Happy New Year!

Dear Fans, Clients and Friends:

I hope your New Year is all that you wish it to be.

Johnette

Tour Schedule - January 2010

January 8 at 11:00, Family Friendly Fridays Concert Series, National Jazz Park, 916 N St. Peter, New Orleans, LA

January 8 at 12:00-1:00, Book Signing, Tisket A Tasket Book Shop, 1235 Decatur St., New Orleans, LA

January 8-23, Workshop and Concert Tour in Seoul, Daejeon, Busan and Daegu, Korea

Tour Schedule - January 2010

January 8 at 11:00, Family Friendly Fridays Concert Series, National Jazz Park, 916 N St. Peter, New Orleans, LA
January 8 at 12:00-1:00, Book Signing, Tisket A Tasket Book Shop, 1235 Decatur St., New Orleans, LA
January 8-23, Workshop and Concert Tour in Seoul, Daejeon, Busan and Daegu, Korea
January 30 from 11-1, Book Signing, Sams Club, Metairie, LA

Music for Montessori and Johnette Downing

Music for Montessori and Johnette Downing by Liz Hannan

Please check out Johnette Downing’s CD collection for great songs to use
in your Montessori circles. The melodies are delightful and her recordings are pure.
She always includes the lyrics on the jacket. Yeah!!!
Everyone will be able to sing along with ease.
You will discover that her songs connect with your units
and they are also great for part cards.
The language is rich and will expand everyone’s vocabulary.

I am excited to share with everyone how Johnette Downing has enriched my music circles in 11
Montessori schools within the San Francisco Bay Area.

BTW: I lined my tray with peel and stick felt.
This keeps the noise down as instruments get passed around the circle.

The first instrument I introduce for passing is the egg shaker.
It is the easiest for their small hands and it is a no fail manipulation.
I have it in a small, egg shaped box and present it as teachers present all
Montessori materials.

Heads up…I place the egg in the box but leave the lid on my work rug.
Otherwise each child will return the lid to the box and every other child has to remove it.
Great exercise for other circles but too much time for music since
I have other instruments I want to pass.

From her CD, Fins and Grins, we sing Johnette’s The Aquarium.
I shake the egg on the word, “strange”.
I do the first 3 verses and then pass the egg on my tray.
When it is returned to me we all sing the refrain one last time.

Johnette’s Circle of Life is classic for any unit on fish and/or the sea.
It includes graduated sizes of fish as well as the food chain.
The movements are fun and easy.
When the children have really learned the song well I
do the hand movements but do not sing the names of the fish.
The children love this challenge.

You must check out Johnette’s Second Line CD for songs with scarves.
The songs are easy, darling and great for movement.
I was so excited to do these songs.
I bought small, bright colored scarves which were great for floating.

Here is what happened to my circle.
Being Montessori children they all began to fold the scarves into squares and triangles.
I did not have the heart to stop that activity but it took the rest of my circle time.
Not to be out done and miss out on great songs…I changed to hands.
Ta Da !!! Hands up, 2-3-4-5-6-7 and 8. Hands down, 2-3-4-5-6-7- and 8. Etc.

Have fun with Johnette Downing in your Montessori schools.

Liz Hannan
Music for Montessori
Music Together
Children’s Music Network

The Big Read 2010 Selection!

BiG NeWs!!!

My book Today is Monday in Louisiana is one of three books for Lower School selected on the Recommended Reading list for the National Coalition of Girls' Schools (NCGS) "Big Read" 2010!!! How cool is that???

Here is the review:

http://nola.ncgs.org/the-big-read-2010/

Today Is Monday in Louisiana by Johnette Downing
PreSchool-Grade 3 — A variation of a Louisiana song with a twist–each day a new food is served as a faceless assortment of children come one by one to the table. Eventually, there are seven, with seven different dishes in front of them, a cat and dog underneath the table waiting for scraps, and a grandmotherly figure overseeing everything.

Mailbox - Letters from Fans and Friends

Merci beaucoup Johnette.
On behalf of everyone at the French Consulate, thank you for a wonderful performance Saturday at our Fête des enfants. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed you and your unique talent- you really added something special to our program.
-Heidi

Music Monthly - December 2009: What is Jazz?

In researching a music activity to offer this month, I came across a wonderful website to teach children about Jazz. Since I’ll be performing at the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park each month in 2010, I thought we should give children a little lesson in Jazz before we go to the Jazz Park. PBS Kids – Jazz is a great web site to do just that. There are so many interesting facts and fun activities for the children to do. Check it out at:
http://pbskids.org/jazz/index.html

"Read & Spin," New Orleans Magazine Review

My latest book Why the Crawfish Lives in the Mud (Pelican Publishing) received a great review in the November Issue, "Read & Spin" column of New Orleans Magazine.


"Why the Crawfish Lives in the Mud is an important study of Louisiana's most important crustacean. Yes, it's a story picture book and sure to be a hit with early readers. The tale of trickster Crawfish and hard-working Crab culminates with a valuable moral. Bonus: Mom and Dad could learn a lesson. Bonus No. 2: writer Johnette Downing's illustrations are collage-like and sure to spark some artistic endeavers by budding Romare Beardens."

-Alisha Murphy, Read & Spin, New Orleans Magazine, November 2009

Tour Schedule - December 2009

December 6 from 10:00-11:00, Book Signing, Sams Club, Metairie, LA
December 6 from 12:30-1:30, Book Signing, A Tisket A Tasket, French Quarter, New Orleans, LA
December 6 at 2:00 & 3:00, St. Nicholas Day Fair, Dutch Alley Performance Pavillion, Alley Off Decatur, New Orleans, LA
December 9-11, Washington DC
December 12 at 10:30, Grand Opening Concert, The Parenting Center, New Orleans, LA
December 12 from 2:00-4:00, Book Signing, Barnes & Noble, Baton Rouge, LA
December 19 from 7:00-8:30 p.m., Book Signing, Barnes & Noble, Harvey, LA
December 23-31, North Carolina

Happy Thanksgiving

I spent Thanksgiving with my boyfriend and his son in the mountains of North Carolina, and it SNOWED! It was so funny because I was all bundled up and freezing while everyone else was romping around like it was summer.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am grateful for all of my fans, clients, friends and family. Many blessings to you all.