Play Popular Piano by ear! – A ”hands on” non-technical (no music reading necessary) approach to playing your favorite songs. Lifelong musician and published songwriter, Jimmy Del Ponte, teaches you how to pick a song off your iPod and figure out how to play it. Practice keyboard included for enrolled students to take home during course. Ages 12 and up. Meets Mondays from 3 to 4 p.m. starting Monday, January 19 through Monday, March 16. Class to be held in the Student Recording Studio, room 205 , Edgerly School, 8 Bonair St. Limited to 6. jdelponte@somervillema.gov 617-625-6600 ext. 2616 for info.

Somerville Improvisational Theatre Group – for ages 12 and up. Emerson College Theatre Major Jimmy Del Ponte , who directs The Sunsetters and Project STAR theatre camp, will conduct this exciting new Improvisational Group. Students will create skits, bits and scenes, while developing off the cuff and on the spot creative thinking. This course will run from January through April on Tuesdays from 3 to 4 p.m. in a room to be determined at Somerville High School. The group will be filmed and will also perform. No limit to participants. Starts Tuesday, January 20. jdelponte@somervillema.gov 617-625-6600 ext. 2616 for more info.

Be A Writer… Write Now! – Aspiring writers? A beginning journalism course taught by Jimmy Del Ponte who has written the popular weekly column “Life in The Ville” in The Somerville Times since 2007. All enrollees will have their stories published in The Somerville Times in a new segment that will be named by the students (our first writing assignment). The course will be held in a room at Somerville High School, Wednesdays from January 21 through May 13, from 3 to 4 p.m. and possibly at 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. on half-day Wednesdays. Limited to 10 Students. Laptop or tablet helpful. jdelponte@somervillma.gov 617-625-6600 for more info.