Abraham Lincoln Junior High School - Annual Yearbook (Rockford, IL)

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MUSIC-A CULTURAL INCIDENT IN OUR LIVES The purpose of all musical education within the school is to have us live more richly and successfully through contributing musical experiences. These experiences arc the IlSt6Il1Hg, the performing, and the creating of music in the bclief that it will mean most to us and others now and later. Through our music department we rcccive entertainment as well as education. VVhen we had completed our required music work in seventh grade, many of us dis- covered that we had talent and that we should like more musical training. Therefore. we elected advanced music courses. At present we have four elective music courses. Music l, II, III, and IV. The last named course, Music IV, has been only recently added. During the year we have, as usual, given two popular performances, the Christmas concert and the operetta. The Cvlee Clubs and the Girls' Operetta Club also participated in these performances. The Christmas concert, given on the Sunday before the holidays began, was attended by a large audience. A beautiful cantata, in keeping with the spirit of Christmas, was given. Later this cantata was presented to the school in Christmas assemblies, On the day on which school closed, the music department furnished a group of carolers, who strolled through the corridors singing the lovely old Christmas carols. I The great event of the year, musically, was the operetta, Penny Buns and Roses, given April twenty-first and twenty-second at matinee performances and April twenty- third at an evening performance to which a large crowd of parents and friends came. Radio broadcasts over VVROK were happy events for many of us. VVe sang various types of music nl order to acquaint the radio audience with the wide range of songs we sing. Like all of our work in junior high, music helps to prepare us for life in the future: like all the work, it is of even greater importance in making our present life successful. VVC are developing our talents, we are becoming better listeners to music performed by others, and we are finding much pleasure in creating music. The band and orchestra, very important divisions of our musical life, are discussed in the section devoted to entertainments. A rehearsal for a broadcast. f13l Mr. Elmquist. Miss Needham, Mr. Bornnr Miss Larson, Miss Gustafson, Mrs. Angus

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PART OF OUR CULTURAL LIFE-FOREIGN LANGUAGE Miss Zwolanek, Mrs. Bogen 1 In the eighth grade when many of us took a course in general language, we had our first taste of the foreign languages taught in Lincoln. The first half of the course con- sisted of a study of Latin and French, by which we gained a knowledge of the people, their customs, and their life as well as of the language. In the second part of the course we had a similar study of Spanish and German. VVe made note books and mapsg we studied the newspapers for interesting topics about these people. By the time we had finished the course, most of us knew which language we desired to learn. In the ninth grade we began our study of the particular language we had chosen: most of us intend to continue its study in senior high school. VVQ know this study of a foreign language will be helpful to us in many ways. Many of us expect to go to college and are preparing for it by this study, Those of us who hope to become doctors, law- yers, teachers, scientists, or writers know we need a knowledge of other languages as well as of our own. Of course, some of us found that we are not adept at learning a foreign language and are glad that we have found this fact out in junior high school so that we can better plan our high school work with less loss of time and effort. However, it is not only for the future that we study a foreign language. We Find it a great help and enjoyment for the present. We find that our English is made easier by an understanding of other languages and of their construction. VVe have much greater interest in foreign affairs because of our study of foreign people. VVe confess to a pleasure in being able to speak even a few phrases in another language and look forward to trying our knowledge on some waiter. VVe enjoy the fun of translating and under- standing the stories in our Latin, French, or Spanish readers. Altogether, we feel that our time in our foreign language class is time well spent. caballero. l17l A Spanish class is enjoying a story of a gay

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Nliss Irons. Nliss Crandall. Miss Cockfield. Miss johnson. WE ARE INTERESTED IN ART VVhcn we first arrived at Lincoln as 7B's, we found that we had to take art. Some of us liked it: others didnt Duriii the seventh grade we did some painting, made pencil drawings, linoleum blocks, and did some lettering. Those of us who liked the course, continued in the eighth and ninth grades by taking Art I, II, III, and IV. VVe found these courses quite different from seventh grade art work. VVe found a great variety of things to do. A few of the activities which went on in these classes were pen lettering. block printing, and poster making. VVho knows? Maybe some of us will become great painters or sculptors. Our ex- perience in landscape painting and in soap carving will aid us a great deal if we choose one of these careers. Artistic talent always proves a great asset at any time. In home making or interior decorating, we need good taste in choosing color and design. There is some need for a sense of artistic design in almost every occupationg we need only think of the designing of automobiles, clothes, furniture, to mention only a few instances to realize our use of training in design. XVe should, however. think of the present as well as of the future. VYe have much use for our art training in nearly all of our school subjects. In social science there is always some cartooning to be done. VVhcn we make our career books, we have special use for our art work. In general science we hnd much need for our talent in drawing. Many of thc girls have to design their own clothes in household art courses, while the boys find as many demands for their art training in mechanical drawing and machine shop courses. lNe value our art work for the pleasure it gives us as well as for the use it is to us. NVe like to make beautiful pictures-to express ourselves in this way: we find much more enjoyment in the beauty of paintings. of nature, of design because of our un- derstanding and practice in art. Art is an important part in the lives of many of us. i19l An Art Class engaged in its many activities