The Gift Of Music In Your Homeschool

It's going to be a busy week here.   I'm gearing up for long days with a lot of learning and fun.  

This week is a gift of music to my children.    

As I plan for this week, it makes me think about how I can incorporate more music in our homeschool, and help other homeschoolers incorporate music as well. 

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Mom "MADE ME" Quit!

The Spring Piano Recital represented so much MORE than a studio of students playing pieces they had worked on for several months.


It represented:

• a commitment to an act of beauty

• the ability to present oneself in a public situation with grace and ease

• a skill that had been practiced daily for years, slowly improving with each lesson

I feel quite strongly about playing a musical instrument, and the piano just happens to be our instrument of choice.   

My daughter has been taking lessons for three years now.  She practices 20-30 minutes every day.  She takes a lesson once a week (yes, even in summer) and attends group theory classes. 


In the beginning this was something I just declared she would DO... a part of what her dad and I believed was essential for her to learn.   Yes, there have been times where she has felt like throwing in the towel, but (since I have been there myself and know these feelings usually pass) we have encouraged her to keep going and provided motivators along the way.  

This is now a skill SHE has chosen to practice and perfect.   I love seeing her hard work come to fruition.  I believe these performances are invaluable.   I watch her approach the piano with confidence, play with grace, and see the pride in her sweet smile.   

Here is the footage of the recital.  {When will I learn to hold my iPhone sideways?  I was a little nervous and forgot this at the recital!}

My brother played the piano quite well, but he quit lessons somewhere along the way... he now jokes with me, "I'd be really good at the piano if mom wouldn't have MADE me quit!"  I happen to know it didn't quite happen THAT way.  

Thankfully, my mom was older and wiser by the time I was involved in piano lessons - she made me keep going, and I cannot thank her enough.

*Image courtesy Crouchy69

Learning through Music and a Maestro Classics giveaway!

Interest-Led Learning is a lifestyle for our family.   When a child of mine has an interest I am going to CAPITALIZE on that interest and squeeze out every bit of "learning"!  

 We are combining sports, music, and literature all in one.   It's very fun and VERY meaningful.

Baseball is a HUGE part of our lives.   This obsession has lasted for  three years, and I don't see it waning anytime soon.    My grinning little guy (this photo is a couple years old, but it's my favorite!) was reluctant to copy names of family members (proper nouns), but copied the entire Atlanta Braves roster instead.    The same little boy learned how to compute a batting average and watches MLB TV incessantly.   I can't even compute the hours spent throwing the ball with dad, teaching me how to bat, and practicing with his team.  

As you know, we are huge fans of Maestro Classics.   The first CD we listened to was Casey At The Bat.   I purchased it over a year ago because I have a baseball fanatic on my hands!

The CD kept both of my children's interest for several listenings (we usually listen in the car, but this one I brought inside)... and I appreciated the simple music theory lesson that was incorporated on the CD.  

From Maestro Classics:

When the Mudville Nine are almost certain to lose the game, Mighty Casey takes his turn at bat, and the fans hold their breath as each pitch is thrown.
The upbeat, jazzy music performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra is highlighted by cheering crowds, vendors hawking their wares, the cheers of spectators and the sounds of the ball being hit, which bring the story to life.
A 24-page activity book, included with the CD, contains the complete Ernst Lawrence Thayer poem, amazing facts about baseball, sheeet music, as well as games and puzzles

Maestro Classics is giving this CD to one of my lucky readers!

{I hope you read the rest of the post before you skip down to the giveaway!}

The pictures below show you the recipe for "March Sundae" which teaches children about the form of the march on the CD.   Each of the Maestro Classics CDs comes with a great insert with lots of ideas for teaching... you can make the listening as passive or as active as you want.  I usually choose a listening first without the guide;  after a few days have passed we then listen again with the guide. 

Listen to excerpts from the CD on the Maestro Classics website.   

When we first listened to the CD I found Casey at the Bat, a great book that has the original ballad with fun pictures.  My son loved to sit with the CD player and the book.

Last week we found Casey Back at the Bat, by Dan Gutman.  (We love his sports books, by the way).  This witty sequel to Casey at the Bat is the perfect read-aloud!    

It's amazing to me how everything just "comes together" in our learning.  Baseball, music, literature, math, history, geography - they all presented themselves through a simple lesson facilitated by Casey at The Bat, by Maestro Classics.

Did you know that you can also purchase a lapbook (through A Journey Through Learning) of Casey at the Bat  (designed specifically to go with the CD!)?

UPDATE!  A Journey Through Learning is ALSO giving away a copy of their Casey at the Bat lapbook  to this giveaway winner!    

Now for the fun part!  Maestro Classics is giving away a copy of Casey at the Bat to one lucky reader.  To enter:

1. Leave a comment telling me why you want to win this CD.

2. Subscribe to Homegrown Learners (via GFC or email in my sidebar) and leave me a comment.

3.  Like Maestro Classics on FB (when they get to 3,000 likes they will be having a $9 CD sale - this is a good deal!) and leave a comment.  

This giveaway will be open until Sunday,  May 20 at midnight.