Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Day 122: Technology Plans for My Classroom 2014 (Technology Tuesday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 122/365

Technology Tuesday

I love Christmas Break because it gives me more time to reflect and explore new ideas on how to use technology in my classroom.  These are my plans for this semester.

1.  Use my schools extra projector cart in my classroom.
2.  Use my computer for Class Dojo (two screens so I can keep both ready.)
3.  Setup 3rd and 4th grade in the gamified model.
4.  Continue to do Skype Performances.
5.  Use AR for recorder and orff assistance.
6.  Start using AR for word wall and tempo wall.

I would love to hear how you plan to expand the use of technology in your classroom.  Thank you for reading.

Monday, December 30, 2013

Day 121: Planning Ahead (Material Monday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 121/365

Material Monday

I am coaching high school softball this year and I am trying to prepare myself for the extra time commitment. Therefore, I am starting to organize my plan for Music in Our Schools Month in March.

Last Year's Projects...
1.  Poems about music.
2.  Share Day.
3.  Innovation Day in 4th Grade.
4.  Music Means to Me Tree.

Ideas for This Year...
1.  Music Means to Me Tree.
2.  Share Day.
3.  Innovation Day in 4th Grade.
4.  Skype Performances.
5.  Informances for Parents.
6.  Restart a 3rd/4th Grade Choir.
7.  Take the 3rd/4th Grade Choir to local Nursing Homes.

Sunday, December 29, 2013

Day 120: My Reflection on a Christmas Eve Sermon

Daily Blog Challenge Day 120/365

Christmas Eve Service at my parent's church is my favorite church service of the year.  Towards the end of service, the whole congregation holds lit candles and sings Silent Night while someone reads the Christmas Story.  It is such a peaceful and beautiful experience.


The pastor started her sermon with the question "What is our world coming to?"  She proceeded to list many problems that our country and world as a whole face: hunger, war, abuse, natural disasters and disease.  It was not exactly an uplifting way to start Christmas Eve, but the message was powerful.  I was reminded that as a Christian I am not guaranteed a smooth ride without any challenges or trials, but it is through my faith that I find peace, comfort and direction in times of celebration and hardships.  Religion would be nearly pointless if we did not live in a world full of hardships.

As most things do, this sermon made me think about school and the role I have has a teacher.  Now I am in NO WAY comparing myself to religion or Christ,  but many students find peace and stability inside the walls of their school.

I may not be able to cure all of the problems in education or in the lives of my students, but I can  limit problems that happen inside my classroom.  I can control their experience in music (and as a coach) and I can do my best to make sure that there time with me is filled with joy, happiness and fun.

We may not be able to change the world, but we can change our classroom and that is part of our student's world.  We can be a source of peace in the lives of our students.

Thank you for reading.

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Day 119: NetGalley

Daily Blog Challenge Day 119/365

During a recent conversation with a member of my Twitter PLN (Shannon Clark-@shannonclark7), I was introduced to the website NetGalley (Thanks Shannon!)  Shannon and I were discussing books that we wanted to read during winter break.  NetGalley is a free membership that allows access to new or soon to be released books.  Some books are pre-approved so you don't have to wait until you are able to download the book and some you have to ask the publisher for approval.  They have books on every genre and you can browse by author, publisher or genre.

In return for access to these books, the subscriber is expected (required) to write a review about the books they read.  This seems like a fair trade to me and it will help me have topics to write about during the course of my Daily Blog Challenge.  The best part is I now have free access to thousands of books from the comfort of my own home.  I added NetGalley to the approved sending list on my Kindle App (NetGalley provides directions on how to do this) and now the books I select from NetGalley are automatically added to my Kindle bookshelf (once they are approved by the publisher.)

I have been approved for six books so far and I have finished one.  I strongly recommend this site to all teachers, coaches and book worms.  You can't beat free!

Thank you for reading.

Friday, December 27, 2013

Day 118: Teacher Did You Know..

Daily Blog Challenge Day 118/365

One of my favorite Christmas songs is "Mary Did You Know". After singing it for Praise Band this weekend, I was reminded that often we do not know how our actions or words impact others.

Teacher Did You Know...
1.  Your words have the power to lift me up or tear me down.
2.  The structure in your classroom can help me love learning or lead me to hate it.
3.  Sometimes I need you to show confidence in me, because I don't always have confidence in myself.
4.  I won't remember you for what I learned, but how you interacted with me.
5.  I notice if you play favorites.
6.  Some days I think you don't like me and I wonder why.
7.  I may not remember the lesson, but I will remember if you showed that you cared about me.
8.  I remember the goofy jokes from class years after I have left your room.
9.  I remember when you came to my game, concert or played a game with us at recess.
10.  I may think you are mean while I am in your room, but if you were a great teacher I will eventually realize you were doing what was best for me.
11.  All I want is someone to show that they care about me for being me.
12.  I may never tell you thank you, but know that you have had an impact on me (you decide if it is positive or negative.)

Thank you for reading.

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Day 117 : Christmas Break Reading List

Daily Blog Challenge Day 117/365

I am a self professed book worm and I have not made the time lately to read. I am excited to have time off during Christmas Break and I look forward to reading a few books. I am a big fan of the free books on Kindle and I hope to finish a few of them.

1. Irreparable Harm by Melissa F. Miller
2. 7 Habits of Truly Fit People by Kirk Ream 
3. Someone To Believe In by Katheryn Shay
4. Seven Days From Sunday by M. H. Sargent
5. The Champion's Mind by Jim Afremow, Ph. D

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Day 116: Crazy Idea

Daily Blog Challenge Day 116/365

Like most schools, both of the schools I work at give away quarter awards. Teachers nominate students and there always seems to be discussion about making sure the same students don't receive the award all the time.

The high school in my district also lists honor roll, all A and so on. There are multiple students that achieve this awrd and yet it does not undermine their achievement.

What if our quarter awards worked the same way? What if we had a list of standards and each month, all students who reached the standards were recognized? If I only win the award once, does that mean I only showed the traits of the award that one month?

I don't agree with participation awards, but if we set the bar high, all students who reach it should be recognized. Regardless of how many times they have received a certain award.  I believe we end of lowering our standards when we refuse to recognize the same students over and over. Yes, all students should have the opportunity to be recognized , but we need to make sure we are not lowering the bar in order to recognize other students.

I know this is a little outside the box when it comes to school awards. I would love to hear your thoughts.  Thank you for reading.

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Day 115: The Truth About Numbers (Technology Tuesday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 115/365

Technology Tuesday 

I am routinely amazed by some of the people or groups that "follow" me on Twitter. It's funny to me how I can become associated with groups and yet be unsure how we fit together.

When I was new to Twitter I was concerned about how many followers I had. I think it is a common issue. It's easier to feel like the cool/popular kid when I have a ton of Twitter followers.

As more "random" people who seem to have little in common with me began to follow me, I realized that the number of followers is not important. The number that is important is the amount of connections and interactions I am having. The number of relationships built is what matters.

My advice to newbies to Twitter and the veterans is to focus on relationships, not the number of people who follow you.  What is your number one piece of Twitter advice?  Thank you for reading.

Monday, December 23, 2013

Day 114: The Olympics (Material Monday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 114/365

Material Monday


While flipping through channels over break, I was reminded that The Olympics are fast approaching.  It made me wonder if there was a way to include The Olympics in General Music.  I sent out a tweet asking fellow music teachers (#musedchat) if they have done similar activities in their classrooms.

A member of my PLN, Eric Young (@PFPiedPiper) responded that he does an activity (learned at a workshop) where students learn a portion of the Olympic Theme on recorder.  In addition to the recorder aspect of this lesson; students act out different Olympic Events while their classmates guess the event.

Ideas...
1.  Learn the theme on Recorder (4th grade) and Orff (3rd grade-if possible) and include the charades portion of the lesson mentioned above.
2.  2nd Grade focuses on Folk Dances during their Dance Unit in January.  Find Folk Dances and Music from countries that participate in the Olympics. Include geography information.  All grades will be learning at least 1 of these Folk Dances. (United States-Basic Appalachian Circle Dance,  Isreal (Easter Europe)-Hora, Toga (West Africa)-Scarf Dance, Mexico-La Cucaracha, 
3.  Write our own class theme (3rd and 4th graders can do this activity as a side quest.)
4. Design their own flag and explain the symbols used (3rd and 4th graders can do this activity as a side quest.)
5.  Keep a medal tracker
6.  Use Google Apps to track locations and number of medals (5th Grade Media Class)

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Day 113: The Power of Music

Daily Blog Challenge Day 113/365

One of my favorite thngs about teaching music is seeing students (many who struggle in school) find success in music and the arts.

I still get goosebumps when my students are able to sing in harmony for the first time on a song or a part finally gels and sounds amazing. This is the power of music. My students don't know how to react when I become emotional during rehearsal. They think it is a bad thing and they don't always hear the beauty they are creating. The arts offer an emotional connection unlike any other subject area.

The arts also offer immediate feedback. It is very easy to tell if I have played a part correctly. I had my 4th graders play a challenging recorder piece for our Christmas Concert. After two weeks of working on it, most of my students want to give up. The week of the concert, I had many students tell me they were so excited because they finally learned how to play the piece. This is another example for me the power that music and arts can have. 

All subjects have their unique qualities and together they help use form well rounded people. We need all of these aspects: academics, arts and athletics. Together they create a fantastic education. 

Thank you for reading. 

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Day 112: Motivation

Daily Blog a Challenge Day 112/365

I consider myself a pretty motivated person. I have always been someone who wants to do my best. I struggle with students who go through the motions. I was raised to believe that school was my job and that I should always do the best I could on what I was working on. This past semester has made me question the role of motivation.

How do we motivate our students? Can we motivate them if they don't want to be? Whose responsibility is it?

I try my best to create a welcoming, enjoyable music experience for my students, but there are a few that are hard to reach. Is it my fault? Is it their fault?

I struggle with external motivation because I fear students will become dependent. I would like to use class dojo more, but I fear I will make students tied to the program. I want to find a way to help students recognize their behavior and choices, without making it a reward system.

How do you encourage your students to find internal motivation? Thank you for reading.

Friday, December 20, 2013

Day 111: Christmas Break To Do List

Daily Blog Challenge Day 111/365

Christmas Break 2013 To Do List
1. Spend quality time with my husband and family. Completed
2. Read at least two books.  Completed
3. Catch up on my #EdBDaily Blog Challenge.  Completed
4. Catch up on my Bible in 90 Days Program.
5. Update Grades.
6. 3rd Quarter lesson plans.
7. Work on paperwork and practice plans for softball.  Completed
8. Learn about new (to me) technology programs and how to best use them in my classroom.

What is on your to do list this a Christmas Break? Thank you for reading.

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Day 110: Great Reminder

Daily Blog Challenge Day 110/365

This morning as I was reading through my Twitter feed, I found an poster that another teacher had retweeted.  Once I got to school I turned it into the screen saver on my computer.  It is a great reminder for me and I find myself constantly forgetting this simple truth.

Media preview 

It is easy to respond with anger and frustration, but I need to remember that students often have adult sized problems without the mental ability/life experience to appropriately deal with them. Frustration is easy, but our students need more empathy (this does not mean we have to be soft.)

What is the one quote that is the best reminder for you as a teacher?  Thank you for reading.

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Day 109: Christmas Break

Daily Blog Challenge Day 109/365

As a teacher, I find myself looking forward to breaks. It is time for me to spend time on things that often get overlooked during many weeks of the school year. It is time for reading, a few naps and time with my family and friends.

I see breaks as a positive time, but many of my students do not have positive views on breaks. Most of my students are excited for Christmas, but a few have told me that they will miss school. I know many people have written about how students react to breaks. It is important to remember that it is not all fun and games for some of our students. School provides a safe structure that many students lack otherwise.

How can we help our students stay calm about breaks and help ease some of the struggle?
Thank you for reading.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Day 108: Computer Coding (Technology Tuesday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 108/365

Technology Tuesday

Last week was the Hour of Code. It was a big movement (popular on Twitter) to get students coding. This year I am teaching 5th grade Media Class and I had originally planned on doing a quarter of coding second semester.  The website has a ton of great resources.

We were finishing up a presentation project, so we were unable to do the hour of code during the official week, but I am looking forward to completely coding projects after Christmas Break. We finished our presentation projects on Monday, so I used the last two class periods of this semester to introduce my students to Cargo Bot.  We have fifteen school iPads, so I had my students pair up and share.

At first, many of my students were frustrated. It was not as easy as they wanted it to be. After working through a few of the tutorials, many of my students grasped the concept of the game. A few in fact had to show me how to pass certain levels.

Coding is great for teaching higher level thinking skills, planning ahead and fixing mistakes.  It amazes me that many of my students will play video games for hours, but quickly became frustrated because the crane was not doing what they wanted it to.  This "game" gives immediate feedback and the students know right away if they were successful.

I would love to hear how you include coding into your classroom. Thank uh for reading.

Monday, December 16, 2013

Day 107: Cross Curricular (Material Monday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 107/365

Material Monday

One of the things I really like about having had the opportunity (although I did not view it as this during all my interviews each year) to teach at different schools during the beginning of my teaching career.  I was able to pick up different ideas from each school and put them together to create my own program identity.

One of the ideas I have picked up came from one of my first schools.  The big concert each year was the Spring Sing and the students would create the covers for the programs in art class.  The big program each year at my current school is the Christmas Program.  I asked the art teacher I work with if she would be willing to do a project in art where the students create the program covers.  She was willing to add it as a project and the kids did a wonderful job!  It was interesting to see how students interpreted the project and went about creating their design.

It is a great way to combine art and music and to let the students be creative in a more public way.  All fourth graders did the project and the art teacher and I picked six "winners" to be the art work on the covers.

Thank you for reading.

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Day 106: Reflection on the Basketball Season

Daily Blog Challenge Day 106/365

Our basketball season recently ended.  It was both exciting and frustrating.  Every year brings a new group of kids, who bring new challenges.  No season is exactly like another.  Last year I had 7 boys and this year I started with 16, so it was a learning experience for me.  I learned a lot and I look forward to using this information to better myself as a person and a coach.

Lessons Learned...
1.  Students need more practice in dealing with diversity.
2.  I need to find a better way of exposing my students to game situations.
3.  Students need more practice in focusing on what they can control.
4.  Mental training is a vital component of a well rounded program.  I need to do more with it next year.
5.  Focus more on details and execution.
6.  Focus more on each player doing their individual job.
7.  Focus on the process.
8.  Give more high fives.
9.  Continue 1:1 meetings after games.  It is important for students to give their opinion on the game.
10.  Practice with loud music, get students used to distractions.

What were your biggest lessons from this coaching year?  Thank you for reading.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Day 105: Question Wall

Daily Blog Challenge Day 105/365

One of my favorite things about Twitter is gaining new ideas and learning about activities students are doing in other classes. I recently read a post about w question wall and immediately started brainstorming how I could use this idea in my classroom.

What I came up with was having a space in my room where students can write ideas, thoughts or questions about music (anything relating).

I am not sure how my students will react, but I am excited to implement this new idea.
Do you have a space like this for student creation in your room?  I would love to her how you use it. Thank you for reading.

Friday, December 13, 2013

Day 104: Performance Dilemma

Daily Blog Challenge Day 104/365

The tradition at my elementary school has been to do a Christmas Program. It is our only full performance all year (we perform at assemblies throughout the year). This year I was granted permission by my principle to do just a normal concert. Each grade will sing two songs, just like last year, but there will be no speaking roles.

Last year our program was a bit on the long side and lasted over an hour. This year, I think we will be done between 30 and 45 minutes.

My stuggle with this performance is that I don't believe my students gained anymore musically or educationally from doing the program last year. Class time wise, we spent significantly more time preparing last year. I have a hard time as a teacher justifying spending that much time and money (for programs) on one performance.

What do you do for performances. I would love to hear your ideas. Thank you for reading. 

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Day 103: Ten Percent

 Daily Blog Challenge Day 103/365

I recently read a blog post where a fellow educator talked about an experience in their classroom when they were reminded that often a small percentage of students take up the majority of the teachers time.

I immediately thought of my third grade classes. The old saying, "the greasy wheel gets the grease" is very true in many points of life and teaching is no different.  Students who require our energy often get most of it and the students who are quiet and do their work, often get "left behind.". 

How do we as teacher limit this from happening? I would love to hear how you handle this in your classroom. Thank you for reading.

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Day 102: Polar Express

Daily Bog Challenge Day 102/365

Material Monday

I understand movies have a bad rap in the educational world and I do not show many during music class.  This year I decided to show Polar Express.  We started watching it the week before our program; we would go through our songs and then watch part of the movie.

I realize I may be "stretching" it, but I believe there are curricular concepts to be learned from this movie.

1.  We talk about plays, musicals and operas and their individual definitions.
2.  This movie serves as an introduction to our study on musical genres.
3.  We occasionally draw pictures of what music sounds like to us and this movie is a great reminder of these ideas.
4.  We identify instruments by sound.
5.  We talk about the use of instruments and their impact on the mood/style of the music.

Thank you for reading.

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Day 101: Student Recordings (Technology Tuesday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 101/365

Technology Tuesday

This year I purchased a Blue Snowball Microphone for Skype Performances.  I realized right before our Fall Concert that this microphone also gave me a great tool to record my students during concerts.  So armed with a microphone, a mac laptop and audacity, I set out to record our Middle School Concerts.  In all honesty.  I don't know how many of my students listen to the clips that I add to our website, but even if one does, it is worth the energy.

I record more often during my elementary classes and my students LOVE to hear their class perform.  It is a great opportunity for them to share their music with their families while also critiquing and  learning from their mistakes.

How do you use students recordings in your classroom?  Thank you for reading.

Monday, December 9, 2013

Day 100: 100 Days of Blogging

Daily Blog Challenge Day 100/365

I accepted this challenge as a way to force myself to write more.  I have had a blog for about a year, but I realized that I would be a streaky writer and I wanted to be more consistent.  I started pretty strong, but soon life got in the way and writing everyday did not happen.  It is amazing how one missed day becomes two or three or more (much like exercising.)  I have not truly stuck to a blog post every day, but my new goal is 365 posts in 365 days.  Regardless of when the writing happens, I have learned many things about blogging and writing over the past 100 days.  It has been a journey and as always, the process is more important than the outcome.


What I have learned...
1.  Finding time to write is often the most difficult thing.
2.  My ideas seem to come quicker when I am in moments of frustration.
3.  Forcing myself to write about lesson plans and technology has made me be more critical about my ideas.
4.  Not every post needs to be "perfect" or super long.
5.  It is about the process.

Thank you for reading!

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Day 99: Jump In

Daily Blog Challenge Day 99/365

I was recently offered a varsity coaching position in the district I am working in and I was caught by surprise by some of the emotions I was feeling. Being a head coach has always been a goal of mine and I am very excited about the opportunity, but also find myself a scared. Being in charge of 25 girls is a big responsibility and I want to make sure they have the best softball experience possible.

I made a decision a few years ago that I was not going to let fear control me, so I am trying hard to stick to that. This is a vital lesson for our children. We as teachers need to help our students overcome their fears. One way we can do this is to model it.

What other activities do you use in your classroom to help your students overcome their fears? Thank you for reading.

Saturday, December 7, 2013

Day 98: Life As A Coach

Daily Blog Challenge Day 98/365

Today we had a basketball tournament. We won our first game and we lost our second game by one.  It was a tough loss and there were extra circumstances that made the game more frustrating.  I was frustrated and my players were frustrated.

As a coach, I think my frustration can come across as anger. I am not upset with my players for loosing the game. I become upset when effort and attitude are not what they should be.  I am a firm believer that the game of basketball (any sport for that matter) is pointless.  The point in playing these games is to learn life lessons.

In life, loosing is not an option. Winning a job interview enables me to keep a roof over my head and food on my table. Following rules and expectations allows me to not get in trouble with the law. 

How do you teach life lessons in your class?  Thank you for reading!

Friday, December 6, 2013

Day 97: No More Goals

Daily Blog Challenge Day 97/365

I have always been a believer in setting goals.  As I reflect on first semester as a coach/teacher and absorb more of the information I have been reading/listening to lately; I am realizing that setting goals is not the best practice.

I often ask my players what their goals are for the season.  This year I am taking it a step farther with my softball girls.  Along with their goals, I want them to list what they need to do to achieve them.  This focus on the process is vital!

If my goal is to be a great teacher that is great, but the more important step is what do I need to do to get there?  Along with goal setting, we need to teach our students and ourselves to focus on the process.  It is easy to forget about all the hard work and effort that goes into achieving goals.

As we approach the start of 2014 and many sit down to write resolutions of goals for next year, I am (and I urge you to too) going to focus on what I need to do in order to achieve the goals I have set.

I would love to hear how you set goals in your own life and with your students/players.  Thank you for reading.

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Day 96: 2 AM Musings

Daily Blog Challenge Day 96/365

Once again I find myself unable to sleep. After two nights of it this week, I am beginning to see the impacts of lack of sleep on my behavior and attitude. As an adult, you say you are having trouble sleeping and most other adults understand and give you a little leeway. I am thankful for their understanding and I wonder how often I do this for my students...

I find it challenging to create strong relationships with all of my students when I only seen them for eighty minutes a day and it can be exhausting to always be engaging in 1:1 conversations with all of my students. I wonder how often I react with frustration with my students instead of with empathy and love. 

After all, I am an adult having trouble sleeping. My students often have little control over their home situation. They may be tired, hungry or just need a hug and to know someone cares about them. My goal for the rest of this semester is to make sure my students know I care and worry about them. It is easy to get caught up in concerts and the busyness of the season, but students and relationships are truly what my job is about. 

I would love to hear how you build strong relationships with your students. Thank you for reading. 

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Day 95: What Makes a Good Concert?

Daily Blog Challenge Day 95/365

I struggle with keeping my students engaged while also being realistic with what we can accomplish without spending all of our time on preparing for a concert.

Large parts of our audience is not musically educated, so will they even notice some of the "hard" things we do?  I am trying something new this year with my elementary program by just doing a concert instead of a program with speaking roles. I am nervous about how everyone will react. At the end of the day, it is impossible to please everyone. At the same time, these concerts are a visual test of how well I am doing my job and bad reception makes it easier for the community to cut the arts. 

My goal for concerts is for my students to learn thru preparing and to enjoy singing for their family. Time constraints limit some of what we are able to do. 

How do you judge if a concert went well? Thank you for reading.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Day 94: Google Drive (Technology Tuesday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 94/365

Technology Tuesday

I am a big fan of Google Apps. My first laptop had a small hard drive, so I relied on Google drive for writing papers and storing material.  I now work in a Google District (although I have been using Google Apps for years) and I continue to see the greatness of this product. 

The best part for schools is that it is free.  There are so many possibilities and opportunities that make completing projects easier.  I am teaching a media class this year and Google Apps has made projects and assessments much easier.  Students in our district 5-12 have individual e-mail addresses through Google.

Great Things About Google Apps
1.  Free.
2.  Plenty of storage room for e-mails.
3.  The ability to have multiple people work on the same project at the same time.
4.  Documents, power points, spreadsheets, forms, calendars and email. (These are the main ones that I use.)
5.  The ability to sync all of your files/apps together.
6.  The ability to share files with other people.
7.  The ability to share up to date files without resending.

I would love to hear how you use Google Drive in your classroom.  Thank you for reading.

Monday, December 2, 2013

Day 93: Music Theory Worksheets (Material Monday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 93/365

Material Monday

I am not a huge fan of worksheets, but I see their value at times in my classroom.  I found these music theory worksheets online and they work perfectly for 3rd/4th grade when we are starting to learn how to read music.  They are sequenced and allow the students to focus on one aspect at a time (lines or spaces.)

Beginner Note Naming Practice

Which resource sites have you found to be the most helpful?  Thank you for reading.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

Day 92: My Top Thirteen of First Semester

Daily Blog Challenge Day 92/365

First Semester of the 2013-2014 School Year has been a wonderful ride.  Here are my Top Ten of First Semester

1.  My 5th/6th Grade Chorus grew by ten members.
2.  I spent last season as a volunteer coach and was recently offered the Varsity Position.
3.  The Middle School Music Department has 75% school participation.
4.  My Elementary students participated in their first Skype Performances.
5.  I am able to use my random technology knowledge to teach 5th Grade Media.
6.  I started a year long blog challenge, which has helped me reflect and grow as a teacher.
7.  I was able to start my second year at the same school.
8.  I joined the Praise Team at my Church, which enables me to play drums more often.
9.  My Elementary Classroom has a Twitter Account, Facebook Account and a website to communicate with parents.
10.  My Elementary Classroom has a Twitter Account to communicate with other classrooms.

Saturday, November 30, 2013

Day 91: Listening

Daily Blog Challenge Day 91/365

Lately, I have spent many hours feeling like a complete jerk.  Is there every a time when it is acceptable to get frustrated with a student?  I realize that sentence probably makes me sound like a horrible teacher and person, so please let me explain...

I get tired of saying the same thing to the same students on a daily basis.  This goes for my classroom and on the basketball court.  At what point do we begin to think that the student is consciously making a bad decision.  I try to give them the benefit of the doubt as many times as possible, but after a while it is exhausting.

This is a dilemma I have been having both in the classroom and as a coach.  I don't expect miracles and I realize that what I see as simple is not always the same as what my students/players see as simple. I try my best to keep things simple.  The fact that many of my students fix their behaviors when I am watching leads me to believe that they know better, but are simply choosing not to do the "right" thing.

Do you ever feel like you are being mean?  How do you deal with this?  Thank you for reading.

Friday, November 29, 2013

Day 90: Can I Teach...

Daily Blog Challenge Day 90/365

Can I Teach...

1.  Students to listen?
2.  Students to act in ways that are different than home?
3.  Students to be respectful?
4.  Students to be brave?
5.  Students to be the best they can be?
6.  Students that they can do more than they ever think they can?
7.  Students that there is more to life than our small town or video games?
8.  Students that focusing on the details is important?
9.  Students to worry about themselves?
10.  Students to try new things?

Sometimes teaching seems like an uphill battle.  These are some of the questions I struggle with.  What questions do you struggle with as a teacher?  Thank you for reading.

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Day 89: Getting Better

Daily Blog Challenge Day 89/365

One of the life skills I am trying to teach my students (mainly 3rd-6th graders) is that you can always get better.  I often see students and people in general give less effort because they are not as good as someone else.  I may never be as good at basketball as Michael Jordan (or fill in the blank with your favorite professional athlete), but I can still get better.

We need to remember to compare our self to our self, we are on our own journey.  My fourth graders are working on a challenging recorder piece for our Christmas Concert and for many it is frustrating.  My goal is to make them realize they can be better than they were yesterday, even if they are not the best.

No matter what we can always grow.  Reading, practicing, writing and conversations are all ways to learn and continue to improve.

What ways do you challenge yourself to improve?  I would love to hear your ideas.  Thank you for reading.

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Day 88: Slacker

Daily Blog Challenge Day 88/365

I was in shock when I realized my Christmas program is only two weeks away. I feel like a slacker this year, I don't feel like we focused as much on our concert this year as I did last year.

My struggle, is giving up so much class time for one concert. Yes, I think it is important and it is the only full concert my students participate in each year (we also perform at Halloween, Veteran's Day and Grandparent's Day.

How do you balance concert prep time while still using class time to teach other musical concepts?
I would love you hear your ideas. Thank you for reading.

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Day 87: Learning New Technology (Technology Tuesday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 87/365

Technology Tuesday

I realize it is a ways away yet, but one of my favorite things about Christmas Break is having extra time to experiment with new ideas for my classroom. Last year, I spent time during break learning about class dojo and class badges. I am excited to learn and experiment with new programs again this year. I asked my PLN on Twitter and so far the number one suggestion has been Socrative.

Here are my technology goals for this Christmas Break...
1. Socrative
2. Doceri
3. Scratch
4. Hopscotch
5. Augmented Reality (beginner recorders, word wall and tutorials).
6. Tutorial videos
7. Blogging in the music classroom
8. Class Badges
9. Class Dojo (need a better way to use it)

Do you have any technology goals for this Christmas break? Which programs or app souls you recommend? Thank you for reading.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Day 86: Music K-8 (Material Monday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 86

Material Monday

One of my new favorite websites for music resources is Music K-8.  My old school had a subscription, so I used many songs/pieces from these magazines.  The website allows you to purchase individual magazines.  My favorite thing about this website are the free resources.  I have found many ideas from the free section and my Christmas Program includes two songs from the Free Songs.

Do you use Music K-8?  Which music websites are your favorite?

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Day 85: I Hate the C Word

Daily Blog Challenge Day 85/365

My Elementary Christmas Program is on Tuesday and we had our first dress rehearsal on Friday. Afterwards many teachers mentioned how "cute" the little kids were.  Now I get it, little kids are cute and on Tuesday night they will be all dressed up, but cute is not a curriculum standard.

I (understand why people say it), but I dislike when people use the C word to describe my student's performance. We work so hard in music and being cute is not on our agenda.

So please, do not tell me (or any other music teacher) how cute our kids were. ;) Thank you for reading.

Saturday, November 23, 2013

Day 84: 3 AM Musings

Daily Blog Challenge Day 84/365

I could not sleep tonight, so I have been awake since 3 AM.  I tried falling asleep for an hour and then finally gave up around 4 and started reading and getting stuff done around my house.  The lack of sleep probably played into it, but here are my random thoughts for the morning.

1.  Why do I do what I do?
2.  Is it possible to recondition students so they respond in other ways then a raised voice?
3.  Are my relationships with my students as positive as they are in my mind?
4.  Have I told all of my students something positive about themselves?
5.  Do my students know that I enjoy having them in class?
6.  How often do I tell my students I am proud of them or that I enjoy listening/watching them play?
7.  What can I do to help my students get it?
8.  Why don't students like choir?
9.  What can I do to make choir better?

I would love to hear your thoughts.  Thank you for reading.

Friday, November 22, 2013

Day 83: Failure

Daily Blog Challenge Day 83/365

What do you do when you fail?

I know we would all be depressed if we only focused on results, but in life winning or loosing has serious consequences (jobs, money, family). I am a big believer in the growth mindset and I believe it is vital that we teach our children how to react to success and failure.  I hate the word failure because it seems so final. A mistake is not failure, a mistake is learning how to do something a different way.

Failure is always a learning experience and it is only negative if we let it. We should learn something from every experience in life, regardless of the result. 

My young basketball players drive me crazy because they believe that a good shot is a made basket and a bad shot is one this miss. This mindset is completely focused on the result, not the preparation or actions.

The Growth Mindset is a difficult concept for many adults to grasp and I have students who have difficulties with it too.

As a music teacher and coach, my students are exposed to failure on a daily basis.  How do you help your students learn from mistakes?  Thank you for reading.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Day 82: Handing Out Music

Daily Blog Challenge Day 82/365

My third grade students have been struggling this year with staying focused during class, so I have been trying to find ways to help them. One thing I have had success with is giving my students music.   I have not done a very good job of handing out music, I teach mostly by rote or with group lyric sheets on the board.

Benefits of Handing Out Music
1. Helps students stay focused.
2. Exposes students to reading sheet music.
3. Helps students learn how to read a musical road map.

Do you hand out music to elementary students? I would love to hear how you handle this. Thank you for reading.

Day 81: Twitter Exile

Daily Blog Challenge Day 81/365

Lately, I find myself not spending a lot of time on Twitter (this also includes reading blogs and listening to Podcasts).  I can't explain all of it, but a lot of it just comes from being exhausted.  I think these times happen and sometimes it is ok to take a step away from something for a while.  I enjoy Twitter for many reasons: it is a great learning tool and I have created many relationships with fellow educators through this platform.

Have you taken a technology exile before?  What did you learn from this experience?

I find myself without the energy or motivation to interact through Twitter as much as I used to and although I miss the interactions, I think the time away has been good for self reflection.  This is the first time I have really toned down my use of technology, after being someone that used it often.  The positive side of this self induced exile has been my focus on face to face conversations and relationships.

Sometimes you have to take a step away in order to fully embrace the positives of a tool or activity.  Thank you for reading.



Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Day 80: Melody Street (Technology Tuesday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 80/365

Technology Tuesday

Last year I discovered Melody Street and I used it with my primary classes (kindergarten-2nd grades).  This year I decided to have all my classes watch the book.  It is a great review/introduction to instrument families, while also including the music and the reading of a story.  My students love Melody Street.

While searching for Chapter Three of the story, I discovered that they have a website.  I have not spent a lot of time exploring it yet, but it looks very interesting.  There is also a YouTube page with more videos and information.

I would love to hear about how you use Melody Street in your classroom.  Thank you for reading.

Monday, November 18, 2013

Day 79: Bean Bags (Material Monday)

Daily Blog Challenge Day 79/365

Material Monday

Last year I started using bean bags to help reinforce the concepts of quarter notes and quarter rests (ta's).  To start, I create the rhythms and the students chant/clap them back as a group.  Once they seem like they have an understanding of what I want them to do, I give each group (seating groups) four bean bags so they can create their own rhythms.

Last year, I started this activity towards the end of kindergarten.  This year, I have already started it with my first graders and they will be composing their own rhythms soon.





I would love to hear how you include rhythm composition into your primary lessons.  Thank you for reading.

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Day 78: My Journey to Becoming a Teacher

Daily Blog Challenge Day 78/365

In sixth grade I wrote in my "About Me" project that I would never become a teacher unless I completely lost my mind. Well apparently when I went to college, I lost my mind because I decided to become a teacher.

I have been blessed to have many great teachers throughout my time as a student.  All of my teachers have had an impact on me; some positive, some negative and some neutral.  On one hand I never wanted other students to experience some of what I did as a student/athlete and on the other hand, I wanted to give back and try to influence my students like some of my teachers did.  It is an amazing challenge, but our children deserve it.

Even at the end of frustrating days, I still feel a passion (although sometimes burning softly) for teaching. At the end of the day, teaching is what I feel called to do. This belief is what carries me through the good days and the bad days.

I would love to hear what made you decide to go into teaching. Thank you for reading.

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Day 77: Sadness

Daily Blog Challenge Day 77/365

My husband (who is also a teacher) and I often discuss our frustrations with "this generation" of students. Tonight on our way home from the grocery store we had a similar conversation. We were discussing how our current students lack many of the like skills that we feel we had at their age. Our discussion centered around our frustration, but my frustration soon turned to sadness.

1. It makes me sad that students don't see adults as people to respect and learn from.
2. It is sad to me that many students get caught by their mistakes instead of seeing the world as full of opportunity.
3. It makes me sad that instead of working harder, many students put the blame on the teacher/coach.
4. It makes me sad that students don't see a purpose behind rules and details.
5. It makes me sad that listening skills seem to be lacking.

I become frustrated with my students at times, but realize now that I feel sadness for them.  They are missing many of the life skills I feel have guided and shaped my life. I need to focus on teaching (even after what feels like a thousand times) because my students deserve it.

Thank you for reading.

Friday, November 15, 2013

Day 76: Excuses for Being Happy

Daily Blog Challenge Day 76/365

There is something about hot water that leads to great ideas for me. I know I am not the only one, but some of my best ideas happen while I am in the shower. I don't know of this is one of my best ideas, but I think it is definitely food for thought. 

Monday mornings in the "winter" seem so difficult. All I want to do is sleep. With the Christmas season upon us, it is easy to get bogged down in all the craziness: concerts, tournaments, school responsibilities and the list goes on and on. Instead of focusing on all the possible stress points. What about focusing on all the possible joys?  I know I have many blessings and things to be joyful about. 

To take this idea a bit farther, what if we taught our students to do this and to focus on the skills they can do instead of only focusing on not being as good as someone else?  I believe both of these ideas are great life skills.

Thank you for reading.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Day 75: Feedback

Daily Blog Challenge 75/365

Recently, one of my basketball players expressed his frustrations with me. In summary, I have ruined basketball for him, all I do is yell and he never gets to play during the A game. 

Now I realize all feedback needs to be taken in context, but at first I was upset at the idea that I have ruined the wonderful game of basketball for a young person. It also was disturbing to me that he thinks I always yell at him because I don't think of myself (and don't want to be) that type of coach. 

I came to the conclusion that I could respond in three ways.  
1. Blow it off and forget about it. 
2. Take it personally. 
3. A combination of the two.

I take things personally anyways, so I was trying hard not to let this ruin the season.  In my opinion, when we are given negative feedback it is best to try to understand what the other person is trying to say and learn from the experience.  No one likes to be told they are wrong, but at the same time, we are not perfect, so it is impossible to not make mistakes.  My goal is to learn from my previous mistakes so I don't make them again.

What I learned from this experience...
1.  It is easy to focus on the negatives, I need to spend more energy focused on the positives.
2.  I need to do a better job of balancing positive and negative feedback.

How do you react when you are given negative feedback?  Thank you for reading.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Day 74: Concert Notes

Daily Blog Challenge Day 74/365

One of the teachers I worked with at my first school always included notes of what music concepts the students worked on in order to perform the concert.  I really liked the idea because it helps the students, parents, school and community realize that there is more to music than looking cute and singing.  I am still working on the concert program for this school year, but this is what I have come up with so far.  I don't list everything we have worked on, but I include the main focuses of each class.


~Christmas Program~

Kindergarten
Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer
Must Be Santa

First Grade
Rock n’Roll Snowman
I Can’t Spell Hippopotamus

Second Grade
Joyous Hanukkah
Hot Chocolate

Third Grade
Winter Wonderland
December Nights, December Lights

Fourth Grade
Winter Fantasy
222T4 the Holidays


~Program Notes~
This program is a culmination of the concepts and skills we have been working on during music class.  Each day we work on singing, playing instruments, reading music, and music history. This program is an opportunity for the students to showcase what they have been learning in music class and to practice their skills as a performer and an audience  member.  Each grade has also been working on specific concepts/skills that have been put on display tonight.

Kindergarten: Singing as a group, pattern songs and action songs.
First Grade: Singing as a group and form.

Second Grade: Singing as a group, playing instruments while singing, 3/4 time signature and singing vs. talking voice

Third Grade:  Singing as a group, singing in 2-part, playing choir chimes, reading music and melody/harmony.

Fourth Grade: Singing as a group, partner songs, harmony and playing recorder.

I would love to hear what information you include in your programs.  Thank you for reading.



Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Day 73: Technology As A Tool

Daily Blog Challenge Day 73/365

Technology Tuesday

One thing that drives me crazy about technology is that I see/hear about many schools purchasing more technology, but it seems as though they more concerned about having it than how they use it.  How we as educators use technology in our classrooms should be far more important than which technologies we have and how much we have in our classroom.

How do you ensure that you are using technology for the right reasons?

Technology can be a great tool to engage our students and we are fortunate to have many options available to us (many programs and apps are even free).

I realize after this semester that I need to do a better job of using technology to have my students create content.  Many of my students have iPads or computers at home and I am looking into ways of expanding our lessons with the technology my students already have (it would not be required).

Programs/Apps To Learn More About (To Use In Elementary Music)
1. Class Badges
2. Kidblog
3. ABRSM Theory and Aural Skills Apps
4. Augmented Reality
5. Rhythm Training 
6. Young Persons Guide To The Orchestra
7. Blog Chorus

What apps or programs would you recommend? Thank you for reading.