Inside we have our feature article, getting to know our Piano Teacher, Ms Sachie; Student showcasing, where we feature a different student's piano playing skill each week; Upcoming events in our piano school (Online Recitals, anyone?); November's Lesson Objectives; and our Parents Ask Pam Question and Answer section. We hope you enjoy this Memo.

Feature Article: Getting to Know Ms Sachie

Ms Sachie Tunick began teaching with Move Over Mozart in December of 2017. She started as a class instructor at North Kirkland Community Center, then worked as a substitute piano teacher as needed, and came back working for us online in April this year both as a mini-private (8-minute) lesson teacher and our private (30-minute) instructor. But besides being an excellent piano teacher, who is Sachie?

Sachie is originally from Japan. Her father was a high school music instructor as well as the conductor for orchestra and band. In addition to piano, he also plays the trumpet. Sachie has two older brothers; one received a music degree with his trumpet and is now in the Navy. His hope is to join the Navy orchestra. Sachie, being much younger than her brothers, grew up with music in the family. With so many trumpets in her household, she thought they were toys and would play with them as such. Her father, noticing her affinity toward music, started teaching her at the tender age of 2 years. Sachie also learned to play the saxophone in addition to the piano.

Sachie was looking for an adventure. She had a friend living in San Jose that was looking for a roommate, so even though she didn’t speak English, she took the initiative and moved to California to see what it would be like living in the United States. After graduating from college with a music degree, she got a local music job, giving her the opportunity to get to know her boyfriend a little better. He ended up being the love of her life and they got married! They soon moved to the Seattle area for his job.

Sachie has a passion for children. In addition to working for Move Over Mozart, she is also a preschool teacher. Outside of work, she enjoys her two cats and exploring the Pacific Northwest. Currently, her favorite nature walk is Twin Falls, out near Snoqualmie Pass.

What are her hopes and dreams for the future? She misses her family in Japan. Since the pandemic, it has not been safe for her to travel back to Japan to visit her parents and brothers. She looks forward to a time in the near future to be able to see them again in person. In the meantime, she is learning about taking care of her house and wild yard. It is always an adventure!

Student Showcasing

Each week we showcase a different student from our classes. Like us on Facebook to see the new student each week.

Upcoming MOM Events

We will be having our first online recitals! Contact Miss Pam for a link to join any of them.

Tuesday, November 24, 5:15

Tuesday, December 15, 5:15 & 6:00

Friday, December 18, at 5:00 & 5:45

Because of the holidays, our November and December sessions will be over a longer period of time. Five weeks instead of our standard four, but still just four lessons, giving a bit more time to complete all the activities.

November’s Lesson Objectives

Our online classes run in 4-week sessions. Each session includes 4 mini-private lessons and 4 weekly videos, as well as access to our motivating practice app. Our next session will begin on Tuesday, November 3. Students are put into one of 4 classes, depending on their age and musical ability. Here is what we have planned for the next session. We will also have an online informational parent meeting on Monday, November 2, at 6:00. At the meeting, we will show how our practice app works, review our objectives, and answer any questions parents may have. All are welcome to join us. Just click the link below.

Parent Meeting Link

Here is the link to sign your child up for this next session

Pre-Reading - Ages 3 - 5 years, or students not yet reading,

Solfeggio

Students will learn the musical syllables and hand symbols for the first 5 tones of solfeggio. (You may recognize this as "Do, Re, Mi, Fa and Sol"). They will receive a new song each week to color code and play on the piano.

Primary - Ages 5 -7 years or older and brand new to music,

CDE White Keys

Students will learn to recognize and label the white keys, C, D, and E. They will also be introduced to games and activities they can play at home to reinforce learning these key names.

Beginning Elementary - Ages 7-12 years or younger and reading notes,

ABCDE Staff Notes

Students are given clues and activities to help them memorize the notes A, B, C, D, E on the staff, centered around middle C.

Advanced Elementary - Ages 7 - 12 years with previous piano lessons

How To Count

As students become more advanced in music, it is important for them to understand how to count each measure. This is a step up from our early learning understanding of the Kodaly rhythm syllables ("ti-ti, ta-ah, big-fat-whole-note").

Parents Ask Pam

Have a question for Miss Pam? You can email, text message, or message on Facebook your questions. She will respond immediately to you, and your question might be featured in future newsletters.

Q: How effective are 8 minute lessons? What can you really teach in 8 minutes?

A: Our 8 minute lessons are combined with weekly videos and our practice app. The videos give added music theory tailored to your child's age and musical ability. During the one on one private lesson, the student has enough time to review the previous week's music and be introduced to the next week's song. We typically expect a student to do a new song each week, although some students practice more and will go ahead for more than one song if they desire. During the 8 minute lesson, the teacher may also play some keyboard or music theory games to reinforce what they were taught during the video lesson. As part of the class, the students also receive a practice app which may have recordings of their songs to assist with their at home practice. Through the practice app, they can also ask the teacher questions any time between lessons, if needed. These short lessons have been very successful! We have seen more progress in our online classes than we saw in the physical group classes. It has been quite exciting to see the children grow and improve so quickly!

Your Comments And Questions

We want to hear from you! Please leave your comments and questions.

Click here to join our online classes. Get 20% off your first month by using the coupon code, NEW.