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Back to school… teaching ukulele

It’s been a long old summer.  I can’t wait to get back to school tomorrow, teaching whole class ukulele and after school club.  I wonder what will be in store for me?

I’m now in my 5th year of teaching.  The first children I taught (those featured on the Frank Skinner BBC Documentary thing) are now in high school.  I miss those little fellas.  Many of them are now taller than me!

Anyway.  Approaching the school gates, I felt old and subdued.  Then I was greeted with children screaming my name and excitedly running over to say hello.  They made me feel like a queen or celebrity.  How could anyone feel old or subdued with that kind of welcome?  Also, we had the highest attendance of an ex student group at an after school club that we’ve ever had.  In it was a a brilliant moment, which I’ll smile about and treasure always.  During my usual ‘what do you want to learn’ question at the beginning of the class, one of the formerly-scornful-ukulele-hating-football-loving kids asked for YMCA.  Cue the kids singing in really loud voices, doing the actions, giggling and generally having a good time.  The face of the teachers walking past, followed by bewildered giggles.  It was a very beautiful thing.  I love my job!

Wonderful students…

We’ve had the great pleasure of meeting and teaching some truly wonderful people.  By and large, we get to meet brilliant people, from all walks of life. More often than not, our groups gel and make friends with each other.  This creates a warm, happy atmosphere, in which classmates support one another’s learning.  Also, it’s really satisfying to see people who met on the course socially strumming together at Ukulele Wednesdays, long after their course has finished.  Caroline, a lovely lady from one such fabulous group (who decided to have a lesson which doubled as a Regent’s Park ukulele picnic in summer) sent me some sweet and cheerful photos of Maria and Ranee playing ukulele at Ukulele Wednesdays whilst I am off work, recovering after surgery.  It’s warmed my heart and cheered me up no end.  I love those types of emails. I’ve never been so pleased to see sunny faces still enjoying the ukulele even after my input has finished. That’s the best part of the job for me. Sharing the love and joy of singing and playing and having fun with new friends.  Ukulele is a social instrument, after all…

Maria and Ranee

Maria & Ranee

“You’re not just paying for a course. You’re paying for eight hours with a teacher who has the knowledge and commitment to give you guidance, tips, and every ukulele advantage.  Plus, you get to meet lovely people and have a good laugh along the way.”

Last Ukulele Taster Classes Before Summer…

What a year it’s been.  We’ve had some amazing ukulele taster classes!  That’s where adults (the sessions are held in a pub) come along and try out the ukulele, using the ones we provide to play their first songs.  Tomorrow is our last one before we take a break for the summer holidays.  We know, we’re not at school, so why take summer holidays.  Mainly because people take holidays and getting a group together to meet during these times is like herding cats.  Oh well.  We’ll miss getting people playing ukulele, singing and laughing together.  We’ll look forward to seeing you in the autumn, for ‘back to school’.  Here’s an archive video from a fun class in May:

New Ukulele Teachers…

It’s been a wonderful 5 years.  It seems that lots of people love our original idea of the crash course method.  That’s 4 weeks in a group in a pub with a ukulele teacher and other adults learning the ukulele, rather than the traditional amount of time spent learning nursery rhymes and skills that may never be used.

Most adults, it seems, just want to strum along to a few popular tunes with a bunch of others in a social setting.  Luckily, that’s exactly what we at Learn To Uke provide.

For most of the time, it’s just been Lorraine teaching the lessons, but now we are proud to announce that we have the brilliant Bonnie and lovely Laura on board with us, ready to teach absolute beginners lessons in South East and North West London respectively.  We hope this is more convenient for you to come along and learn with us, and we look forward to strumming with you soon!