Note-By-Note Piano Arts

Jolea Jensen Sondergaard

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It’s a Zoo Out There Intermediate Piano Collection

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Have fun playing these character sketches of various zoo animals. Written for the early to late-intermediate pianist, students of all ages can enjoy these pieces. Selections have videos for your perusal if you search them individually in my TPT store.

I wrote these pieces for my own piano students to perform in our 2019 piano recital which I titled “It’s a Zoo Out There!” I taught some of these pieces by rote and others by note, depending on the level of the student. My studio ranged in age from 4-11 years and in level from very beginner to Level One piano playing. The parents and other attendees at my recital were impressed at the seemingly complex songs their children performed.

I hope you enjoy these pieces as much as I did!
Purchase them from Teachers Pay Teachers. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Its-a-Zoo-Out-There-Intermediate-Piano-Collection-5168564


It’s A Zoo Out There!

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Lions and Monkeys and, wait, there’s more? It’s a zoo out there! Come to our Spring Recital at 2:00 PM on Saturday, May 18, 2019 to hear exciting piano music depicting animal antics. Enjoy lions roaring and attacking their prey, monkeys climbing all through the day, and butterflies flitting in a beautiful display. Listen also to hymns that speak of God the Creator of all these wonderful animals. The venue will be Wilton Baptist Church located at 755 Saratoga Road, Wilton, NY 12831.

Bright Spots

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I was teaching my music class this morning at the daycare, and, as usual, started out by singing a couple of songs. A few of the kids were not participating—just sitting in their seats and watching. I looked at them and tried to get them to participate with the others, but they just kept watching and did not join in. Proceeding with the lesson plan, I moved on to the finger play. The moment I picked up my hands and told the children to join me, the non-participators brightened up and began to copy my hand motions. It was really neat to see their little faces come to life as they made their fingers move to the action rhyme. We continued with the lesson and eventually all of the children eagerly played rhythm instruments as we marched in time to “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”

The other day when we got our second Nor’easter in the space of five days, I looked out the window while eating lunch and saw the sun shining in between the snowflakes. I had to run outside and take a picture; it was so pretty to see the snow falling as the sun shone through. It was a bright spot in the midst of the dark clouds in the sky.

Sometimes God brings a bright spot in the midst of our lives. Maybe we have just been going along in life living day in and day out and not really enjoying it. Perhaps we haven’t taken the time to stop and smell the roses. Pause today to reflect on God’s graciousness to you; enjoy life, enjoy the opportunities you have to live for God today.

Psalm 118:24, “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”

Psalm 107:31, “Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!”

Psalm 68:19, “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.”

James 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”

When the Light Comes On

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A concept, a hurdle, a stepping-stone. Sometimes my students get to a point in which they reach a new stage of learning. They hit a wall that is difficult to penetrate. There is a concept they can’t seem to comprehend. There are frustrations that come with this difficulty.

As a teacher, I try teaching the concept from one perspective, and the student doesn’t understand. I teach from another angle, and they still don’t understand. Maybe I try three or four different angles, or even five, and the student still struggles with comprehension. Maybe I can tell them what to do, and they will do it, but they are not quite learning how to do it on their own. They are not yet able to take that concept and apply it in another unique yet similar situation. It is only when I am able to approach that concept in the way that student learns best that the “light comes on.”

You can see it. Their face lightens up, a big smile appears, and the student then proceeds to play the music exactly as you anticipated. The wings of song take off, and the student flies on them. What happened? It is the “light bulb moment”—the moment when the “light came on” that was the turning point.

It is this moment—this moment of frustration—that can be crucial in a student’s decision to continue or discontinue lessons. If as a teacher you are able to carefully guide the student through this learning process, they are yours for life. If you fail to guide them and only add to their frustrations, they will quit and maybe even stop learning music all together. It is important, therefore, to be able to teach from many different angles and use many different approaches. By using a variety of teaching tools and techniques, the teacher can develop a strong love for music in all students, no matter what learning style they may have.

Watch for those hurdles as they approach. Be prepared to treat them as fun, new, exciting experiences rather than hard and unapproachable stumbling blocks. Teach in a variety of ways and enjoy seeing the “light come on” as your students learn and grow.

A Thirst for Finer Music

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What is education? Is it telling a student what you want them to learn and then having them copy a sentence 100x? Is it dictating a lesson by rote and demanding he memorizes and then repeats back verbatim what you said? Or is it working with the student to learn how he learns best and then leading the student to discover new things on his own? Is it developing in that student a desire to search out treasures of wisdom he might not have seen without delving further into the mine of knowledge?

While rote memory has a place in learning, I believe that learning takes place best when the teacher figures out what makes her student curious about new things. Students learn best when they are inspired to reach new heights—when they must dig down into the mine themselves and then bring up the gold to share with others. They learn best when they are thirsty for knowledge and reach for it on their own. It is the teacher’s goal to present new topics and ideas in a way that peaks her student’s curiosity and motivates him to learn.

One of my favorite music educators, Zoltan Kodaly, said, “Teach music and singing at school in such a way that it is not a torture but a joy for the pupil; instill a thirst for finer music in him, a thirst which will last for a lifetime.” I love music with a passion and want the same for my students; I want them to enjoy playing the piano and to make the instrument sing from their fingertips. I want them to appreciate the wonder of music as it has existed from the very beginning of creation. My teaching comes with a desire to inspire—a desire that my students will taste the tip of the musical iceberg and will continue wanting more as they progress in their learning.

“It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge,” Albert Einstein

“The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery,” Mark van Doren

“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires,” William Arthur Ward