The Search part 2

   So there's some really old research that I've kinda just left there that I did like wayy back a while ago. I figured I'd put it here since I forgot what I really aiming for in this post.

How to Read Sheet Music

   Tadaaa... so yeah, these were sorta things I learned when I was younger that Mrs. Miller didn't really want me to use, but when I couldn't remember anything, I would be coming back to this and thinking:

"Every Good Boy Does Fine"

"FACE"

"Good Boys Do Fine Always"

"All Cows Eat Grass"

    This link also had some good tips, most of which had already been covered verbally to me by Mrs. Miller.

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ANYWAYS. My ORIGINAL intention was to share this:

zeldaxlove64's cover - FIREFLIES by OWL CITY

Isn't it pretty? I totally envy her, both her playing ability and her voice. It's really amazing, and definitely inspirational. Each time I hear her play, I just imagine myself doing it as well. After listening to this, I actually went and sat down to practice "Fireflies".

   I really think this song itself is really pretty. It's one of my favorite songs ever, here's the original. 
I've actually been listening to this song when I'm trying to go to sleep. It's on my nighttime playlist, along with a couple of other songs that are also by Owl City. Owl City = Adam Young, who is super talented and who writes, sings, and plays all of his music. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owl_City)

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   I think after working in this project, I've lost sight of my clear goal. I mean I knew what I'm aiming for overall, but it's the little things that I forget, it's the exact words that I said before and the exact thoughts I had when I said them. This is probably why a lot of people's goals change as time progresses because as they work, they always progress a destination, and sometimes that destination is different from their original goal. Anyways, I do sort of remember mentioning about researching the correlation between music and mood, and that's probably why links relating to this topic are plastered all over my initial bibliography. This one website says that it has actually been tested that music improves mood. A study was conducted for college students that had results that showed that music, regardless of what type (whether it's country or rock), improved the afterward moods of the students who listened to it. The students kept diaries and worked with a psychology teacher to determine that they got positive emotions after exposure to music. (http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20031022/music-improves-mood)

   [Reflection on this?] I feel like this means that I'll definitely be depending on music in college. I mean I am listening to it a lot even now too. At least once a day (definitely as I go to sleep), I listen to music. I wanted to listen to piano music to study whether or not piano music especially has an effect on one's mood, but I got realllyyyyy bored after the first couple of days. However, I think this study that was done helps me think positively, because I sorta am conscious that I am in a better mood after listening to music, and I want myself to always be in better moods.

Mentor Meeting: Week into April

   So I'm actually writing this today [Tuesday, April 05, 2011], which is about a week later than the date of this mentor meeting, and I have to say, I honestly can't remember much of the content. I know this was the first mentor meeting in a very long time (I missed the one last week) and so I think all that happened was that I updated Ms. Lord on all the things...? I hope I don't forget to include anything here, but basically, I informed Ms. Lord that I have been having some issues and I have informed her that I have stopped my lessons with Mrs. Miller. I think another major part of this mentor meeting was indicating that I have also not progressed much in the last week(s).

Comments on "Disrupting My Comfort Zone" + BIG REFLECTION?

  Brian Grazer, huh? Well, I think that he's a pretty great person for challenging himself and continuing to challenge himself. I think he's overcome some great feats and he definitely speaks some words of wisdom.

 "If you're not growing, you're dying."

   I think his enthusiasm towards "disrupting [his] comfort zone" is really great. It would be pretty awesome to adopt that outlook of his, but things are easier said than done. I do think that I have disrupted my comfort zone, but definitely not a lot. However, I think that not a lot of disruption is acceptable for me. I don't think my project asks that I get out of my comfort zone a lot. Actually, I think it helps me if I stay in my comfort zone. Perhaps in another situation, but the "comfort zone disruption" isn't something I'm aiming towards in this project.... or is that just what I think?

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On the board it prompts:

What are...

...3 ways I've stepped out of my comfort zone?

I feel like my decision on actually taking lessons is definitely an example of my stepping out of my comfort zone. This would be... the third piano teacher I've had, and I've had other music instructors for other instruments in the past as well. I don't know why, but I absolutely detest having piano lessons. Somehow or another, I always feel like I would disappoint the teacher and it would make me feel extremely uncomfortable before my lessons. Another way that' I've stepped out of my comfort zone could perhaps include when I played for some friends at school when they came by to visit me in one of the practice rooms.  I was super self-conscious because the friends for which I was playing were all really good at piano. This actually reminds me, I should journal more of my practicing experiences because it shows more "doing". I guess a third way I've stepped out of my comfort zone would be when I asked my middle sister to watch me play piano and point of if I was doing anything wrong because that's what Mrs. Miller had suggested I do before ended lessons. She said that this would help me make sure that I was playing correctly. I was reluctant to do so because it's kinda odd to have a little girl tell you you're doing things wrong... but it's for the best :)

...4 ways my project has changed thus far?

Honestly, I don't think my project has changed a lot. Or perhaps I just haven't noticed it yet? Though, everything's taking a really long time and I've already forgotten the deadlines I've set for myself at the beginning of this period. This reminds me, I should go and read my first entries.  What's with the music and emotions thing? The idea seems really odd to me now... xD 

...3 things I wish I'd done differently in working on my project so far?

I definitely think I should have come with a better plan on the research portion. I have NO research plan. All I do is randomly find things and stick them into a bookmark folder on my browser and that's it. Hm... I also think I should've considered how I would be managing with a teacher and/or working independently a lot earlier. Everything seems messy because I had no idea where to go. Another thing I wish I'd done differently was find a more interesting specific topic to research, a more interesting micro-research focus.

...5 things I've learned about my field of interest, myself, and working with others?

My field of interest? Why, there's a lot of people devoted to it and my sisters really love it. I like piano, but I definitely don't have the same passion as some other students that my teacher has. Myself? I'm a very indecisive person and I let a lot of different things affect me... I guess that means I'm sensitive? Or something... IDK. (There I go again with the 'I don't know' 's). Working with others? Sometimes what others have in mind for me is not exactly the same as my own ideas, even though we may not be having trouble working together. 

Last Week: 03/28/2011

    Ahhh haha I couldn't make it to my mentor meeting today either. It was a sad picture. I went before our class meeting the following day and it seemed to me that Ms. Lord was quite disappointed in me. Oh, the things to be fixed... I would put in a big reflection here... but I don't want to. This was when the email and stuff was going on.

The Search

TBU

FOUND! Sheet music for Fireflies by Owl City - this is the newest and best version that I have found and am deciding to use.

LINK

Tuesday's In Class

   Ms. Lord was not at school today and Mrs. Gergely came in as a substitute. Mrs. Gergely told us about the funding opportunities that were specifically designed for WISE and also gave us these sheets for making WISE funding proposals. She told us that currently there's about $700 in the WISE fund and that this amount (plus more if we fund raise it) needs to be divided among about fifty WISE students. Some students will need a large chunk of funding while others may not need any funding at all. I'm one of those I think, or at least I feel as if I can cover the costs myself. Anyways, we were and will be brainstorming more ideas of interesting and innovative ways to fund raise.
  Oh and presentations of WISE projects continued after that!

Monday Meeting Delayed

Due to a last minute mix-up, I wasn't able to make it to my Monday mentor meeting during 7th period. I had a friend tell Ms. Lord at the beginning of 7th because I wasn't allowed to leave the place where I had to stay.

Just a note...

  SO... a lot has been going on in my life lately. Aside from just the regular loads of  homework and projects and online courses and such, I've also been having some issues, some relating to family, that have been interfering with my entire life. There have been some really sudden changes this past week that might seem like they came out of nowhere. First, although I had originally planned to try to work towards an ending in my piano lessons, last Monday, I realized that I had to start Track, which is everyday after school until 6pm. Mrs. Miller has no other times available for me and I can't miss Track practice once every week, so I talked to Mrs. Miller and we came to the agreement that I would be stopping classes for now. I still have two other classes that I've paid for that I could come in and take in the future when we both have time (something could be worked out). Mrs. Miller is allowing me to keep the piano books that I've been using because I could always return them to her through my sister Julianna. Another thing is the Saturday morning class. I was originally hoping to make it to the class and to play the Black Swan and Hamster Chase, but I started Track on Wednesday, and practice is every day of the week except Sundays. This means that I have to be there for practice on Saturday mornings as well, and the time, unfortunately, overlaps the hours of the Saturday class. I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to figure everything out, but as of now, everything seems to be in a mess. I really hope everything will work out. I don't think I've progressed very much this past week, and I've been sorta skimping on the piano practice because I've been going straight to Cornell to do my homework everyday after Track practice (I don't have a ride home until about 10pm). This makes it so that I have trouble getting in all my practice time. Ahhhh everything's crazyyy.

In Class Journal Part 2

Directions: Read the two documents and journal on how they relate to each other as well as to your project.

I read the article on practicing first, and almost instantly I felt as if it were speaking to me. I felt as if the intended audience was supposed to be me since the article uses a musical instrument (guitar) as it's main example. I think I've always avoided thinking about this, but deep down inside I definitely knew he difference between "practicing" and "playing", this article just stated it in plain words for me.
It's really important to practice the things you're not good at to get better, which is what I think this article is trying to tell me. However, the other article seems to be saying that it should be the avocation and vocation that results in your well-roundedness(?)

Overall, both are trying to set WISE students on the right path and to work and practice diligently in order to have the skill that will last a lifetime.

Mentor Meeting on Pi Day

  It hasn't been a long time since the last mentor meeting so there wasn't too much to discuss during this one. I came in during 6th period because I had a test 7th. So first of all, regarding the Saturday class, I haven't really decided anything. I kept saying that I don't know, and that maybe I'll go, but only for the reason that I'm expected/hoped to be there. I have said "I don't know" so many times during this project that it's annoying even me. Ms. Lord says that I really shouldn't be doing that. I shouldn't be unsure, but rather, I should figure out my own path, because no one's going to be there to set the guidelines for me. Honestly, I don't know  Scratch that, I do know, I just dondhsdjkghsklgs I think I'm going to need to like, set a rule for myself where I can't say "I don't know".
   During this mentor meeting, I also told Ms. Lord of my plans to end my lessons with Mrs. Miller due to the fact that I want to take on the challenge of working with myself and keeping myself on track. However, what would be my plan to keep myself learning? How would I be enforcing learning?

In Class Journal Part 1

   Today in class we shared our projects. Natanya baked chocolate chip cookies for the entire class to show her baking process (they were so yummy!) and Jimmy showed us a bunch of his mixed martial arts. He seems super enthusiastic about his project, which is a very good sign. I liked how he talked about the Brazillian jutsu and such, and although I don't know anything about martial arts, he seems like he's doing pretty well.
   Carrie presented a poem in class. And WOW was I stunned. I loved her emotion and strength, and I sorta wanted to yell "Encore!" except that might've been a bit too awkward. Haha. Slam poetry is her project focus, and what she's doing is presenting poems within 3 minutes. These poems are graded on a scale of 1 to 10.
   Mary showed us her clowning! It was so much fun to watch her juggle and make balloon animals and talk about her adventures at the Camp Good Days Carnival. I love hearing how much people are enjoying their projects because it makes me treasure even more this class and how lucky we are to have this time to do something we enjoy.
  After that, Jordan, Dylan, and Tara all presented. I didn't take any notes here because I had been a little too captivated by Mary's balloon animals slash I got to the bottom of my paper and decided I was done xD BUT Jordan told us all about his success in finally finding a publishing firm for his Star Wars study guide and Dylan showed us his super blue laser. Tara showed the class her oversized sketching journal which she uses to plan out the fashions to be created. It's actually really cool and I found it very interesting how she's actually making clothes and having models.

Duet with Julianna

Today I played a duet with my sister! We started off with Heart and Soul, and kept working on a couple of other simple duet pieces.

Mentor Meeting Feedback

   So today's meeting, according to Mrs. Lord, was one of the most important mentor meetings thus far, because I've come to realize that I'm encountering problems with myself and not just with piano playing as a topic in general. There are two, with the first one being that I can't read sheet music and I can't seem to get it straight no matter how hard I work at it. Mrs. Lord suggested that I try a different approach, but somehow I don't find that an appealing option. Maybe I'll just work in this manner for a couple more weeks and then decide something? And another thing is the Saturday morning class. My inability to decide on whether or not to go could be because of stage fright, or something else... Am I afraid of feeling inferior to all the other younger students that are going to be there? Or am I just not prepared yet? What is it?

Class Meeting #2

   Right now I'm in class typing this up on my iPhone 4 (OMG YAY I FINALLY GOT IT). Labeling your blog needs to be in a more organized manner. It's important to make sure that there is a well-rounded balance of research and balance. An important aspect of journaling is to express the details of your "doing". Just saying what was done is extremely boring and will be really hard to come back to. It's easy to remember the exact event, for example, if you read a book or you ran a mile, but how you felt during that reading or running will be difficult to reconstruct a month or two from now. That's the point of journaling, to mark down the details and feelings that won't be remembered.

Monday's Lesson #5

   After repeatedly playing "The Black Swan" and "Hamster Chase", I have finally gotten both of them under control. There are still a couple of errors here and there, but it's moving along :)
   Mrs. Miller says there's a Saturday morning class next next Saturday where students play for each other. I'm not quite sure if I want to take part in it yet because Mrs. Miller said it was optional. I'm not exactly sure if I'd fit in since most of Mrs. Miller's other students are rather young. And that is the reason why she didn't enforce it on me and gave me a choice. She says that I could play either "The Black Swan" or "Hamster Chase", or even both. Early I had said that I wouldn't be afraid of an audience, but perhaps I actually am? I don't know, for some reason, I just don't want to do it. However, I'll practice as if I am, just in case something last minute happens and I have to perform. Mrs. Miller said it would be good for me because it'd give me an incentive to practice "harder", but... well, we'll see.

SNOW DAY WOOHOOO

   Today's snow day was an absolute Godsend. Well, maybe not in all cases. I didn't have a mentor meeting today, so I'll have to make up for it, most likely on Wednesday... very productive day XD

Reflection on the 1st Week in March

   For the dates February 27th to March 5th, my focuses for the week were on recognizing notes on the staff and learning to pedal. I've been practiced at school twice (due to absence/classes, I only had 2 classes free during 7th period), so I wasn't able to progress too much on pedaling. For note recognition, I've drawn tons of diagrams on the back of my progress journal and found random pieces of songs I would never play that I wrote down the notes for (ie. marked ABCDEFG above each note).

Wait A Minute... What?

   In response to my previous entry on mentor meeting plans, I've found some answers while some other questions were left blank. With the continuing lessons thing, I've decided to stick with taking lessons for another month and seeing how it goes. Everything else could pretty much be answered with "it really depends on you" (me).

   After my fourth piano class, it was recognized that I still honestly don't know how to read sheet music because I have a lot of trouble recognizing the notes on the staff and knowing what they are. So for this week, that's going to be my focus.

    Another thing is the pedal. I have no idea how to use it, and while Mrs. Miller and I were exploring the pedal on Monday, it was found that I really need practice with it. Since I only have an electric piano at home, I plan to use the school pianos especially for this type of practice. The song "Black Swan" is absolutely perfect on which to practice the pedaling.

In-Class Journal Entry #1

   In class on Tuesday, we watched a video of a past WISE project. Since I was not present in class, I had to borrow the disk to bring home to watch and journal on the video.

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• Austin - building a barn
• "a barn is a lot more than just a structure"
• "everything takes longer than I expected"
• lots of challenges
• picking wood
• trying to get a tractor to start
• WISE in an independent experience, but it's also more than that, because it allows students to spend time reflecting on who they are becoming as a result of the experience.

   Personally, thus far, I have found part of "everything takes longer than ... expected" to be exceedingly true. Although I'm not building a barn, the process of learning how to play piano and learning to read sheet music isn't easy. Somehow, I just can't see where I would end up at the end of the year. I can't really tell if I'll be able to fully read sheet music or I'll still be struggling. It's sorta like I can't plan out anything, because I don't even know how I am doing myself. If I look back to the first day when I started, I can't really put a label on how far I've progressed because I honestly don't know. I  feel like I haven't done much, and that makes me really scared. Am I going somewhere? Am I going at the right pace?

Absence

   Due to personal illness, I was not at school today, so I missed the class get together we had during 7th period. I'll update back here later afterwards (:


   On Friday, I dropped by Ms. Lord's classroom and picked up the folder containing the WISE project of a previous IHS student that is relevant to my current project. The past project was on learning to play the guitar, and although the topic isn't exactly the same as mine, it should be a good reference/model.

Key signature - Major

   So right now, the keys I have learned are (corresponding to the sharp notes indicated in the chart below) C, G, D, A, and E. I have also learned F major, which has one flat on B.

(the following was printscreened from Wikipedia: Key signature - scales with sharps)