Snapshots of the life of a middle school music teacher

Random moments from 12/7-12/14

     Survived a concert I was nervous about. I went to set up, only to learn that our keyboard was broken. Spent 7 hours recording/processing accompaniment tracks. Trusted that the students could do it without hearing the tracks and having me at the piano. They did well and I was proud of them. We did have a fainter but things were okay.

    Yankee Swap with no tears or angry children. (I got a Dunkin' Donuts gift card.)


     I'm singing a song called Songs of the Wayfarer by Joseph M. Martin in chorus with my 7/8th graders. One of my 7th grade boys hung around after an audition toady to tell me that he was researching the song and jamming at his house to  some of the pieces I've introduced him to. Check out the versions he was listening to.
Ed Sheeran, Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Jack White and the Swingle Singers 
This also led to a conversation about why the lyrics changed from person to person, history of the song, and his opinions on the versions he heard. Music teacher win :) Which version did you like best?   If I've sparked your inner nerd, check out the history of the song and more versions here. 

        I straightened my hair this morning and wore makeup. 1 boy was confused and seemed to genuinely need an explanation to why I was wearing lipstick. 1 boy thought I was a substitute. Multiple students did not recognize me. A few students came in to tell me that I "look pretty." My favorite awkward moment was where one girl came in and said "Oh my gosh! I love your hair and your face!" Ummm... thanks?  (That's also when the boy realized I wasn't a substitute teacher)


      This week my students took recycled materials and made them into instruments. I have loved watching their creativity. They also composed a piece for their instruments, wrote down the music in non-traditional notation and had to learn someone else's piece. Multiple students have asked me to stay in class "for the rest of the day" or "through lunch."

      Auditions for my Chorale- so cool to hear each kid sing on their own. I'm glad so many kids are coming to try out. One of my 6th graders mentioned that he "doesn't care if he has to crush the heart of a 5th grader, he wants to make spring Chorale." The funny thing is that this boy is a kid who works hard but I couldn't tell if he actually enjoyed being there. I say auditions are cool but it's always hard when the list goes up since not everyone is accepted.

    I have received 3 videos from 2 7th grade girls who are kind of hilarious. The first one was a parody of Adele's "Hello."  The second was a bizarre, rap-like holiday video and the 3rd was a video about "Christmas Crumble."

 
     Had a kid who is considered to be "one of the worst behaved 5th graders" tell me that he was really excited because he went shopping for his Christmas tree and for presents. He was excited that his mom let him pick out a present for me. :)

     My son came to school with me on a day his school had conferences. He sat in all of my classes, took 3 quizzes, compared and contrasted West African vocal/instrumental music, watched my 8th grade operas and sang in my 6th grade chorus. He's in 4th grade. My kids (the students) were really welcoming and cute. They shared music, chatted, and included him in all the lessons. It was heartwarming.

     After bugging me to play Christmas music during class (in a highly Jewish community), I played a recording of the Christmas concert I played in last weekend. After initially complaining that he wanted to hear some "Bill Cosby.. no, wait, Bill CROSBY" (facepalm) a 6th grade boy said "Wait? Is this live?" Me- "Well, it was taped live, yes." Boy- "Woah.. you guys are like legit musicians! That sounds like what the real song sounds like." Me- "Uh... that's because we ARE all legit musicians."  Glad Tchaikovsky wasn't rolling in his grave though, thanks.

     I seriously wish I could post pictures with their facial expressions too. Good times.

   



   

Back to school- Mom

     I started back to school last week. The first day of school we had A.L.I.C.E training. It was intense, but I was glad it was introduced to us. This is the first time we've had the training. The 2nd day we had our normal "welcome back" speeches from the superintendent, the principal, school committee, etc. In addition to that, a colleague of mine whom I really respect, won Teacher of the Year. She is the computer teacher at the middle school and she is wonderful. The kids really learn a lot in her class and she does some innovative, engaging projects. On top of that, she's super nice and extremely helpful to anyone on the staff that might need technology help. I was so happy for her.  After our convocation as a staff, we all went back to our individual buildings to get our room ready, have team meetings, etc. I also had a mentor meeting. (I am mentoring a new teacher for the first time.)

     Our students started school on Wednesday. I teach 6 classes a day. For my general music classes I have 1 8th grade class, 1 7th, 2 6th, and 1 5th grade class. I will see these kids for a 52 minute period for 22 days in a row (8th grade has 18 since they have an extra specialist class.) After music is over they will have tech ed, health, gym, computers, art, communications/tv and then gym again. (8th grade will also have robotics this year. This is a new thing and I think it's pretty cool.)  I also teach 3 choruses- 5th grade, 6th and then a combined 7th/8th grade chorus. This is a year long class that is open to anyone. Lastly, I have an auditioned after school chorus that meets 2 days a week until 3:30. This is kind of like an honors chorus and I push these kids pretty hard. Because of that, they tend to be the leaders in my choruses. 

    So far the school year has gone smoothly. It has been really nice to reconnect with all the kids and to meet my new students. Chorus and Chorale get into full swing towards the end of the week so that's when I will feel like I'm really working hard. Honestly, I love my job so I feel very blessed. There is not a day that I don't laugh (at myself sometimes- today I accidentally flung a marker in my own face in one of my classes. I was proud of the kids for not blatantly laughing at me.)  The only downside of the year so far is that we are currently in a heat wave here in Ma. I believe that every day we have had school, the temperature in my room has been over 90 degrees. The students are doing their best to pay attention but I can see the sweat dripping down their faces. Being in the room all day, there have been times that I could barely concentrate because I was overheated. 

    When I talk to someone about my profession for the first time many people will make comments about how they couldn't deal with middle school students. I really enjoy working with kids this age.  Here's why:

1.  Middle schoolers really live on the edge between being a kid and wanting to be an adult. I can challenge them through my teaching and set high expectations. (Higher than you many people would think.) I have students who can hold a conversation about music using all the proper terminology or students who can play at a level that some adults cannot. However, many, many times the kid in them will slip out. My favorite example of that happened a few years ago. I had brought my Chorale to do a concert for the local Masonic Lodge. They graciously provided dinner for my entire group and ate WITH us rather than just sequestering us in some corner. They decided to treat us to Chinese food. The plan was that we would sing an hour long concert for them, have dinner with them and then we would leave while they had a meeting. 

      The concert went really well and we sang some challenging music. Since it was the spring chorale, I had students from grades 5-8. We sang a few songs that were marketed towards beginning high school choirs so I was proud of their success with the pieces. After the concert we had a delicious dinner and at the end of the meal we were served fortune cookies. Many students read the fortunes and didn't know what they meant. One by one they came to me for an interpretation of their fortune cookie wisdom. This little boy in 5th grade came up and said "Could you tell me what this means? I don't get it." So, I gave it my best shot and his eyes opened really wide. All of the sudden he yelled out "I didn't know you spoke Chinese!!!!!" Classic middle school, Middle school kids can be hilarious. 

2. The students (whether they want to admit it or not) are really looking for guidance. If you want an opportunity to be a good influence to a student- socially, emotionally, academically- middle school kids might provide that opportunity for you. They expect you to be firm but fair. 

3. Middle schoolers tell it as it is. They wear their hearts on their sleeves. A gem from this week so far was "No offense, but what time is music over?" (I did take offense..lol) If you get an ugly hair cut (or highlights- my highlights were a big world-changing event for one of my 6th grade girls), a new pair of shoes, sparkly nail polish, etc you will know what your students think. Sometimes they will directly say those opinions and sometimes they will say it in a more subtle way (usually by staring at you with a weird look on their face.)

4. I once read that you should think more about teaching the child than teaching the subject. I think it's great advice, though not always convenient or easy.  If they trust you middle schoolers will give you a lot to work with, Chorus and band are the only classes at the middle school that the kids can elect to be in. As a teacher this means that I can set expectations and "kick them our" if they don't meet those standards. Though it's pretty humbling to think about, many of the kids don't elect to take chorus, they choose to have more time with me. Students never run up and say "Chorus starts today! I can't wait!" It's always more like "I have YOU today!" or "What are we doing in chorus today?" I feel really privileged to know that they trust me enough to try new things (sometimes in front of hundreds of people), to do something they know is outside of their comfort zone (like singing way above or below their normal voice range) or to open themselves enough to sing with their hearts. When we work together it's pretty cool to hear the results. I have students who really look up to me and I really value all of them. 

5. I also love that my job is challenging. I deal with hundreds of different personalities in 1 day (some all in the same kid in the span of 1 hour!) Sometimes I have 100 or more of them together at the same time.  I like that I have to figure out a way to reach each child 'where they're at.' Each day is extremely different and it is rarely boring. I laugh every day and I'm mentally engaged with my subject and with the students. Are there times where I have bad challenges like a defiant kid or a child/parent who is hurt if they don't get into my auditioned group? Yes, of course, but that comes with the territory. 

    

     Do any of you who are reading work with kids? Middle schoolers? If you work with middle schoolers, what made you choose that age group?

Districts from a student's perspective

   I've been waiting to post since I was hoping 1 other student would jot down their thoughts. (We're on vacation right now so I doubt he will remember. If he does, maybe I'll add his comments in a different color and repost.)  I gave the kids a few topics and asked if they could write some of their feelings in regards to those topics. So, here are some thoughts from my girls. One is in 7th and one is in 8th grade.

Auditions

    When a student decides to try out for Districts, they have most likely been asked by their music teacher. In my case, I often put it out to the whole group. If I have a ton of interest, I just go with those kids. If I don't have as many as I hoped or if I know there is someone the experience would be very good form I will just find the student and ask them. Both girls who got in had decided they wanted to try out when I first mentioned it.
     The first step in preparing for Districts is learning the audition piece. My student said "Getting into Districts is something I really wanted, so I practiced the piece for over a month." She also graciously said that if you have a music teacher that will help you that this step is very easy. My other student said "If you could imagine excitement and anxiety together as one emotion- that was exactly how I was feeling [while preparing for auditions.] I remember singing the audition piece for the first time and it was really exciting, just very scary. It involved a lot of really advanced skills, including having the best breath control, which I had a lot of trouble with, but in the end, the audition turned out great." Once students have learned the piece, they attend the auditions.
At auditions the students meet in the auditorium with all of the other choral students who are auditioning. (I giggled a bit when I read my students' responses and realized neither of them had written about the actual audition.) Many of my students mention being intimidated hearing all of the other singers from the district. One of my students got extremely nervous and didn't get in. He had never really sung 1 on 1 with an adult other than me. After auditions, students wait to hear if they got accepted to the festival or not. Since I was working at the festival, I knew that night and told my students that night. One thing that was interesting to me was that I asked my students if they wanted me to tell them when I knew or if they wanted me to just tell them on Monday when we got back to school. One of my eighth grade girls asked me to tell her over the weekend "so I can process everything, especially if I didn't get in. It would be really hard for me to find out if I didn't get into the festival when I was trying to go through my normal school day."

Rehearsals

After the students find out they get in, they are mailed a packet of music. It is their responsibility to learn it before rehearsals. When they come together as a group, they have about 12 hours to get it to performance level. I rehearsed with each of my students whenever they could- usually during our lunches. One student said: "Rehearsals at Districts at first was not as great as it could have been because there had been some kids like me who had practiced the music multiple times, and there were kids who were sight reading it for the first time. On the second day, it was much better because everybody had already practiced it at least once. The morning of the concert (dress rehearsal) was the best practice of them all. Learning the music was kind of difficult because since I am an alto, I had to learn both alto 1 and 2 because it didn’t specify what I was singing. When I tried out, I auditioned for alto, not alto 1 or 2. After I knew what part I was singing and I practiced the music with all the girls in the choir, it was pretty easy. " This girl practiced with me close to 40 times. Every lunch and then some.

The other student said: " Getting in was a huge honor since I had seen how advanced the chorus was from the year before. I remember coming into the big chorus room at the high school and seeing all these girls. I felt so intimidated, but it was so cool to sing with these talented girls! Our conductor was great. She commended us for everything she likes, but never feared stopping us when we did something wrong. I believe the most important quality in a music teacher/conductor is understanding the music and not just the notes. It is necessary to feel the emotion that comes with a certain piece and I would say that was her strongest quality and I really admired that." 

Concert

    After rehearsing for their final 3 hours or so, the kids eat lunch, change into concert attire and prepare to "do their thing."

    Student 1: "The concert was amazing! During the concert, the people there shut the lights on the parents, so the people performing could not get distracted. In my opinion, it was very helpful. After the concert everybody had to leave the auditorium and go to the cafeteria. It was very chaotic and crowded. It was very hard to find my family. After awhile I found my family and got to go home. I had a great time at Districts singing and hope to get in again next year." (Side note: We have 2 concerts. The first concert is for the choruses. The orchestra, band and jazz band have the 2nd concert. This has the potential of being a logistical nightmare when 1 set of parents is leaving the concert while the other set is arriving for theirs. This is what she was talking about when she mentioned the cafeteria.)

Student 2: "The concert turned out SO well. I had my little group of friends that I had made and the whole performance I couldn't stop smiling! The District chorus is by far one of the greatest experiences I have been gifted with and I hope to be involved with it in high school."

---------------------------

If your child ever expresses interest in one of these festivals, say yes! It is a lot of work but there are great benefits. For your student: exposure to new repertoire, learning under a new conductor, performance skills, audition experience, chance to make new friends, confirmation that they know their craft, and obviously a great opportunity to learn. I always see a great change in my students who have participated in Districts after they are home from the festival. Just this week student #1 has been singing louder than she ever has in class before. She sat herself down in the middle of a bunch of younger students when we were rehearsing a 5th-8th grade piece (for the 2nd time) and was a great leader. Student #2 I have only seen once since Districts but she also acted as a leader in the girls' piece. Student #3 (the boy) was a great leader in the 5th-8th rehearsal of the boys piece by trying to encourage the older guys to sit with someone they didn't know and help them in their music. He also made a suggestion in the warm-ups of my after school chorus, I asked if he'd like to try taking over the warm up section of that rehearsal and, surprisingly, he did. (He did well too. I might do this with some other kids for the rest of the year.) 

I have already started preparing for next year's festival. I have to submit 3 choices of conductors by June 1.

Districts- Perspective of a music teacher

    I love having my students involve with Districts but it is a lot of work if you take the responsibility of preparing them seriously.
      It starts in the fall, when the audition lists are posted. Again, speaking from the choral side of things, we have a restriction on how many females we can send and we can send as many boys as we can force get to audition. Here are the things that go through my mind when selecting students to audition:
- Who needs a challenge?
- Who are my leaders?
- Who is performing at a higher level than some of my students?
- Who would benefit with working with different musicians/conductors?
- Though sometimes this is a little scary, who do I feel would represent me and our school well?

     Usually I give everyone an opportunity to "sign up." I usually see who comes to sign up and then I actively pursue kids who should be on the list that aren't. If a student that I hoped would try out doesn't want to, I usually just let it go. This year there was a boy that I hoped would try out that didn't want to try out because he was worried he'd be a little overwhelmed.  Knowing him well, his abilities and the requirements for the festival, I was pretty disappointed that he didn't want to take the chance.. but I understood his decision. Unfortunately, over vacation I kept thinking about what a great thing it would've been for him. So, when we got back from Christmas break, I told him the things that had been going through my mind and asked him to think about it once more. He trusted me enough to audition. (He got in and performed last weekend) For the girls, I can only send 9, so I teach everybody the music and then pick the top 3 from each voice part. I haven't had too many years when I've had more than 9 girls interested. My only concern for the girls is if there is a girl who struggles and wants to try out. If there are enough spots, I'm glad to give her an opportunity but I don't want it to be a negative experience if vocally she wouldn't be able to do well. (AKA. I don't want to intentionally set someone up for failure but I do want kids to gain experience and learn audition skills. This doesn't mean I assume all of my students will get into the festival.)
     In preparation for auditions (or auditions for auditions), I practice the piece with each student. Ideally I would say "We're rehearsing on this day" and students would magically show up all together. Realistically, I don't have the same prep time  as any time my students don't have class. This means I'm trying to fit in small rehearsals with each kid with a few group practices. By January, I want their piece learned and them to have the confidence to sing it for me alone. There are some times that I would like to push students further than they want to go. These are usually the kids who could've gotten in but miss it due to needing to practice a bit more- or nerves about singing by themselves.
      In January, on a Saturday, I bring my students to auditions. Many years I ask for a bus but it would have to come out of our music budget. There are a few years when I've had a lot of students and I've been able to get funds from general funds. If they do not provide transportation I usually beg ask them to pay the registration fee. Then I beg parents to carpool the kids. I usually spend some time this day warming the kids up, calming their nerves and hoping that they will do what they are capable of. I'm proud of all of my students for attempting the audition, even if they don't get in.
     After auditions, I anxiously wait to hear which students get in. I know I will have to tell some kids bad news and I look forward to sharing in the joy of the other kids. I like having the score sheets with me at this time since I can give them specific strengths and weaknesses of their audition.
     Once students hear if they get in, the real work begins. Each student is sent a packet of music to learn. It is understood that the child will work independently on their music but it is also assumed that their music teacher will be responsible and help them prepare. I had 3 students get in this year- 2 girls, 1 boy. The girls learned the same music but they are in different grades so they were never "off" at the same time.  Between January and March I am also involved with the production of a musical so between musical rehearsals, after school choral rehearsals and meetings I have had no days of leaving school before 3:30 (or later) since the beginning of 2015. In addition to meeting after school, I have also given up every lunch to work with students.  I have also rehearsed before school. A few important things to point out-1) I don't mind doing this if it's helping students and they appreciate it. 2) This is a free voice lesson. Every day. 3) If you schedule a time to rehearse, I will be angry if you don't show up since I scheduled my time around that appointment.  4) If you have a music teacher who is working with your child, please understand that some of the time they are putting into your child are sacrificial times in their own families so a thank you is always appreciated. I don't expect anything from anyone but I always appreciate a sincere thank you. On a personal note, I also gain some knowledge of different choral repertoire in these rehearsals.
     At Districts, the music teacher position is easy- once you've gotten them there. Again, ideally buses. Second best- parent drivers. Honestly, for the past few years I have driven at least 1 way each rehearsal. In some cases, my students would not be able to go because their parents can't get out of work or can't drive. This is not ideal and if you are a new teacher I would never recommend driving. Since this has been the assumption in my job since I started, I've gotten used to it and it has been fine with administration and parents. If I can avoid driving I do.
     At Districts, as a music teacher, I like to go and learn from other conductors. I enjoy seeing my students soak up knowledge from new people and hearing the beautiful music they're making. I like to assess things I'm doing well in my job and things I feel that I could use improvement on.
     What I like most about involving my students with Districts is collaborating with other music teachers, watching my students grow musically and seeing them push themselves to achieve more than they knew they could. Some teachers have told me they won't involve their kids because it is a hassle for them and involves a lot of their own time. I find that the time I put into preparing my kids seems to be repaid when the kids come back stronger and as better leaders.
   
   

Districts Festival from the perspective of the festival coordinator

    If you bring your child to a music festival, it should look like things are working seamlessly. There are many individuals doing set tasks and all are coordinated by the festival coordinator. The festival coordinator answers to the executive board of the District. The following people (and everyone under them) answer to the festival coordinator:
-Asst festival coordinator
-Manager and assistant manager of each performing group (10 people in our case) and conductors by proxy
-Staff at the host site for auditions, rehearsals and concert (usually includes security, janitorial, technology and the nurse)

Here are most of the behind the scenes things that have to happen for a music festival to be run successfully:
Preparation for auditions-
-Months of attending e-board meetings
-Communicating with each manager about choosing audition pieces, conductors, accompanists (if needed) and repertoire. Then, each of those decisions needs to be checked by the e-board.
-Reserving a host site
-Reserving a police detail for auditions
-Communicating with the host site about the logistics of the day. (Usually we are working with a school who has hosted for years, The staff has this working like a well oiled machine. By the time you are festival coordinator you have worked at the festival for at least 4 years so you have some experience and lots of people who are willing to help if you have questions, provided you're not a jerk.)
-Plan for snow day here in the northeast- just in case
-Schedule 3 minute auditions for about 1200 children based on instrumentation and grouping all students from 1 school together
-Find staff to work the audition day at check-in
- Communicate with collegiate ambassadors who will be helping bring students around
- Answer all questions about auditions from the teachers of the entire district.  Some days I received over 100 e-mails a day from the when the audition date was posted until the actual festival (Sept- March) You have to actually answer the e-mails too.

Audition Day:
-Prepare and bring all materials
- Work the audition day (Saturday, usually about 7 am- 7 pm actively)
- Make sure everything is running smoothly. If you have done a good job in preparation, audition day should go smoothly and you usually feel a bit of pride at your hard work.
-You are the "final call" on all questions? What if a teacher registered their student incorrectly? Can they switch the voice part they are auditioning for? What if I forgot a payment? Wrong audition piece? Missed audition time? What are the cutoff scores for each ensemble? Etc.
-Troubleshoot- One year I was coordinator, a pipe froze and burst and steaming hot water was shooting out all over the cafeteria. Luckily it didn't affect any children but it was very close to the instruments and ruined some music. We had to keep the auditions going, clean/fix the cafeteria and move all incoming band kids planning to audition to an area we had not prepared to use. Luckily for me, the custodial staff was fantastic and the site coordinator stepped up to help so I just had to get the rest of the stuff done.
-Collect all materials from all managers

Preparation for rehearsals/concert:
-Months of attending e-board meetings
-Communicating with each manager about  logistics of the rehearsals, needs of their ensemble/ conductor, program information, group rosters, needs at rehearsals
-Reserving a police detail for auditions
-Communicating with the host site about the logistics of the day.
-Plan for snow day here in the northeast- just in case. Our rehearsals/concert schedule lasts 3 days so we need to consider what happens in case of a really bad storm. Usually we plan for 1 day and then just pray really hard. Ha ha. Seriously though, I lost so much sleep the week of the festival because I worried about this a lot.
- Answer all questions about auditions from the teachers of the entire district.
- Hire a printer for the program and the tickets
- Choose a caterer for staff meals and for the hospitality room. Choose the food.
- Keep track of all receipts and paperwork for everyone
- Collect contracts from everybody working at the festival
-Define expectations of how you'd like everything to go
- Prepare schedule that includes rehearsal locations within the host site, schedule for rehearsals and meals, dress rehearsal on the stage and logistics of concert day
- Hire recording company to record concert and make CD/DVD

Rehearsal days-
-Work at check in to collect all paperwork from individual schools, etc.
- Communicate with all festival staff about locations of rehearsals, schedule, etc.
-Clearly define what you need help doing. Delegate much of this work to the collegiates, who are all future music educators. If you have decency and professionalism, you should also be grateful for this help and show this in your actions and attitude.
-Attend 1 e-board meeting
-Run a general membership meeting
- Make sure nothing is wrong. If something is wrong, fix it- or find someone who can help you fix it.
- Again, you are the "go to" person to answer any questions, address any problems. Sometimes you have to make a hard call (Ex.  if a  kid missed rehearsal and you have to tell them that they aren't eligible to participate anymore. Most time the student knows the rules but the family does not understand why we have the rules.)
-Keep a running list of things that are going well or need to be fixed
- If you can, check out the ensembles in rehearsals

Concert day-
- Make sure everything is prepared and ready to go. Again, if your preparations along the way were well thought out, this should be a day where you can be happy about your hard work
- Give a speech at each concert
- Be the "go to" person.
- Make sure all salaried staff people get paid
- Attend both concerts

     Once this is over, we usually go out to dinner and then start preparing for next year's concert.  Although it was A LOT of work and effort, I really enjoyed this position. I was told that I did this position well and I really didn't have many complaints, which I was grateful for. This was difficult to manage my tasks a few times since my boys were pretty young at the time, but I think I would consider doing the position again if the timing was right. I am still seeing high school musicians from other towns who know me (3 years later) because I held this position. They still express how thankful they are for the opportunities that were provided to them.
     Next post: Districts Festival from the perspective of a school music teacher.

"So, what do you actually do?" District festival from the assistant manager's perspective

     Quite a while back, I asked what people were interested in reading about on my blog. A few people mentioned that they would like to hear more about what I do as a profession. Many times, when I first meet someone and they ask me what I do, I tell them that I'm a music teacher and get "Oh! That must be fun!" (AKA- Either- "Cool, that sounds like it would be a good time!" but more often then not "I know what you do!:"
Yeah..... no. What about this?

Okay, this one is a little closer. Though anyone who truly is a friend of mine knows 1) I don't often have time/desire to just chill out on a beach and 2) let's face it... my pale skin is burned just looking at that picture.
    Here's how the rest of the conversation goes. "Oh! That's fun. So, what grade do you teach?" Me: "Middle school. I have students in 5th-8th grade." This is followed by a myriad of responses. Top 3:
1) "God bless you. Ugh. Middle school... " *shudders*
2) "How do you deal with kids that age?"
3) Silently slinks away or excuses themselves since there obviously has to be something wrong with me?
(Disclaimer: I actually truly love what I do. I also like working with middle school students. Also, I chose to work with this age group so you don't have to let me know that I am "good enough to teach at a high school." I am intelligent and I'm certified to teach high school too if I wanted to. It does take "a special person" to teach middle school and the job is not  for everyone. However, I think it's where God wanted me.)
       This past week I served as our Junior Districts Festival Boys' Chorus Assistant Manager. Have you ever wondered what really goes into putting on one of those festivals? I thought it would be fun (and educational) to tell you what goes on behind the scenes. I'm going to give you 4 perspectives. I might even be brave enough to ask my students to give me authentic student thoughts... gasp. Scared yet?
    Where to start? I guess I'll tell you about my official role this year.

A Districts Festival: Assistant Manager's Perspective

     If you are a music educator and you would like to help out at your state's district festivals, the assistant manager is the position that you would most likely start in. This job is not too overwhelming (even if you are a brand new teacher). It can be a great way for you to get to know students and teachers in your area, as well as serving your district. It is also positive p.r. for the district you work in since that is usually publicized with your name. The best thing about this role if you're nervous about jumping in is that you are working directly under someone who did this job last year.  This is more of a helper role than an administrative role.  The only negative thing that might matter to you is that, depending on where you are teaching, it is pretty much an unpaid position, other than your expenses. 

     The most important parts of this job occur at auditions, the rehearsals and the concert. These are my thoughts about my personal experiences this year. I will write about the boys chorus part of this festival but you should know that there is a boys chorus, girls chorus, jazz band, orchestra and concert band. There are 5 assistant managers and managers on the festival committee. 

      At auditions, we had 6th-9th grade singers from about 65 different towns.  The manager and assistant manager usually get to the audition site much earlier than the students in order to set up the audition rooms, talk to the festival coordinator, confer with judges, prepare the waiting area for the students who are auditioning and, if you're lucky, eat breakfast.  The auditions started at 8:30 am this year and ran until about 5, with a 30 minute break for lunch. Auditions for each student were 3 minutes long. When students arrived in the auditorium, I would greet them and check them in by school code. (This is a numbered code. Their school name or personal name are never used in anything having the do with the judging process) Students were sent to their audition rooms and it was my job to make sure that the auditions kept moving- that students checking in had enough time to warm up, that everyone in the room was checked in, that the audition rooms stayed on schedule and that none of the judges were getting a line of students waiting.

      This year the audition process was fun. I love it every year because you get the following privileges:

1) You hear what students from other places sound like

2) You are helping to provide an awesome opportunity for 100s of students

3) EVERYBODY in that room "gets" what you do and the importance of music

4) Most of those same people appreciate you being there.

5) Almost ALL of those people, especially the students, are grateful that you are there and actually tell you that. 

     After all of the students have auditioned, it's time to pick the group. I'll be really honest here. This used to take HOURS. We had to collect about 1000 forms, double check the math on each form-twice!, sort the forms by voice part, organize them by score, figure out the percentage of students you were going to accept and then do the math (again) to decide which students were accepted and which were not.  (I would say that this is tough sometimes if you see the names. It's all mathematically cut and dry but sometimes it stinks to know that your student would've been the next person accepted or other things like that.) So, last year our district switched to electronic submission of scores. So this year the process was more like- open excel file, sort, look for gaps in the score, figure out the percentage of # of students accepted by part, sort again, print. Once the group is chosen, the list is given to the festival coordinator and they send it to the music company who will then distribute the music. (Before, we put together the folders and did a mailing to each school. I'm grateful for technology in this case.) Once your auditions are done, you have a few months "off," meaning that you don't need to really do anything in the asst. manager role. (Which is fantastic since this is where your "music teacher" role picks up again.)

     The next time you are "on" is at the rehearsals. We did 3 rehearsals and then a concert. The 1st and 2nd rehearsals were after school for 4 hours each. The last rehearsal was 3 hours, followed by a concert after.  My main job at the rehearsals was to assist with the administrative parts of the rehearsal- checking in the kids, greeting everyone, answering logistical questions, doing anything the conductor needs, helping the manager and dealing with any behavior issues (this was not really a huge deal since all of these kids supposedly wanted to be there and had earned their spots. With middle school guys, if you lay down the expectations and they respect you, the problems often come when they're super tired or too hungry. lol). 

     Our first rehearsal was pretty good. The pacing was a little slow and the boys came a little less prepared than I was hoping. I mostly watched the conductor and his interaction with the boys. It's difficult to step in with kids who have never sung together or seen you conduct and then make them a cohesive group when you only have 3 days. The boys were fading a bit by dinner. After they ate, things went better. On a positive note, the guys in the group were very respectful, grateful and friendly. There were many different personalities and I think they all felt comfortable just being themselves, which was nice to see. Many of them introduced themselves to students from other towns and to me too, which I wasn't expecting. I was surprised by how many of them came to thank me at every rehearsal, to hold a door, offer help, etc. (Chivalry does still exist!)

     The second rehearsal was probably my favorite. I had been asked to run a sectional, which is a rehearsal with a smaller group rather than all of the voice parts together. When I had been asked, I asked which voice part they wanted me to work with. "Pros" and "cons" of each section (at least as a stereotype) in this group:

Soprano: Pros- usually pretty enthusiastic. Don't challenge things you say. Sound like little angels

Cons- They are usually the youngest so they can get really silly or really tired. Less experience

Alto- Pros- One of the more competitive parts in terms of getting in so they are usually very musical. Their music is usually in a comfortable range for them. Ask good questions.

Cons- Again, can be on the younger side of the group so they can get tired easily. Sometimes lack maturity. Some of their voices have started to change after auditions so they might be dealing with that.

Tenor- Pros- The most competitive. hard-working. Music is usually in a pretty good range for most of them. Want to be good leaders. Respond well to encouragement

 Cons- Sometimes the tenors want to be really cool... in a bad way. Will usually have at least 1 who will make side comments or challenge you about what you're teaching. Sometimes have voice change issues or strain vocally depending on their experience.

Basses- Pros- Usually are the older guys so they are usually have more experience musically. They also like being leaders. They also like thinking that they're the "men" of the group.

Cons- Sometimes they like leading boys to misbehave if they're not engaged. Are less concerned about pleasing someone than they are about having a good time. Sometimes can be rude. Potentially physically giant. 

     Can you guess which one I asked to work with? Tenors. (Another disclaimer- the Soprano, alto and bass sections were all really wonderful and other than getting tired, none of the negative things I said above were there.)  I asked the conductor what he wanted me to rehearse. Unfortunately, I wasn't told until 20 minutes before my prep time was over at school on the day of the rehearsal (with no more free time during the day). I was to rehearse specific notes, entrances and Latin pronunciation on 1 piece. Easy peasy. 2nd piece- 3 themes which were independent lines with lots of syncopation. No problem. I play percussion too so I love rhythmic pieces. Piece 3- Specific notes. Ok. 4 verses of French pronunciation. Huh? Au Sérieux? Tu plaisantes? Confession- I don't speak French. I began to panic and frantically sent my EEK! Help! e-mail to my friend the French teacher. 

     I rehearsed the French with the French teacher and practiced every second that I had free in the day. My poor 8th grade tenor laughed audibly when I told him that I would be teaching the French. (It's okay, he was just teasing.)  I was sick to my stomach.

     The sectional came after the warm-ups at the second rehearsal. As I walked to the classroom, a few gentleman took my music/folder, the keyboard, the keyboard stand and the music stand.. which left me holding the electrical cord for the keyboard- not bad for a group of guys I've just met. I rehearsed the first song. They had a few note problems but responded well to my teaching style. They moved fast and they treated me very respectfully. I had a few great questions and they were enthusiastic. I almost tried to avoid the French piece by putting it last but I knew that I wasn't going to miraculously learn how to speak French while I was teaching another song so I might as well be brave.

     Some teachers feel like they always have to look like they're perfect. I have seen teachers make up blatant lies because they don't know an answer to a question. I have seen teachers deflect questions in fear that they will look stupid. I'm not one of those teachers. I think you can learn from anyone- even awkward middle school boys. I figured I would take the honest route. I said something like "Ok boys, can I be really honest with you?" (Greeted by puzzled middle school boy faces) "I appreciate your hard work and I'm really excited to be working with you. However, I got really intimidated when I found out what I'm supposed to be doing in this sectional. One of my tasks is to teach you 4 verses of French. So, here's the confession. I don't speak French. I'm a singer, so I do know how to get around the language a bit, but I'm not confident about it. So, I guess I'm just trying to ask you to be patient with me and to tell you that I'm doing the best I can while being extremely out of my comfort zone. With that being said, if you're taking French in school and you hear that I'm making a blatant mistake, please feel free to politely correct me." (Greeted by smiles from all the boys who obviously take Spanish and feel my pain.) Then a really relaxed looking tenor in the back row raised his hand. In my head I anticipated "If you don't speak French, why are you teaching us?" but what came out was "Hi. I'm a native French speaker. We speak French at home. I'd be glad to help you out if you need anything." What!?! Score! 

     I put on my brave face and started playing the lines I was supposed to be teaching. I went through a few lines of text until I got a word that I doubted myself on. I looked back at the dapper young gentleman in the back and asked if I was correct. I was, except for the last syllable. Then I thought, I wonder if this kid would feel pressured if I put him on the spot. He looked comfortable. He knew French fluently. Why not? So, I asked after a few more lines of my teaching, if he would mind speaking the text syllable by syllable and having us repeat. "No, I don't mind at all." Hallelujah! I've never wanted to hug a middle school as much as I did in that moment.  To give you a sense of why this was so terrifying to me, listen to the song I was supposed to be teaching. This is not our group but I love their performance. I will warn you that this piece will be stuck in your head and the more you listen to it, the more you'll like it. Listen here. Patriquin- J'entends le Moulin Holy smokes!

      The rest of the rehearsal we spent on the last piece. The boys liked this piece and felt pretty good. I fixed a few things but they were really responsive of my advice. A few of them actually glanced over a few times in the full rehearsal when they did things correctly or to "own it" if they knew they messed up a section. I had such a great time in this rehearsal. Secretly I wish I could've stolen all of them and had them sing for me.. except for the 3 in the back who I anticipate would misbehave if they felt more familiar with me.  Their sound was glorious.

     After sectionals we returned to a full rehearsal where I spent most of my time as "page turner extraordinaire." Again, I just enjoyed listening and managing bathroom breaks. 

     Today was the last day. Thanks for still reading. You're a trooper!  This is where I could relax a little since most of the work is already done. I spent the beginning of the rehearsal page turning, answering questions, checking boys in, and being impressed by how many of them looked really comfortable walking around in a full suit. I ran a few errands for the manager. Oh, and as I was walking back to the rehearsal room, I found a pair of men's suit pants on the floor of the hallway. Figuring that they probably fell off the clothes hanger of one of my boys, I made the unfortunate mistake of announcing that I "found a pair of pants in the hallway and was wondering if anyone was missing them?" I walked right into the smirks and giggles I got. Again, they were gracious and didn't laugh as much as they could have. 

      After the full rehearsal, they had a run through on stage. Aren't they cute?

 Run through was alright, not the best they did but... okay. Then they had lunch- their favorite. After lunch, we had to have them wait in a few classrooms. During this time I awkwardly tied many ties. This comic shows what I was thinking in my head during this time:

 

    The rooms with the younger guys were either all playing games on their phones or acting spazzy. Most of my tenors hung out in the last room and quietly looked over their music or just relaxed. 

Concert time:

    They did great. I was really proud of them. Day over? Nope. After their portion of the concert, we led the boys back to listen to the girls' chorus (and pray that they continue to act like gentleman when they're in front of 200 girls- they did.)  Unfortunately, I spent a lot of this time trying to know where all the boys were since some parents decided they wanted to walk out in the middle of the concert since their child was done.FYI- I know that this is necessary at times but, in general, this is considered really rude concert etiquette. I would say at least 30 families left before the girls performed. When the concert was over, I led the boys back to the classrooms where they sorted their music, got their stuff, said thank you and left to meet their family. After meeting with my own students and making sure they met their parents, I returned to the classrooms to clean up (only a few scraps here and there) and return the music. 

     Next year, I will step up as the manager of the boys chorus.  I really hope most of these students had a positive experience and decide to try out again.  The last time I was involved in the festival, I was the festival coordinator. In my next post, I will tell you what this festival looks like from the perspective of the festival coordinator.  To keep it simple, this will probably be in list format. 

Nerves.. more music teacher stuff

   Today my students are auditioning for our local jr. district festival. If you're not "into music," it's a day where about 1,200 students from 6th-9th grade (from 85 different towns) will come to audition for a spot in the district girls chorus, boys chorus, orchestra, jazz band or concert band. This year I don't have as many as I'd like to have audition going. I have 9 kids coming this year, 6 girls, 3 boys. All of them are good singers. 5 have worked their butts off.  All are very nervous about the audition and 3 of them have been sick this week. As a music teacher, my nerves for them are shot! I was up half the night worrying. Will they get in? Won't they get it? If they get super nervous, will they not try out again next year? What if they go to the wrong part? Can they handle rejection? Will I be disappointed if they don't get in? I'm working as assistant boys chorus manager so I'll get to hear all of the vocalists today. It's extremely competitive and I'm so excited/anxious about it. Hopefully the kids slept easier than I did. I would REALLY disappointed if less than 2 made it in. My aim is 2-5 but that depends on their auditions! Eek. Off to spend the day there.

Incoming 1/12+Thoughts on being a music teacher

   I got 2 nice postcrossing cards today and sent out letters/cards to Iowa, Illinois (2), and South Africa. I feel good about the progress I'm making with the writing but great about creating any art. So, I'm taking tonight to play around with my art journal. I should be cleaning... really. Maybe I'll do both.
     I didn't take pictures of the letters since they were all in average envelopes. (Maybe this is how I can get the creative groove back- making more envelopes!)
     Here are my 2 cards.

     I really like this card from France. The sender is a farmer. I wonder if farming in France is as challenging as here in the US.

   This was a cute card from New York. David giggled when I showed it to him.

The 366 Project:
Sent: 17
Received: 5

       Many of the people who read my blog know that I'm a music teacher as a profession. I teach music class to all of the students in the school and then chorus for all of the students who sign up. Other than some scheduling hassles and normal teaching complaints, I really love my job. I work hard every day and have tons of preparation to do outside of school. I never work just 8-2 and no, I don't have every summer off. Yes, it's "fun" but that doesn't mean that it's silly and that I have no expectations for anyone- or myself. I'm also highly trained and "have gone to school for that." Yes, I'm a "real teacher" even if people you have spoken to in education don't call me that.
     Tomorrow I have the 1st concert of the year with my larger choruses. Normally I do this concert with another colleague but their position got switched so it's me on my own this time. I'm a little nervous about it, mainly because I will be conducting and playing for 1 group while 2 groups are sitting. Honestly, many of my students respect me quite a bit and know the line between time to goof around/ sitting in front of an audience ready to perform. This is the 1st performance for my 5th graders though so they are the ones that would need the reminders.
      Some of you have asked me before to tell you a little more about my teaching so I figured I'd chat tonight about what it takes to prepare for a concert.
    This year, I have 3 choruses that will perform in the concert. The school schedule has them rehearsing with me once during a 4 day cycle. Their class is 23 minutes long. Yeah, that's not a typo. Luckily for my 7th/8th grade chorus, the 4th day of the cycle I can have a sectional (rehearsal with one voice part rather than the whole chorus) so they get to see me a little more. They have been working with me since the beginning of this school year (end of August) to perform in this concert.
     In my head, here's what's going on tonight-
-Is the piano that is left for me to use in tune?
-Will the risers be set up like I requested or will I have to set up 5 giant sets of risers by myself in front of 183 kids and a bunch of parents while wearing formal wear?
-What happens if something unexpected happens off stage while I'm conducting one group and I have to deal with it? I once had to break up the beginning of a fist fight between 2 dads over concert etiquette. Seriously.
- The 5th graders are going to forget their words. Due to "special things" happening before vacation, my last rehearsal before vacation was wrecked. This past rehearsal had 19 kids missing. I'll be lucky if they show up. I'm hoping the concert won't be a negative experience for the ones who are nervous about the words.
- How does this new group of 5th graders perform under pressure?
- Any parents who are upset with me that I will see at the concert?
- Will I be able to hear my small 6th grade chorus?
- Can I trust the 7th/8th graders to be an extra set of eyes (or 130 eyes really) with the younger kids while I'm working with other groups?
- Will an administrator make it to my concert? 1 out of the past 24 concerts. Seriously. I have 25% of the school singing tomorrow night.
- Will all of the kids have someone watching them at the concert? Do they all have rides home? Do they all have concert dress? (More like- is there any kid who will feel like they can't come because their parents won't/can't buy them a white dress shirt and black pants?)
-Print program. Print attendance. Bring concert clothes and shoes. Bring breakfast, lunch and dinner.
- I'm really proud of the work these kids have done. They are really nice kids, hard workers. I would love for them to have a successful concert that really goes well for them but if it doesn't go as well as some of their rehearsals, I'm okay with that.. unless it went badly because they were unfocused and fooling around. In that case they are in trouble, big trouble.

In the head of my students, here's what I feel is going on tonight-
5th grade- Gotta be there at 6:15, gotta be there at 6:15. Mrs. B says not to be late. I don't know these words yet. What if I'm sick? Do I still need to go if I'm sick? Maybe I just won't go. There's a bunch of us, maybe she won't notice. This is scary. It will be cool to sing in a big auditorium. I hope I don't get the stomach bug that's going around 5th grade.

6th grade- Why did they schedule basketball pictures 30 minutes before the concert? Can I get there on time? Ooh, I better not be late, Mrs. B gets wicked mad if people are late. Will they be able to hear us this year? It's a small group.  I really like the songs this year but there are too many words in the middle song. I wonder if my teachers will come.

7th/8th Grade- Okay, get there before Mrs. B said to. I can't wait to show the parents and younger kids what we've been working on. Note to self- don't misbehave. Not to the 3 back row altos- she's talking to you when she tells people to be quiet.  Be a good role model. Watch the younger kids. Wear shoes I won't fall down the stairs in. No really short skirts.  Seriously, do I have to wear a tie? Well, if I wear a tie I'll look pretty awesome. Plus, those 5th grade guys are going to dress up and I don't want them to look more classy than I do. More basketball pictures? Ugh, alright... get to the concert early, I'll change in the car on the way there. What if we mess up? Hope we don't disappoint Mrs. B. How much homework do we have to do after the concert?

    I wish I could put a picture up that would show you what 1 teacher vs 183 students looks like. I'm sure everything will go well but I have to think through everything. I'll update after the concert. If your children are musicians, talk to them about their concerts. If they did horribly, it's okay to ask them what happened (with tact), most of the time they know it went badly. If you don't know what to talk about, ask them what they think went well or what they could've done better. Ask which song is their favorite. Ask them why they like singing in a choir or who their favorite person to sing with is.
     If you want to be kind to a music teacher, say thanks. We all work hard. We don't always want a ton of recognition but we always appreciate a thank you. (Presents are good too. Ha ha) There is nothing worse than a parent coming to yell at you or talk about a problem (unless it directly has to do with the concert) in front of an entire audience of people. It's awkward to explain why your child didn't get the solo in front of all of the other parents, especially if you're telling me why the other kids stunk- usually in front of their parents. Please don't do that- even if the teacher is not your cup of tea. I also like actually knowing who the families I work with are, so feel free to introduce yourself just to put a name with a face. If you really want brownie points, ask if there's anything to do to clean up after the concert.

     What profession do you work in?