The sounds of the season rang throughout the halls at Crossroads Elementary School.
A number of children, parents, and teachers were on hand for the annual Holiday Sing on Dec. 20 and Dec. 21.
The two-day program allows students in kindergarten through fourth grade to perform not only for teachers, but also parents and relatives.
Crossroads Elementary School choir teacher Lisa Bennett said the choral performance is designed to please.
“Every year we mix old favorites with some new selections,” she said. “This year for the first time, we will be singing a four-part canon with movement that includes all students in grades 2, 3 and 4.”
Bennett, who is in her ninth year of teaching at Crossroads Elementary School, led each grade level as they set out to perform a canon, folk song or chant, and holiday songs that represent cultural traditions.
“Students get to practice and apply targeted music skills,” she said. “Some of these skills include: understanding and singing in canon, producing harmony through partner songs, practicing steady beat and targeted rhythms for each grade level and singing and hearing the correct melodic pitches. “
Bennett added that production of this performance also allows students to work collaboratively with their peers to create movement sequences.
Bennett said the skills exercised during the Holiday Sing can translate both inside and outside the classroom.
“Not only does this program give all students a chance to perform, it also provides an opportunity to practice good audience behavior, which includes listening practice one of our classroom objectives,” she said.
Maria Cardenas, of Shorewood, was watching as her children who are kindergarten, third and fourth grades perform.
“(I feel) that it’s great to see them, to have them perform,” she said.
This year was Cardena’s first time attending the Holiday Sing at Crossroads Elementary School.
Cardenas said the performance served as a nice way to kick off the holiday season.
“It’s a time for that,” she said.
Amy Kehr, of Plainfield, said attending the program meant a lot to her.
“It brings so much joy to my face,” she said.
Kehr said she was surprised by this year’s program.
“I thought they put a lot of hard work and effort into it,” she said. “I was very surprised by all the dancing and how coordinated it was. They did an awesome job.”
Kehr’s children performed with their respective classmates in kindergarten and first grade. She said their enthusiasm was evident in the days leading up to the program.
“I’ve never seen them practice for something so much,” she said.
Kehr, noting that Holiday Sing is a nice way to kickoff the holiday season, said it also serves as a way to get parents more involved in their child’s education.
“It was a great way to get families into the building,” she said.
Bennett said the program’s “big takeaway” is seeing the progression of students who participate.
“I hope they discover the joy and satisfaction gained in applying what they have learned in live musical performance,” she said.