Competition prize, Any suggestions? Options

[owainsutton]

I'm thinking of organising a small competition, and need to have a prize that will motivate kids to do some work for it. I'm talking about an age range of 7-13, so might need to have an 'either/or' choice, but I've no idea what would be a good motivator - it feels a bit uninspired to just offer an Amazon or iTunes gift voucher! (A bit like getting book tokens for Christmas when I was young: it's not that they weren't any good, but the absence of thought counts (IMG:style_emoticons/default/huh.gif) )

So, parents of children around those ages, what could I offer that would get your kids involved? (I'm looking to spend up to around 20 quid.)

[GMc]

I am not too sure that your prize is going to be what motivates anyone entering the competition! Honestly..... Having said that I have a girl in that age group who would love an itunes voucher.....But one teacher actually gives a flower at big recitals and that is very much appreciated too. It also depends how often your pupils perform in public usually as to how much of an event this will be for them.

Lets face it, it always used to be a small cash prize in my day at the big music festivals but that certainly was not the motivation for entering. It was about preparation for performance and a chance to perform with a large audience and learning to deal with that. Do you really think they will work harder for a prize than they would for a "graduation" recital of some sort where they all perfect their latest piece and showcase it and celebrate your efforts? In fact, I would probably spend the money on a nice flower for each girl and perhaps a token like a pen for each boy. And maybe do a tea party afterwards - they all love cake at that age and parents could all bring something. Certificate for winner if you are determined to judge but the parents will be on your back if you adjudicate and it is not a barn door decision who is best or how you are judging those of wildly varying levels. Maybe an independent judge....

Now I am generally not one of those "everyone's a winner" type people - clearly if you enter an exam with the same examiner and score more than your neighbour then you almost certainly did a better job on the day. No problem. But I think there is sense of competition internally whenever you perform in public. You are really competing with yourself to see if you can produce your best on the big occasion. Hence the reward to all for putting themselves out there and encouraging them to do it again.

[owainsutton]

Sorry, I should have explained a bit better - I didn't mean a performance competition, rather that I'm thinking of running a 'composing competition', getting them to write short pieces for their instrument!

Apologies for causing you to write such an excellent reply to the wrong question, I agree with pretty much everything you say there (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blush.gif)

[notmusimum]

Sorry, I should have explained a bit better - I didn't mean a performance competition, rather that I'm thinking of running a 'composing competition', getting them to write short pieces for their instrument!

Apologies for causing you to write such an excellent reply to the wrong question, I agree with pretty much everything you say there (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blush.gif)

The prizes for composition competitions are usually a performance of the composition. Maybe you could present them with a cd recording of their composiiton with a picture of themselves on the sleeve.

As GMc says people don't usually enter competitions for the prize it's about the performance, feedback opportunity and using it as a goal.

[katemorrisviolin]

I have kids that age. When I was 11 I won a "young musician of the year" type competitiion at school for aged 11-13 year olds. I can't for the life of me remember what the prize was, but 29 years on I can still vividly remember how I felt, my heart bursting with pride, when recieving the applause of my peers and handshake from the headmistress. My advice would be to make sure the competition is well advertised and all the entrants and winners celebrated as publicly as possible, therefore the main reward for the winner is the glory and public recognition. A music voucher is a fine prize, and a small cup to award or something they can have their name put on.

[violincjj]

Chocolate. Always chocolate. The bigger the better!

Or if you don't want chocolate...do you know Cyber Candy?

PS there is a composition class at Alderley Edge festival in May I think

[BerkshireMum]

I agree with notmusimum about the CD being a good idea. BerkshireSon's clarinet teacher runs a clarinet choir for teenagers and recently got the children to compose a short piece each for the choir. All the pieces were then performed, recorded and put on a CD. This seemed to be a good motivator for teenagers, so I think it would work for 7-13s too.

[all ears]

Is this competition for your own students? If not, perhaps you need to be a bit more mercenary, but if it's just for your own students, recognition plus some fun is probably the way to go.

[owainsutton]

Is this competition for your own students?

Yeah...I'm planning on using composing as a route around the tedium of "Why do we have to learn theory?", by engaging actively with using notation and theory, wanted it to seem as little like extra homework as possible...

[anacrusis]

Chocolate. Always chocolate. The bigger the better!

Or if you don't want chocolate...do you know Cyber Candy?

Except if you get a winner whose dietary requirements prevent them from enjoying it (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) - diabetes in particular, but nut allergies, dairy allergies etc etc....

[violincjj]

Chocolate. Always chocolate. The bigger the better!

Or if you don't want chocolate...do you know Cyber Candy?

Except if you get a winner whose dietary requirements prevent them from enjoying it (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) - diabetes in particular, but nut allergies, dairy allergies etc etc....

Well I guess OS knows the dietary requirements of his students and can cater accordingly...

[GMc]

Oh, easy then. Nice idea. Add a performance of the winning pieces to a concert. Clearly the prize is that people get to hear their work. I would have the winning compositions at the end of a pupil concert - as big a concert as you can muster so they get a proper audience. Perhaps record a DVD for them at the time for posterity. Wouldn't worry hugely about a prize - token flowers or choccies would go down well (or a musical book would be more long lasting but probably go down less well).

[anacrusis]

Chocolate. Always chocolate. The bigger the better!

Or if you don't want chocolate...do you know Cyber Candy?

Except if you get a winner whose dietary requirements prevent them from enjoying it (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) - diabetes in particular, but nut allergies, dairy allergies etc etc....

Well I guess OS knows the dietary requirements of his students and can cater accordingly...

Curious. I wasn't under the impression that music teachers usually feed their students.

[Flossie]

I have kids that age. When I was 11 I won a "young musician of the year" type competitiion at school for aged 11-13 year olds. I can't for the life of me remember what the prize was, but 29 years on I can still vividly remember how I felt, my heart bursting with pride, when recieving the applause of my peers and handshake from the headmistress. My advice would be to make sure the competition is well advertised and all the entrants and winners celebrated as publicly as possible, therefore the main reward for the winner is the glory and public recognition. A music voucher is a fine prize, and a small cup to award or something they can have their name put on.

I think this depends on the child and the environment/culture of the school and peer group. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/unsure.gif) You were proud, I would have been absolutely mortified and being pulled up in front of the school would probably have made me quit...

I did get 'special recognition' in a school assembly for a project I did in my 3rd year and it was totally humiliating. Everyone had to do a 1 week project near the end of the year and then write it up (it was kind of a bit like a preparation for the work experience we had to do the following year). I did mine on instrument making and repair and spent part of the time in a piano workshop and part of it with a luthier. Everyone else got their projects back in form time but I didn't because the Head of Year had needed to keep it, so I had 2 days of taunts about how rubbish it/I was. The 'top 5' projects (including mine) were given back in assembly by the Head Teacher. Everyone else had really smart expensive folders and things and mine was tied together with twine and then in a box I made from some cardboard (both twine and cardboard having been nabbed from the school art room). The Head Teacher told everyone about the interesting things I'd stuck into my project such as hammers and dampers from the piano workshop and how it must have been quite a challenge to assemble the final thing with so many awkwardly shaped items. It was totally embarrassing and after people had had a good laugh at what I'd done for my project I put it in the bin in the toilets. It did get returned to me again a few days later by my English teacher along with a (one sided) discussion of how she'd won a music competition when she was 14 and had photograph taken for the local paper of her playing her cello. She had been so embarassed by the photo that she never touched the instrument again - but (and this was probably what she really wanted to get across) she had always wondered if she could have been good enough if she'd kept playing. I think I put the project in the bin again - but outside of school so that nobody could see it...

[violincjj]

Chocolate. Always chocolate. The bigger the better!

Or if you don't want chocolate...do you know Cyber Candy?

Except if you get a winner whose dietary requirements prevent them from enjoying it (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif) - diabetes in particular, but nut allergies, dairy allergies etc etc....

Well I guess OS knows the dietary requirements of his students and can cater accordingly...

Curious. I wasn't under the impression that music teachers usually feed their students.

Well I know about mine - sometimes because they have severe allergies eg to nuts and I need to know to be very careful not to eat muesli for breakfast without extra hand washing, sometimes because illness through a medical condition with related dietary issues affects attendance (one kid has coeliac disease), sometimes because I ask if chocolate treats or haribo is ok (haribo has gelatine in so is a No for some religious reasons), sometimes because it just comes up in conversation. We have bring-and-share party food at my group class sessions at Christmas and Summer so I make sure that the food is safe and sharable by all.

These forums are increasingly nitpicky lately!