!

An open letter to all Japanese music teachers,

Today I was teaching guitar to my grade seven students. I was having them play an A Major triad, so they started on the second string. I told them that would be ‘Do’ for this purpose. One student then said,

“But Mr. Kozak, my music teacher told me that this was ‘Do’.”

Please, teachers, stop doing this!

‘Do’ is not only in one location. Whatever the root is, that is ‘Do’.

We are not sight-reading atonal music, therefore whatever key we are in, the tonic is most easily understood as ‘Do’.

In my humble opinion.
Mr. Kozak

Major and minor triads

Grade 7,

We’ve been playing guitar lately so you can hear and visualize the difference between the
Major (happy) 








and minor (sad) triads.

If you have a guitar at home, please experiment with listening to tdifferent Major triads.

Mr. Kozak

NPO PSA critique

Critique of my NPO PSA in Music Journal:

– What worked? What impressed you? What technical aspects were impressive? Did the NPO PSA achieve it’s goal?

– What needs improvement? What design elements were the weakest? Were there any fundamental flaws? What was lacking? Was it memorable?

Mr. Kozak

Rocky!

Intermediate Band players and parents,

We worked on The Snake Charmer (line 57) and a new song, Aloha Oe (line 63) as well as Rocky.

Please practice those as well as the previous lines while I am away on the MS ski trip. There will not be a rehearsal February 26, but business as usual the week after.

Mr. Kozak

Lummi Sticks

Grade 6,

Great job today learning the rhythm stick dance. Don’t forget to learn the lyrics.

Mr. Kozak

Beginner Band practice for February and March

Hello Beginner Band Parents,

I will be away on the Middle School ski trip, so there will be no band rehearsal Monday, February 25. There will be a rehearsal March 4 as usual.

Students should practice lines 36 and 37, as well as Rocky.

Mr. Kozak

Beginner Band help video – flute

Beginner Band Students and Parents,

Here is the first of several videos you can watch to help you learn to play your instrument.

This one is for learning how to play the flute:

See you again soon.
Mr. Kozak

Tempo Vocab

Students,

In you Music Journals, type at least ten words that describe tempo and a basic definition using slow, medium, and fast. These words will help you better explain music using a common vocabulary that musicians use all over the world.

Mr. Kozak