MUSIC
Kindergarten & 1st Grade
Young children need time to explore music. During the first two years in the music classroom, students sing, play musical games, use basic rhythm instruments and begin to develop musical vocabulary. Our emphasis in music is to develop singing skills, since this is the instrument they will always have with them!
2nd & 3rd Grades
Students are exposed to many genres of music from many cultures. As students become more advanced in their musical skills, additional instruments are incorporated into lessons. Orff instruments such as xylophones, metallophones and glockenspiels, along with the rhythm instruments, allow students to explore improvisation and musical creation.
Students begin to learn musical notation and can sing rounds and simple two-part arrangements. Thanks to a great past student teacher, all students learn “Body Solfege.” Solfege is a system which gives a syllable to each pitch of the musical scale (do, re, mi, etc.). Historically, hand signs have been used to show a visual of these syllables as they are sung. The hand signs, however, need fine motor skills which younger students often haven’t yet developed. By transferring these signs to large movements with the body, students hear the sound and, as the pitch goes up or down, so do the movements. This is a very effective way to get students to understand pitch relativity: movements go up, pitch goes up and vice versa.
4th Grade
Students learn to play the recorder, a pre-band instrument. Each child purchases a recorder and book so that they can take their instrument home to practice. The Recorder Karate method is used at Peirce. Karate students earn different color “belts” (in our school, it’s beads!) for mastering songs. Additional music is added for the Winter Sing and Spring Concert and they have the opportunity to earn the GOLD bead for preparing the extra music.
5th Grade
Students continue to develop their music reading skills and move toward beginning composition. Each spring the entire 5th grade is involved in producing a musical which is performed at the end of May. We often correlate the International Studies country for the year. Past productions include:
6th Grade
Students continue developing their music reading and notating skills through an in-depth study of Jazz music.
7th Grade
Students complete an African Drumming unit during the fall semester and then shift their focus to the Renaissance in the Spring. All 7th grade students perform in the Annual Sharing and Showcasing Shakespeare program in June.
8th Grade
During their final year at Peirce, students focus primarily on choral music in preparation for their Graduation in June. Students sing in 2- and 3-parts for the Winter Sing and the Spring Concert. More advanced music theory is also studied.
Young children need time to explore music. During the first two years in the music classroom, students sing, play musical games, use basic rhythm instruments and begin to develop musical vocabulary. Our emphasis in music is to develop singing skills, since this is the instrument they will always have with them!
2nd & 3rd Grades
Students are exposed to many genres of music from many cultures. As students become more advanced in their musical skills, additional instruments are incorporated into lessons. Orff instruments such as xylophones, metallophones and glockenspiels, along with the rhythm instruments, allow students to explore improvisation and musical creation.
Students begin to learn musical notation and can sing rounds and simple two-part arrangements. Thanks to a great past student teacher, all students learn “Body Solfege.” Solfege is a system which gives a syllable to each pitch of the musical scale (do, re, mi, etc.). Historically, hand signs have been used to show a visual of these syllables as they are sung. The hand signs, however, need fine motor skills which younger students often haven’t yet developed. By transferring these signs to large movements with the body, students hear the sound and, as the pitch goes up or down, so do the movements. This is a very effective way to get students to understand pitch relativity: movements go up, pitch goes up and vice versa.
4th Grade
Students learn to play the recorder, a pre-band instrument. Each child purchases a recorder and book so that they can take their instrument home to practice. The Recorder Karate method is used at Peirce. Karate students earn different color “belts” (in our school, it’s beads!) for mastering songs. Additional music is added for the Winter Sing and Spring Concert and they have the opportunity to earn the GOLD bead for preparing the extra music.
5th Grade
Students continue to develop their music reading skills and move toward beginning composition. Each spring the entire 5th grade is involved in producing a musical which is performed at the end of May. We often correlate the International Studies country for the year. Past productions include:
- Theseus and the Minotaur (2004). International Studies Country: Greece
- Caribbean Folk Tales: 4 Plays with Music (2005). International Studies Area: Caribbean
- Many Tribes, One Voice (2006), International Studies Country: South Africa
- The Adventures of Hansel and Gretel (2007). International Studies Country: Germany
- Myths and Music of the Ancient Americas (2008) International Studies Country: Argentina
- Dig It! A Musical of Ancient Cultures (2009)
6th Grade
Students continue developing their music reading and notating skills through an in-depth study of Jazz music.
7th Grade
Students complete an African Drumming unit during the fall semester and then shift their focus to the Renaissance in the Spring. All 7th grade students perform in the Annual Sharing and Showcasing Shakespeare program in June.
8th Grade
During their final year at Peirce, students focus primarily on choral music in preparation for their Graduation in June. Students sing in 2- and 3-parts for the Winter Sing and the Spring Concert. More advanced music theory is also studied.
BROOKE TIPPET THOMPSON
Music Teacher
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Brooke Tippett Thompson has been teaching kindergarten through 8th grade music at Peirce since 1998. Originally trained as an opera singer, Ms. Thompson worked in arts administration and fundraising prior to teaching, but found her true calling while attending graduate school for Vocal Pedagogy.
Ms. Thompson is a National Board Certified Teacher and mentors other music candidates through the process. She is a much sought-after supervising teacher and has had the privilege of working with over 20 pre-service teachers since 2002. Ms. Thompson has been the recipient of more than $25,000 in grants since beginning at Peirce School. In 2008, Ms. Thompson won a Golden Apple Award for Teaching Excellence. |
In addition to her teaching duties, Ms. Thompson is a teacher representative on the Local School Council, member of the Instructional Leadership Team, coordinator of the After-School All-Stars program and assists other teachers with grant writing. She is also responsible for bringing the national Education Through Music program to Chicago and has been its local coordinator since 2003.
Outside of school, Ms. Thompson works with the Golden Apple Scholars program which provides professional development for pre-service teachers throughout their college years.
Outside of school, Ms. Thompson works with the Golden Apple Scholars program which provides professional development for pre-service teachers throughout their college years.
