mississippi hotdog

yesterday during our inservice day, teachers at the middle school went to a presentation on "wellness," where we focused on relaxation and stress management.  i've been trying to utilize the deep breathing since then.  whenever i remembered to think of it today, i concentrated on my breathing.  i breathed deeply, made patterns, and made an effort to experience a zen state of mind when possible.

the problem is, and i'm sure many of us have it, that my job makes it very difficult to focus on breathing.  because when you hear awful string instruments playing their screechy melodies, all you want to do is hold your breath and wait for it to be over.  or stop them and show them how to do it right.  or scream. 

on tuesdays i have my typical school day followed by seven private violin lessons back to back.  it's great for extra cash.  when it's getting to be 7pm and i'm getting tired, it can be kind of intense. 

i found a really cute example of a suzuki recital.  i teach the suzuki method. it's the most widespread method for teaching strings to children worldwide. it begins with the beloved (notorious) variations on twinkle twinkle little star.  each variation has a cute little word combination to help students relate the syllables to the rhythmic structure of the piece.

this clip begins with the "theme," or twinkle twinkle as we all know it, followed by the first variation, which we call "mississipi hotdog."