DC Campus: THEARC Session 2 Newsletter

A Note from the Director of Camp Levine

Dear Camp Levine Families,

We’ve had such an awesome time at Camp Levine this session! We’re thankful for you sharing your camper with us this summer. It’s been a pleasure watching them explore and enjoy the creative freedom that music and arts inspire. Our Camp Levine team is great, but the support of our Camp Levine community is what has made it all possible.

Whether this is your camper’s first or third summer at Camp Levine, we hope that through our theme “Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall: Harmony in All Seasons,” we have provided a fun and engaging artistic experience.

We hope to see you next year!

Best,

Jazmin Goodson, Director of Camp Levine

A Note from the NW DC Site Director

We made it! Session 2 is complete and ended on a great note! It has been a joy getting to know each of the students and learning more about their personalities. However, the best part was seeing their artistic progress, which was displayed at the end of session performance (recording coming soon!). The students and teachers worked hard each day and it was evident by their top-tier musicianship technique, and presentation. I may be a little bias, but Camp Levine at THEARC is the best!!

Cheers,

Juan Goodson

Site Director, Camp Levine THEARC

PreK/Kindergarten Class

Our PreK/K campers are assigned to one teacher and camper group for the entire 3-week session. They explore music and the arts through singing, storytelling, arts and crafts, creative movement, and imaginative play.

The Snowflakes

Lauren Lewis:

The second camp session was a blast! Our littlest campers have enjoyed learning about new instruments… cello, clarinet and drums. And they have had lots of fun building on their previous experience with the piano.

In class, we concentrated on making numerous percussion instruments from recycled materials. We’ve read many books about drumming, but their favorite book was called Yoga Tots: Happy Tiger. The children have been taking turns “reading” to each other and have made up their own game using the book.

We learned many camp cheers and folk songs in both sessions. Their favorite cheer is “Peanut Butter in a Cup”. Their favorite songs this session have been “The Princess Pat” and the Irish folksong “Rattlin’ Bog”.

Morning Classes

Morning classes at Camp Levine are music an instrument focused. During the morning classes our campers grades 1-6 experience Instrumental Music introductions and instruction, General Music, Art, and Games & Sports. Read below to hear from our teachers about what your campers did during Session 1!

Music+ (General Music)

Kate Shrimpton

Sunrays: The Sunrays accomplished so much this session! We focused on movement and singing throughout the session, learning how to breathe and create music together. We improvised call and response and each child had the opportunity to sing solo for the class. The session culminated in a song and dance called “Seed in the Ground”.

Raindrops: The Raindrops accomplished so much this session! We focused on choreography and singing simultaneously, learning how to move and create music. Each child had the opportunity to sing solo for the class and the session culminated in two songs called “Seed in the Ground” and “Plant A Tree”.

Leaves: The Leaves focused on instrumental technique this session. We used world drumming to learn syncopated rhythms and their session culminated in a performance with drumming and singing called “Shake The Papaya Down”. They did a great job this session!

Glaciers: The Glaciers focused on instrumental ensemble performance. Each student played a unique part in an Orff arrangement of “Sunflower”, and learned chord structure and syncopation. They sound great and did a wonderful performance!

Cello

Carol Anne Bosco

Sampler: We sang songs to learn the parts of the cello and establish our cello posture. We wrote lyrics to the match the cello strings and sang along. We learned songs that we could sing along with open strings, such as Old McDonald, In the Jungle, and Waterspout.

Focus: Focus began with everything the sampler students did, but quickly added songs and exercises to develop strength in their fingers and bow grips. We worked on Cello Star, Frog in a Bog, Mountain Thyme, and Kookaburra.

Art

Tiffany Strother

It has been a great pleasure working with your students this summer. We have explored so many artistic ideas and it was awesome to see so much creativity. Enjoy the rest of your summer.

Games & Sports

Chris Clark

This session the kids have been participating in games in sports. We have had fun inside playing four square, uno, jump rope, and bubbles. Outside we’ve hit the playground where the kids have been able to swing, climb, jump, and hang! Each day the kids show up with a smile and learn not only about hand eye coordination from the physical activities but also interpersonal social dynamics as they navigate accidents, sharing, taking turns, racing, and working together!

Clarinet

Gretchen Hill

Focus Group: In the Clarinet Focus Group, we dove into the fundamentals of efficient air support, correct embouchure, and hand position for getting the best sounds from the instrument. The clarinet is built by connecting many small pieces, so we started with the basics by using just the mouthpiece and barrel to learn about reeds, ligatures, and the correct shape of the mouth and oral cavity to produce sound. After feeling comfortable with the “mini clarinet,” we slowly added the other pieces so we could start creating different notes. We used “2-note” exercises to start finding the correct places for our fingers to go and worked our way up to learning songs like “Hot Cross Buns,” “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” and our performance song, “Morning.”

Sampler Group: In the Clarinet Sampler Group, we started by using just the mouthpiece and barrel to create the “mini-clarinet.” By using just a couple pieces, we were able to focus on embouchure, air support, and the different “anatomy” of the clarinet. We then added just the top joint of the clarinet to work on finding our finger placement and exploring how to make different notes on the instrument. In our last classes, we learned how to put the whole clarinet together and continued to explore creating different notes with the left hand fingerings.

Piano

Rebecca Edmiston

Focus: Focus piano students have been breezing through a collection of pieces and learning the fundamentals of piano. We’ve been having a great time playing duets and improvising together over Twelve Bar Blues. Each student has picked out their own piece to perform for the final concert.

Sampler: Piano Sampler students have been exploring the entire keyboard and playing fun pieces on the black keys. We’ve also been introduced to some pieces to learn the letters on the white keys. We love playing duets together! Students also love hearing their favorite songs played by the teacher on the piano.

Afternoon Classes

Afternoon classes at Camp Levine are musical theater focused. During the afternoon classes our campers grades 1-6 experience Dance, Drama, and Choral music classes. These 3 classes collaborate to produce a musical theater performance at the end of the session. Read below to hear from our teachers about what your campers did during Session 1!

Dance:

Tashi Mhoon-Cooper

Hello, my name is Tashi Mhoon Cooper, and I had the pleasure of being the Dance and Drama teacher for the second session. Over these three wonderful weeks, the students delved into the vibrant world of Afrobeat, a dance genre that blends traditional African dance with Hip Hop. They explored the nuances of movement within the body and learned what it takes to achieve performance quality as dancers. We’ve all had so much fun, and I can’t wait for you to see the exciting performance the kids and I have been working on!

Art Project:

Lucia Girado

Sunrays/Raindrops: We worked on creating beautiful flowers and butterflies for the living space and garden areas at THEARC, using recyclable materials. We also explored different methods of creating a landscape of animals and insects using clay and paper.

Leaves/Glaciers: We worked on a group mural project for the Levine Music School campus, where each student designed their puzzle piece and collaborated on the wider design of a dancing couple.