By Lou Ponsi

Elementary school students entering the fourth grade in the Capistrano Unified School District get the opportunity to select a musical instrument to learn as part of their curriculum.

With safety concerns brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, however, playing an instrument in a classroom setting wasn’t an option.

But music instructor Sharon Evans was determined to find a way.

“This year, they weren’t going to get any choices,” said Evans, a music instructor for 37 years, the past five with CUSD. “I was just thinking, ‘Is there anything we can offer to them that would at least feel like something they were supposed to get?'”

Evans got the idea to offer a virtual home study course to teach the recorder, an instrument the teacher describes as “sweet sounding,” and “inexpensive, easy to learn and pleasing to the ear. Due to its small size, you can carry it around easily.”

After consulting with the district’s elementary curriculum team and getting approval from supervisor Heidi Crowley, Evans put a program together.

In January, more than 500 fourth graders from schools throughout the district expressed interest.

“I didn’t know if anyone would sign up but it was kind of fun to keep watching the interest (grow) over the time,” said Evans, who once won a Music Educator Award for excellence in general classroom music education from the California Association of Music Educators.

Evans and her team sent out an 84-page curriculum package and arranged for 200 recorders to be loaned out so every student would be able to participate.

The recorder class is run through Google Classroom, with Evans recording a weekly 45-minute virtual lesson for three classes per week.

As part of the lesson, the students record themselves playing, giving Evans the chance to provide individual feedback through short videos.

“When kids started playing for me, it was really exciting because I could hear they are playing the notes,” Evans said. “This allows me feedback to know how I am doing and then every time I come back on a Wednesday, I’m able to address things that I see.”

There are also open office hours in which music teachers Noelle Nielsen, Mahfrin Santoke, and Bill Cox are available live and online to offer one-on-one personal help.

“If you’re having problems, that teacher can sit there and trouble shoot with you,” Evans said.

Instructor Bill Hunker, who gives technical support and creates play-along videos of the songs for the kids, said the recorder program is important because it keeps instrumental music alive in the district.

“I hope that many participants in the fourth-grade recorder (program) choose to continue instrumental or vocal music when school returns to a more normal schedule,” Hunker said.

Recorder student Jaya Mayorga, a fourth grader at Vista del Mar Elementary School in San Clemente, said she prefers the online lessons because she can play in the comfort of her own home.

Jaya also said the sounds of the recorder are “so beautiful” and remind her of the region in Mexico where her father grew up.

“I wanted to sign up for this because I was really looking forward to learning an instrument this year, but due to COVID I couldn’t,” Jaya said. “But thanks to Mrs. Evans, we were still able to do the recorder.”

Vista del Mar fourth grader Madison Page said she was anxious to learn an instrument when entering fourth grade.

“The recorder is really fun and interesting,” Madison said. “It is not really a crazy, complicated instrument. It’s pretty simple. The notes aren’t too hard.”

Ethan Nusso has always loved music and since the learning to play the recorder was the only option this year, the fourth grader figured he’d sign up for the class.

He doesn’t regret it.

“I’ve always been interested in clarinets and flutes so I decided to give it a try,” Ethan said. “I love it a lot now.”

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