March Newsletter from Tom Hunter

[Tom Hunter - The Song Growing Co.]

A mostly monthly and periodically pithy letter with greetings, a story, something recommended, Tom's appearances, and more...

Greetings from a little farther into the month than is usual for getting this newsletter to you.  We've had internet problems - amazing how dependent we are on these machines.  Where you live, do the days seem to get longer faster right about now?  And what's the source of the notion that March comes in and goes out like a lion or a lamb?...  Daffodils are starting to show up, and we hope you're doing well.

Registrations are arriving for NORTHWEST TEACHERS CONFERENCE (July 7-12) and there's still room.  Click here for more details.  We keep hearing from people planning to come.  Now would be a wonderful time to send your registration in!  It really is a wonderful event - a professional development event to nourish your soul...

A story: Many of you have heard me tell about the kindergarten teacher in Portland, OR who put the names of children on the board when they were absent.   She loved it when the children returned because they would always look to see if their name was still on the board - her reminder to the children that even when their bodies were gone, they were still part of the class.  Her successor has continued the practice, and I've been hearing how others of you are passing the idea around.  There's a first-year first grade teacher in Kent, WA who started doing it earlier this year.  Then one day, she told her kids she would be gone the next day for a personal day.  Right away a child said, "We'll put your name on the board, Ms. Dewey.".  Don't forget - the classroom community includes the teacher too.

Recommended:  This one comes from Andrew at Turn the Page Press (you can count on him!) - Brave Charlotte by Stohner & Wilson, the story of an out-of-step, slow sheep who ends up knowing what to do when things get tough.  (Available at www.turnthepage.com)..  Have you read something good recently? for kids? for adults?  Send me your ideas, I'll sort them out, and include some here next time.

March appearances:  There are dates open for year-end events in June, summer workshops and concerts, and the fall is filling up fast.
3/10 - Family Child Care Assoc. workshops, Coeur d'Alene. evening family concert
3/12 & 3/15 - Parkview School, Bellingham, songwriting with grades 3-5, Thurs evening family sing as last event of residency
3/19 - Everett, WA - workshop for Head Start
3/20-3/21 - Jackson Elementary, Hillsboro, OR - assemblies, classroom visits, time with teachers, first of three visits
3/26 - assemblies in 2 schools in Orcutt, CA
3/27 - assemblies in school in Grover Beach, CA and in Nipomo, CA
3/28 - assembly and songwriting with intermediate grades, Nipomo (CA) Elementary 
April: 10-11 Jackson Elem in Hillsboro and Wed evening with Cedar Hills Co-op parents, 12 family concert Lynden (WA) Library, 14 community event for climate change, 18-21 in NJ and DE for schools and conference keynoting, 23 family concert Seattle preschool, 24-26 Jackson Elem.

The store:  This month we're offering free shipping to everyone - one item, ten items, no matter, we pay the shipping - and that's no typo; it's the truth!  (Click here to go directly to our online store.)  Sales for our newest CD, "Many a Mile," have been very good - thank you all! ..  Good ideas dept.: A school in WA got a grant to buy 50 CD's so they could give one to each family who came to a family concert.  A school in NJ has ordered $1000 worth of CD's ahead of Tom's visit there in April.  The husband of a teacher wants to give our book of essays Visits to the Heart of Education to each of the teachers and assistants at his wife's school.  Songs (on CD's) are always great gifts and they're easy to order on line.

Happy spring, everyone, be it lion or lamb.



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THE SONG GROWING CO.
1225 E. Sunset Dr., #518
Bellingham, WA  98226
(360) 738-0340
fax: (360) 734-0295
songgrow at tomhunter.com
www.tomhunter.com
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