We are so excited to share with you that Kids Aren’t Lazy: Developing Motivation & Talent Through Music (PDP, 2018) is the #1 New Release in the following Amazon categories on its first day of sales!
Music Instruction & Study
Parent Participation in Education
Psychology Education & Training
Gifted Students Education
Baby & Toddler Parenting
Violins
Follow this link to order your own copy!
As we celebrate the end of this school year, I’m so thrilled to acknowlege everyone’s achievements. In particular, I’d like to recognize Nikita for her outstanding academic and musical accomplishments.
Nikita will graduate in June as Valedictorian at DeBakey High School. In addition to her musical achievements in middle and high school (including the Arts Supplement, Region, Houston Youth Symphony, LHS Showcase Concerts, Solo & Ensemble awards, performances at assisted living centers, and the Virtuosi of Houston Summer String Workshop), Nikita has demonstrated exceptional leadership as a violinist in our studio.
Nikita’s college acceptance letters included offers from UPenn, Rice, and the Houston Premedical Academy (HPA). Pursuing her dream of becoming a doctor, Nikita will attend the Houston Premedical Academy, an 8-year program that leads to graduation from the Baylor College of Medicine(!). Just 6 seniors per year are accepted into HPA. WOW, Nikita!
On a musical note, Nikita has accepted the position of Violin Teacher at Century Fine Arts in Sugar Land and is now welcoming new students into her very own studio!
Congratulations on your amazing accomplishments, Nikita! You have earned them all and we are thrilled for you and proud of you!
Hello, everyone!
It’s audition season, and that means we’re starting to find out which orchestras our young musicians have been accepted into for the 2018 – 2019 school year! We’ll update this site with results as they come in, as so far only a few schools have posted their audition results and many more are sure to do so between now and August!
Congratulations to Seline (violin) and Dhruv (viola) for reaching the top orchestra (Camerata) at Austin High School! Both Seline and Dhruv will have the huge honor of performing at the Chicago Midwest Clinic in December 2018.
Congratulations to Jordan (viola) for reaching the top orchestra (Symphony) at Travis High School! Jordan will attend the high school AFA program this summer as well. So exciting!
Jordan joins Esosa (viola) in the top Travis group. On that note, Esosa will be spending one month this summer in Thailand, having successfully applied for a summer abroad scholarship through the Council on International Educational Exchance (CIEE) program. Wow, Esosa!
Congratulations to Zayn (viola) for reaching the top orchestra (Camerata) at Garcia Middle School as a 6th-grader! Zayn will attend the AFA this summer as well.
Congratulations to Aishwarya (violin), who will stay in the top group at Clements HS and to Amanda (viola), who will stay in the top group at Ridgepoint HS.
*EDIT, 5/31* Congratulations also to Ryder (viola), who has reached the top orchestra (Symphony) at Sartartia Middle School!
*Edit, Fall 2018, below*
Congratulations to Hamsini for being the only freshman violinist accepted into the top group at Elkins HS!
Congratulations to Tarunikha for being accepted as a freshman violist at Elkins HS as well!
Congratulations to Catherine and Elizabeth for being accepted into the top group at Dulles MS as incoming 6th-graders!
Congratulations to Olivia for being accepted into the top group at Baines MS on viola!
To everyone who will be auditioning this week and next — good luck, and remember to perform with confidence! We are already so proud of you!
Congratulations to Hamsini, who last night received the Director’s Choice Award at Fort Settlement Middle School! Hamsini is in the top orchestra at FSMS and in December she performed the concertmaster solo for Fantasia on Greensleeves (Ralph Vaughan Williams).
Congratulations to Ananya for receiving the Outstanding Musicianship Award from her orchestra at Clements High School! A few weeks ago, Ananya led her orchestra to Sweepstakes at DC Fest with her fantastic concertmaster solo for Pavane (Gabriel Fauré).
Today we have the honor of announcing the Solo & Ensemble results for our wonderful 6th-graders! As you all may know, many schools host the Solo & Ensemble competition for 6th graders a few months after the February Solo & Ensemble competition for older musicians (7th – 12th grade).
Congratulations to Zayn (6th Grade, Garcia Middle School) and Morgan (6th Grade, Baines Middle School) for receiving top marks (“1, Superior”) on their Solo & Ensemble performances this spring!
Special congratulations to Morgan for choosing to compete in both the solo AND the ensemble (chamber music) categories and receiving top marks in each. We are so proud of her and wish her the best of luck as she auditions this week for her school’s advanced orchestras!
Special congratulations to Zayn, who has already auditioned for and been selected into his school’s highest orchestra! We are so happy for his amazing progress this year!
On another inspiring note, both Zayn and Morgan have successfully auditioned for and been accepted into the American Festival for the Arts Summer Music Conservatory. Way to go, guys!
You can read about this past February’s wonderful Solo & Ensemble results for 7th – 12th grade LHS musicians here: https://laurenhaleystudios.com/2018/03/23/lhs-musicians-awarded-26-grade-1-medals-at-solo-ensemble/
Congratulations to all of the LHS families who participated in this Saturday’s Winter Showcase Concerts! Violinists and violists performed works ranging from Suzuki Book I favorites to Beethoven’s Spring Sonata and Schumann’s Märchenbilder. From Bartók to Mozart, our LHS performers demonstrated command of a wide range of musical styles.
We were thrilled to once again offer students the opportunity to work with LHS pianist Evelyn Lam (https://laurenhaleystudios.com/meettheartists/) as Ms. Lam completes her doctoral degree in piano performance at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York.
Virtuosi of Houston and Karen Needham hosted both the 5:30pm and 7:30pm LHS recitals in their beautiful studio. Thank you again, Virtuosi and Ms. Needham!
Parents can submit their photos from the recital to be posted here. Congratulations again to all performers!
Below: Ms. Haley and Sophie, Sebastian and Ms. Haley
Welcome to the 2015 LHS 100 Days of Practice Challenge!
Registration is now open and will close when the Challenge begins on Friday, March 20th. Dust away the dreary winter and infuse your practice sessions with excitement, motivation, and progress!
Celebrate the milestones along the way, and join us for a party honoring your accomplishments at the conclusion of the Challenge in June. Signing up for the Challenge will give your family step-by-step support and motivation. We’re in this together!
Check out www.musicinpractice.com to learn more about setting students up for positive and effective practicing. Sue Hunt, its creator, provides endlessly helpful tips! My favorite article about the 100 Day Challenge is targeted at teachers, but the diagrams help everyone understand how consistent practicing is the key to musical success:
http://www.musicinpractice.com/2013/100-day-practice-challenge/
Next up, grab your own copy of the 100 Day Practice Journal and we’ll get started!
http://www.musicinpractice.com/100days/
All opinions are by Lauren Haley and all original content is copyright 2015 Lauren Haley Studios.
I still remember the fun practice games I played with my parents as a young violinist. You too can use practice sessions to bond, build self-esteem, and develop positive determination. Playing a quick, relaxing activity in-between practice repetitions helps keep the mood happy, and your involvement demonstrates to your child just how important their progress and happiness on the violin is to you. Here are some of my favorites for your family to enjoy!
Candy Land is an ideal practice board game because it requires little play time per turn, keeping your practice session on track. Each time it’s your child’s turn, have them play a measure (or song, or new technique) before rolling the dice. What a great way to involve the whole family in practice time fun!
There’s something about a glitter wand that mesmerizes even studio parents! Kids and parents alike set up their bow hold on the glitter wand and keep the hold relaxed and accurate until all the glitter falls to the bottom of the wand. Turn the wand upside down and start again!
Give a Rainbow Loom Rubber band to your child for each repetition and see what you can build in a day. Trade play-throughs for feathers, beads, craft supplies, everything. For each step in your project, play a review song. For the true artist, grab a coloring book and fill in part of a picture for every repetition. Paint-by-numbers works especially well for determining how much to fill in for each repetition.
Legos (or Duplos, for younger kids) are an awesome way to help kids understand how each practice session takes them to new heights of achievement! Start a Lego village and add a piece for every conquered difficulty. For younger kids, put together a Duplo scene each day, rewarding each effort with a new Duplo. At the end, they’ll have a visual representation of their achievement!
For every three times in a row your little violinist plays something correctly, give them a “charm” (a bead for a bracelet). Alternatively, use rhinestone embellishments and glue one on to a project for every three repetitions. Use these creations as presents for friends and family!
You can find dice, review cards, and other Suzuki-specific games at thepracticeshoppe.com. You can use these dice to play Review Song Bingo as well!
A note on electronic games – while gaming on the iPad may sound like the ultimate practice reward for each kid, I don’t recommend it because isn’t centered around parent-child practicing, and earning screen time makes practicing seem like a chore that must be rewarded. Instead, practicing should be a time when parents and kids work together and enjoy the experience itself.
Above all, remember that every child’s first priority is making you proud with their playing! Praise their hard work, and let them know that trial and error is part of the process – we practice so much because we know that some things are too advanced to play correctly the first time!
All opinions are by Lauren Haley and all original content is copyright 2015 Lauren Haley Studios.
LAUREN HALEY STUDIOS 
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