4 Must Haves for Your Elementary Winter Concert Prep

October usually sees change in leaves and weather, It also signals the critical seasonal shift to prepping for Winter Concerts. Performances for Middle School and High School level are primarily focused on demonstrating proficiencies with certain pieces. At the elementary level, the focus is less ‘performance driven’ and more on introducing young minds and hearts to music and getting them excited about being involved and trying something new. Nevertheless, the Winter Concert event should successfully showcase what your younger students are learning musically, through an entertaining experience for your audience. Achieving this is no easy task.

Elementary Winter Concert Prep is filled with unique challenges. New students coming in require extra coordination with other teachers. Small group lessons that are limited to thirty minutes often switch the days of the week. Larger group or full group rehearsals often can only take place outside of the typical school day hour, and a very limited number of rehearsals at that. Most students are being introduced to the basics, which demands patience, encouragement, and diligence to help students sufficiently absorb and gain confidence with new skills in a very short time period.

Solving these unique teaching challenges requires a prep plan that includes four must haves:

1 - Strategize the Rehearsals

Having the rehearsal goal in mind and then working backwards from there, will help you to know how to formulate your game plan for lessons. Figuring out the best way to get the most out of your students as a group or a whole, is key. Decide what you want to accomplish and go from there; “we need to learn this brass-featured section, so our main priority is working on that part of the piece”.

For me, focusing on the quality versus the quantity of what I’m teaching is paramount. I would rather that the students do something simple but perform it well, then have the students try to learn something too complicated and not sound good during the concert. If that means that all they learn for a song is how to play in unison well for example, then the students will have learned an important building block for group performance.

It’s also important to keep in mind that most students will have no experience playing in a group setting, and have not mastered balancing with other sections and performers. Because of this, during my full group rehearsal, my focus is on achieving dynamic balance across sections.

2 - Structure the Learning

My students need to start with the building blocks (fingerings, tone/embouchure, tuning, and balancing the dynamics). There’s not enough time to go into each of these in depth, but it is important to pay attention to something like tuning, because it really affects the entire group’s sound and can elevate the group during your concert performance.

I might choose to focus on one learning goal per week, starting with fingerings for example, and then go from there. I can't plan the lesson plan too far out since it depends on where each student is at and the pace that they are absorbing new skills. But being flexible with what weekly challenge I give my students also encourages them to be ready for anything and excited to learn the next building block for playing their instrument in a group successfully.

3 - Maximize the Time

First lesson is focused on making a sound on their instrument, and then time permitting, showing them how to assemble (and disassemble) their instrument.

During the course of the next couple of lessons, we establish the norm of what is expected during our lesson times, including the typical rehearsal order. The first 5 minutes are to be used for unpacking, and for catching up and connecting with me, before getting into the lesson. Then we try to save the last 5 minutes for packing up and writing down our next assignments. If group lessons overlap, I can even work a little longer with the previous group while the new class is unpacking.

4 - Energize the Passion

I try to find fun exercises that encourage the kids to participate in learning through games. Something that seems silly but fun, is a great way to get the creative juices flowing and break up the routine. Don’t be afraid to find movement games centered around music - I even use a game called “Snowball Fight” for note recognition that the kids love.

Motivation through positive reinforcement also works wonders! Don’t underestimate the power of something simple, like earning a sticker as motivation, for your elementary students.

When making my concert selections (earlier in the year), I try to pick pieces that the kids will be excited to play. This could be through a theme, like Christmas/winter holiday songs. But the ultimate goal is to pick songs that are attainable for them to play, they will have fun playing, and feel a sense of accomplishment by the end of the concert. Parents will be able to hear the growth of their students through the concert as they apply what they have been learning in small group lessons.

Remember to Stay Positive!

Last piece of advice, stay positive! Even if you’re nervous about how the Winter Concert is going to go, don’t adopt a mindset of ‘just get through it’. Often the students have more focus come the night of the concert than regular rehearsals, which potentially could result in them giving their best performance.

I’ve had plenty of final rehearsals where I wasn’t sure if they were ready, only to find that they “locked in” during the concert, and gave a stellar performance. Regardless of how the last rehearsal goes, always encourage them that they can perform well and that they can just focus on having fun. Your positive and encouraging attitude will really inspire young musicians to take a deep breath and push through the nerves.

Following up with them after the concert performance and reinforcing that positive attitude, can also light a fire under your students and get them excited for the next part of the year.

Meet Our Guest Expert Author

Karen Levins is the K12 Music Educator at Owen J. Roberts SD - North Coventry Elementary in Chester County, PA.

Original article published October 3, 2024 on Band Directors Talk Shop.