Loved

     As a teacher, I love getting special little things from students, but it really doesn't matter to me if they give me holiday gifts or not.  I have a really special set of 8th graders this year.   This year, 2 girls whom I am especially close to decided to do something special for me. So, they asked to come to school early to give me my gifts. One of them made caramels for me. The other got me a lotion she knows I wear. Together they put together a gift basket that had an ornament, a Christmas tree door hanger, a Christmas tree decoration, an ornament throw blanket, a Christmas tea towel, holiday themed hand soap, a votive holder, a serving platter and a candle. Then, remember my Thanksgiving tree?

    These 2 girls painted me this sweet little Christmas tree and cut out ornaments for all of the other 8th graders in chorus. All of the ornaments have really special and personal notes to me on the back of them.  (Some of the kids even attached other ornaments behind the first one so their message could be longer.)  I was extremely touched by this gift and by all of their messages. I am really blessed to be able to influence this group of kids and to help them develop their talents. I felt extremely loved when I left school for Christmas vacation.

Lately

      This school year has been busy- a mix of feeling a bit overscheduled and personally doing a lot of things.  I anticipate my schedule getting  a lot crazier over the next few weeks, but it should be fine if I'm conscientious about my scheduling (and if everybody allows me to be a control freak regarding time. lol Sorry in advance.). At least there are some holidays in the mix so there is some planned relaxation too.
      Here are some recent endeavors of mine.
School:
    On the negative side, I usually see all of the students for the same amount of days per rotation. This year has made 5th/6th end together, 7th ends a different day and 8th grade ends yet another time. I have found that this change is throwing me off a lot it's taking a lot of adjustment.  Hopefully, after a bunch of correcting tonight, I will be caught up and be able to keep up from there.
     On a positive note, I have started my Thanksgiving tree project. These are some  background pages that I made from watercolor paints that will eventually be cut into leaf shapes that I will write my notes on. I really like the bottom one.  My sister-in-law, Sarah, graciously offered to use her Cricut to help me with a making leaves out of some gelli-printed paper. Thanks again, Sarah!

Personally:
     This past week was full of some fun events. I got to remind my kids that we are blessed enough to help others by donating to a local toy drive. While we were there, we were given tickets to go see The Pentatonix! (For those near Boston, this was Karson, Kennedy and Salt from Mix 104.1)

We saw Abi, who was not our taste in music, but she seemed like a nice girl. Then we got to see Us the Duo, who we loved. I had never seen or heard them before. Here is a song they wrote for their wedding. They performed it live and I really enjoyed it. Both of them are extremely talented musicians and I was impressed with the different styles that they performed.

   If you don't know the Pentatonix, shame on you... here is a link to their music too! Here is a cover of an Imogen Heap song they did. Again, incredible musicians.

Oh, and while I'm spreading incredible musicianship around, did I mention Kevin, known as the beatboxer of Pentatonix? Woah..

   Then, we had Veteran's Day off. (Thanks if you are a veteran who is reading this!) I brought the kids up to Maine to visit my parents.  It was a nice time, relaxing.

   When we came home on Saturday, Tim's team won their flag football championship:

     Then we went to Boston to celebrate my father-in-law's birthday! I also got to meet my newest niece, Naomi.


Penpalling:
    I received quite a few letters over the past few weeks, including a few secret letters from the Penpalling & Letters Secret Letter Event. I am sending this one out tomorrow. Then I have a lot of writing to do!!!

Now what?
     Next week I will start working on the musical. I am also auditioning kids for a few opportunities. It is a lot of work. I'm hoping for a week free of negative parent e-mails. 
      If you celebrate Thanksgiving, do you have any special plans or traditions? The week of Thanksgiving we do a really fun volleyball tournament with the students. It's a blast!

Currently 10/23

Watching:  

     Life has been pretty busy so I have not really been watching anything on TV. I have seen a few little Halloween specials with the boys. I have enjoyed watching all of the beautiful New England foliage. Our back woods are currently filled with gorgeous yellows, reds, oranges and even a few pretty browns. If it's not raining tomorrow, I will try to go snap a picture.

Reading:

     I am enjoying this book a lot right now. This year has felt a little overwhelming to me. I don't think I'm really doing anything too out of the ordinary, but I have just been mentally and physically tired for a while now. I choose my next "to read" book in a sort of random way so this one came at just the right time. I think I am going through a season of life where some former priorities and not as important to me and some things I felt I "had to do" aren't obligations to me. This doesn't mean that I'm necessarily taking more time for myself, which maybe I should, but that the time I am choosing to protect is spent doing meaningful things. Here are some quotes from the book that have made me think over the past few weeks:

     "Without conscious intervention, this pattern of chronically overscheduling ensures that the priorities you care about most will take a backseat to the urgent priorities of others every time." (Hear me, Sarah?)    I am guilty of this a lot- every day in fact. How often do I stay after to help a student or to chat with a kid who just wants to hang out for a minute while my own kids are home hoping I will have some "free time" for them? It's painful to think about- especially since I really enjoy my job too.  I have recently attempted to fix some of these imbalances.

      "Put more simply, one of the greatest blessings in life is to love your work, to be satisfied in your daily labors." Amen. My job is hard and has many challenges, but I feel that it is my calling so it makes the little stuff easier to deal with. It is also greatly rewarding to follow through what I feel God has prepared me to do and to use my gifts/talents for His glory.


     
     "Relationships, like every other area of life, require regular evaluation, pruning, and strengthening." Hybels says that there are 3 levels of friendship- circumstancial friends, true friends- for a season and lifelong friends. This chapter challenged me. There have been some friends that have hurt me recently. I thought they were lifelong friends, but perhaps they were just friends for a season. Again, they were good friends and I'm not quite sure what happened, but this chapter has made me feel more at peace. I also have some friends who probably feel the same way about me. Truth is, there are sometimes where people just grow apart- especially if they have different values or motives in life.  Examining my friendships and potential friendships has been a healthy activity for me this week.

Listening:
      My normal Pandora mixes. Lately I've been listening to a lot of Scala & Kolacny Brothers. I really like their sound.

Making:
      David and I just made Apple Betty- one for us and one for our neighbors. It is currently baking and I cannot wait to smell the delicious scent of the cinnamon-y apples.  *I may or may not let my kids stay up to eat a piece.

Feeling:
    Physically I have been struggling. I think whatever was causing the hives last spring is acting up. This weekend my whole body hurt. My feet are freezing. My knee and left leg are hurting a lot. (Remember that bursitis and plantar fasciitis? I think they are going to revisit me). It was so painful todaythat I laid down "for a few minutes" and fell asleep for 3 hours. I feel a little better now, but I'm hoping that things don't get worse before they get better. All of these things could be caused by the inflammation that was going on with the hives.  I have an appointment with the allergist in a few weeks. She will then take me off the medicine I've been on gradually. If things are going to return, it will be then. Wish me luck.

Planning:
   It's getting late tonight, but I would like to correct a lot and finish a letter to Monique in The Netherlands!

Loving:
    I'm loving being grateful for small things. Sometimes the small things in life are bigger than they seem. Here are some things that I've been grateful for: -apples, colorful foliage, dates with all 3 of my boys, a delicious latte I had (usually don't drink them) with creme brulee at a new restaurant, new friends, correspondence with penpals, success of students (especially the ones who don't actually like music but work hard because I have asked them to), talent of the next generation, random acts of kindness, film scores (some music is incredibly beautiful. How do these guys write stuff like this?), cool weather, hot chocolate, people who work with church education programs, previous students, sweet gifts from students (like a Yankee candle I just got- or the flowers sent to me for my birthday), my faith, all of the upcoming holidays.

    What are the "small things" you have been enjoying lately?

How sweet

    Today is my birthday. I got a call during a class today telling me that there was "something special" downstairs. After some speculations from my 5th graders (and them realizing that it is my birthday), another teacher brought me these flowers. The students were convinced they were from my husband and sons. I didn't think they were because I'd be just as happy if the boys went and made me a leaf bouquet as I would if they spent $150 on roses (probably be more happy with the bouquet since we aren't rich). Well, I opened the card and, wouldn't you know, they are from 2 8th grade girls and a 5th grade boy (brother of one of the 8th graders).  How sweet. In addition to that, they gave me a card and each wrote a special letter to me. I'm so blessed.

 

PS. I was also spoiled at home :)

Help with a music lesson?

Every rotation, in my 7th grade class, I try to do an activity where I play examples of traditional and popular music from different countries and ask the students to identify where it's from. I listen to hours of music every time I prepare for this lesson. I love that part. However, it would be a lot easier for me if I had a link to your country's popular music charts. I have searched many places but I'm not always sure I have the most legitimate list for the job. If you wouldn't mind helping me, would you leave a link in the comment section? Much appreciated!

PS. This week the kids are listening to music (traditional or on the popular music charts) of Australia, Bali, Brasil, Canada, China,   Egypt, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Slovenia, Spain, Thailand, and the US.

Good for my soul

    This past week was a little rough. It was one of those weeks where you just kind of go through each day waiting to get to the next day. Nothing was great. Nothing was really TOO awful, but things just feel "off."  The week started off well but took a bad turn on Wednesday. Since it wasn't a huge deal, I didn't realize how emotionally weary I felt. The band director suggested I come to the football game to hear the band and just have a night out. In my head I thought, yes, that would be nice. In my heart I thought, one more thing to do- and on Friday night, my only time this weekend that I don't have anything to do. Matt did not want to go. David "doesn't really like football" but Tim, the endless adventurer like me, wanted to come. I thought it would be a special thing for him and I would love to connect him with some of my old students who are in the band.
     So, we went. If you were a band musician in high school, you have most likely played at hundreds of football games. I forgot how much fun they could be. We have a very small band at the moment. Our band director is wonderful and in a few years I bet the band is going to be huge. He's really a classy, nice guy and a wonderful friend to me. It was nice for me to reconnect with families who had "graduated" from the middle school. Many parents came to say hello and to meet my son. Current students said hello on their way by and some stopped to chat. The kids who sang for me and were in band were all happy to see me too. It was a nice (and apparently needed) reminder of the impact of my relationship/teaching to each student. I don't expect that every student will "like" me or that I will be the best match for everyone, but it feels extremely good to see that many of these kids still have a huge amount of respect for me.
     After the game, I was invited to go out to eat with everyone. It was such a blessing to sit with the 25 teens, catch up on their lives, introduce them to Tim and have some great food. I heard good and bad news  about various students (that I didn't always ask for), heard that one of my kids had a 99% average and looks like he might be valedictorian, got invited to other games/events that the kids were taking part in, and reconnected with some kids I was really close with while they were in middle school. One girl, who was very emotionally reserved in middle school and sang for me for 4 years, confessed that she really missed me and thought about me a lot. I confessed that I think about her too every day I have my 7th/8th grade chorus and that I miss her too. I also got a letter from another student that was passed on through the band director. We stayed out until 11:30.
     On my way home, I realized that I had been feeling really low this past week. I was reminded that my involvement with these kids really has influenced who I am as a person and I feel like I am better because of all of them. Last night was a huge blessing for me. I am really thankful my friend "suggested" that I tag along. PS. Tim has been challenged to join the trumpet section in the high school band for next week's game. He is determined to learn the music and give it a try.

      Speaking of teaching, if you are a teacher and have not seen this, check it out. It is important to remind your students that they seen and appreciated. I wish every school would do this or that every child would have a teacher tell them that they are cared about. If you aren't a teacher, check it out anyways. I know that all teachers have felt this way about at least 1 student in their career. I am sure many can name 100s of students they felt this way about.

Update on the fall to do list. Things I've done so far:
Celebrate Tim's birthday
Visit Grammy and Papa
Snuggle in a cozy blanket
Drink hot chocolate
Go see a high school football game
Go hiking/ for a walk
Enjoy a cup of tea on a chilly morning
Get a massage

Update

      If you are a person who chats with me often (or follows the blog), you probably know that my February is usually spent writing tons of letters, March- making a bunch of music with various groups and April is a bit of a break before my end of the year concerts make me super busy. Currently I'm on the tail end of April school vacation I have a bit of time before a dentist appointment so I thought I would use that time to say hello! Here's what has been going on with me.  I'll start with my mail related stuff since most of the people who read this, I've connected with through my 366 Project, penpalling or Postcrossing.

Mail update:

     Can you believe that, for the first time in... forever, that I actually got to a point where every single letter that needed a response was answered? I have never really had no "reply" pile. Lately the mail has started coming in again and I have this pile to respond to.

   Marilyn, your letter is on the way. Then there is a letter from Ashley in Wi, Cathey in TX, Sue in Australia and Marianne in The Netherlands. Ambitiously, I'm trying to answer all of these this week/ weekend.
     I have also gotten some cool postcards lately. They are from Russia, US (from my friend Jessie), China, US, Taiwan. Germany and The Netherlands :

    This little card came for Timmy and I had to show it to you. It's a watercolor card that was painted by the Postcrosser who sent it to him. I kind of want to steal it! Ha ha. Very cute!

Work:

    Work has been busy, as always. It has been a mix of super rewarding and super aggravating. At the beginning of the month, my students performed in the Junior District Festival.  (If you want to know more about the festival, I have written about them in previous blog posts.) Since my schedule is insane, I have been eating my lunch with the students who were preparing for the festival everyday for about 2 months. It was slightly stressful to not have any free time during the day, but I enjoyed this chance to work with 6 of them on a more individual level. I was very proud of them all. They all grew a lot musically over the past few months. I also really enjoyed getting to know them all a little better, though some of them feel like additional children to me by this point. I was also managing the boys choir at this festival. All of the boys were great. It was a great experience for me (again!).
Boys Chorus:

Girls Chorus:

Flowers my students gave me (Rather, flowers 1 family gave me and were gracious enough to say they were from everybody! Unnecessary, but appreciated):

     Then, the next week, our school put on the musical Peter Pan. Honestly, this cast was not the easiest to work with so at times it was very stressful. With that being said, the students were great and very talented, just a lot of drama with some of the older students and some people who were not as cooperative, no- just people who didn't think other people were as important as they were, as others. I'm glad it's over. I was happy with the performances of most of the students and I was also proud of a woman who stepped up as the new drama director for the first time this year. (I am the music director for the show) I also got some pretty flowers from "the cast." (Aka.. best friend of the girl who gave me the flowers the week before and 2 other families. ha ha.)

   One thing I have really valued over the past few weeks is the connection that I have with many of my students. I appreciate that they are willing to be vulnerable and try all the things I ask them to, despite the fact that their voice "can't do that," or so they think. I feel honored that many of their families respect me and get to know me. I am glad I have a place of influence with many of these kids in a time when they need it.

Personal:

    There have been lots of changes here too. Matt's job has changed a bit. He used to manage a candy store during the nights and weekends. He had been asked if he would have interest apprenticing to be a candy maker a while ago. He was very interested. Unfortunately, the man he was learning from died unexpectedly. Matt has taken on the responsibility of this new position during their busiest season, right before Easter. Fortunately for us, he loves it and it has changed his schedule so that he is home more at night and on the weekends. It has been quite the adjustment but it's pretty cool. (Not to mention, chocolate!!!)
     The boys are good. They are both doing very well in school. Baseball season is starting up. David had his first practice last night and Timmy has his first scrimmage tonight. We took a few nights and went to my parents' house in Maine. On the way up we stopped on the beach and looked at some tidepools in York, Maine. The next day we went to visit my cousin, Tom, in New Hampshire. We had not seen his family in a few years so we were really happy that they were around. I hope we get together more often. Other than that, we just relaxed and spent a lot of time hanging out and reading.
     Speaking of relaxing, today is the nicest day of the year so far. It's 73 here in Ma. Matt is working. The boys and I decided to go for a walk on our local rail trail. We went to a playground and then walked about 2 miles. I love the rail trail in the fall and was surprised that it looked a little less alive in the spring. (I think I was expecting more green!) Beautiful day though!
Playground

Rail trail

 We heard some rustling and found this little pile of squirmy snakes. Ashley, I don't know why, but this made me think of you. Perhaps it was all the rattlesnake talk last year.

 Beaver damage

3,000 miles from Calais, ME to Key West, FL.  Wouldn't that be a cool hike?

      In other very unfortunate news, I think that my plantar fasciitis is coming back in both feet. I have been in excruciating pain for a few days despite stretching. I'm icing my feet like crazy in hopes that I won't pay for exercising tonight. I have a massage scheduled for tomorrow so maybe that will help.
    

Upcoming:

    The next few weeks are pretty tame but things will get busy soon. As I mentioned earlier, Timmy has his first scrimmage tonight. I'm looking forward to getting to know his new team.  He is really enjoying playing with them so far.
      I have a concert to play for on 4/30 and then 2 graduations to play in. I'm conducting 3 concerts between now and the end of the school year.
      We are also considering going to Canada for a vacation this summer. We're trying to decide between visiting Quebec or Nova Scotia? If you have been to Canada, or live there, we would be glad to get some recommendations about where we should stay or what we should try to do. Where are some of your favorite places?

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.

   



   

Thanksgiving tree part 1

   So some of my penpals have asked me to write here about my Thanksgiving project that I did last year and have decided to do again this year. Last year, I was very close to the 8th grade class. In October of last year, it was obvious that  many of the kids were struggling with anxiety and there was an incident that happened with one of our students that really affected a lot of kids. I knew that these kids really respected me and I knew that my words had power to heal and to show love. So, I decided to make a big tree in my room with a leaf for each student who sang for me. I painted/ printed/doodled, etc each leaf by hand. Then I wrote them all a sincere note on the back about why I appreciated them and my hopes for them. I hung them up in my room on a large "tree" (hey, it's the thought that counts right?).  This is what it looked like. I think some people had already taken their leaf. (It was about 8 feet high and 8 feet wide.)


     I called the kids to come up and get their leaf on the day before Thanksgiving. Many of my 8th graders were smart enough to know that each leaf was different and that each person had a note, which was also different. Thankfully, nobody (well... 2 girls- which out of a few hundred wasn't bad.) sat and compared notes.
     About a month ago a little boy, who is now in 6th grade, told me that I am "the most considerate person he knows" because of this tree project. I was really humbled and since then many other students have commented about how they still have their leaves in their binders, their bedrooms or framed. I decided to do the project again this year.
    I have been diligently making leaves and writing notes. I'm finished 5th-8th grade up to the Es. I have a long way to go. I'm hoping that at least 1 kid really needs to hear the words I write to them.
     THANK YOU SARAH! I have been using a gelli print on the leaf cutouts you made me. When I put up the picture of this year's tree I want you to know that all the maple leaves are the ones you made me. Thank you!

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?

Redditgifts for Teachers 2015

   Every year, Redditgifts gives teachers from all over the world a chance to benefit from the generosity of others. Teachers can submit a wishlist or people can just donate whatever they'd like. Honestly, I would've been happy with anything- tissues, dry erase markers, posters, a pack of pencils- ANYTHING. I was blown away by the generosity of the woman who was assigned to me. Here's what she bought for my students:

 I plan to use these instruments will all grades. They are small, durable and sound musical. (There are some instruments designed for kids that are horrible.) My students will love these.

 I have the 6th graders engineer their own instruments. Twice last year, students asked if I had a glue gun in that class. (One 8th grade boy brought one in when he was working on opera costumes.) So, now I have one!

This is a theory workbook- combined teacher and student edition. I plan to use it for kids who need a bit of a challenge and for my chorus kids (who have no choice but to be challenged..lol). She also gave me an ITunes gift card, which I plan to use to see if the kids can identify traditional and modern (current top 10 hits) from various countries).
     Lissa, if you are reading this, thank you again. Opening the packages was like Christmas! Any one of these gifts would've been generous, never mind all of them. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I survived!

   These past few months have been insanely busy for me. The past 2 weeks I had a bunch of important things that happened. So, as a quick glimpse of my world, I'll just write a few sentences about each thing.

Chorale Concert- Performed for a local Masonic Lodge and they cooked dinner for us. They also gave me a donation. Hundreds of students have benefited from the generosity of this group. I was happy with the concert and the entire night
Broadway/Matilda- A colleague of mine set up a trip to NYC where 25 students took a musical theatre/choreography class with Geoff Packard. It was awesome and I love the advice Geoff shared with them. After, we ate lunch in Times Square (an adventure) and then saw Matilda, which I really liked.

Broadway/Matilda- A colleague of mine set up a trip to NYC where 25 students took a musical theatre/choreography class with Geoff Packard. It was awesome and I love the advice Geoff shared with them. After, we ate lunch in Times Square (an adventure) and then saw Matilda, which I really liked.

Chorus Concert- 5 different groups of performing kids that I was in charge of. 3 grade level choruses and 2 small, special groups. Was happy with my 5th and 6th grade, had huge attitude issues in my older grades (VERY unusual for this group). Was sad to have a negative last concert with my 8th grade.  I'm sure it wasn't as bad as it felt to me to the audience, though there were some obvious mess ups. The next day..

Festival- Started the day with a very honest "heart to heart" with my chorus kids- mostly geared toward the older kids.I am glad that I was real and that they heard what I was trying to say.  Took 88 kids to a music festival where they sang for judges, had a short workshop, got a rating and then went to Six Flags New England. The whole day was extremely positive (after my chat) and I really enjoyed just being myself with my students. They also sang well. Both choirs got a gold rating (out of bronze, silver, gold and platinum).

In my personal life:
Family- Boys are busy with baseball. We're having a blast. We're going to celebrate my Nana's 90th birthday in a surprise party tomorrow. I have planned a Mommy Date for the boys to go see Newsies in Boston at the end of June.

Letters- I'm way behind. I have not written to anyone in weeks. I will work on catching up now that I can breathe. I only have 1 more concert this year.

Currently 5/2

Currently

Watching: Lots of Little League baseball. Today is opening day and we just had our parade. The boys both have a game in a few hours. Here's the uniforms (on the 1 day they'll look spotless!)

Also, I saw this bird a few years ago in my yard, but never knew what it was. He's back. He's a yellow-shafted Northern Flicker. I found some beautiful pictures but they all look like they're copyrighted. Look it up. Cool bird.

Reading: "Ordinary" by Tony Merida. I'm enjoying it so far. It has given me a few things to think about regarding my faith. (Or rather, how I demonstrate my faith) It speaks of how people can make a large impact through humble acts of service while practicing ordinary Christianity. I won this book on GoodReads. 

Listening: Wow, nothing this week. I have been really busy and have not had a lot of time to slow down.  Actually, one of my 8th grade music classes is doing my opera project. They are writing an opera that mixes Spongebob and Pokemon. It's actually pretty good and they're really into it. For their choreography and the background music for one of their arias, they're using some Pokemon instrumental tracks. It's actually pretty good.  That has been stuck in my head all week along with a "rap version" of "Let it Go," which is basically rewritten words with 1 boy beatboxing between a few of the phrases. They have to compose most of the music but can have 1 song based on another piece.

Making: I'm putting together a presentation to "spotlight the singers" in our school. I have taken a picture of each chorus kid and asked them to write a short bio. I'm putting them all up at our school's parents night. It's a lot of work but I'm really enjoying reading what the kids are writing. 

Feeling: 

Tired- I need a serious break and I'm really impatient with drama.

Grateful- See David's cute uniform? The Minor League team Fisher Cats donated all the replica jerseys. I thought that was really nice of them. Everyone else has t-shirts so these little guys look sharp!

Planning: Still working on the field trip as well as all of my performances.

Loving:  I love baseball season. I like seeing how the kids grow in their skills over the season and watching the games play out. The kids only play 1 sport and do a few other activities so it's really a joy for me to go to their games. 

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.