MIGHTY COLT BAND HANDBOOK 2017-2018 Desert Wind School 1100 Colina De Paz Dr. El Paso, TX 79928 School Office: (915) 937-7800 Band Office: (915) 937-7884 Ms. Mata Band Director Kmata@sisd.net The Socorro Independent School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age in its programs, activities, or employment. SISD adheres to all Title VI Regulations prohibiting discrimination, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended, section 504 or the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the foregoing:
Mighty Colt Band Handbook WELCOME BACK! OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this Might Colt Band Handbook is to give you as much information as possible regarding band. OVERVIEW: Congratulations on your decision to be in band! You can be very proud of yourself for being a part of one of Desert Wind s most successful student organizations. Please consider it a privilege rather than a right to be part of these exciting performance ensembles. With this privilege comes responsibility. Your team will be counting on you as an individual to make this one of the best bands in the area as we plan to compete and perform more this year. There are several things we must do as a team to get the job done: Attain a high level of academic achievement in all classes. Demonstrate a superior attitude and competency as an instrumentalist. Attend ALL concerts and contest as directed. All performances count as a test grade and cannot be made up. Attend arranged extra rehearsals and sectionals. These rehearsals can be graded as an assignment. Contribute to the spirit and morale of the school. DAILY PROCEDURES: 1. Bring instruments directly to the band room in the morning for appropriate locked storage. Please do not leave your instrument unattended anywhere on or off the school grounds. 2. When it is your designated class period, enter the class room in a calm, orderly fashion. Please walk to avoid bumping into other students who may still have instruments in their hands. 3. On arrival to class be prepared with instrument, book, music and any other supply needed. Wait quietly and calmly for instructions always. Do not open your instrument until instructed to do so by the teacher. 4. Absolutely no food, flavored drinks, or gum in the band room. (Water only). 5. Five minutes before the period is over, you must put everything that belongs to you away. That includes putting your instrument in its correct storage location. Do not leave any instrument laying in the middle of the room or storage room. 6. During the day, instruments should be stored in the band room. At the end of the day, all instruments should go home for daily practice. (If an instrument is left at the end of the day, the student s daily participation grade will be lowered for each day it is here, this includes weekends.)
COLTS BAND ROOM EXPECTATIONS: At Desert Wind School, our COLTS motto means we are Caring, On-Task, Listeners, Trustworthy, and Safe. In our band program, we will add on to the school wide expectations. All Mighty Colt Band members will actively demonstrate the following COLTS BAND ROOM EXPECTATIONS at all times listed below: BAND ROOM EXPECTATIONS C Caring Be respectful towards everyone at all times. Use good manners. Be nice! Care for music room, instruments, and all equipment. Respectfully listen to one another s opinions and performances. O On-Task Make good choices that help you and others learn. Involve yourself. Participate in all class activities. Follow all instructions, directions and procedures given by teacher. L Listeners Listen and follow all directions correctly the first time. Watch and listen for instructions at all times. Speak when the teacher allows it. Quietly listen to performances and wait until they finish before speaking. T Trustworthy Be on time, prepared with all materials and music equipment. Follow all class room procedures and instructions. Bring your instrument every day. Take your instrument home every day. Practice every day. S Safe Stay in your seat at all times. Raise your hand to get out of your seat. Always walk when you are carrying your instrument. Respect everyone's personal belongings and instruments. Always be responsible for your instrument and personal belongings. BAND/MUSIC EXPECTATIONS: All Mighty Colt Band Members will also follow the MUSIC EXPECTATIONS as listed below: BAND/MUSIC EXPECATIONS M Make good choices that help you and others learn. U Use good manners. Be nice! S Speak when the teacher allows it. I Involve yourself. Participate in all class activities. C Care for music room, instruments, and all equipment. *Mighty Colt Band Members-- please refrain from using electronics during class *Mighty Colt Band Members-please refrain from chewing gum or eating during class
REWARDS: Students will be rewarded for their efforts and success (GRIT) when displaying progress by being rewarded with the following actions. The band teacher will: Tell your other classroom teachers about your GRIT (Success/progress) Tell the principal Tell your parents Tell my parents Have game days Play fun music on Fridays Outstanding Music Report Card Grades Verbal Praise and Recognition Positive note/phone call home Student helper privileges for the music class the next day Motivational Incentives (Stickers/Erasers) Positive Behavior Coupons (such as Preferential seating for next music class) etc., Any student not following the expectations will face the following actions: Verbal warning with student reflection sheet. Move seat/removal from activity Note/call home **Any severe behavior will result in an automatic referral and will be removed from class for the day by the security on campus. ** BEGINNING BAND MUSIC MATERIALS: EVERYONE: TRADITION of Excellence Comprehensive Band Method Book One (for your assigned instrument) Pencils (with a good eraser) 1 Composition notebook 1 BLACK ½ inch - 3 Ring Binder. 5-10 Sheet protectors Students with specific instrument to locker dimensions such as flute, clarinet, trumpet, alto sax, bass clarinet and trombone students will be required to have a combination lock on their locker. Please give the combination number to the director. Absolutely no key locks. FLUTE-Swab, cleaning cloth, tuning rod. OBOE-med/soft reeds (at least two), swab, cork grease. CLARINET/BASS CLARINET/SAXOPHONES-size 2 or 2 ½ Rico Reeds for your instrument (at least 5) swab, cork grease.
TRUMPET/FRENCH HORN/TROMBONE/BARITONE/TUBA: Valve oil, slide grease, snake, and mouthpiece brush. PERCUSSION-Bell kit (Should include practice pad, sticks, mallets, practice pad), Vic Firth SD1 sticks, 1 pair Hard Plastic Mallets, stick bag. ADVANCED BAND MUSIC SUPPLIES: EVERYONE: Foundations for Superior Performance Warm-Ups & Technique for Band (for your instrument) TRADITION of Excellence Comprehensive Band Method Book ONE (from last year) Pencils (with a good eraser) 1 Composition notebook 1 BLACK ½ inch - 3 Ring Binder. 5-10 Sheet protectors Tuner/metronome Students with specific instrument to locker dimensions such as flute, clarinet, trumpet, alto sax, bass clarinet and trombone students will be required to have a combination lock on their locker. Please give the combination number to the director. Absolutely no key locks. FLUTE-Swab, cleaning cloth, tuning rod. OBOE-med/soft reeds (at least two), swab, cork grease. CLARINETS-Five size 3 (Rico Royal, Mitchell Laurie or Vandoren) reeds, swab, cork grease. BASS CLARINET-Five size 2 ½ or size 3 (Rico Royal, Mitchell Laurie or Vandoren) reeds, swab, cork grease. SAXOPHONES-Five size 3 or size 3 ½ (Rico Royal, Mitchell Laurie or Vandoren) reeds, swab, cork, neck strap. TRUMPET/FRENCH HORN/TROMBONE/BARITONE/TUBA: Valve oil, slide grease, snake, and mouthpiece brush. PERCUSSION- Vic Firth SD1 sticks, 1 pair Hard Plastic Mallets, 1 pair Vic Firth T1 General Timpani Mallets, stick bag. REHEARSAL SCHEDULE: We will have weekly after school rehearsal practice all HONOR BAND STUDENTS. This is due to the high level of performance required from the Honor Band and the amount of performances the Honor Band participates in. HONOR BAND REHEARSAL IS IMPORTANT. Honor Band rehearsal will begin AFTERSCHOOL on TUESDAY, AUGUST 8, 2017 at from 3:30-4:20pm. Students must bring their instruments and music to rehearsals and plan to stay the entire time, again, 3:30pm-4:20pm. Rehearsals will be graded as stated in the UIL Side-By-Side rules, please see the link below for more information. Failure to attend weekly rehearsals may result in no participation at upcoming performance events. There is a 4:30pm activity bus for students to take if necessary. If you have any reason why you cannot make rehearsal, please have your parent s contact the band director PRIOR to missing the event to discuss what will need to be done to make up the lost rehearsal.
HONOR BAND (2 nd and 3 rd year students Rehearsal Schedule) Monday-NO REHEARSAL Tuesday-WOODWINDS (Flutes, Oboes, Clarinets, Bass Clarinets, Alto/Tenor/Bari Saxophones) Wednesday-ALL PERCUSSION (Including percussion ensemble class) Thursday-BRASS (Trumpets, French Horns, Trombones, Baritones, Tuba) Friday-NO REHEARSAL NEW TO THIS SCHOOL YEAR: Percussion Instrumental Ensemble Class will have weekly after school percussion rehearsals on Wednesdays from 3:30pm to 4:20pm starting on AUGUST 9, 2017 through the end of the school year. ***ALL scheduled rehearsals before or after school will be graded. Scheduled rehearsals are MANDATORY.*** Scheduled Rehearsals will be graded. -- As a Mighty Colt Band Member, your participation and attendance will be graded for any after school practices. In the state of Texas, we have UIL Side- By-Side rules indicating that any Co-Curricular course may give grades for after school participation. The parent and student will receive written notification in advance of these rehearsals and will be required to sign and return a receipt. If you are unable to attend, please communicate in writing. Feel free to browse the UIL Side-By-Side Rules at http://www.uiltexas.org/policy/tea-uil-side-by-side NEW TO THIS SCHOOL YEAR: OPEN REHEARSAL SPACE IN THE BAND ROOM. Any students will be allowed to practice in the band room, as additional practice outside of class and after school rehearsal is required of all band students. (This includes 1st, 2nd and 3 year students.) Students may come and practice in the band room on their own from 7:00am- 7:30am Monday thru Friday. This is the only time practice will count on their practice log. This is only as necessary, for example if a student was unable to practice at home for any reason; they are always welcome to practice in the band room. Take advantage of this practice option as often as you need. BATHROOM PASSES: As a MIGHTY COLT BAND MEMBER, you are required and expected to be in class. Anytime you are not in class results in loss of instruction. All students will receive 4 passes at the beginning of every nine weeks. Passes do not roll over. You must bring them with you every day to class. You are expected to treat these passes as if they were money. Pass must be surrendered when you are ready to use it. All students are required to sign out before leaving the room. This procedure is to ensure and enhance the learning environment within the band room, prevents students from missing valuable class instruction and in a small way, teaches responsibility. Remember, this is your only pass to use restroom facilities. Do not lose them. There is absolutely no way to replace them until the next nine weeks.
GRADING POLICIES: We will be following the school s grading policy. Please refer to the school s student hand book for more information. Daily grades will be given over completing music goals for the day, and playing tests will take place on a weekly basis. Check point tests will be given at every 3, 6, and 9 weeks. Students will be expected to put in the necessary practice time to prepare for these tests as they mostly performance based. Written tests may also be given. TESTS: All band students can expect to have a weekly written OR performance based test. Performance based tests will be graded using a teacher made rubric, (please refer to the back of the handbook for an example of the GRADING RUBRIC). Some weekly tests may be pass or fail tests. PRACTICE LOGS: Students will be required to complete weekly practice logs by mastering various band concepts. Students will need their instruments and music to practice. Other objectives that will count at practice will be listed on the weekly practice log sheet. Parents are to sign the practice logs on a weekly basis indicating you have heard your child perform their music for the week for you. This will help ensure their success in class and is a vital step to their music education throughout the year. Students may come in during the morning 7:00am-7:30am to practice on their own if they are unable to practice at home. There will be a sign in sheet for students and teacher will fill in their daily log with the number of minutes they practiced. Students are encouraged to practice at least 30 minutes throughout the day outside of scheduled class or rehearsal time. TAKING YOUR INSTRUMENT HOME/BRINGING IT BACK: ALL students are required to take home their instruments and bring them back to school on a daily basis without fail in order to practice. (Please see above for information on practice logs). For students who forget to bring or take home their instrument, they will lose 50 points off of their daily participation grade and a phone call home will be made. THE IMPORTANCE OF PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT! As a Mighty Colt Band Member, you are EXPECTED to ALWAYS give your BEST EFFORT. Learning music is exactly like learning a different language. It requires hard work, practice outside of class, repetition and a lot of patience. The more you practice, the better you will get. You won t see the progress immediately overnight; however, you will hear and see progress as the year goes by. Make sure you take your instrument home daily. If you are unable to carry your instrument with you or practice at home, you must come and practice after school here in the band room. It is the only way you will get better. MIGHTY COLT BAND PERFORMANCES: As a Mighty Colt Band Member, you will have numerous performance events. (Please see the 2017-2018 Desert Wind Band Calendars of Events below). All students are REQUIRED to attend and perform at band performances, with regard to the eligibility calendar checks. (Please read
following paragraph on Eligibility). Attendance and participation can and will be for a grade. Please refer online to TEA Side By Side rules online http://www.uiltexas.org/policy/tea-uil-sideby-side If you have any conflicts with 2017-2018 Desert Wind Band Calendar of Events performance dates, please inform the director about them AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. PLEASE BE ADVISED: Failure to be in compliance with the 2017-2018 Desert Wind Band Hand Book may result in not performing at a concert or performance event AT DIRECTOR S DISCRETION. INSTRUMENT CARE AND MAINTENANCE: Instrument repairs should go through the director first to help identify and assess the problem. It may be something easy to fix such as a stuck mouth piece or popped spring which can be done by the director. If the director is unable to fix the instrument, normally due to missing or warped pads, bent keys, broken water keys, missing valve guides, etc., then the instrument will need to be taken to a repair shop. Please bring a copy of your repair tag/receipt to prevent loss of daily grade. You will still participate in class using your band book and fingering along. ELIGIBILITY: Texas State Law mandates the No Pass, No Play rule. All students participating in a Texas Public School, in our case, a student enrolled in the Mighty Colt Band program must maintain a 70 or above average in ALL CLASSES, as well as maintain conduct grades (an S or better). Please be sure to attend any tutoring you may need in your other classes. Eligibility is checked for all off-school performances as well as any event requiring students to ride on the bus. The Mighty Colt Band needs everyone to be passing! You have the best teachers working with you! Ask for help if you need it. Please refer to your school hand book for clarification on Pre-AP classes. INSTRUMENTS AND SCHOOL RENTALS/FEES: As a Mighty Colt Band Member, you are required to have access to your own instrument. Please do not share an instrument with someone else enrolled in the Mighty Colt Band, even if they have a different class period than you. It is highly encouraged for you to rent or purchase your own instrument if you are able to. We do have a very limited number of instruments here at school, however there is not enough for everyone. You may need to buy or rent your own instrument from the music store. Please talk with the director for information where to go for instruments. In the event, you are unable to rent from a music store, please inform your director ASAP. For the few students who do rent from the school, you will be required to fill out the proper paperwork. If you qualify for free or reduced lunch you the principal will waive the rental fee. If you do not qualify for free or reduced lunch, there is a ONE-TIME fee of $45.00 that will need to be paid to the secretary in main office. The school secretary will issue you a receipt. Please bring your receipt of payment as well as your completed instrument rental agreement form to your director. Instruments can only go home with the student when all forms and rental fee receipt are turned in. Please note: If you do not turn in your paper work within 2-3 school days, your instrument will be checked out to another student.
All students using school instruments are EXPECTED to properly care for and maintain their instruments. Students and parents will be held financially responsible for any school issued instrument that gets lost, stolen and or damaged. Unpaid damages, failure to replacement of instrument parts, un-returned school instruments at the end of the year will result in your report card being held. Please take care of your instrument! If you are going to be transferring to another school, you MUST return your instrument in order to be cleared from the front office. If an instrument is lost, please inform your parents and look around your house. If it is stolen, please inform your parents and immediately inform your band director so we can file a police report accordingly. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES: All band students will be held accountable! It is your responsibility to make sure that you do what is expected of you. This also applies to being responsible and accountable for the maintenance and playing condition of your instrument. Your parents will be held accountable to pay for any repairs it may require that are not from natural wear and tear. Take pride and ownership over your actions, work, belongings, equipment, school, community, yourself and YOUR INSTRUMENT! END OF THE YEAR AWARD REQUIREMENTS: This year, there is a list of tasks in which students will need to complete throughout the year. Any student that completes these tasks will be recognized at our final End of the Year concert/awards ceremony. In the band room, will be three charts (one for each band) that will have a complete listing of tasks and each student s name. When a student completes a task, it will be marked off of the chart. This way every student can keep track of their progress towards being recognized with a special award. The following is a listing of each requirement followed by a description: BEGINNING BAND: Beginner Colt Band Award Good Behavior- The student must not have had any discipline actions throughout the entire school year. Good behavior is expected not only in the band room, but in concert situations, field trips, any function where the student represents Desert Wind. Students that are placed in SAC, suspension or Keys for any reason have failed to complete this task. Solo/Ensemble- The student must perform either a solo or in an ensemble (or both) at the SISD Solo and Ensemble competition which will be held in May. The rating the student receives is inconsequential to their completing this task.
Honor Band- The student must be selected into the end of the year 6 th grade Honor Band. This is the group that we will take major competitions and field trips. Students must audition for this group. Selection is not only based on level of proficiency on instrument but on behavior as well. Attendance- The student attends all performances given by the band and any rehearsals that are scheduled outside of the normal school day. Being Prepared- The student is never caught without any of the materials listed earlier in the handbook (this includes the instrument, mouthpiece, sticks, etc.) Eligibility- The student s grades never drop below a 70 in any of their classes. ADVANCED HONOR BAND: Colt Band Distinguished Member Award To receive this award, the student must complete all of the tasks listed for the Beginning Colt Band Award with the exception of being selected as a member to the Honor Band. The student must also complete the Mighty Colt Band Honor Member requirements. The difference between an Honor Member and a Distinguished member is that the student is selected to be a member of any of the region bands (this includes the All-Region Jazz Band). The student only needs to be selected to one group to be recognized as a Distinguished Member. OUTSTANDING MUSICIAN AWARD: This award is given to only one student. This student will be chosen out of the Distinguished Members. If there are no Distinguished Members, there will be no Outstanding Musician Award. Got Grit Award: This award is for students who demonstrate tremendous effort, are always on time and prepared to rehearsals. The amount of effort they put into their music is evident. They are supportive of their team. All-Region Award: This award is for students who auditioned and made the 017-2018 All- Region Band or All-Region Jazz Band. Solo and Ensemble Medal: This medal is awarded to students who attend and receive a 1 st Division medal at the annual SISD Solo and Ensemble Contest. 3 Year Service Award: This award is for students who have participated in band or percussion class for 3 Consecutive years.
BAND UNIFORM: The bands at Desert Wind School will perform in uniform as follows: Beginning Band- Khaki pants, navy blue polo shirt and tennis shoes. Shirt must be tucked in. Symphonic Band- Khaki pants, white polo shirt and tennis shoes. Shirt must be tucked in. Concert Band- Black dress pants, white polo shirt, and black dress shoes. Shirt must be tucked in. Additional uniform may be called depending on the event students will be performing at. See below: Pep Rallies at School: Khaki Pants with Navy Blue Polo and tennis shoes. Shirts must be tucked in. Holiday Formal Concerts: Black dress pants with white Polo and black dress shoes. Shirt must be tucked in. Eastlake Feeder Pattern Performances: Khaki Pants with spirt shirt students will be given. POSSIBLE FUNDRAISING: As a Mighty Colt Band Member, be prepared to participate with band fundraiser activities during the year. This is NOT MANDATORY and is NEVER graded. All fundraised money goes into the band fundraiser account and is used on the MIGHTY COLT BAND and it is for the students enrolled in band and band purposes, (such as contest entry fees, piano accompanist fees, band t-shirts, music, equipment and instrument accessories, etc.,). Students will be given receipts anytime money is turned in and records will be kept to keep track of all students with fundraiser money. Please keep all your receipts in a safe place until the end of the year or longer if you wish. If at any time, you have questions, comments, or concerns, about band or anything listed in the handbook, please feel free to contact the band director. Again, Welcome back and let s have a great musical year! Respectfully, Ms. Mata Band Director
Please read and fill out the following forms. Return this back the next time you are in class. Agreement to the 2017-2018 MIGHTY COLT BAND HANDBOOK This form is to confirm that YOU and YOUR PARENTS have read the 2017-2018 Mighty Colt Band HANDBOOK in its entirety. This is a student/parent/teacher contract in agreement with the information listed above. Please keep in mind that ALL of the information provided is to help the student learn, achieve, and succeed in band, which is why it is vital to have read the entire 2017-2018 Mighty Colt Band HANDBOOK. Please return this final page signed and dated by both the student and parents. This is to ensure a safe, healthy, productive, fun, interactive learning environment for each student. If you have any concerns or questions that arise throughout the year, please feel free to contact the band director. A copy of this handbook will be posted on the schools website under the band page. By signing this 2017-2018 Mighty Colt Band HANDBOOK agreement, you are agreeing to the expectations, rewards, consequences, demands, requirements, procedures, and policies of participating in the Mighty Colt Band for the 2017-2018 school year. YES. I, (Parent/Guardian Name) of (Student s Name) have read through the 2017-2018 Desert Wind Mighty Colt Band Handbook with my child. We understand all the rules, procedures and expectations and agree to act in accordance with all the requirements. PRINT Student Name Student SIGNATURE Date PRINT Parent Name Parent SIGNATURE Date
2017-2018 Desert Wind School Band Permission Slip Form (Audio/Video Segment)-For Educational Purposes The Mighty Colt Band at Desert Wind School has my permission to Audio or Video record my child s performances during rehearsals, or concerts, during the 2017-2018 school year. I understand this will be used as an educational learning tool, and the audio/video may also be used as documentation of student progress. These recordings WILL NOT be used on any internet, media or social websites. I understand that if I decline allowing permission, my child will be removed from the room or will be asked not to perform while recording is in progress. I also understand that this will in no way cause my child to be treated or graded any differently if I decline. YES-- I do agree. NO-- I do not agree. Please PRINT Student Name Date Parent Signature Date 2017-2018 Desert Wind School Band Permission Slip Form (Photo Release Segment) The Mighty Colt Band at Desert Wind School has my permission to photograph my child during school performances, public performances and band awards during the 2017-2018 school year. I understand this may be used on the school web page, district fine arts web page, or for band information flyers. These pictures may also be used on the school Twitter for promoting the great successes here at Desert Wind School in band. Photos may also be used in the school year book or end of the year photo collage video. All photos will be used only for positive purposes only. I understand that if I decline allowing permission for my child to be photographed, my child will be removed from the room or will be asked not to be in the picture for photos. I also understand that this will in no way cause my child to be treated or graded any differently if I decline. YES-- I do agree. NO-- I do not agree. Please PRINT Student Name Date Parent Signature Date
ALL TRAVEL PERMISSION SLIPS WILL BE GIVEN PRIOR TO ANY FIELD TRIP EVENTS. STUDENT INFORMATION SHEET (Please Print) Student Name: ID#: Class Period: Homeroom Teacher: Birthday: Parent/Guardian Name: Parent/Guardian Phone (Work and Cell #): Parent Email: Parent/Guardian Name: Parent/Guardian Phone (Work and Cell #): Parent Email: Instrument Info Type: Make: Model: Serial #: Paid: