I'm really going to miss these folks! They were all wonderful. Bob and I finished up the literary/performance work and the CD books. We first ironed out the mini-performances from yesterday and added some narration. The students read some of their pieces and then performed the original song they wrote. This was debuted to the Zumix staff who kindly gathered to support. The highlight, I'd say, was the Memory piece by a student who delivered it in stand up comedy style to a room full of supportive shouts.
The students also finished their books. They look wonderful and are really practical for a group of musicians.
It was fabulous and I hope we can stay in touch with these folks (I know I'll be watching their band perform).
Thanks everyone for a great two weeks!
Emily
Friday, August 17, 2007
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Zumix Day 5
It was a lovely day of bookmaking today. Bob came with me and he worked with the kids to lay out plans for their cd books. They did the cutting, gluing, and folding...very cool.
We then rounded them all up and worked in mini-performances using the Image stuff we did from yesterday. They worked with a narrative written by a member of the group and then built performances around it.
The performances worked fairly well but their energy was a bit scattered and it was tough to pull them away from their individual book projects (things to remember for next time!)
Overall these kids are wonderful, the only challenge is a highly fluxuating number of students. There are a core of 6 students and then we range everday between these six and about 13, not bad when this is the problem I'd say.
Thanks,
Emily
We then rounded them all up and worked in mini-performances using the Image stuff we did from yesterday. They worked with a narrative written by a member of the group and then built performances around it.
The performances worked fairly well but their energy was a bit scattered and it was tough to pull them away from their individual book projects (things to remember for next time!)
Overall these kids are wonderful, the only challenge is a highly fluxuating number of students. There are a core of 6 students and then we range everday between these six and about 13, not bad when this is the problem I'd say.
Thanks,
Emily
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Zumix Day 4
Today was my favorite day!!! It was wonderful to have a room full of enthusiastic students. We had 13 (a number of them were there for the first time so that added a bit of a challenge but it was overall great).
We worked in some improv at the beginning because Maria and I agreed that these students really loved it. They opened right up, and this forced them to immediately work together, which was important for the rest of the day.
We worked on some of the themes from the story, to really push them to new levels by doing a few physical, silent exercises. This was amazing as Laura added an undercurrent of music. It was so thrilling to see how the piano brought the themes (and the students) to life. I'm really grateful that Laura was able to provide this for us because the use of music really spoke to what these specific students love.
We worked with Image Theatre and had to fend off quite a few giggles in the process. At first Maria T and I were a little frustrated but after we stopped the activity and made our expectations clear they stepped right up. I've never seen a group create such beautiful debriefs about their work, so insightful! They worked with themes from the story, including good vs. evil, betrayal, love and want-- some very powerful stuff.
We also worked on their music performances a bit to include everyone.
What a fun day!
Emily
We worked in some improv at the beginning because Maria and I agreed that these students really loved it. They opened right up, and this forced them to immediately work together, which was important for the rest of the day.
We worked on some of the themes from the story, to really push them to new levels by doing a few physical, silent exercises. This was amazing as Laura added an undercurrent of music. It was so thrilling to see how the piano brought the themes (and the students) to life. I'm really grateful that Laura was able to provide this for us because the use of music really spoke to what these specific students love.
We worked with Image Theatre and had to fend off quite a few giggles in the process. At first Maria T and I were a little frustrated but after we stopped the activity and made our expectations clear they stepped right up. I've never seen a group create such beautiful debriefs about their work, so insightful! They worked with themes from the story, including good vs. evil, betrayal, love and want-- some very powerful stuff.
We also worked on their music performances a bit to include everyone.
What a fun day!
Emily
Friday, August 10, 2007
Day 3 Zumix
The core group of students are just fabulous and had a great time. We warmed up and then moved into a writing exercise pulled from the story. We reviewed the actual text and discussed why they thought memories and remembering were so prevalent in the story. Then they wrote about a person in their lives who is defined by a specific memory. A few of them chose to write about themselves and one even made a whole history up (I loved that one).
We then worked on tightening our machines (lead up to sculptures) and finally polished and added music to the lyrics they wrote with Nathalie. The songs were pretty great and we ended on a good note.
That's it for now,
Emily
We then worked on tightening our machines (lead up to sculptures) and finally polished and added music to the lyrics they wrote with Nathalie. The songs were pretty great and we ended on a good note.
That's it for now,
Emily
Final Day Chelsea
In the chaos of an auditorium swarming with pre-teens we made out alright. Bob, Maria T and I traveled to the Boys and Girls Club with stars in our eyes and pride in our hearts (perhaps a bit over the top but we were excited) and were thrown into a swamp of children.
The talent show was a lot of fun, our kids were great except for the itsy bitsy audio detail. You really couldn't hear much of what they said...projection will be included in a longer session. But they learned a script (compiled of their own writing) in just a day and I'd say did pretty well. Doris made it to the show with a little crew and seemed pleased. We were then entertained by a skit that involved sock-footed 9 year olds running/sliding across a stage yelling "chocolate milk"--it was great.
All and all I'd say the work was a success so thanks for everyone who carted out there with us.
Emily
The talent show was a lot of fun, our kids were great except for the itsy bitsy audio detail. You really couldn't hear much of what they said...projection will be included in a longer session. But they learned a script (compiled of their own writing) in just a day and I'd say did pretty well. Doris made it to the show with a little crew and seemed pleased. We were then entertained by a skit that involved sock-footed 9 year olds running/sliding across a stage yelling "chocolate milk"--it was great.
All and all I'd say the work was a success so thanks for everyone who carted out there with us.
Emily
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Day 2 Zumix
Before beginning I would like to give a shout-out to Laura and Emily for making today possible :)
Today was great! Very productive and creative-- these kids are talented! The only downside of the day is that they came in 15 minutes late, so I would recommend, at least for next week, asking them to be here around 11:45am. Just a thought.
The day began with a couple of warm-up exercises that Laura led, the first a "follow the energy/movement" exercise that sent a movement around a circle, and the second one that asked students (and teachers) to pair up and maintain a conversation through gibberish, animal movements, strange movements and from across the room, in various combinations.
We then did the famous character exercise and a lot of great character drawings came out. The kids were certainly eager to share their reasons behind the intricate drawings, and the discussion worked well. However, they seemed to grow a little tired of everybody describing their characters because each person went, but it was fun because each kid was eager to do so.
We (finally) did the telephone lyric writing exercise, which turned oftentimes into a silly and far out deviation from the original. Once everybody read the actual "songs" the kids would usually end up roaring in laughter seeing the changes. Though some of the changes turned out a little less coherent than others, the next step, breaking them into groups of 3, 3, and 2, put them to the task of editing some of the parts they had created as a group and put them together into a single song per group.
The groups came up with some great songs that they shared at the end with the rest of the group. Laura was wonderful at improvising with the piano and the guitar to guide them through their presentations, and gave them interesting ideas as to how they could add some melodies to their lyrics. We had a cute little ballad, a hip-hoppish, call-and-response song (the sun is like a flower, the sky is like a bubble) and a rock/blues one sung to the melody of Bad to the Bone. They should rehearse and finalize these songs over the next days, they were truly creative! These kids are definitely lots and lots of fun.
By the end the kids wanted another fun moving-about type of exercise, but we didn't have more time. Emily, they were clamoring for the machine-building, so maybe you should do it again tomorrow!
Cheers for a wonderful day!
--Nathalie
Today was great! Very productive and creative-- these kids are talented! The only downside of the day is that they came in 15 minutes late, so I would recommend, at least for next week, asking them to be here around 11:45am. Just a thought.
The day began with a couple of warm-up exercises that Laura led, the first a "follow the energy/movement" exercise that sent a movement around a circle, and the second one that asked students (and teachers) to pair up and maintain a conversation through gibberish, animal movements, strange movements and from across the room, in various combinations.
We then did the famous character exercise and a lot of great character drawings came out. The kids were certainly eager to share their reasons behind the intricate drawings, and the discussion worked well. However, they seemed to grow a little tired of everybody describing their characters because each person went, but it was fun because each kid was eager to do so.
We (finally) did the telephone lyric writing exercise, which turned oftentimes into a silly and far out deviation from the original. Once everybody read the actual "songs" the kids would usually end up roaring in laughter seeing the changes. Though some of the changes turned out a little less coherent than others, the next step, breaking them into groups of 3, 3, and 2, put them to the task of editing some of the parts they had created as a group and put them together into a single song per group.
The groups came up with some great songs that they shared at the end with the rest of the group. Laura was wonderful at improvising with the piano and the guitar to guide them through their presentations, and gave them interesting ideas as to how they could add some melodies to their lyrics. We had a cute little ballad, a hip-hoppish, call-and-response song (the sun is like a flower, the sky is like a bubble) and a rock/blues one sung to the melody of Bad to the Bone. They should rehearse and finalize these songs over the next days, they were truly creative! These kids are definitely lots and lots of fun.
By the end the kids wanted another fun moving-about type of exercise, but we didn't have more time. Emily, they were clamoring for the machine-building, so maybe you should do it again tomorrow!
Cheers for a wonderful day!
--Nathalie
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Day 1 Zumix
Whooeee!
This is a fantastic group of kids! Maria T and I had a great second half of our double header in East Boston this afternoon. There were 6 teenagers and should be three more tomorrow. We even had one mighty shy lad join us from the other room halfway through because he said it sounded like fun.
We started out with a few warm ups (they are pros at these games, lots of experience) and then went into a little journal making. We had them chose and fold the papers however they want (telling them they'd have to stick to that shape for the two weeks). Some of them challenged the old stand by shapes...good luck Bob, Maria and I decided you could bind anything (Nathalie, remember to have them fold their papers tomorrow in the same way so they can fit together).
We then read the story and had them write responses during. Maria suggested we up the anti a bit and have them write not only their reactions but what they thought was going to happen in the story next. This turned out to be a lot of fun and I'd say my favorite answer was "I thought Margot was going to turn into the sun after she got locked in the closet."
We discussed what they thought/liked/didn't like about the story. It was great and we'll get into more specifics next time.
At the end we set up some groundwork for our sculptures by having the students mold themselves based on themes from the story. It was great.
They were super giggly laughing messes at times and I loved it.
It's a lot of fun, I think everyone will love them.
Emily
This is a fantastic group of kids! Maria T and I had a great second half of our double header in East Boston this afternoon. There were 6 teenagers and should be three more tomorrow. We even had one mighty shy lad join us from the other room halfway through because he said it sounded like fun.
We started out with a few warm ups (they are pros at these games, lots of experience) and then went into a little journal making. We had them chose and fold the papers however they want (telling them they'd have to stick to that shape for the two weeks). Some of them challenged the old stand by shapes...good luck Bob, Maria and I decided you could bind anything (Nathalie, remember to have them fold their papers tomorrow in the same way so they can fit together).
We then read the story and had them write responses during. Maria suggested we up the anti a bit and have them write not only their reactions but what they thought was going to happen in the story next. This turned out to be a lot of fun and I'd say my favorite answer was "I thought Margot was going to turn into the sun after she got locked in the closet."
We discussed what they thought/liked/didn't like about the story. It was great and we'll get into more specifics next time.
At the end we set up some groundwork for our sculptures by having the students mold themselves based on themes from the story. It was great.
They were super giggly laughing messes at times and I loved it.
It's a lot of fun, I think everyone will love them.
Emily
Chelsea Day 5
Alright! It's the day before our talent show performance and Maria and I had a great time. We spent almost the whole day working on our presentation. The kids are pretty excited and we think it will be a great time. Some reluctant speakers came around with a little positive support and a little peer pressure.
So tomorrow at 1:30pm you will see a taste of the writing and goodies that we've been doing.
Then we were off to Zumix...
see you tomorrow
Emilyhttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=4509770093562623758#
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So tomorrow at 1:30pm you will see a taste of the writing and goodies that we've been doing.
Then we were off to Zumix...
see you tomorrow
Emilyhttp://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=4509770093562623758#
Post Options
Thursday, August 2, 2007
Chelsea - Day Three - Boys and Girls Club
Again, a wonderful day with an exceptional bunch of ladies (and now two lads).
Maria T rounded up the crew to have them do a few excerises that used both voice and body. This was a lot of fun; many of them wanted to do it again. Mary and I then split them up into two groups and had them talk a little more about the words and themes found in the story, before having them work directly on the accordian book.
Overall the children worked well as a group, adding to each others pictures, and writing descriptions about each others drawings.
We then put them into two more groups. Maria worked with the paper instruments technique that Antonio had created in Framingham. This went over very well. We took the other half and had them sew the book together.
Great day. Lots of progress.
daVies
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Day 3 – BRAMAS
Today was our 3rd day at BRAMAS and overall it went pretty well.
Good news: we've got 2 new rooms on the same building (2nd floor). They are bigger than the bigger room upstairs and are going to be used for the performance.
The day started with a little warm up. Then Adriana finished what she had planned for yesterday. The kids looked at the pictures they took from each other and discussed about different interpretations/meaning/styles.
After that we went to the space downstairs where Antonio and me led a free writing exercise.
The kids wrote a few lines (poems, songs, narratives) related to the text. Than, we divided them into 2 groups.
Antonio worked with those who wrote lyrics and poems and I worked with those who wrote narratives for a possible theatrical performances.
We all read what they wrote together.
Once the group was back together Antonio transformed them into an orchestra. It was really beautiful to see. They all worked on the same musical piece from yesterday but played it with instruments they made out of recyclable materials. The kids even chose a name for their orchestra: “Os reciclados”. It was really nice.
That was pretty much the closing, as always we ran out of time.
I left the kids writings with Arlete for Emily to use/expand them. Some kids want to act and sing, some want to do sound effects and others want to work on building costumes (Rosana will be there tomorrow and work on that).
It’s hard to get the kids engaged all the time on all the activities. They also respond differently depending on what we ask them to do. Caio for example is hard to keep engaged most of the time but he made a very creative instrument (a flute with plastic bottles and water) and was very engaged in the orchestra part.
Like yesterday we had only 20 kids and they were not hard to work with.
I think that’s all for today.
Good luck tomorrow Emily!
Maria Tereza
Good news: we've got 2 new rooms on the same building (2nd floor). They are bigger than the bigger room upstairs and are going to be used for the performance.
The day started with a little warm up. Then Adriana finished what she had planned for yesterday. The kids looked at the pictures they took from each other and discussed about different interpretations/meaning/styles.
After that we went to the space downstairs where Antonio and me led a free writing exercise.
The kids wrote a few lines (poems, songs, narratives) related to the text. Than, we divided them into 2 groups.
Antonio worked with those who wrote lyrics and poems and I worked with those who wrote narratives for a possible theatrical performances.
We all read what they wrote together.
Once the group was back together Antonio transformed them into an orchestra. It was really beautiful to see. They all worked on the same musical piece from yesterday but played it with instruments they made out of recyclable materials. The kids even chose a name for their orchestra: “Os reciclados”. It was really nice.
That was pretty much the closing, as always we ran out of time.
I left the kids writings with Arlete for Emily to use/expand them. Some kids want to act and sing, some want to do sound effects and others want to work on building costumes (Rosana will be there tomorrow and work on that).
It’s hard to get the kids engaged all the time on all the activities. They also respond differently depending on what we ask them to do. Caio for example is hard to keep engaged most of the time but he made a very creative instrument (a flute with plastic bottles and water) and was very engaged in the orchestra part.
Like yesterday we had only 20 kids and they were not hard to work with.
I think that’s all for today.
Good luck tomorrow Emily!
Maria Tereza
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