Work Sample | Email Sent to Families

Good morning!

If we haven’t spoken or met before, I’m Ms. Jackie, your student’s jazz band teacher at ASU

PR.

Today is a very exciting day for the students: instrument take home day! Throughout the past

few weeks, we have practiced procedures and care of instruments, and the students are finally

ready to take them home. I wanted to reach out to you all so you’re in the loop about our

procedures and can help enforce them at home.

Instrument Care:

• Cases stay on the ground ALWAYS. Never put together or take apart instruments with the

case in your lap. They will inevitably fall off and parts will spill out and potentially break!

• Instruments should only be out of cases when students are actively playing to prevent

damage, but if they must be put down for a restroom break or otherwise, they need to be lying

flat on the ground. This means trumpets and clarinets must not be standing up on their bell and

other instruments should not be propped up on cases or furniture.

• Saxophones and clarinets: reeds should always be put back in the clear plastic reed cases

after use. They are extremely fragile and will chip or break!

• If your student feels that they need to use a lot of force to put together their instrument or play

it, take a break and have them bring it to me to check out during class. These instruments

should be easy to put together and use so needing force is a sign that something is not

working correctly.

• We have been practicing tugging on the latches of the cases before picking them up to ensure

that they are fully closed. This is to prevent everything from spilling out if they are not latched.

Encourage them to do this at home!

We have jazz band on Tuesdays and Fridays. It is mandatory that your student brings their

instrument back before the next class so that they can participate.

If students forget their instrument:

First time: Warning.

Second time: Warning and email home.

Third time: Warning, email home, cannot bring instrument home for the following 3 classes.

Fourth and fifth time: Same as 3rd time but cannot bring instrument home for 4 or 5 classes, respectively.

More than 5 times: Email home and student is not allowed to bring instrument home for the

rest of the semester.

Bringing instruments home is something that your students have earned by demonstrating

good instrument care in class! I am extremely proud of their behavior and care so far and

cannot wait to see how much they improve now that they can practice at home!

Thanks so much, and never hesitate to reach out to me with questions!

Best,

Ms. Jackie