Presidential Inauguration and Martin Luther King Jr. Day Reflections

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal..." It is ironic that when these words were written in 1776, they did not apply to people like me. Yet, these words seem almost foreshadowing of the changes to come. TheDeclaration of Independencespoke of rights that were given by our Creator, but it would take many years and a war to start our country down the path of "All men are created equal..." and we are still trying to make this a reality here in 2013.

As an African-American, I feel fortunate to find myself in a place in history where I have a particularly unique view from which to reflect on the history of what today meant to us as a nation and our moving closer towards that concept, "All men are created equal".

As I reflect on the 2nd Presidential Inauguration of President Barack Obama, I can't help but think of one of the Bibles he sworn the oath of office on, the Lincoln Bible. Abraham Lincoln was president of our country at a time when our union was new and fragile. There was an issue that threatened to tear our nation apart, Slavery. With southern states threatening secession the President had to weigh the costs of freeing the slaves with preserving the Union. I believe Lincoln understood the damage we do to ourselves when we don't extend equality for us all. I can't help but wonder what President Lincoln would think of the nation's first black president. I can only imagine the feelings of something you know would take longer than your life span materialize.

Once slavery was abolished, something naturally had to take its place. TheBlack Codesin southern states. began almost as soon as the ink was dry on theEmancipation Proclamation...then here comesJim CrowtheGrandfather Clause,Segregationand other restrictions allmeant to keep a nation in a nation...separate and unequal.

Then enters a charismatic pastor who challenges the status quo. Dr. King often quoted the founding fathers as he spoke of racial equality. Peaceful resistance, which Dr. King espoused, was in stark contrast to the hatred and vehemence that was shown towards those seeking the rights promised in our founding documents, but not yet realized. How would Dr. King see the events of today? I would expect that he would feel that we have made great strides, but that we still have too many equalities in a nation with the capacity to solve these problems.

Now with these great leaders to reflect on, along with countless others, we stand at a place in history that is brand new. As the world looked on, we a nation of immigrants, but whose infrastructure was built with slave labor have chosen and African-American as president and we have given him a second term in office. There have been so many who have sacrificed so much to get us to this point. It is at times overwhelming to think of even my own family and the sacrifices made in order to help my current generation become successful. My grandfather had to leave school in the 5th grade to help his family. Later when he was married and wanted to build a house he quoted prices that a person of color could not afford at that time. He decided to build the home by hand. It took years, but he built a home for his family. My father was the first black chemist for Burlington Industries. I am only the second generation of my family to go to college. Today, I found myself in awe of what is possible when people want to change something. The country did not change on its own. Brave men and woman put their lives on the line so that we all, as Americans, can achieve and excel. As an African-American I appreciate the founding fathers of our great nation, but I have an even greater appreciation for those who made and are making our country live up to its ideal that we are all created equal, for they paid a cost that we today to often take for granted. I hope we always remember that we owe a great debt to these men and woman, and the only way to begin to pay it back is to contribute to creating a better society and as they did, leave this place better than we found it.

WELCOME 2013

All hands on deck!  It's 2013 and we are showing that Cougar Pride.  We have a great 2012 at York Chester.  We welcomed in a new class of talented 6th Graders and continued working with some awesome 7th & 8th Graders, but there is much more to come.

SHOUT-OUTS
Let's congratulate Raven, Jamon, & Chris.  These student will represent York Chester at the Gaston All-County Honor Band Clinic February 8-9, 2013.  Let's cheer these students on as they play in this "best of the best" band.  Our very own jazz band will be among the featured performers at this year's Martin Luther King Celebration January 19th at St. Stephen's AME Zion Church.  All of the community is invited.  This is just the beginning and there will be many more Shout-outs to come in 2013.

We have begun a new year as we end the 2nd 9 Weeks.  Oh, where did the time go? It is always exciting to have a fresh start, but before we get too far into January 2013, let's make sure we are wrapping up the 2nd 9 weeks in stellar fashion.   Remember that ALL assignments must be turned in no later than this Friday, January 18, 2013.  That is THIS WEEK!  

Every student has been given a progress report(last week), which explains what they have turned in, what they are missing, and their current average.  This report should have been signed by the parents and turned in to me to verify that parents know where their child stands before the end of the 9 weeks.  ANY assignment can be retaken, but students must do this before this Friday, January 18th.  The only grade that students can not make up is their home practice.  If your student is not bringing their instrument home and not practicing at home, except in cases like tuba and baritones who don't have a personal instrument, their grade will be negatively impacted.  All students should practice each night.  The consistency is more important than the length of time they practice. Click on this link for some practice tips to help your student be more successful.  If you have not seen your student's progress report, you can check all of their grades anytime you like with the parent assist program through GCS or let me know and I will print another copy.

Band Karate Belt assignments are due by this Thursday.  Remember, ONLY students who have fulfilled the requirements of the White, Yellow, & Orange Belts will receive and "A" for the 9 weeks.  This is our incentive program to encourage our students to continually challenge themselves to become better musicians.

In 2013, we continual to strive to make your student's education rigorous and relevant.  We will use 21st Century Technologies to help all of our students become not only good musicians, but good creative and forward thinking students responsible for their own education.  Go Cougars! It's 2013!

Gearing Up For the Holidays!

Cougars are on the move!  I am so proud of our Jazz Band members who performed in Charlotte November 17th at Bank of America downtown.  Classroom Central has called us back to perform 3 times for their annual fundraisers and this was their Birthday Gala!  The jazz band looked and sounded great in the Urban Garden portion of the tower.  Raven O. sang vocals while Dantarious C, Joseph A, Mikhalis H, and Tyron M played the the horn lines and drums.  Excellent work Cougars.  The kids are really on the move!

There is a lot going on as we near the end of the semester and we need the help of all of our parents to keep students focused on learning as we near the winter break.  Students have 2 primary assignments that are due before break.  Part of our new Common Core Curriculum is a piece called Cultural Relevance where students must make connections between music and other areas.  One way students are making that connection is every student will be making a poem, which must be at least 3 lines long, that expresses their personal view of this season.  This assignment is due on Monday, December 17th.  The poem should include a title, student's first and last name, class period, and it must be typed, but it does not have to be printed.  Students can send it via email.  The second big assignment is the Living Room Concert.  Students will put on a concert in their home.  The particulars are in the project info sheet click the link for the sheet.  Students must make a program for their concert and must play 5 songs.  The Living Room Concert Project is due on December 18th.

I know everyone is excited about the Winter Spectacular, Thursday, December 13th 6pm at York Chester.  It is going to be a great show and will showcase an array of the talent that we have in our performing arts department at York Chester Middle School.  I expect to see all of your smiling faces and all of your wonderful families as we celebrate this wonderful season together!  I could not do what I do at York Chester without your support and constant help.  Make sure your student is practicing each night to make their performance great! Students will wear their own black dress pants, black dress shoes, black socks, and the black Cougar Band Polo.  if your student does not have a shirt, make sure your order one from me.  GO COUGARS!

So many Choices

This first 9 weeks has been a great growing experience for me. I have found some great uses for technology in the band classroom from setting up a recording station for tests on one of the desktops in my room to using my classroom iPads to remediate some students in my class while accelerating others or using the iPads to take tests where we use Flubaroo to grade them. I found uses for technology that make class instruction more effective and enjoyable for my students. I am also using the technology in my class for student reflection and creating products.

Through this experience, I have found my favorite app, Doceri. It is a powerful app with a lot of uses. I have used it to create instructional videos about songs that we are performing. The Cultural Relevance piece of the Common Core standards gives me an avenue to share with students the background, historical context, and relevance to the lives of of my students needed to make a connection to the music. With the app's interface you can write on screen while it records your voice. There are several very useful backgrounds that can be used and pictures can be inserted. I have experienced many of these features from other apps, but the things that puts Doceri over the top is the desktop download. When Doceri is placed on your desktop you can sync the two and then you have control of your desktop from your iPad. Not like a mouse...you can actually see what is on your desktop on your iPad and you have a touch screen desktop right in your hands. Doceri has proven invaluable in my classroom instruction.

The most difficult thing I have dealt in this process is all of the choices. Sometimes it is so overwhelming trying to decide what exactly which tool to use for the task and why use one tool over another. Through this process I feel that I have become a better educator, because I am really thinking more about what i want my students to learn, how to get them there, and then I look at the results and try to do it even better the next time...whew!

I feel very fortunate to be a part of this process and just like the kids, I get excited and doing things in new and more engaging ways.

Finishing 1st 9 weeks and Yo Che Fest

Lights, Camera, Action... It is time to get the show on the road and finish up this 1st 9 weeks.  The end of the first 9 weeks is almost here...just 1 week left.  I have had a blast this first 9 weeks and I think we have gotten off to a great start.  6th grade band is sounding better everyday.  The 7th Grade Band is doing great with some players even being higher chairs than some 8th graders, and the 8th grade band has a wonderful sound that is getting better each rehearsal.  I am so pleased with the progress that the bands have made.  Now on with this last week of the 1st 9 weeks!

Yo Che Fest, the York Chester Music and Arts Festival, is this Saturday, October 27th from 12-4pm on the front lawn of the school.  7th and 8th Grade bands will participate along with our jazz band.  The chorus at York Chester will go on also.  The York Chester groups will go on about 12pm.  There will be professional groups, church groups, dance groups, and much more at the festival.  The Beta Club will be in charge of games and there will be sidewalk chalk for young attendees.  The event is free just bring your lawn chairs or blankets and enjoy the entertainment.  Concessions will be sold.  We do need parent volunteers, so please let us know if you can help out.

Since this is the last week of the 1st 9weeks, it is time to wrap up all of our work.  If your student has an assignment to retake it must be done by this Friday.  Students are allowed to retake any assignment as many times as they would like.  Practice Charts, which are part of all students homework grade, are due Friday.  7th & 8th Grade students should be practicing 20 minutes a night and 6th Grade students should be practicing 10 minutes a night.  Students should record their practice on their Practice Charts, which parents should sign every week.  Only students who qualify for their Band Karate Belts are eligible for an "A" in the class.  The first 9 weeks assignments for belts are due by this Friday.

This a great time to be a Cougar!  Let's finish this 9 weeks strong, and Come on out this Saturday, October 27, from 12-4pm for the 2012 Yo Che Fest.  GO COUGARS!

The COUGAR BLUES

Cougar Family, I hope you all had a great weekend. We had a wonderful Band Night Out this past Friday with our 8th & 7th Grade Band members. We had a blast cheering on those Huskies.  On behalf of Mr. Radford and the Huskie Band, thanks for coming out Cougars!

Band Family we have some wonderful things going on this month.  We invite everybody to the annual York Chester Music and Arts Festival 2012 (YO CHE FEST) on October 27th from 12-4pm.  The 7th & 8th Grade Bands will perform along with the Chorus. This is our culminating activity for Hispanic Heritage Month, also. We will have special guests such as local dance teams, church groups, and professional artists. If you check the band calendar, I will keep updating the list of performers. There will be concessions, games, music, and just a whole lot of community pride, so come on out!

This week we are going to be working hard to become better musicians. Our 6th Grade Beginning Band students need to practice 10 minutes nightly and record it in their practice charts. I will check charts next week. Practice is a graded part of average for all students. We are quickly approaching the end of the 1st 9 weeks, October 29th, and we need all students to have their book, Measures of Success Book 1 $9. If your student brings $9 in, I will get the book brought to the school. Students will also have a test on 1.12 this Friday; therefore, have them practice up to that exercise in the book. Consistency is the key! If students are not practicing on a regular basis at home, they will not excel.

7th Grade band students are improving each day, but we need several students to purchase a Foundations for Superior Performance Book $7 and some baritones need to purchase a mouthpiece $25. Remember to bring in your money for your book or mouthpiece and we will get what ever you need brought to the school. We will check Practice Charts the week of October 15th. Students should practice 20 minutes a night in order to receive full academic credit for their practice. This Friday 7th Graders will be tested on their Concert F Major Scale. Let's keep getting better students!

The 8th Grade Band will continue to lead the band in our work ethic. This Friday, students will play their Concert C & G Major Scales. 8th Graders like 7th Graders should practice 20 minutes a night and we will have our second practice chart check the week of October 15th. Remember it is not just about the amount of time that one practices, it is about the quality of that time. Like I tell the students, "don't count the time...make the time count".  

We will begin the Cougar Band Karate Belt Incentive Program this week. So all students should be working on their belt assignments. Remember only students who fulfill the Belt requirements each 9 weeks are eligible, along with other assignments, to receive and "A". 

Each student is compiling an ePortfolio which is used as a collection of their work for the year and to help mark progress. If you would like to check your child's progress, you can check the Parent Assist program through Gaston County Schools and I can send you part of their ePortfolio. If I can do anything to keep you better informed please let me know.

I am excited about the week ahead. Keep those Cougars Practicing each night. That is the only way to improve. GO COUGARS!

The COUGAR BLUES

The Cougars are rolling again! We are so proud of NEW Jazz Messengers members Joseph A. and Raven O. and former jazz band member Corinthia F. who played for an event this weekend for Secretary of State Elaine Marshall. These 2 students did a great job and received many compliments from all in attendance.Looking for another great year from the Jazz Messengers.

I am very happy with the start of the school year we have had. Parents I do need your help with a couple of items.  Please, make sure your student is bringing their instrument daily, which is part of their daily grade.  Also, make sure your student takes their instrument home each night and practices (10 Minutes a night for 6th Grade and 20 Minutes a night for 7th & 8th Grade). Students are supposed to record their practice time on their practice chart that was in the band handbook they received at the beginning of the year. I will check the charts periodically as part of the homework grade.

I want to remind everyone to secure the book for their instrument as soon as possible, because we have already begun using them in class.  If your student bring me the money I can get the book if getting to the music store is a problem.  6th Grade needs Measures of Success Book 1 $9 immediately.  They will need Foundations for Superior Performance $7, later in the year.  7th Grade should already have Measures of Success Book 1 $9 and they will also use Foundations for Superior Performance $7. 8th Grade is using the Foundations for Superior Performance $7. Baritones players will need to secure their own personal mouthpiece and clarinet and saxes need 5 good reeds at all times.

This is an exciting week coming up as we introduce BAND KARATE! Before you get really concerned, let me explain. This is an incentive program where as students complete specific band assignments, they will be awarded colored belts. This is a partial fulfillment of the 9 weeks assignments. Only students who complete the belt program for each 9 weeks will qualify for and "A" for that 9 weeks. This is a fun way to award the excellence that so many students display. Students will receive a list of assignments for the Band Karate Program on Monday.

THIS WEEK:
The jazz band will rehearse tomorrow after school until 4:30pm, and the pep band will practice Tuesday after school until 4:30pm.  The pepe band will be playing at this Wednesday's home football game

BAND NIGHT OUT is this Friday, October 5th at Hunter Huss. 7th & 8th Grade Band students will play along side the Hunter Huss Band in the stands.  Students will get into the game free and they will be given snacks during the 3rd quarter. It will be a fun night to let our Cougars experience a little of what it will be like to play in the high school band. Students will receive further information to take home tomorrow.

Cougar Band family, thank you for all that you do.  You are a great group to work with and I look forward to great things all year long. GO COUGARS!