You'd expect this might be really hard or even intimidating for eight, nine, and ten year olds but everyone really jumped right in. We studied songwriting last year which I'm sure helped. But I think, too, the mere fact that the kids spend so much time writing within so many different genres each and every day has played a big part. They write informational non-fiction, reflections, fantasy, comics, written conversations, realistic fiction, poetry, jokes, and on and on. They are powerful writers for their age and that fact is certainly not lost in the songs they are creating.
Over the past few days the kids have worked to pick one song from their drafts to publish, rehearse,and record. Jillian's dad, Clark, will be coming in next Thursday to record their songs for our new CD (Release Date: Spring). We'll also be recording our two most recent class songs - "The Plant Song" and "Reading is Thinking (It's Good for You)" - as well as a song with our special guest, recording artist Hannah Miller (don't forget she has a new CD she'll be bringing along in case anyone would like a copy. It's $5 and she'd be more than happy to sign it.). Look for videos of her visit to appear on our class blog over Winter Break. Sadly, this will most likely be our last chance to work with her. She is planning to move to Nashville in just a few weeks.********
Today I recorded most of the groups as they rehearsed their songs and I thought you might enjoy hearing them as well. Although they were free to write songs about anything, most chose to write Christmas songs. There's one or two others who weren't ready for a recorded rehearsal just yet so I'll be adding those on Monday or Tuesday.
Enjoy
