The iSchoolBand Blog

iSchoolMusic.org 2.0 Delayed, Access iSM.org 1.0 Now!

2012-01-09T06:55:15Z

We have been working 12-18 hour days all through the holidays to get iSchoolMusic.org 2.0 ready in time for spring. We are SOOO close to having it ready, but we still need a bit of time to get the new platform polished. To show some good faith, however, we have decided to let everyone into the BETA platform to look around (sign up info is at the bottom of this article). Just a note, however, the 1.0 platform has a few bugs and shortcomings and we are aware of all of them. We have been testing for awhile and iSchoolMusic.org 2.0 will fix all the problems, streamline the navigation and improve the interface for a much more user friendly experience. If you haven't already seen, here...

iSchoolMusic.org - Spring Launch Preview

2012-01-06T12:33:00Z

You may have caught a preview of the new iSchoolMusic.org yesterday for those of you who are already using it. We pushed it live for a few hours and ran into a few snags as you may have learned from the email we sent out today. We decided to take the weekend to get the platform polished and ready. I know there is a lot of anticipation building, so as a consolation here is a preview of the new look!

We have been working all year long on and we still have a long way to go. The spring release will be the first semi-public BETA. 1000 schools are joining us and we hope everyone will pitch in to help us build the perfect solution for music education...

iSchoolMusic.org is now a NON-PROFIT organization!

2012-01-05T06:00:25Z

After several years of building and planning, iSchoolMusic.org is now an official non-profit organization! JOY!!! What does that mean for you as a school? We will now be able to work with large sponsors to provide opportunities for you and your students with no cost to you. Our creative juices are flowing at an amazing rate! We need your help to get the word out. Tell your friends! Comment on our blog to let us know how you think we could better serve you! Don't limit your comments to the organizational platform...LET'S THINK BIG!

We have some surprises up our sleeves that we will begin to announce after the platform is finished and people are using it on a regular basis. Usership is vital for bringing on sponsors so the biggest way you can help right now is to get your kids on and USE the site...tell your neighboring band directors about it...give us feedback so we can tweek the site for you...Let's get this thing humming before summer. We want to be able to get some scholarships in the works plus more amazing benefits for the users. Help us HELP YOU!

Check out the World's Largest Concert!

2012-01-04T02:48:10Z

(formerly The World’s Largest Concert)

The World’s Largest Concert has undergone a name change! A sing-along concert linking students around the world through music, the WLC reached an estimated 6 million students, teachers, and music supporters over the years. A highlight of Music In Our Schools Month®, the title “Concert for Music In Our Schools Month” reflects the Concert’s place in NAfME’s annual month-long celebration of school music!

While the “official date” of the Concert for Music In Our Schools Month is Thursday, March 8 at 1 p.m., all teachers are encouraged to get creative and teach and sing with their students any number of the Concert songs at any time during March 2012 — whenever it fits into their school and community schedules!

Click here to see the great 2012 Concert songs and sheet music!

Thank you to

for its continued support of The Concert for Music In Our Schools Month by providing the sheet music and audio tracks for the 2012 program.

Spring Invites Are Here!

2012-01-02T03:45:22Z

It's a NEW YEAR and we have NEW DEVELOPMENTS. The countdown clock for spring invites has begun. The platform will open to more than 350 thousand students in early January. A huge THANK YOU to all of you who have helped in the ALPHA phase of development and to the rest of you...WELCOME to the growing movement. We are so excited to launch iSchoolMusic 2.1 to those of you who have been patiently waiting.

We've worked out the kinks (update is coming in early January, 2012) and new features are in development, but we still need your help to make this product as intuitive and useful as possible. We look forward to all the feedback and support. If it wasn't for YOU, iSchoolMusic.org would not be the amazing FREE product that it is! We are changing our status to a Non-Profit organization which means that we can be the catalyst for AMAZING new music education initiatives. YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT WE HAVE UP OUR SLEEVES! More to come later.

We are thrilled that 1000 schools will be joining us this spring to help in the movement to create a free way to simplify the school year and innovate music education.

Brimming with excitement,

Debbie and the iSM.org team

How to Sign Up Your Students & Parents

2012-01-02T03:43:58Z

1. Print off the Parent & Student Info Sheet and hand this out to each student to take home and get signed by their parent.

2. Schedule a computer lab for 1 period.

3. Print out a Student Lab Sign Up Sheet for each student (it's the same for every student).

4. Students will enter their parents email addresses as they sign up, our system will send each parent an email from you urging them to sign up.

5. Parents will be automatically added to the parent group so they will begin getting notifications immediately even before they sign up.

That’s it. Your whole band family should now be in the database and ready to receive notifications from you!

Love,

iSchoolMusic

Message to iSchoolBand Users From the Founder

2012-01-02T00:00:56Z

iSchoolBand Users,

I wanted to give all of you an update about what is happening over at iSchoolMusic.org. We recently invited 100 schools to join us in our private alpha and we have been working day and night to get the bugs worked out. The system is still a bit unstable, but we hope to get it ready for the next batch of invitations by next week! We have decided to wait until the system is completely stable to move the iSchoolBand accounts over to the new system to save you the headaches! We will keep you updated as things progress.

The new system is pretty much the same as the current iSchoolBand platform. We have only added a few small features to improve parent integration and allow choirs and orchestras to use the system. The other features listed on the homepage of iSchoolMusic will be in development over the next few months. Our hope is to have several of them done in time for the Midwest Clinic this year!

If you have any questions feel free to reach out!

best,

Chris Purifoy
Founder of iSchoolBand & iSchoolMusic

iSchoolMusic is Now Accepting Invite Requests!

2012-01-01T23:52:36Z

Thanks for the overwhelming response! We are really about to do something amazing together! After the first 2 days of pre-launch, 64 thousand students will be joining us at iSchoolMusic this fall! My humble thanks.

We are only allowing 2000 schools to join us next fall for our first release to make sure we can handle the bandwidth and maintain reliable standards! We will open up the doors a bit more before concert season as well, so if you miss your chance this fall don’t worry! Sign-ups are on a first come first serve basis! Don’t miss it!

More soon. Check back or subscribe to this blog to get updates on our launch date and more on iSchoolMusic’s vision for music education.

Here’s to a simpler band year! Cheers!

Chris Purifoy
Founder, CTO
@iSchoolMusic.org

Does Music Help Children? By Gemma Lee

2010-12-15T18:13:44Z

Why is Music Important for Kids?

This question has been debated for as long as time has existed. Even the great Greek and Roman philosophers approached the question: is music something that should be taught and does it help the development of children? Plato answered "I would teach children music, physics, and philosophy; but most importantly music, for in the patterns of music and all arts are the keys to learning." And again “what then is the education to be? Perhaps we could hardly find a better than that which the experience of the past has already discovered, which consists, I believe, in gymnastic, for the body, and music for the mind.”

In all cultures of the world music plays an important role. While these roles may change depending on the culture it is impossible to separate music from the life of an individual. While some may argue the role of music in our lives it is impossible to escape it. Even in the popular culture of Australia it is impossible to go shopping without hearing music. Music provides a means of communication and expression of culture and individual identity.

Flute Lessons - Learning How to Play Flute the Right Way By Elaine Simmons

2010-12-09T21:35:28Z

If you know how to play the guitar or the piano, you are somebody with a talent. These are the basic instruments taught to us in an early age. As we grow older, we get contented with these instruments along with other factors that they bring. Have been to a meditation class with a soothing music in the background?

In most meditation classes and music therapy sessions, the sound of the flute can be heard. More often than not, the flute is the instrument of choice if the objective is soothing music. It helps you connect with nature so easily. When you heard the sound coming out from flute, it is as if you become connected to nature. It is as if your soul is uplifted. You can feel the lightness in your subconscious mind and profound emotions.