This blog began one afternoon as I sat at my desk, writing out reflections on the day’s teaching. It was a habit I had begun earlier that year. I thought that by writing down what had gone well and what had not gone well, I would be able to improve my instruction, and my student’s achievement. When I began to see almost immediate results benefitting my students and me, I thought that it would be a good idea to share my reflections with others, thinking that they might also help other teachers, and be useful to music education majors as well. As I got going with it, I found that writing for this new audience was fun and rewarding. It encouraged me to hear from others who had benefitted from my writing, and it motivated me to break some of my own routines and try new materials and methods. I believe that finding success with fixed do, Dalcroze movement, and incorporating more Orff into my essentially Kodaly based approach were all results of my reflections and blog writing. To those reading this post, I hope that you have benefitted from these pages, now numbering over 500 articles. I hope that I have created a library of teaching resources that will continue to be useful to music educators.

Having finished my 33rd year of teaching, I have retired from public school music teaching. My wife and I begin a new chapter in our lives; I working less and golfing more, she pursuing interests and spending more time with me as we enjoy days unencumbered with full time work (though we both plan to work part-time). I have no more classes upon which to reflect, and less of an inclination to let my thoughts dwell on that from which I have retired. So the posts in their current form will all but end soon. I do hope you who visit Mr A Music Place will continue to use the “contact” page to comment on articles, ask questions, and keep in touch. I will continue to look forward to hearing from you; and who knows, perhaps Mr A Music Place will morph into something new. . .