Bow Buddies: On Friday, September 27th, Westwood’s orchestra held an event called Bow Buddies. During bow buddies, the seventh and eighth graders were paired up with a sixth grader to help them learn their music for upcoming concerts. Our wonderful orchestra teachers, Mr. Boom and Ms. Cooper, say it’s a great way to help the sixth graders get ready for their concert. Hamilton Park Pacesetter Magnet, Spring Creek, and Northwood Hills all attended this event. At four-o-clock, the sixth graders arrived and were accounted for in the Band Hall. The Westwood Junior High orchestra members were so excited to greet them and take them to their buddies.
They really got to show off their leadership skills and mentor a student younger than them. Each student was given a checklist of tasks they needed to achieve with their buddies. This checklist instructed the mentors to help their buddies pluck certain lines from their orchestra workbook, “Essential Elements”, while checking and correcting posture, finger placement, rhythm, and more. Getting help from an older student really allowed the kids to grow as musicians and as students.
As five approached, the buddies packed up and headed back to the Band Hall for a special treat. Mentors and mentees alike got to pick up a popsicle or ice cream sandwich. The event was a success and an amazing opportunity for everyone involved!
Band Buddies: On the 27th of October, the WWJH held an event called “Band Buddies.” It was an event where people in 6th grade in band would come to WWJH and have the WWJH band students tutor them for an hour. The WWJH band teacher would assign a 6th grade band student to a WWJH band student. After that, they would go to an assigned location and work on making the 6th grade student better. The students would go to places like the cafeteria, in the hallways and in the commons.
They would work on how to do simple warm-ups, how to finger notes and work on simple songs. After an hour, all students would come back to the band hall. Each student would get an ice cream or a popsicle. With the WWJH students’ help, the 6th graders left better than they came in.
