Introducing Ray Kingsmore's Drum Clinics
Get students out of their regular comfort zone by playing drums and singing.
Introducing Ray Kingsmore's Drum Clinics
Get students out of their regular comfort zone by playing drums and singing.
Ray Kingsmore: 50 years experience in Drums and Education
Drum Clinic Sound and Lighting Systems
The venue is awash in ambient coloured lights; non-strobe.
A professional Bose L1 Pro Audio System provides a rich musical experience.
Wireless Microphones accommodate up to 9 students at a time at the Microphone Station.
Four microphones can be ‘walked around’ to individual younger students who want to sing a few words or phrases.
Drum Clinic Lesson Plans
The First Clinic: Lesson Plan
Introduction to Snare Drums, Ride/Bell/Crash Cymbals, Hand Held Percussion Instruments, Microphones
Grades K-8 Rudiments: Expectations are simplified for younger grades.
1. Beat, Rhythm, Tempo, Dynamics, Keeping Time, Listening
2. How to hold Percussion Instruments by hand.
3. How to play a drum with a soft stick or finger tips in order to control Dynamics..
4. How to play the Ride/Bell/Crash cymbals for desired effects.
Grades 3-8: Students can refer to lyrics sheets in groups of up to 9 singers at the Microphone Station while everybody else plays their drums.
Grades K-2: As everybody plays their drum sets, the teachers walk around the room, holding microphones (4) close to the mouths of individuals willing to sing a few words of well known age appropriate songs, while still playing their drum sets.
Expected Outcomes:
Students will create Dynamic Rhythms in time with various percussion instruments while interacting with 3 to 5 recognizable and vetted age-appropriate musical selections.
The Second Clinic: Lesson Plan
Introduction to African Djembes
Grade K-8: How to apply hands and soft sticks to the Djembe for desired effects.
Grades 3-8: How to position the African Djembes between the legs, on their laps or on the floor.
Students will play the African Djembes, Snare Drums, Cymbals and other Instruments simultaneously.
They will learn to play simple African and Tabla Rhythms while keeping time with suitable music.
Drummers will experiment with basic learned Rudiments while creating new patterns in time with the music. Up to 9 students at a time can sing at the Microphone Station while others play their drum sets for 3 to 5 songs.
Grades K-2: The African Djembes will remain on the floor with students kneeling or sitting behind them. With their classroom teachers’ help, they will participate in fun drum and sing-a-long activities utilizing the African Djembes and a few additional Percussion Instruments. Willing individuals can sing again as teachers/helpers approach with microphones.
Expected Outcomes:
Students will be challenged to use different combinations of drums, percussion instruments and Rhythms while keeping time with 3 to 5 different well known and vetted age-appropriate musical selections. Singing is always an option for all drummers.
Controlling Drum Clinic Volume
Controlling Drum Volume:
The dynamic volume range of the percussion instruments during Drum Clinics is:
VERY SOFT: PIANISSIMO
SOFT: PIANO
MEDIUM LOUD: MEZZOFORTE
DRUMMERS do not PLAY LOUD DURING CLINICS.
Students never strike a drum forcefully with a hard wooden drum stick or with with an open hand. Soft padded mallets, Jazz Brushes and flexible Rattan sticks are used exclusively. Only finger tips make contact with drum skins.
Grade 3-8 participants are shown how to apply hand/finger control techniques while using all Percussion Instruments.
Grade K-2 participants all make a solemn hushed promise: “Don’t wake up the baby,” whom they will see sleeping at the front of the room. If this Baby Doll awakens because drumming is too loud, the drumming might have to STOP. Very sad indeed. Little drummers are suprisingly very concerned for the welfare of “Baby Frederica” and therefore committed to not awakening her.
VENUE OPTIONS
OPTION A:
The school Gym.
The Gym is the best and most excellent choice due to its expanse of usable area to include all Percussion Instruments, Djembes and Microphone Stations. This area also allows for ease of movement and results in reduced acoustic effects on other classrooms.
Plan to provide ½ School gym, 34 chairs, 3 tables (folding 4 or 5 ft rectangle), power sources, trash can.
NOTE: The gym PERMITS must be cancelled all days and evenings that the drums are set up, including over a weekend if applicable. Regular in-school usage of the empty half of the gym tends to be restricted for the week. The other half of the gym and the stage can not be used for ANY purposes while Drum Clinics are in progress.
OPTION B:
An EMPTY first floor classroom. Some Percussion instruments and the Microphone Station will not be set up due to lack of space. Ease of student movement will be limited, especially for the Intermediate Grades. Adjoining classrooms will be well aware of the Bass Musical sounds resonating from this nearby room very day, all week. The following requirements must be met:
NO TABLES
NO TEACHER OR STUDENT DESKS
NO FILE CABINETS
NO UN-ANCHORED SHELVES
NO STORED EQUIPMENT, BOXES, COMPUTERS, A/V EQUIPMENT, CHOIR RISERS, STANDS ETC.
JUST AN EMPTY ROOM WITH 32 JUNIOR SIZED STUDENT CHAIRS; NOT PRIMARY CHAIRS.
Neurological Diversity Success: To share with teachers and parents of select students.
• Autism spectrum disorder
• Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder
• learning disabilities such as dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia and dyspraxia
• Tourette syndrome and other tic disorders
• Sensory processing issues
Students who display Neurodivergent behaviours should be entitled to participate in and enjoy school activities, especially the Arts.
Some children might be over-responsive (hypersensitive) or under-responsive (hyposensitive) to sensory stimulation, such as bright overhead lights or louder than usually experienced music and drumming.
Guidelines for success with Sensory Stimulation
For children in the drum clinic, this could mean allowing noise-canceling headphones if beneficial.
Also, upon the teacher’s request all special lighting effects will be eliminated.
Guidelines for success with Dynamics during a Drum Clinic
Dynamic Control of Volume is a major component introduced at the beginning of each clinic. Students are introduced to techniques (Varying by grade level) to achieve a comfortable, enjoyable drumming volume (soft, medium, medium-loud, NEVER LOUD.) This allows everyone to hear, accompany and sing along with the music in the room. Most Neurotypical students tend to understand and adapt these concepts.
It is not a problem if a Neurodivergent child talks, touches or taps the drum during the clinician’s verbal comments, or in between songs. The classroom teacher or Designated Educational Assistant will determine how best to help the child adjust to and enjoy the drum clinic.
Also, a student may play the drums very loudly at the beginning of the clinic. This is not an immediate problem. Experience has shown that with the classroom teacher or Educational Assistant’s gentle reminders, this student usually adjusts, relaxes and controls things adequately after a short time.
Guidelines for Success for a child who will only play drums very loudly.
I always set up all the drums the day before the clinics begin. I suggest that the teachers bring any student(s) to the gym on that set up day, or at recess any day, to play a few beats and hear the music. The teacher or E.A and I can introduce the volume concept to the student(s).
I am willing to spend my lunch times drumming with such children in the gym if a classroom teacher or E.A. joins us, for liability reasons. (Not a lunch supervisor, etc).
Experience has shown that, given such an opportunity, the Neurodivergent child will have so much fun celebrating music and drumming, even if loudly.
Every child should have the opportunity to celebrate music in their own unique ways.
The Principal may decide to schedule small group or individual drum clinics for certain students.
Guidelines for success with safety Issues for a child who needs to move around the gym during the clinic.
A student moving around the room during a clinic can possibly be a safety issue. The classroom teacher or qualified Educational Assistant can mitigate this by moving with them, making sure nothing is knocked over, thus avoiding injury to the student or others.
Every student can have fun and learn through music.
Ray Kingsmore
BOOKING PROCEDURES; VULNERABLE SECTOR POLICE CHECK; INSURANC
Schedule two 40-50 minute Drum Clinics for every homeroom class in your school.
Equipment set up starts on a Monday at 7:00 AM. Clinics will begin on that day at 10:30 AM, followed by as many days necessary.
1. Refer to your Official School Quote and Schedule Samples which you have received.
2. Create and send to Ray your proposed School Drum Clinic Schedule, including Dates, Times, Homeroom Names/Grades and numbers of students per class.
3. Schedule 4-6 clinics per day, leaving an hour lunch at least (in total) for Ray.
4. Wait for at least 5 minutes after the whole school morning entry, announcements, all Lunch and subsequent Recess/NB re-entries before scheduling the next Drum Clinic.
5. Try to avoid having a K-2 class immediately following or preceded by an older class, unless there is a recess break between them to allow for equipment changes.
6. If a class has more than 30 students, assign those few extra students to join another class’ clinic. Otherwise, do not combine homeroom classes, no matter how small. Schedule pre-existing home room classes only.
7. Ray will send you your school Invoice, confirming the engagement.
VULNERABLE SECTOR POLICE CHECK AND INSURANCE
The Peel Region and RCMP police checks are renewed every 12 months. Ray Kingsmore also renews a $5,000,000 personal liability policy annually. Copies of these documents will be shared when a booking is being considered.