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Practice chart – 25 raindrops

We finally had a sunny day after a week of rain and it has me looking forward to summer institute. Last year we went to LASI and this year we’re trying the Oregon Suzuki Institute. I enjoyed the wonderful faculty and campus last year and it was a delight to hear other viola students and repertoire. One of the students worked on Humoresque in the masterclass and now my kid can apply their “tuna tone” too.
While LASI was an incredible week it was also overwhelming and exhausting. I underestimated the time and mental load to prepare for orchestra. Their other non-core class was Intro to Rock. Adding up masterclass, group, orchestra and Intro to Rock it was too much time on the instrument and not enough wiggle time. This year we’re skipping orchestra at OSI in favor of Dalcroze, singing and origami.
Raindrops free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download twenty five raindrops PDF.
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Practice chart – 20 camellias

The entrance to the Community Music Center is framed by beautiful camellias. My kid likes to hide in them and pick the nicest ones off the ground. Free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download twenty camellias PDF.
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Practice chart – 1000 dots

It’s hard to believe that over a thousand people are watching my kid’s progress for 100 Day Club! I made an animated version of this for Instagram and thought someone may enjoy using the static version to track a thousand of something. At our house the 500 heart chart was completed so I’m sure 1000 is achievable. Free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download one thousand circles PDF.
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Practice chart – 100 beamed note pairs ♬

As summer approaches we are working more on sight reading. We plan to attend the Oregon Suzuki Institute which may involve orchestra, plus there’s the small possibility of youth chamber here at CMC. My kid is probably too inexperienced but it may be worth asking since there are never enough violists! Free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download one hundred beamed note pairs PDF.
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Practice chart – 75 clovers

St. Patrick’s Day is around the corner; this sheet has a mix of 3 and 4-leaf clovers for practice. Free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download fifty clovers PDF.
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Practice chart – 50 daffodils

The daffodils started blooming this week so it finally feels like our long winter is coming to an end! My kid enthusiastically finished the 500 bow rocks/collé chart on Tuesday (with ten extra “for fun”). At group class I’ve been observing some beautiful open wrists. A collapsed wrist seems to be one of those problems that sneaks back and needs to be corrected again when the instrument size changes or the shoulder rest needs adjustment. I plan to introduce this chart soon to work on short review pieces with a focus on a straight, soft wrist. Free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download fifty daffodils PDF.
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Checklist/worksheet – recital readiness

Spring recital time is around the corner! Recitals are so exciting; I wish that every piece could be polished and every student could find joy in their accomplishments. Paula Bird has an excellent podcast episode about recital preparation; go give it a listen! Some students have a particularly difficult time playing in front of others or moving on from mistakes; the least we can do as parents is ensure that they have adequate preparation. Last night my kid chose the “with interruptions” playthrough where I proceeded to pretend to be a crying baby, snore, talk, and yodel! They found it incredibly funny and somehow kept playing the piece the whole time.

The upper right of the sheet contains two blank months to be used as a mini-countdown. The rest should be self-explanatory. Here’s how we’re using it:

Free to download – please link back to Triatone. Made by Sarah Holbrook.

Download recital preparation PDF.

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Poster – 10000 stars

How do you feel when you hear “ten thousand”? Ten thousand is a finite, achievable number, whether it’s repetitions or hours. The rungs of brightness correspond to thousands. Please print and share this poster; I’d love to see photos! Mention me on Instagram with @triatonemusic or #tenthousandisskill. Free to download – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download ten thousand stars PDF.
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Practice chart – 200 ladybugs

A couple of years ago we bought hundreds of ladybugs to eat aphids off our veggies. It was incredible to see them re-animate as they warmed up from their refrigerated state. Unfortunately they had little interest in our garden box and all but a few flew away! This chart could be used to track repetitions with lovely hovering fingers, or a challenge close to my heart: a bow pinkie staying round on the bow and not flying away. Free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.
Download two hundred ladybugs PDF.
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Practice chart – butterfly hearts adding to 50

Last night we were making a craft project from a magazine where we cut out hearts and made critters. I thought it would be fun to use the same approach to make some heart butterflies to count up to fifty. Free to download and share – please link back to Triatone. Made with code by Sarah Holbrook.

Download fifty count butterfly hearts PDF.