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Mrs. Smetanka’s Classroom Edit display name

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With this donation I plan to offer a ukulele class as a GATE club and Kid College course at my elementary school. Our school does not have a music program and has very little funding for our GATE program, so the classes we can offer are very limited. With this donation I would be able to offer students the opportunity to learn how to read music, play an instrument, and practice to perform songs at school assemblies. I truly believe that music instruction is necessary in delivering a well-rounded curriculum for students in elementary school. (I can still remember songs that I learned and performed in my third grade class!) "On average, students have had only about three years of in-school music education, according to parents; more than a third have had one year or less, with one in six of all students having had no music instruction at all" (NAMM Foundation and Grunwald Associates LLC, 2015.) It is my great hope that my students do not go through their entire elementary careers without music instruction. I chose the ukulele for this program because it's an instrument that I can confidently teach to students. Not only will students learn popular chords and songs, but also learn how to read music. Learning how to play and read music can also help them in other subjects in class. According to Arete Music Academy, "Children who study music tend to have larger vocabularies and more advanced reading skills than their peers who do not participate in music lessons (Arete Music Academy, 2014). The ukulele is also a very basic instrument and is relatively easy to learn how to play. It is the perfect instrument for beginners and for younger children. Thank you for considering to donate!

About my class

With this donation I plan to offer a ukulele class as a GATE club and Kid College course at my elementary school. Our school does not have a music program and has very little funding for our GATE program, so the classes we can offer are very limited. With this donation I would be able to offer students the opportunity to learn how to read music, play an instrument, and practice to perform songs at school assemblies. I truly believe that music instruction is necessary in delivering a well-rounded curriculum for students in elementary school. (I can still remember songs that I learned and performed in my third grade class!) "On average, students have had only about three years of in-school music education, according to parents; more than a third have had one year or less, with one in six of all students having had no music instruction at all" (NAMM Foundation and Grunwald Associates LLC, 2015.) It is my great hope that my students do not go through their entire elementary careers without music instruction. I chose the ukulele for this program because it's an instrument that I can confidently teach to students. Not only will students learn popular chords and songs, but also learn how to read music. Learning how to play and read music can also help them in other subjects in class. According to Arete Music Academy, "Children who study music tend to have larger vocabularies and more advanced reading skills than their peers who do not participate in music lessons (Arete Music Academy, 2014). The ukulele is also a very basic instrument and is relatively easy to learn how to play. It is the perfect instrument for beginners and for younger children. Thank you for considering to donate!

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