Palen Music Center Quick Note Monday, December 4, 2006   The PMC Quick Note is a weekly service provided to all area directors.  It is part of our mission to support the lives of band directors across the Midwest.  The weekly Quick Note contains helpful tips and suggestions from area directors, spotlights on area college and university band programs, calendars of upcoming events, advocacy articles promoting music education, links to helpful web resources, and much more.  Comments, suggestions, ideas, and articles are always welcome.   Looking for help on a particular topic? Be sure to check out our Quick Note Catalog of back issues.

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Music Advocacy Series: Can Music Really Make Your Child Smarter?

For the next several months, the PMC Quick Note will feature at least one article per month on music advocacy. There are some wonderful resources out there, and we will work to put the most current, relevant information in your hands.

We will start this month with a brochure available from American Music Conference website. They have a brochure entitled "Can Music Really Make Your Child Smarter?" The four-panel front and back flyer contains eye-catching photos of recent magazine articles including Newsweek, Parents Magazine, USA Today, and more. The inside pages have helpful clips presented in a quick, easy to read format. View the brochure (Adobe pdf).

In the brochure:

Music Students Score Higher SATs
College-bound seniors with school music experience scored 57 points higher on the verbal portion of their SATs and 41 points higher in math (98 points combined) than those without arts instruction.
--Profiles of SAT and Achievement Test Takers, The College Board, 2001

Band Members Get Better Math, Science and Language Grades
Studies at the University of Sarasota and East Texas State University both found links between the number of years of band instruction and significantly improved academic achievement as measured by standardized math, science and language tests.
--U of S study by Jeffrey Lynn Kluball, 2000; ETSU study by Daryl Erick Trent

Music Makes The Brain Grow
Childhood music lessons actually enlarge portions of the brain. German researchers found that the brain area used to analyze musical pitch is an average of 25% larger in musicians. The younger the musical training begins, the larger the area.
--Nature, April 23, 1998

Second Graders Do Sixth Grade Math
Second-grade students who were given four months of piano keyboard training, as well as time using math puzzle software, scored 27% higher on proportional math and fractions tests than children who received no special instruction. They were also able to solve proportional math problems at a sixth grade level.
--Keeping Mozart in Mind, Academic Press

Rhythm Students Learn Fractions Better
After learning eighth, quarter, half and whole notes, second and third graders scored 100% higher than their peers who were taught fractions using traditional methods.
Neurological Research, March 15, 1999

How can we best use this information?

• Add advocacy articles to the backs of your concert programs.

• Send brochures home with your band students.

• Use the information as part of your band recruiting tools.

• Great idea: The week before a concert, take a bunch of photos of your band kids during class. Close-ups are the best. Take some fun, casual pictures of the students coming in the class or putting together instruments. Then, compile the photos into a Powerpoint slide show. Intersperse slides with some of this advocacy information. You can also include announcements and other important information. Let the slide show. run for a half-hour before and after the concert. Parents love to see photos of their kid, and it is a great way to promote your program, inform the parents of upcoming events, and spread the music advocacy message.

• Take advantage of the AMC website. They give you permission to download, print, and distribute any of the information, read it online, or email them for brochure ordering information.

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The Midwest Clinic is Coming!

There are 14 days left until the 60th annual Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic. The event will be held in Chicago from December 19-23. The Midwest Clinic website is very easy to explore and you can check out the following things:

• Schedule of Events
• Concert Programs
• Pre-register for the Conference
• Watch the Midwest Clinic Promotional Video
• Midwest Clinic Blogs
• Midwest Clinic Attendee Map (This is really cool....check it out!)

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Contact Your Local Palen Music Center

Can we assist you with anything?  Please contact your local Palen Music Center school road representative for all of your music education needs.

 

 

If you would like to submit material, make changes or corrections, give comments, or wish to be removed from this mailing list, please contact Eric Matzat.