Drum Talk by George Grant

Visionary! This is the best program I've seen for music fundamentals in twenty years.
- J.S. Secondary Strings Teacher

The level of concentration and on-task behavior George gets from his students is astounding. I'd estimate well into the high 90th percentile. Facilitating effective learning, his guided teaching of basic skills is predictable, fast-paced, mentally and physically absorbing. His greatest strengths are modeling, pacing, and processing for retention. Participating in this class is like going on a roller-coaster ride; once you've started, there's no stopping until it's over.
- T.K. 5th Grade Teacher

George's techniques are fool proof and most teachers caught on quickly. Quick thinking skills, math, counting and rhythm all come into the process. Some teachers who shy away from teaching music found the skills in Drum Talk something they could teach themselves. At first, some were skeptical. By the end of the in-service we had won 99.5% of them over to the magic and importance of new art skills. They all more felt confident in their ability to teach this art form.
- D.K. Parent

The kids keep asking when they are going to get to do Drum Talk again. They all loved it. Our teacher in-service made it possible for me to follow through with the activities after he had worked with my class.
- M.Q. Kindergarten Teacher

This method gives opportunities for success -- even for those who experience very little success in other areas of life.
- B.Y. 2nd Grade Teacher

Teaching children to really listen is so valuable in every phase of their lives. I'm amazed at the music which evolves as the children become more sensitive to each other and create simple repeated patterns which fit so well together.
- P.N. General Music Teacher

I've never seen my students sit so quietly for a teacher. Drum Talk keeps all the students actively involved and interested in each exercise.
- C.P. Junior High Teacher

The students began to experience the value in listening, not only in order to create, but in order to have more valuable social experiences.
- M.G. High School Teacher

This so much more than Drum Talk. If a person can practice and participate in the drills, a form of simple discipline is created which is called listening. If we could master the skill of listening, we would hold in our grasp the key to effective communication, which is in my opinion, the answer to the majority of problems that plague our society today.
- J.A. Elementary School Teacher

I presented Drum Talk to the committee members on my thesis, and my class of adult educators and students in the Master's Program of Education at the University of Phoenix.

At first there was a lot of skepticism from them because they had never heard of Drum Talk. They couldn't imagine doing something like this after seeing my overheads on the Drum Talk syllables. They couldn't see how anything like that was going to be worthwhile as far a promoting socialization and communication skills with At Risk Adolescents. But when I presented it, within two minutes from the time I started, there was an establishment of rapport between them and myself. There was a respect they gave back to me, and the unique factor was that this whole concept was immediately engaging. It did not take a week. It didn't take a month for me to come in and establish a working rapport, where I could take students and take them somewhere else. It happened immediately.

My committee couldn't think of music and drumming helping at-risk kids because there are misconceptions out there in society when people hear the word drumming. They think of things that are unstructured and undisciplined. They don't realize that this is a technique that we can use to interact personally with one another that allows students the means of expression. It is a completely safe environment for them to express whatever they want to say. There is not going to be any judgement upon them. It is spontaneous and it is safe. They can just react and don't have to weigh what the are going to say. They don't have to think about it in a set time. They can just say it and it's going to be right, and it is going to fit in with whatever everyone is doing. And because it fits in, because there is no right, there is no wrong, there is no judgment, they is no "I'm better than you" -- it is an immediately establishment of rapport between the two of us.
- M.H Music Therapist with At-Risk Teens

Comments by Parents and Teachers – Drum Talk® and Teacher Training

Comments by Parents and Teachers – Drum Talk^® and Teacher Training