We Currently Teach Kinder-5th Grade

  We developed various different levels of music study depending on age of the study and importance of study, we continue developing our programs to maximize efficiency and participation for all of our students. Students learn hands on the importance of cognitive skills, social skills and responsibility. Please take a look at all of our courses and determine for yourself the effectiveness  of our courses. We are always open to parent suggestions, if you would like to make a Program suggestion please contact us through the contact form located in the near bottom of the WHO WE ARE page.

Kinder
All kindergartners have a 6-weeks intro session starting after spring break.
 
I. Allegro (1st Grade)
Incorporates: singing, playing, creating, and listening to basic rhythms, melodies, harmonies, forms, and expressive qualities through game.

Comprehensive Goals:

• High/low pitch,
• Speaking vs singing voice (and other vocal timbres),
• Matching pitch,
• Sound vs silence,
• Recognizing patterns,
• Beat vs rhythm,
• Steady beat with simple un-pitched percussion, body percussion & movement,
• Folk and traditional song repertoire,
• Fast & slow tempos,
• Loud & soft dynamics.

II. Cantabile (2nd Grade)
Incorporates: Continued studies (singing, playing, creating, and listening) from 1st grade education with more advanced rhythms, melodies, harmonies, forms, and expressive qualities
through game.

Comprehensive Goals:
Continued studies from 1st grade goals:

• Basic melodies in treble clef sung individually and within ensemble.
• More complicated dynamics (crescendo & decrescendo, staccato, legato, etc).

III. Andante (3rd-5th Grade)
Level: Two
6 months to a year depending on how expectations are met.

Comprehensive Goals:

• Basic steady meters,
• Producing strong and weak steady beat,
• Basic Interval Training,
• In-tune singing and pitch matching,
• Pentatonic Scales,
• Recognizing patterns and various dynamics,
• Produce quarter, eighth, half, whole note rhythms,
• Produce exercises and songs individually and within an ensemble,
• Basic musical forms,
• Timbres of various instruments,
• Music of many cultures

IV. Scherzo (3rd-5th Grade)
Level: Three
6 months to a year depending on how expectations are met.

Comprehensive Goals:

• Continued education from Andante,
• Introduction to compound meters,
• Producing strong and weak steady beat
• Interval Training (consonances & dissonances),
• Two-Part Harmonies,
• Recognizing patterns,
• Various dynamics,
• Pentatonic & Diatonic Scales,
• Produce quarter, eighth, half, dotted half, whole and sixteenth note rhythms
• Produce exercises and songs individually and within an ensemble,
• Identifying musical forms: phrasing, interludes, intros, coda,
• Timbres of various instruments,
• Good vocal tone production,
• Music of many cultures.

V.Vivace (3rd-5th Grade) – Introduction to Orchestra
6 months to a year depending on how expectations are met.

Comprehensive Goals:

• Producing strong and weak steady beat,
• Pentatonic, Diatonic & Modal Scales,
• Three to Four Part Harmonies,
• Recognizing patterns & various dynamics,
• Produce quarter, eighth, half, dotted half, whole and sixteenth note rhythms,
• Produce exercises and songs individually and within an ensemble,
• Timbres of various instruments,
• Music of many cultures.

 Our Accomplishments

During the last three years ESSC has made significant progress in its program evaluations. El Sistema Santa Cruz initiated assessments for student executive functioning skills and academic results and surveyed school site staff and parents.