Tone Block Time

What a weekend! Saturday evening was the Celebrity Chef dinner at The Hope Institute, and my students did an AMAZING job singing three songs in front of an audience of over 300 people. Not only did we receive a standing ovation after the second song, but the entire audience remained standing and clapped along with our closer, an upbeat goodbye song. I received so many compliments for my students' hard work, and I have to say, it was definitely one of the best moments in my career as a music therapist so far. Oh, and the CDs we made were a huge hit, too. All in all, a very successful night!

But the fun didn't stop there. Yesterday was the first Church Mice class of the fall session, and oh my goodness, did we have an awesome turnout. Around 20 families attended, and it was so exciting to see all the kids enjoying themselves as we sang, played instruments, and danced around the room. One of the instruments that I always incorporate into the class is the resonator bell, or tone block as we call them at Church Mice. I wrote a new song especially for our tone blocks, which goes like this:


Sheet Music: $1


Ring, ring,
Hear the chime.
Now you know it’s tone block time.
Ring, ring.
Loud and clear,
Ringing is the sound you hear.

_________ makes her tone block ring,
As we all play along and sing.

_________ makes his tone block ring,
As we all play along and sing.

Ring, ring,
Hear the chime.
Now you know it’s tone block time.
Ring, ring.
Loud and clear,
Ringing is the sound you hear.

Each child has a turn in the spotlight to play his or her tone block. It's so cute to see their faces light up as their names are sung! I love when those who are the most shy at the beginning become the most eager to play and be heard as the class goes on. Such a fun time!