Grade 1 Singing - anyone's child doing this ?

seeker - help and sharing the pain in equal measure, I think !!
scarletlilybug - I think singing lessons are excellent idea for the quiet,shy child - having said that I was very shy but loved singing but may well have found the singing in front of anyone excruciatingly difficult - I found instrument playing in front of anyone quite intimidating and never felt comfortable enough to play as well as I could in private.
Ds is very quiet and I suppose shy but loves music - he is quite uncoordinated and finds fine motorskills difficult and we felt he'd find playing an instrument difficult ( he tried recorder and even drumming briefly) He is very keen to be some kind of musician and as he has a good voice I suggested lessons (his school is a music specialist one and they are very encouraging ) He also sings with the school choir but feels not quite ready to audition for the gifted and talented choir (am keen for him to do this but won't push it until he feels he wants to go for it). He has surprised me with his willingness to sing quite unselfconsciously in front of others (possibly not the whole school !!) and although he huffs and puffs sometimes about practicing he does apply himself to it pretty well and sticks at it
He sometimes wobbles about the boys not singing thing as so few do but I am always pointing out the boy in yr 11 who is cool and has grade 8 singing !!

DD used to do singing, many years ago, as an out-of-school activity. Her teacher took her through the grades and also entered her for competitions.
The competitions when they are young are lovely - the adjudicators know how scary it is to stand up and be judged so they are very encouraging with their comments. If someone forgets their lines or is overcome with nerves, then the judges are very understanding. They say never mind but 'make' them see it through and conquer the problem (you may even get a mini-masterclass!). It also helps when they see other competitors are in the same boat with their nerves.

if she suggested it I think it is a fab idea

I had singing lessons from 8 or 9, loved them and took lots of exams and did well. I didn't sing solo in public till I was 18. They don't neccessarily go together

Sorry... bit of a thread hijack coming on. It's just that I've been thinking about singing lessons recently....

My daughter (aged 9) loves singing and sings very nicely at home (well, I would think so, wouldn't I?).

When she's at school, however, she sings very very quietly because she feels "embarassed". All the same, she is very frustrated by this and desperately wants to join the school's senior choir (entry by audition only).

Her school does offer private singing lessons - does anyone think they might help to develop confidence in this area? I'm looking it more as a confidence-building sort of thing - anyone think this might work? She has suggested it herself - but I'm wondering whether the teachers will be looking for someone who is happy to sing in public already and wants to get better, rather than someone who isn't bad at singing, but is too nervous to sing in public.

Thoughts? (and further apologies for the hijack)

My dd did it last year. Can I help - or do you just want people to share the pain. I can do that - she's doing grade 3 soon!

[wallows in nostalgia]

iirc I sang 'The Friendly Cow', 'A Carrion Crow' and 'Grasshopper Green'

Ladybirds and nightingales were involved in later grades but the repertoire only evened out by about grade 5 when you started getting little arias.

I'd have killed for 'Where is love?'

we had to buy a book !! with cds ! so just have a selection of songs to pick...am secretly hoping for 'where is love' from Oliver !

Just checked the syllabus - there's loads of songs on there and these are indeed included. I think dd was just given the songs of which they happened to have spare photocopies!

!! must be a different exam board ?(ours is ABRSM)
The unaccompanied one ds is doing is something about ivy

Something a bit tedious about a nightingale singing. A lullaby. Favourite Things (or 'Fave-right things') and What shall we do with a drunken sailor (that's the unaccompanied one). Haven't heard them so frequently I'm grinding my teeth...yet

which songs is she doing ? ds seems to be doing The Crocodile,The Miller of Dee and Grandfather Clock,Aupres de Ma Blonde and something else so far - I know them all by heart !!

My daughter aged 9 is doing grade 1 singing in December - so far OK as she's motivated, but it is a bit like learning an instrument. Songs mainly traditional - but they've just been chosen by her teacher. Good luck!

just bumping this

Girl - and the practice was conspicuous by its absence. Still is. I despair!

trouble is, I played the "Look, if you don't practice you'll make an idiot of yourself and that will be awful - nothing worse than standing up in public and forgetting your words" She ignored me - and got a distinction. Not sure grade 3 will be that easy - comeuppance on its way, I fear!

Mine did it last year if I csn help at all. Doing grade 3 soon in two weeks, I think [bad forgetful mother emoticon]

A lot of the Grade 1 set songs are "childrens songs" like Bessie the Black Cat and The Ladybird. Also there is more musical theatre in Trinity. However ABRSM have just published an updated syllabus which is better than before.

Trinity used to be seen as the poor relaTION OF ABRSM but they have really got their act together recently and are now just as well regarded.

Dh teaches it, though he has started to use Trinity Guildhall for Grades as he finds their repertoire better, especially for older beginners.

Yes, I imagine it is, MAS. Good for him if he does. At DD's school singing lessons are in groups of four, but I don't know if any boys do them, there are none in DD's group. It's a very sporty school and I think difficult for non-sporty boys to carve a niche for themselves.

No, DD started singing lessons at school this year, but I have no idea if they are intended to lead to grade exams or not. She is unhappy with them too, so I think she may not restart in September. I think she would like to do grades though.