By: Riley-Kaye Rice, Elladie Woodie, Lexi Bravo, and Tabatha Brunner
In the band room, Mr. Rider teaches a class of kids who want to learn how to play new instruments and have fun. As you enter the classroom, you can see the huge room filled with chattering kids. Mr. Rider is a teacher who has been involved with band for 15 years and as he says, “it’s wonderful, and I love my job.” As a band teacher, his favorite family of instruments is percussion, which is “drums and stuff.” Even though he loves his job he also says, “it can be hard at times, but overall, it’s not too bad. I might have lost a lot of hair though; things can be stressful, but it’s mostly because I want things to go well for the kids - not for myself, but because I've been there, done that. I want it to be good for them so they can look back on their band experience and be proud of themselves.”
Mason Cooper, an 8th grade band student, says that band is fun. He has been in band for about two years and enjoys playing both in concert band and in the pep band at games. He likes to perform in concerts, but explains that they can be a bit intimidating, as people are watching you. Overall, Mason loves being in the band!