Wednesday, November 11, 2015

November Update

Whew!  November is moving right along!  What a short, yet completely jam-packed, month November is in the music department!  With Halloween behind us, the music department now (unfortunately) does what all the retail stores do:  skip November and focus full-time on the Holidays!  The band and chorus have actually been in "holiday mode" since September, but we are shifting into full-time holiday mode now that the Kindergarteners, 1st graders, 2nd graders, and 3rd graders have begun work on our K-3 Holiday musical:  a musical by Teresa Jennings called "This Old Gingerbread House."  It's a pretty "sweet" play, ha!  The kids are off to a good start with it.

Blizzard bags went home at the beginning of this month, and the students have been briefed during class on what to do if the blizzard bag day falls on a day that they normally have musical activities:  music class, band, lessons, or chorus.  For your convenience, there is a link to my blizzard bag page above.

Chorus students:  the Chorus Practice Guide page has finally been fully-updated and is officially up and running with this year's holiday music!  Enjoy the chance to practice your chorus music at home!

As the days grow short and we all start to feel the hustle and bustle of the holiday season increasing the swiftness of our steps, I sure hope that everyone is still able to take some time to slow down, breathe, and bask in the glow of what really matters in life.  Happy Veteran's Day and a special thank you to all of those who have served and/or continue to serve our great country.  Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Mrs. Johnson

Saturday, September 19, 2015

Parent Input Needed!

Please take my parent survey about the potential opportunity of our students performing at a Manchester Monarchs or NH Fisher Cats game!  Thank you!



Thursday, September 3, 2015

Welcome to the 2015-2016 school year!

As the signs in my hallways say, "Welcome 'Bach' to school!"  I hope everyone had a fantastic summer.  I certainly did!  We traveled more this summer than we have since before Ethan was born (he's almost 4.5!), and boy did it feel great!  I think I was born to travel.  The biggest highlight was probably our family reunion in Virginia back in July.  I have a small, but far-flung family, and I hadn't seen my cousins in 5-10 years!  It was amazing to reconnect and enjoy four generations being together again; we now have lots of memories to treasure from our time together.  I also taught private lessons through the month of July, and we've really enjoyed some good time on the lake in the last month or so.  I've included a few of my favorite pictures from this summer at the end of this post.

Remember that this blog is primarily a point of reference for you, my NDS and TCS students and parents.  With as much time as we all spend online these days, I figured it would be helpful to have a place online where you could check for important information at whatever time is convenient for you!  I am currently working on updating much of this blog with current information, and will continue to do so as often as possible throughout the year.

Click on the tabs above to navigate to the information you are looking for.  If you think of a question that would be helpful to have answered on this page, or if there's information you are looking for that is not already posted here, please feel free to email me at kjohnson@govwentworth.k12.nh.us or kjohnson@sau49.org.  I check this email multiple times a day during the school year, and because I'm in two buildings during the week, it's often the easiest way to reach me!

Looking forward to another great, music-filled year!

Kristin Johnson
NDS/TCS Music Teacher

Captain Ethan on Lake Champlain



A starfish!  Wells, Maine

Fun on the airplane to Virginia!

Mrs. Johnson's family reunion, Virginia

Family love!

While in Virginia, we visited Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's estate.  I learned a lot that day!

Cabot Cheese Store Annex, Vermont

Top of the Prudential building, Boston

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Happy Almost-Summer!

Phew!  We have made it through another hectic, crazy, and music-filled year!  We are busy wrapping things up for the summer, but it sure has been a busy year on the music front, best-evidenced by my inability to keep this blog active since November - ha!

Some of you may be looking for the recordings of the 1st Grade Boomwhacker Composition performances that we've done in the past week or so.  They are now uploaded and ready for your downloading and listening pleasure.  You can find them at the "Classroom Music Stuff" tab above.

As I have in years past, I am again offering Private Summer Lessons to any of my current or former band students this summer.  Flyers are posted at both of my schools on the bulletin boards between to 2 sets of front doors to each school.  Slips are due back by Monday, June 15 so I have time to schedule everyone by telephone before school gets out.  Send me an email if you'd like an electronic copy of the flyer:  kjohnson@govwentworth.k12.nh.us

I do hope that all of my students will stay musically active throughout the summer, whether it's singing, making their own instruments, or practicing instruments they already have.  Makes for great rainy-day fun!

Have a great summer,
Kristin Johnson
NDS & TCS Music Teacher