Summer Band usually begins the last week of July.  Freshmen report two days earlier than the rest of the band. The student leadership team attends these start-up days with the freshman. They will re-learn “the basics” that they learned during the spring camp days and start to refine them. This is a good time for them to get to know each other and their section leaders.

 

Outdoor rehearsals begin on the first day of full summer band.  The morning hours are spent outside working on marching and the show drill. Lunch break and the afternoon music rehearsal will be inside the school building.​

 

When communication says practice starts at 7:00 am, that means students are at the school with their instruments and ready to begin rehearsal at 7:00 am. Warm-up time starts about 10 minutes before practice.  Plan to be at Brook NO LATER than 6:45 am. Drum Majors and upperclassmen will be available to show the students where to go.

 

“To be early means you are on time. To be on time means you are late.”

 

Consider forming carpools with other band families in your neighborhood. The kids enjoy riding together and it can save you some trips back and forth to school if you share the task with other parents.

 

If your child is unable to make any practice for any reason, an email should be sent to the directors and they should also tell their section leader(s). Please see Page 8 of the Band Handbook for further information on attendance.

 

​Don’t Forget These Items

It is best practice for students to pack their band items the night before so there is no running around in the morning trying to find a hat or their music, etc!  Make sure your student has the following when they walk out the door for camp:

 

• Instrument and any necessary parts (reeds, neck strap, etc.)

• Water jug (filled with ¾ ice, and the rest with water)

• Small Snack (the kids will have short breaks during the day and are encouraged to bring a snack)

• Sack Lunch

• Hat & Sunglasses

• Athletic shoes and socks (NO flip flops, Crocs, sandals, etc)

• Light-colored athletic clothing (dri fit shirts are great for pulling sweat away from the body)

  • There are a few practices where the directors asks them to all be in white shirts.

• Sunscreen (apply at home but bring with them to reapply as needed)

• CCISD Physical form MUST be uploaded to Rank One BEFORE the first full day of summer band.

 

The Heat is ON!

We highly recommend NO DAIRY products for breakfast (No milk, yogurt, cheese, etc.).  Dairy + exercising in the heat can cause an upset stomach. It will be HOT outside. One way to get a good start each morning is to drink at least 8 oz of water before leaving the house. They need to drink lots of water after they come home too and this will help them to be ready for the next day.

 

Summer practice can be a difficult time. It’s miserably hot, the instruments are heavy, and learning to march and play at the same time is challenging. As freshmen, some of the kids struggle and worry that they will never be able to do this. It is hard for us parents to see them come home dejected on some days. A few kids are natural marchers and “get it” from the beginning, but the majority feel like they have two left feet.  You can help your kids by encouraging them to hang in there and keep trying. We promise it is worth the hard work. Working toward a common goal through adverse conditions helps bond a group together. They will soon start to feel like one big family and some of the friendships your kids are about to make will last through high school and beyond.

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We have heard it all!

• It’s too hot.

• I don’t want to get up that early.

• I don’t understand what the band director wants me to do.

• I’ll never be able to march AND play.

• None of my friends are here and I don’t know these kids.

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Hang in there, and encourage your kids to do the same. Cheer them on for the first week or so and it will start to get easier.

 

Communicating

In addition to what the booster club and the directors send out, the kids like to communicate among themselves too. Most of the sections use an app to communicate with each other (which app will vary from section to section). It is also a good way for them to all get to know each other.  Section leaders use it to send reminders. So, your child may come home asking to install a new chat app on their phone.

 

This is also a good time to mention that many of the sections like to get together to hang out and bond as a section. Some go to lunch at a restaurant, some go to an upperclassman’s house, and some go to parks.  It can be nerve-wracking to send your freshman off with kids they (and you!) don’t know yet, and sometimes without direct adult supervision. The upper-class students are great at watching out for freshmen.  With that being said, it is always ok to find out as many details of their group time as you can.  It is also ok to get a hold of one of the other parents in your section.  We all understand how it feels when our babies are going off to the big unknown that is called high school!  Seasoned parents will be happy to talk to you about get-togethers within that section.

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Uniforms

The uniform committee will begin fitting incoming freshmen during summer band. The students will be called in from practice to be fitted. They will be assigned bibbers (pants) and shako (hat). There are several parents on the uniform committee.  This is also a great way for parents to get involved and meet the kids.

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Getting a Spot in the Marching Show

A "Dot" is the positioning for each student during the show. These are very important for them to learn where to march to.  Brook Band uses the Ultimate Drill Book app and each marching student will download the app onto their phone. The directors will go over how to use/read the app during the first days of summer band 

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There is a “varsity” and “JV” team, though sometimes it is hard to see which is which.  Usually, if you get a “dot” in the competition show you are on the varsity team.  If you have a dot only in the show that is performed at football games, this is the JV team.  This is not always indicative of the student’s musical or marching abilities or their behavior.  It sometimes is as simple as they only have room for x number of that instrument in the design of the show.  Those on the JV team DO march at games, but at competitions, they help with getting the props and pit equipment onto the field. The JV team will still rehearse with the band, travel to all football games and competitions, and perform in the stands with the band.  Also, as the season progresses there are sometimes changes between students that are Varsity and JV.

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Special Treat

At the end of the last morning practice of the summer, right before the first week that they switch to the afternoon practices, the kids will get to experience a special, longstanding summer band tradition. We try to keep it a secret from the freshman, but some of them will find out anyway. Your students will want to stay an extra 15-20 minutes after practice ends. If you want to see the fun, arrive before 11:00 am and bring your camera. Oh, and you might want to bring some towels and possibly a change of clothes for your student!

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Freshman Fish Camp

For all Clear Brook High School incoming 9th graders. We would highly encourage your students to attend. They will get to meet the principal, Dr. Lopez, and hear about how the school day works at Brook. This is a great time to get a tour of the school and get to know other freshmen. There are many teachers at Fish Camp too, so they might even get to meet some of their other teachers before the first day of school.

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Lastly...

Remember, once school starts, the kids only march in September, October and the first week or so of November. You and your students will look back and be amazed at how quickly the time passed. Ask any band family that has been coming back year after year. Band is worth the effort!

In the words of one of our past Band Council President; “When I look back on my four years, I don’t remember the hours I studied in my room or the things I did each day in class. I remember the electrifying feeling of stepping onto the field.”