​Project Based Learning Electives provided by the Berrien Springs Virtual Academy​​​

Be in a Band                                                                     Spring 2020

Jon Whidden    jon@ruskets.com 269-782-8809
9480 Columbia Rd., Dowagiac, MI  49047
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvPoxXJQrh1YMxf0sklRgOA

Classes begin in January
Class times are arranged with students in weekly, 2-hour blocks of time.
Grades 2-12

Additional registration at the location is not required.

This is your chance to learn how to collaborate with other musicians as a member of a band. Classes will include a range of activities like jamming, group composition, rehearsing, recording a demo and live performance.

Players of any instrument and vocalists are all welcome to join. After registering each student will be contacted by the instructor and assigned to a group based on their musical interests, abilities and their preferred instrument.

Over the course of the semester students will learn to write original songs, arrange cover versions of their favorite popular recordings, and rehearse their sets during intensive 2-hour sessions.

After the final day of rehearsal the band will perform their set for an audience and go home with a demo recording to keep. 

Instructor: Jon Whidden is a lcoal artist, teacher, homeschooling parent of 3 boys, and founding member of 3 bands that you've probably never heard of.

Required Materials: Bring your instrument.
​Drum kit, acoustic guitars, vocal microphones and guitar amplifiers are available at the studio.
​

*Please note: it is important to make as informed a decision as possible when choosing your student's Community Resource classes. Most locations will allow a student to drop a class after one meeting, at no charge if it wasn't a good fit for the student, but not all. Some classes plan ahead based on the number that have signed up and have purchased materials, hired teachers, etc. and there might be a fee for class time or materials given to the student if the student drops after one or two meetings. The school cannot pay for classes that students do not complete, so choose wisely; if you do not take the class off of your student's schedule by the deadline, you may be asked to pay for the class time incurred prior to dropping the class.
​
Syllabus​
Teacher of Record:  Mandy Jankoviac