Topic (Goals): To improve the musicianship of Orchestra students. By

encouraging the youngest players to develop effective practice habits, their musicianship can improve for years to come.

Audience: 4th and 5th Grade Orchestra students. These students desire to improve on their instruments, but often struggle with the delayed gratification it takes to improve their playing.

Message (Initial): Anyone can improve their skill on a string instrument by practicing carefully and consistently.Practicing to play a string instrument in tune is a lot like throwing darts-pitch too low? Aim higher; pitch too high? Aim lower next time.

My students enjoyed throwing tissues at the “virtual honey” projected image on a screen, and through the physical game, they understood the concept of aiming higher and lower for pitches. The bees didn’t really have anything to do with the message, and it turns out students are mostly scared of bees and their parents don’t let them play with darts anymore, which is probably why they are scared of practicing, hahaha.

My next effort changed the script a little, the image completely, and made more sense with a consistent (if not silly) theme.

OK, so theme wise, a little better, but I was advised by wise council to start steering away from clip art. Good advice, Dr. Bucy.

Somewhere along the way, I realized that accomplishing the mechanics of playing in tune is easier to accomplish in class. The courage needed for students to go home and practice, however, is a more useful message for a sign like this. I found this next picture in Creative Commons and I think that she embodies the message I want to send.

OK, so perhaps the picture doesn’t embody the message, because she is actually a photoshop manipulated wheelie machine. She is completely effective at getting students to read the message, remember it, and relate it to their own learning of riding a bike. It works, because the longer a student thinks about the message, the more it gets into their brain. With this little trickery going on here, there is a slight risk to the student discrediting the entire message. Most of them know how to ride a bike, however, which is what they tie into practicing a skill until they master it.

Here are two other fun designs I made along the way that explore the style of different wanted posters, one FBI, the other, Uncle Sam.

The following is very nearly the finished sign for my interpretive sign project. I will make the Title Larger, and perhaps change the color of the girls shirt so that it doesn’t compete with the text. I went injured this week, and am just now getting back in the game.

Thank you for adding comments to this late addition to the projects. I look forward to seeing yours…