As my band teacher, Ms. Tochiki, says, "Practice doesn't make perfect. Practice makes permanent." This applies to everything you do in life, band related or not. As the famous Albert Einstein once said when asked what insanity was, "Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results." In order to get different results, you have to change something. Therefore, Perfect practice makes perfect. For this week's constructed response, we were asked to write about a time where we had to practice something to get better at it. I have to practice a lot of things in order to improve, whether it be in school, such as in media or math, or things in general like writing. We all have to practice to get better. One of the things that I have to constantly practice is playing the clarinet! Trust me, I am far from having perfect playing, but what matters is that I'm trying to get better at it by practicing. From practicing the clarinet, I have learned many things, that will also help me in life no matter the circumstances or situation. I have learned the important life lessons of not procrastinating, patience, and most importantly, perseverance.
One thing I learned from practicing the clarinet, was oddly enough, to not procrastinate. I'll be honest, I don't really like practicing. I find it a bit tedious. When I do find myself at home, trying to practice, I almost always get distracted and end up not using my practice time efficiently. If you're in band, you're probably aware that we have to fill out practice logs for the amount of time we practiced at home, and it counts as a grade. Despite the fact that I don't find practicing fun, it is necessary. At the beginning of quarter 1, I only practiced the minimal amount until I could play it correctly, and always put off practicing at home. This sure bit me in the butt when it was time for our playing tests! We have to play a certain song or number in our band book in front of the whole class, one by one, each week. I get extremely nervous and anxious, which affects my playing. As Ms. Tochiki says, "Don't practice until you get it right. Practice until you can't get it wrong." I learned that at home, I should play as if I'm playing in class, or on a test. Practice as if you're performing. Just like in sports! Practice as if you were in a game. Now whenever I want to put off practicing, I know that I shouldn't, because if I don't practice, I won't do good in class, which ultimately affects the WHOLE band in a negative way. Just like in media. You wear the CKTV shirt, and you do something bad, it affects the whole class in a negative way because you're representing CKTV.
Another thing I learned from practicing the clarinet was patience. Whenever I practice, I always get frustrated because I can't play a certain piece, or I keep making an awful squeaking noise, which results in me just quitting. Then I realize if I don't practice, I'll fail the test. So, I have to take a deep breath or maybe even a quick break, and start again. I learned to try to figure out what I'm doing wrong that's making me squeak, or having the wrong sound. Because if you don't change something, it'll continue to happen, just like the concept of the Einstein quote. When I get angry or frustrated, remember to stay calm, and I just try again. Isn't that what practicing is all about? Trying again to get it better. Leading me on to my next point...
I learned perseverance from practicing the clarinet. If you don't know what perseverance is, it is staying determined regardless of the difficulty of the task, or the obstacles that stand in your way from success. Another quote that I really liked was, "Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th." by Julie Andrews. Whenever I feel like giving up on the clarinet because it seems like too much work, or when I think that I'll never be able to play a certain piece or not, I don't give up and wash all that negativity away. You will never have positive results if you keep thinking with a negative mind. I also learned to stay positive. If you play bad in class or on a playing test, take it! Failure is motivation to try again. Use all that negative energy into fuel to do better, fuel in practicing. Don't let that one bad thing define your playing skill. Instead, practice so that you can do better.
It is very important to practice in anything and everything you do so that you get better. By practicing the clarinet, I've learned many things. Besides the obvious learning how to play better, I've learned to not procrastinate, be patient, stay positive, and keep persevering until you get the outcome you want. However, I don't believe in a 'perfect' outcome, because there will always be something that you can improve on. Strive for greatness, not perfection. Thank you Ms. Tochiki for teaching me that, and Taylor for keeping me positive and calm before playing tests. Well, that is it for this week's constructed response. Thanks for reading! Bye!
One thing I learned from practicing the clarinet, was oddly enough, to not procrastinate. I'll be honest, I don't really like practicing. I find it a bit tedious. When I do find myself at home, trying to practice, I almost always get distracted and end up not using my practice time efficiently. If you're in band, you're probably aware that we have to fill out practice logs for the amount of time we practiced at home, and it counts as a grade. Despite the fact that I don't find practicing fun, it is necessary. At the beginning of quarter 1, I only practiced the minimal amount until I could play it correctly, and always put off practicing at home. This sure bit me in the butt when it was time for our playing tests! We have to play a certain song or number in our band book in front of the whole class, one by one, each week. I get extremely nervous and anxious, which affects my playing. As Ms. Tochiki says, "Don't practice until you get it right. Practice until you can't get it wrong." I learned that at home, I should play as if I'm playing in class, or on a test. Practice as if you're performing. Just like in sports! Practice as if you were in a game. Now whenever I want to put off practicing, I know that I shouldn't, because if I don't practice, I won't do good in class, which ultimately affects the WHOLE band in a negative way. Just like in media. You wear the CKTV shirt, and you do something bad, it affects the whole class in a negative way because you're representing CKTV.
Another thing I learned from practicing the clarinet was patience. Whenever I practice, I always get frustrated because I can't play a certain piece, or I keep making an awful squeaking noise, which results in me just quitting. Then I realize if I don't practice, I'll fail the test. So, I have to take a deep breath or maybe even a quick break, and start again. I learned to try to figure out what I'm doing wrong that's making me squeak, or having the wrong sound. Because if you don't change something, it'll continue to happen, just like the concept of the Einstein quote. When I get angry or frustrated, remember to stay calm, and I just try again. Isn't that what practicing is all about? Trying again to get it better. Leading me on to my next point...
I learned perseverance from practicing the clarinet. If you don't know what perseverance is, it is staying determined regardless of the difficulty of the task, or the obstacles that stand in your way from success. Another quote that I really liked was, "Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th." by Julie Andrews. Whenever I feel like giving up on the clarinet because it seems like too much work, or when I think that I'll never be able to play a certain piece or not, I don't give up and wash all that negativity away. You will never have positive results if you keep thinking with a negative mind. I also learned to stay positive. If you play bad in class or on a playing test, take it! Failure is motivation to try again. Use all that negative energy into fuel to do better, fuel in practicing. Don't let that one bad thing define your playing skill. Instead, practice so that you can do better.
It is very important to practice in anything and everything you do so that you get better. By practicing the clarinet, I've learned many things. Besides the obvious learning how to play better, I've learned to not procrastinate, be patient, stay positive, and keep persevering until you get the outcome you want. However, I don't believe in a 'perfect' outcome, because there will always be something that you can improve on. Strive for greatness, not perfection. Thank you Ms. Tochiki for teaching me that, and Taylor for keeping me positive and calm before playing tests. Well, that is it for this week's constructed response. Thanks for reading! Bye!
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