Great Music Conference---Thanks Everyone!

The MAIS Music Pre-Conference was a big success. Teachers came from local Rome schools, Lisbon, Barcelona, Madrid, Syria, Rabat, Casablanca, Senegal, London, and Milano. Workshops listed in the previous posting were all presented. This was our first MAIS music-only conference, and it was an intense 36 hours of presentation and discussion on many, many varieties of music teaching. People couldn't seem to get away --- even the evening restaurant meal at the lovely Lumie di Sicilia restaurant was enjoyed by all participants, who continued to share their experiences with each other.

Many thanks to those who made it possible: Reina O'Hale, director of MAIS; Paige Short, organizer and presenter, Susan Kellerman, Joy Edenfield, Melanie Barnes, Sakou Kande, and key presenter, Keith Montgomery. We are looking forward to the next one! Check our Facebook club for the video of the drum circle and pics.   Facebook: Mediterranean Music Teachers

Schedule to Date

SCHEDULE

Wednesday, November 4

9:00 – 10:15 STANDARDS-BASED ASSESSMENT FOR PERFORMANCE ENSEMBLES: Keith Montgomery, London

10:15 coffee

10:45 – 11:40 COMPOSING WITH KIDS: Melanie Barnes, Rabat

11:45-12:45 CLASS MUSIC REPERTOIRE  [ages 3-7]: Paige Short, Rome

11:45-12:45 ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION: INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC IN YOUR SCHOOL
13:00 14:30 lunch (not included in fee)

14:30-15:30 REHEARSAL ORGANIZATION THROUGH USE OF VISUAL AIDS: Keith Montgomery, London

15:30 break

15:45 – 16:40 CREATIVE LESSON PLANNING: (Susan Kellerman, American School of Madrid)

Creative lesson planning which fosters a well-rounded and literate young musician. Round-table discussion at the end of the presentation.

17:00 18:00 DRUM CIRCLE: Sakou Kande,
Senegal

Thursday, November 5

9:30-10:25 THE ADOLESCENT CHANGING VOICE IN THE CHORAL CLASSROOM: Keith Montgomery, London

10:30-11:00 coffee

11:00 CHORAL READTHROUGH: Joy Edenfield, Lisbon

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The news for Music Pre-Conference and Honor Choir is also on our Facebook Page,
Mediterranean Music Teachers. Please be our friend!

Workshops

1- THE ADOLESCENT CHANGING VOICE IN THE CHORAL CLASSROOM

  ( Keith Montgomery, American School in London)

In this session, educators will be provided with background on the various stages of voice mutation ("changing voice") in the adolescent male.  Ideas will be given on how to select appropriate literature for this age group and how to adapt existing choral publications to the needs of boy singers.  Demonstrations with middle-years singers will help teachers to recognize and respond to both the strengths and limitations of the boys in their choral ensembles.

2- STANDARDS-BASED ASSESSMENT FOR PERFORMANCE ENSEMBLES

 (Keith Montgomery, American School in London)

Music educators often feel uncomfortable providing letter grades or final marks for their performance-based courses such as Band, Choir, or Orchestra. This session will provide ideas on how to provide both formative and summative assessments of students in performance-based classes, by using reporting indicators developed from the school's music curriculum standards. 

3- REHEARSAL ORGANIZATION THROUGH USE OF VISUAL AIDS

( Keith Montgomery, American School in London)

PowerPoint software, ordinarily used to reinforce large-group presentations, can be a valuable tool in organizing an ensemble rehearsal.  This session will provide ideas on how the flow of a rehearsal can be enhanced through the use of visual projections as an organizational tool.  Educators can learn how to minimize verbal instruction and increase the individual level of responsibility in each student through the projection of rehearsal order, and seating arrangements.  Also presented will be ideas on composition projects and video embedding with PowerPoint software.

4-CLASS MUSIC REPERTOIRE  [ages 3-7] 
(Paige Short, Ambrit Rome International School)
Standard repertoire for the music classroom, integrating singing, the use of Orff instruments, and creative movement. Extensive handout included, with chords.

5- COMPOSING WITH KIDS 
(Melanie Barnes, Rabat American School, Morocco)
Workshop name: Composing with Kids (An Introduction to Composition for students at different grade levels) Level: Elementary (but material may be modified for older grades) 
Overview: In this workshop, we will explore activities which introduce young students to techniques like question and answer and improvisation which will then lead to composing their own written music, alone and in small groups.  Come ready to sing, play, dance and compose!

6 - CHORAL READTHROUGH
(Joy Edenfield, Carlucci International School, Lisbon, Portugal)
Music for a variety of choral situations. 

7- SENEGALESE DRUM CIRCLE for all teachers 
(Sakou Kande, Senegal)


8. CREATIVE LESSONS FOR ELEMENTARY MUSIC
(Susan Kellerman, American School of Madrid)

The purpose of this workshop is to help teachers design activities and units in their grades 2-5 music classes which are creative and engaging, and also promote the development of a well-rounded and literate young musician. The session will start with a discussion of ideas (both daily activities and long-term units) which have successfully been implemented into a curriculum and end with a round-table type forum where everyone can share and brainstorm ideas to take back to their own classrooms.

9. STRING TEACHERS ROUND TABLE

MAIS Music Pre-Conference

The Music Pre-Conference for all interested music teachers will be all day Wednesday, November 4, and the morning of Thursday, November 5. It will be held at Ambrit Rome International School, Via F. Tajani 50, in Rome.


Why "Pre-Conference"? Because this conference is part of the MAIS (Mediterranean Association of International Schools http://www.mais-web.org ). MAIS is supporting our efforts to give you a great conference; the full MAIS Conference begins Thursday evening, November 5, in Florence, but most of the music workshops are being offered in Rome at the Pre-Conference.

Teachers who are already signed up teach at a variety of international schools in the Mediterranean area. Exchange of experience, ideas, concerns, and enthusiasm are expected to be non-stop. Please consider attending.

HOW DO I ENROL?

To sign up for this conference, contact the MAIS office in Madrid, directly, at

reinaohale@asmadrid.org 

Fee: for teachers of MAIS schools, the Pre-Conference fee for Nov. 4-5 is €100, and for non-MAIS teachers, €120. This includes all workshops, material, and Thursday morning coffee. Meals are not included.

Where to stay? Contact http://www.ilfaro.it/

Fondazione IL FARO 
Via Virginia Agnelli, 21 
00151 Roma (Italia) 
Telefono +39.(0)6.6573025 - +39.(0)6.65747781 
Fax +39.(0)6.65740534 
E-mail info@ilfaro.it