This blog post is for all you music teachers out there that have ever had the dreaded email telling you your elementary music activities need to be silent for testing week. End of year high stakes testing always has the school a little more on edge. But that doesn’t mean
Creating elementary music sub plans can seem like your worst nightmare. I used to remember spending HOURS prepping plans my first year. But my years of working through pounding, feverish headaches to cobble together sub plans are long past. In this blog post, I will share with you some no
If you are looking for elementary music lessons on YouTube, then you are in luck. In this post, I am going to share with you a plethora of YouTube channels and individual YouTube videos that are perfect for your elementary music class. So bookmark this post and use it whenever
Looking for some Scott Joplin elementary music activities? In this blog post, I will share three favorites I’ve done in my room. Why Teach About Scott Joplin? As music teachers it is so important that we expose our students to a wide variety of music and composers. Often teachers can
Whether your students know it or not, they probably know the 1812 Overture by Tchaikovsky. If nothing else, they will know the finale of the 1812 Overture. It is the famous part complete with exploding cannons. And when I tell you that it was a wild hit with my 4th
No matter where you live, the Nutcracker Ballet always seems to pop up around the winter holiday season. Maybe you are one of the schools that has a Nutcracker Ballet field trip every year, where one grade level travels to see the iconic ballet. Or maybe you just love using
If you are a first year music teacher, it can feel a little daunting. Stepping from the role of college student into the role of first year music teacher is such a mental shift. And no matter how great your college courses were, nothing really prepares you for teaching like
The music of Aaron Copland is so beautiful and so iconic. And the vibrant stories told through these songs are perfect for use in the elementary music classroom. This blog post will give you some ideas of specific music by Aaron Copland to use in your classroom as well as
Creating great music lessons for kindergarten can be a challenge. Finding just the right blend of silly and serious, stillness and movement, simple but purposeful takes practice. So finding the right music lesson for the first day of kindergarten is really challenging! How do you teach the routines and procedures
Are you overwhelmed with the thought of choosing your music classroom decor? What should you include? What should you leave out? How will you fit everything on your limited bulletin boards? And most importantly, how can you afford it on your teacher salary? Today, I’ll be sharing the key elements
I am an elementary music teacher, blogger and mom on a mission to make teaching and lesson planning easier for you. When I’m not working, you can find me at home enjoying life with my husband, daughter and two cats.
