BLUEGRASS IN THE SCHOOLS

The Foundation for Bluegrass Music hosts teacher workshops each year with the goal of introducing bluegrass music to classroom and music teachers at all levels (including home schooling parents), by giving them practical lesson plans and tools to implement bluegrass music in the classroom.

The courses, with attendance certificates issued for professional development credit, usually include live presentations by professional bands who demonstrate the instruments used and vocal harmony structure, lesson plans on the history and evolution of bluegrass music with hands-on projects and activities for students, and live presentations from student bands with advice from educators who are already using bluegrass successfully in their schools and camps.

A number of bluegrass music resources and take-home handouts, including info from Foundation for Bluegrass Music’s Discover Bluegrass: Exploring American Roots Music DVD and accompanying lesson plans, are shared with teachers, along with a free one-day festival pass to the event going on during the teacher workshop.

“Innovative Ways to Motivate Students and Increase Learning:  Harnessing the Power of American Roots Music and Dance” Workshop to be Offered Feb. 24 at Wintergrass 

The folks at Wintergrass Music Festival are offering a professional development course for teachers called “Innovative Ways to Motivate Students and Increase Learning:  Harnessing the Power of American Roots Music and Dance" on Feb. 24 from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. in the Cedar Ballroom at the Bellevue Hyatt in Bellevue, Wash.

If you are an educator in the area or you’re a teacher who will be attending the festival, please click here to register, or call Trisha Tubbs (206) 915-6744, ttubbs@softresources.com or Tom Petersen (206) 546-4865, thos.m.petersen@gmail.com for more info.

What are public, private and home schooling educators looking for?  How does this sound…

• Classroom-ready lessons
• The best in educational motivational techniques
• Hands-on skill development across all learning styles
• The latest in brain research
• A unique approach to grabbing students’ interest
• The most authentic way to build bridges between diverse cultures
• Real world, yet standards-compliant assessment techniques….

Plus:

• Private-audience world-class entertainment!
• Cushy five-star meeting rooms and snacks!
• Personalized instruction from renowned educators!
• Glamorous downtown Bellevue shopping and restaurants!
• Big bags of swag!
• And, for those who need them…eight clock hours for half the usual price! 

This winter, teachers of any grade level or subject can have their most useful, inspirational and fun professional development experience ever by attending the “Using Americana/Bluegrass to Connect with Learners” workshop on Feb. 24. The workshop is part of the award-winning Wintergrass Music Festival, and attendance includes a one-day pass to Wintergrass for Friday. The attendee also has the option to purchase a weekend pass to Wintergrass for their personal use for only $100.

This unique course features the dynamic Tom Kopp, Ph.D, of Miami University of Ohio, nationally known professor of the science and practice of student motivation and the energetic Tom Petersen, veteran local teacher, classroom innovator, and assessment expert. They will be joined by a host of other award-winning educators in presenting fully research- and experience-grounded material that will re-energize experienced teachers and open new vistas for those new to the profession.

This is not a class for music teachers only. Music is just the starting point.  Elementary classroom teachers will practice lessons and get materials to enhance interest, comprehension, and mastery in math, language arts, social studies, science, and P.E., learning mnemonics, sing-alongs, and dances from nationally known performers.  Secondary and college instructors will find how our American cultural heritage opens doors to international understanding, inspires deeper understanding of social, political, and economic issues historically and today, and returns students to the virtues of traditional eloquence and literacy.

Come see for yourself, and please share this with your colleagues and teachers. Registration for the workshop and detailed information may be found at www.wintergrass.com.

To request info on how to organize a teacher workshop in your area, contact Nancy Cardwell at nancyc@ibma.org or Tom Kopp, Ph.D. (Foundation for Bluegrass Music Bluegrass in the Schools Committee chair) at kopptw@muohio.edu.