Establishing a regular habit of practice at home is extremely important in each musician’s success as well as the success of the entire ensemble. The students who practice regularly are almost always the musicians who are the most successful. They enjoy their ensemble experience the most and reap the most benefits of involvement in music. Establish a regular habit of practice at home. Students should practice a minimum of 4 nights a week totaling 75 minutes on fundamentals alone. Practice on assigned music should be practiced until the student can be successful on assessments and meet in class expectations. There is no required time for assigned music.Most musicians find that it takes a minimum of 20 minutes a day to maintain an enjoyable atmosphere of progress. Practice in a well-lit area away from distractions like the TV, a radio, or your little brother. Invite your parents and other relatives and friends to listen to you occasionally. They’ll love it! And you’ll enjoy the audience!
Practice 6th Grade and 7th Grade practice grades are based on practice grid minutes.. A good balance of categories on the grid and time spent in Smartmusic will result in a satisfactory grade. See the practice grid page for more information about grading.
75% of your time should be spent on fundamentals.These are things like scales, long tones, tuning, and rhythm. They are the vegetables of our musical diet. Spend most of your practice time on these things.
15% of your time should be spent on music you are having trouble playing. If you already sound good on a piece you shouldn't need to practice it too much. The parts that don't sound so great are the ones that need your attention during individual practice. Below are some ways to break down a passage you are having trouble playing:
Write in the counting
Clap and count the rhythm with a metronome or Smartmusic
Play just the rhythm on one note instead of playing what's written on the page
Listen to the part being played and finger along
Slow it down
chunk out a long section into smaller ones. Even one measure can be broken down by beat.
Ask a more experienced player to practice with you.
Trouble hitting a higher note? practice scales or lip slurs up to it.
5% of your time should be spent playing something fun or that you already know. Practice isn't all work and no play. You should always end you practice with something you like to play.
Assessments In order to assess students’ progress and make sure musical concepts are being retained, students are asked to complete 5-10 playing assessments quarterly with a score of 80% or higher. Most will be out of the method book and others will be over sheet music, rhythms, and sight-reading. Tests are posted on Smartmusic at least four days before they are due.
Up until the due date, students may practice the test as many times as they wish before submitting a final score. This promotes practice of the material needed to excel in class and gives the students a chance to master the tested skill. If a student is having trouble getting 80% please contact the teacher via email to discuss getting help with the assessment.
Since tests are posted at the beginning of the week, students have all week to practice and complete the test. However, rushing through tests and settling for a lower percentage is not permitted and creates a sense of mediocrity throughout the ensemble. It is the student's responsibility to plan ahead and complete the tests on time to the best of their ability. Mrs. Sawyer reserves the right to reassign any tests she feels were not your best effort.
Some tests will be for assessment of sight-reading abilities. These are the only tests in which students will submit the first test taken. These tests are to assess understanding of rhythms and notes before listening to the actual piece of music.
Again, do not wait until the last minute to take your test. Late tests will be given half credit until one week before the end of the quarter at which point missing tests will receive a zero. No matter what, submit the test on time so Mrs. Sawyer can see your progress and grade accordingly and you can get full credit for your work.