Finding the Right Music for an Elementary School Promotion Ceremony

The elementary school my children attended
(the big building in the middle with the turquoise blue overhang).

I am still feeling torn about writing a blog, so I thought I would make a rather random post while I was still trying to decide.

This past June I was asked to put together a thirty minute slide show for my daughter’s 5th Grade Promotion Ceremony (next year her class is off to middle school). I guess my daughter’s teacher saw I carried a camera wherever I went when I volunteered to help with activities and field trips throughout the school year. Ha, she didn’t know it was because of my paranoia of time flying by too fast to hold onto. I take as many photos as I can to capture a record of those special moments -- a way for me to prove I was young once, and so were my children :-)

I had tons of photos from the past school year, but the hardest part of making the slide show was coming up with the background music. Although there are many catchy tunes on the radio, most of the lyrics are inappropriate for ten to eleven year old children. I had a really hard time finding thirty minutes worth of music that fit the occasion and still seemed youthful enough for the kids to enjoy. In the end I came up with a compromise, a few pieces of music that I loved and a couple that my daughter liked. I tried to choose music that captured the spirit of graduating, moving on in life, and saying goodbye to old friends.

Here is a list and the order of music I came up with, along with their YouTube video links (I chose videos that I didn't think distracted from the words of the song). I wanted to share it with you in case you find yourself doing a similar project. Oh, and by the way, my slide show ended up being a bit over 340 slides and was a success. The last slide panned a distant photo of the elementary school (above) which then faded away along with the final chord of Billy Joel’s “Lullabye”. Jeeze, even though it has been over a month since the promotion ceremony, I still cry every time I watch the slide show -- the music wrings tears from my heart :-).

“Graduation”, by Vitamin C http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HDM3eYp4KQ

“I Will Remember You”, by Sarah McLachlan http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQtAOuBjysc

“You and Me”, by Dave Matthews Band http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD9CrZODlNA

“Break Away” by Kelly Clarkson http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKCGBv65w_M

“Who Says” by Selena Gomez & The Scene http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzE1mX4Px0I&ob=av2e

“Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel) “, Billy Joel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcnd55tLCv8&feature=artistob&playnext=1&list=TLF9N7YY-EqD4

As a side note, here are a few pieces I considered but didn't end up using:

"Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtGY4G7II6s

“Party in the USA” by Miley Cyrus http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLOHfn_IuAc

“We Can Change the World”, by Bridgit Mendler http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt8IWL-0q9I

"The Time of Our Lives”, by Tyrone Wells http://www.youtube.com/watch!iQKm3wtcvvo

Please note: it is possible to find lyrics to all of the above songs on the internet. Please use your own discression in deciding if these songs are appropriate for the occassion you are choosing them for.