Band Notes - Week of February 12

General information that applies to all students and parents can be found towards the top of every newsletter, while information specific to your child's ensemble can be found in that particular section by scrolling down. Feel free to contact a director if you have any questions and our contact information is at the bottom of this newsletter.

Click here to see the Calendar page of our website to find all of the current events, including special rehearsals, contests, and performances for the whole school year. We provide this so you can plan your family's activities. Remember, performances are a required part of our curriculum, so please contact a director ASAP for any conflicts. Be sure to view the List of Band Events that can be found clicking on the link.

Beginners will have their Solo Contest this Saturday, February 17 at BMS. Please click here read all the details for this required performance. Students will need to arrive 10 minutes before their performance time already dressed in their band uniform so they can warm up properly. They are then free to leave after their performance, for a total of around 20 minutes from start to finish.

We will let students know their performance times this week. Ineligible students will perform for a director on either Thursday or Friday this week. Starting Saturday, students and parents can click on this link to see their rating, which is listed by their class period on the bottom tabs and then by their student ID number for privacy: https://tinyurl.com/beltonmsSolo

Practice Records are due every Monday and follow this grading rubric: 5 days=100, 4 days=90, 3 days=80, 2 days=70, and less than 2 days=50. A new updated practice record will be given to students and this cycle will continue for the rest of this school year.

Practice Records are each student's responsibility, and must be stored in their binder at all times. The penalty for late practice records is a 5-point reduction per day. Late practice records will not be accepted after Friday since it rolls over to the next week's practice record. Please note that not turning in practice records is the #1 reason students fail Band.

Help your student create a daily practice routine that is scheduled at the same time each day to build consistency. Have them use a timer in stopwatch mode instead of timer countdown mode to ensure they are getting the full 25 minutes of practice time.

Students are welcome to practice before school starting at 7:30am if they show their band sticker on their student ID to the teacher on duty when entering the hallway. Please remind your student to have a director sign their practice record in order to count this time as practicing, as long as they have practiced the full 25 minutes.

If you haven't already, make sure you sign up for our Remind texts for the Beginner's Ensemble here. Students may do this as well with parent permission. This is important piece of communication to receive reminders throughout the year.

In order to prepare for UIL Concert & Sightreading Evaluation at Lake Belton HS PAC on Wednesday, March 6, we will resume after school sectionals once per week starting on Monday, January 8 until Wednesday, February 28. This schedule was created with our students' other activities in mind based on parent's responses to our survey:

• Mondays: All Woodwinds - Wind Ensemble in Band Hall with Pulley, and Symphonic Band in Ensemble Room with Trahan
• Tuesdays: All Brass - Wind Ensemble in Band Hall with Pulley, and Symphonic Band in Ensemble Room with Trahan
• Wednesdays: All Percussion Combined in Band Hall with Smith

All of these dates have been added to our Band Google Calendar. Just like earlier this year, students are expected to "Be Punctual" and arrive seated with all materials and ready to rehearse at 4pm sharp or their grade will be affected. Students 1-5 minutes late will have their sectional grade reduced to an 85. Students who are late 5-15 minutes will have their grade reduced to a 70. Students arriving more than 15 minutes late will receive a 50.

If you haven't already, make sure you sign up for our Remind texts for Symphonic Band here. Students may do this as well with parent permission. This is important piece of communication to receive reminders throughout the year.

In order to prepare for UIL Concert & Sightreading Evaluation at Lake Belton HS PAC on Wednesday, March 6, we will resume after school sectionals once per week starting on Monday, January 8 until Wednesday, February 28. This schedule was created with our students' other activities in mind based on parent's responses to our survey:

• Mondays: All Woodwinds - Wind Ensemble in Band Hall with Pulley, and Symphonic Band in Ensemble Room with Trahan
• Tuesdays: All Brass - Wind Ensemble in Band Hall with Pulley, and Symphonic Band in Ensemble Room with Trahan
• Wednesdays: All Percussion Combined in Band Hall with Smith

All of these dates have been added to our Band Google Calendar. Just like earlier this year, students are expected to "Be Punctual" and arrive seated with all materials and ready to rehearse at 4pm sharp or their grade will be affected. Students 1-5 minutes late will have their sectional grade reduced to an 85. Students who are late 5-15 minutes will have their grade reduced to a 70. Students arriving more than 15 minutes late will receive a 50.

If you haven't already, make sure you sign up for our Remind texts for Wind Ensemble here. Students may do this as well with parent permission. This is important piece of communication to receive reminders throughout the year.

Jazz Band has two upcoming performances for 5th Graders when they come to BMS to register for their middle school classes. These will take place during school, and no uniforms are required:

• Tuesday, February 27 for Sparta
• Friday, March 1 for Miller Heights & Leon Heights

If you haven't already, make sure you sign up for our Remind texts for Jazz Band here. Students may do this as well with parent permission. This is important piece of communication to receive reminders throughout the year.

Email: beltonmsband@gmail.com

Website: beltonmsband.org
Call/Text: 254-262-3050

Location: 1704 Sparta Road, Belton, TX, USA