Name that note!

One of the best end of the year rituals at our elementary school is the talent show.

The first time Philip was in the talent show, I was nervous.  I thought he’d have stage fright– but not my boy!  He recited Green Eggs and Ham from memory and gave a great big bow at the end!

The next year, we PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) moms gave a surprise performance for the kids.  We did a dance to Michael Jackson’s Thriller.  (This year, one of the moms taught the dance to the Chorus and they did it at the spring concert!)

I didn’t stick around after our performance, which was first on the schedule, because I didn’t think that Philip was going to be in it, and Meg, being a kindergartener, wasn’t in it either.

That night I found out that he was indeed in the talent show– volunteered an hour before the show to dance to a song that his friend sang.  I was one mad mommy for missing it, and also kind of proud that he volunteered.

This year, he was in the talent show again.  He did two things.

For his first performance, he had help. His friend held up a piece of paper with a big letter written on it for all to see such as  “A”.  Then his friend went to the piano and played an “A.”  Philip would name the note, even though he could not see the keyboard.  Yes, my boy has perfect pitch! He did this 5-6 times, and wowed the audience! Then he went down to the piano to play “Creeping Crawling Spider,” which is his piano recital piece.

It is really neat for my son to have a unique ability that has a “wow” factor.  His friend will sing notes to him and ask him to name them. He’s glad to do it, unless his friend is off key.  Then he’ll say, “Sorry, that is not a note!”  I’m thinking it might be a good thing that he wasn’t in band this year.  The beginners’ being out of tune would have driven him absolutely nuts!

Parents, do your kids have any abilities with a “wow” factor?  Tell me all about it!  And if you have found a way to use it to their advantage, do tell!