Children's Choir Procedures and General Info that you need to know!
An Important Note ♪
The children that are in the choir have two special gifts - the gift to sing and the gift to share. Over the course of this year, we will work with them to help them to develop choral technique which will enhance their God-given ability to sing. When we sing as a choir, it is important to remember that we do not "perform". We enhance liturgies, touch hearts and serve God in our music ministry for our parish, our school and our community.
Practice Time/Location
Children Choir practices will be held in the choir loft from 5:45 sharp until 7:00 sharp on Monday evenings.
Please encourage your child to quietly and reverently enter and exit the church.
Emergency Cancellation of Choir
Cancellation due to emergency, inclement weather, etc, will be done via email – so watch your email. Of course, the decision to bring your child to choir or not is yours and will be respected. Safety is the highest priority for our choir families.
Attendance for Practices and Events
All choir members are expected to attend all practices and all events but we realize that “life” happens and that attendance at events and practices are not always possible. It may not be possible due to inclement weather, sickness of your child, you, a family member, too much homework, testing, etc.
Arrival for Events
Please plan to arrive one half hour before Masses and events allowing your child sufficient time to get their robe, music, get settled and warm up.
Dismissal After Events and Practices
Please make arrangements with your child as to where you will meet them after practice, a Mass or an event as Carole Moore and Lauren Allen are not responsible for your child once practice is over and they leave the practice/event area.
Other Things to Note
Cell Phones can be brought to Masses or practice (muted).
Girls may bring pocketbooks to practice or Masses, if necessary, they will be kept under the child's chair or on the bell tables.
Waterbottles may be brought to practice and Masses – it’s a good idea to label the bottle with your child’s name.
Coats will be kept on the bell tables in the loft for practice. Coats will be kept in the choir robe closet in the church hall for Masses.
Choir Fee
A yearly fee of $35.00/per child will be collected in September. If any choir family cannot afford the fee at all, please let Carole or Lauren know and it will be taken care of by the church. This fee covers dry cleaning of robes and necessary supplies and music for the year.
Robe Maintenance
Your child will be issued a choir robe that will be kept in the choir robe closet in the Church Hall here at St. Paul's. All robes and collars must be hung and placed properly in the choir robe closet. If a member's choir robe becomes excessively soiled it will be your responsibility to have the robe dry cleaned. (each robe + 3 collar set is valued at $180.00 x 65 = $11,700.00)
Music Binders
Your child will be issued a music binder. It will have his/her name on it and will be kept in the choir loft and may not be taken home.
Parent Volunteers
The Children's Choir Parent Board members will assign Choir Parents to help on a rotation basis with the choir robe closets for each Mass. This info can be found in the drop down under the Calendar of practices and and events tab. Board Members will contact parents via email for other help, as needed.
Communication
A calendar will be given to you in September. The "calendar" tab on this site will be updated if changes in the schedule occur. Updated calendars will be sent home via email communications. Please jot these dates down on your personal calendars. Parents are encouraged to communicate with Carole Moore and/or Lauren Allen via email. Email is the preferred source of communication. Issues of a more personal nature should be addressed personally and may also be referred on to our music minister, Ernie Andreoli.
Respect
It is expected that we will all respect each other – child to child – adult to adult – adult to child – child to adult - in addition to respecting each other's abilities.
Reverence
Reverence in church will be expected and encouraged.
6 Things That Parents Need to Know for Masses…
1. How We Look
When we sing for Masses and events, we ask that sneakers are NOT worn. Appropriate dress shoes are requested. Please keep in mind that the choir loft sometimes becomes hot with 60 kids singing up there, dressing light is recommended.
For 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th graders.....Choir Robes will be worn. Turtlenecks are not permitted as they stick out of the choir robe. However, boys may wear a dress shirt and a tie or just a dress shirt, which sticks out, which is fine. We also ask that girls do not wear large, obvious hair ornaments. Large thick bright headbands, large colorful barrettes, large colorful scrunchies, large colorful bows and flowers should be saved for another day. Inconspicuous hair ornaments for girls are fine.
For 8th graders - Our 8th graders are invited to wear “Sunday Best” to our Masses instead of choir robes. Please be sure that your child’s idea “Sunday Best” is not jeans, a flannel shirt and sneakers (seen it before so don’t be surprised). Boys should be in nice slacks, a dress shirt with or without a tie, or a nice sweater. Girls should be in nice slacks, a skirt or a dress. Please be sure that clothes are appropriate for church – this isn’t an opportunity to show “flare” but just to dress appropriately (again, seen it before, so don’t be surprised). Nothing “spicy” please!
2. Eating before Mass
It’s a good idea to have your child eat a substantial breakfast on the morning that we sing. Your child may bring a water bottle to Mass - labeling it is a very good idea.
3. Bathroom Use
In trying to eliminate a lot of comings and goings in the loft during a Mass, please have your child use the bathroom before they come up to the loft. Emergencies, however, are always granted an ok.
4. Arrival Time
Please plan to arrive in the choir loft one half hour before Mass begins. This will allow you enough time for your child to calmly get their robe, and calmly get their performance folder. We always go over music in the loft before the Mass begins. Arriving late causes children distress - please allow enough time so that we have happy, calm children.
5. For Religious Ed Choir Members...
Sunday Religious Ed kid will be brought over to the church at 9:30 from their classes.
6. Meeting Your Child After Mass
Children can be picked up at the choir robe area after Mass unless you designate another place to pick them up after they have returned their robe to the choir robe area.
For Those Interested in Taking Lessons
For Voice - Rachel Barker - she holds a Master of Music in Voice Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster. Choir College, Princeton NJ email is [email protected] and her phone number is 423-612-0372.
For Piano - Nishan Aghababian, Hopewell NJ - I know Nishan personally through my work at Music Together - he's a concert pianist and a father of 6 kids....he has an amazing personality and is a doubly amazing teacher - can't say enough about him. [email protected] www.nishanaghababian.wix.com/piano 609-712-7002
For Voice and/or Piano - Mary Ellen Assue 917-791-0783 - [email protected]
For Piano - Sheldon Eldridge - [email protected]
The children that are in the choir have two special gifts - the gift to sing and the gift to share. Over the course of this year, we will work with them to help them to develop choral technique which will enhance their God-given ability to sing. When we sing as a choir, it is important to remember that we do not "perform". We enhance liturgies, touch hearts and serve God in our music ministry for our parish, our school and our community.
Practice Time/Location
Children Choir practices will be held in the choir loft from 5:45 sharp until 7:00 sharp on Monday evenings.
Please encourage your child to quietly and reverently enter and exit the church.
Emergency Cancellation of Choir
Cancellation due to emergency, inclement weather, etc, will be done via email – so watch your email. Of course, the decision to bring your child to choir or not is yours and will be respected. Safety is the highest priority for our choir families.
Attendance for Practices and Events
All choir members are expected to attend all practices and all events but we realize that “life” happens and that attendance at events and practices are not always possible. It may not be possible due to inclement weather, sickness of your child, you, a family member, too much homework, testing, etc.
- For a missed event, it is your responsibility to communicate this via www.stpaulschildrenschoir.weebly.com on the "need to miss an event" drop down tab and do this in as much advance notice as possible.
- For a missed practice, it is not necessary to enter this information into the “Can’t Come area of the website.
Arrival for Events
Please plan to arrive one half hour before Masses and events allowing your child sufficient time to get their robe, music, get settled and warm up.
Dismissal After Events and Practices
Please make arrangements with your child as to where you will meet them after practice, a Mass or an event as Carole Moore and Lauren Allen are not responsible for your child once practice is over and they leave the practice/event area.
Other Things to Note
Cell Phones can be brought to Masses or practice (muted).
Girls may bring pocketbooks to practice or Masses, if necessary, they will be kept under the child's chair or on the bell tables.
Waterbottles may be brought to practice and Masses – it’s a good idea to label the bottle with your child’s name.
Coats will be kept on the bell tables in the loft for practice. Coats will be kept in the choir robe closet in the church hall for Masses.
Choir Fee
A yearly fee of $35.00/per child will be collected in September. If any choir family cannot afford the fee at all, please let Carole or Lauren know and it will be taken care of by the church. This fee covers dry cleaning of robes and necessary supplies and music for the year.
Robe Maintenance
Your child will be issued a choir robe that will be kept in the choir robe closet in the Church Hall here at St. Paul's. All robes and collars must be hung and placed properly in the choir robe closet. If a member's choir robe becomes excessively soiled it will be your responsibility to have the robe dry cleaned. (each robe + 3 collar set is valued at $180.00 x 65 = $11,700.00)
Music Binders
Your child will be issued a music binder. It will have his/her name on it and will be kept in the choir loft and may not be taken home.
Parent Volunteers
The Children's Choir Parent Board members will assign Choir Parents to help on a rotation basis with the choir robe closets for each Mass. This info can be found in the drop down under the Calendar of practices and and events tab. Board Members will contact parents via email for other help, as needed.
Communication
A calendar will be given to you in September. The "calendar" tab on this site will be updated if changes in the schedule occur. Updated calendars will be sent home via email communications. Please jot these dates down on your personal calendars. Parents are encouraged to communicate with Carole Moore and/or Lauren Allen via email. Email is the preferred source of communication. Issues of a more personal nature should be addressed personally and may also be referred on to our music minister, Ernie Andreoli.
Respect
It is expected that we will all respect each other – child to child – adult to adult – adult to child – child to adult - in addition to respecting each other's abilities.
Reverence
Reverence in church will be expected and encouraged.
6 Things That Parents Need to Know for Masses…
1. How We Look
When we sing for Masses and events, we ask that sneakers are NOT worn. Appropriate dress shoes are requested. Please keep in mind that the choir loft sometimes becomes hot with 60 kids singing up there, dressing light is recommended.
For 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th graders.....Choir Robes will be worn. Turtlenecks are not permitted as they stick out of the choir robe. However, boys may wear a dress shirt and a tie or just a dress shirt, which sticks out, which is fine. We also ask that girls do not wear large, obvious hair ornaments. Large thick bright headbands, large colorful barrettes, large colorful scrunchies, large colorful bows and flowers should be saved for another day. Inconspicuous hair ornaments for girls are fine.
For 8th graders - Our 8th graders are invited to wear “Sunday Best” to our Masses instead of choir robes. Please be sure that your child’s idea “Sunday Best” is not jeans, a flannel shirt and sneakers (seen it before so don’t be surprised). Boys should be in nice slacks, a dress shirt with or without a tie, or a nice sweater. Girls should be in nice slacks, a skirt or a dress. Please be sure that clothes are appropriate for church – this isn’t an opportunity to show “flare” but just to dress appropriately (again, seen it before, so don’t be surprised). Nothing “spicy” please!
2. Eating before Mass
It’s a good idea to have your child eat a substantial breakfast on the morning that we sing. Your child may bring a water bottle to Mass - labeling it is a very good idea.
3. Bathroom Use
In trying to eliminate a lot of comings and goings in the loft during a Mass, please have your child use the bathroom before they come up to the loft. Emergencies, however, are always granted an ok.
4. Arrival Time
Please plan to arrive in the choir loft one half hour before Mass begins. This will allow you enough time for your child to calmly get their robe, and calmly get their performance folder. We always go over music in the loft before the Mass begins. Arriving late causes children distress - please allow enough time so that we have happy, calm children.
5. For Religious Ed Choir Members...
Sunday Religious Ed kid will be brought over to the church at 9:30 from their classes.
6. Meeting Your Child After Mass
Children can be picked up at the choir robe area after Mass unless you designate another place to pick them up after they have returned their robe to the choir robe area.
For Those Interested in Taking Lessons
For Voice - Rachel Barker - she holds a Master of Music in Voice Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster. Choir College, Princeton NJ email is [email protected] and her phone number is 423-612-0372.
For Piano - Nishan Aghababian, Hopewell NJ - I know Nishan personally through my work at Music Together - he's a concert pianist and a father of 6 kids....he has an amazing personality and is a doubly amazing teacher - can't say enough about him. [email protected] www.nishanaghababian.wix.com/piano 609-712-7002
For Voice and/or Piano - Mary Ellen Assue 917-791-0783 - [email protected]
For Piano - Sheldon Eldridge - [email protected]