Leadership has been getting a lot of attention lately. Much of it is directed at what good leadership is, and what good leaders do. I have always maintained that every teacher is a leader, and every good teacher is a good leader. Teachers have more influence over how their students will turn out that possibly … Continue reading Three Leadership Styles In the Music Classroom
Classroom Management
Back To School Done Well
Back to school has always been a mixed bag for me. On the one hand, at this time of year I've had enough time off, and I’m glad to get back to school doing the work I enjoy, and to see my colleague friends once again. Similarly, the students are glad to see their friends … Continue reading Back To School Done Well
Curiosity and Learning
Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it breathes life into every learner. Think of anything you have ever wanted to learn, anything after which you sought more information. Remember times when you thought or said, "isn't that interesting; I wonder what that is." "Or I wonder how that works." Many times, after having your … Continue reading Curiosity and Learning
Covid-19: What’s a Parent to Do?
As the Covid-19 pandemic persists, and the Delta variant infects school age children much more prolifically than the original strain did, returning to school after the summer recess has suddenly become complex and confusing for parents, students, teachers, and administrators. Laws banning mask mandates fly in the face of CDC recommendations that all students wear … Continue reading Covid-19: What’s a Parent to Do?
What Makes A Lesson Well Planned?
Lesson planning is among the most important things teachers do. Without a soundly planned lesson, teaching will inevitably suffer. Planning for classes of 20 or more students, many with varying needs and skill levels, can be challenging, but successfully teaching such a class is virtually impossible if lessons are not properly planned. In this article, … Continue reading What Makes A Lesson Well Planned?
Teachers as Mentors to Students
As we navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic with a balance of remote learning and bringing students back into physical school campuses, many are taking the opportunity to evaluate how the models upon which we teach our children can be improved. While much progress has been made in the last forty years, many of those advances … Continue reading Teachers as Mentors to Students
Teaching Success and Active Listening
Even before the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020, verbal communication had fallen into a degree of disfavor. With social media ever popular, written communication had already replaced spoken word in many settings. With the the need for schools to resort to distance learning and for us all to suspend much of our social calendars to avoid … Continue reading Teaching Success and Active Listening
Designing Instruction for Effective Teaching and Learning
I have written elsewhere in this blog, and most educators agree, that the best learning takes place when instruction is, among other things, planned, intentional, and measurable. One of the most useful models for planning instruction is Understanding by Design (UbD). One of the authors, Jay McTighe, explains UbD in this video. In this article, … Continue reading Designing Instruction for Effective Teaching and Learning
We’re Back…Now What?
Some school districts in the United States have announced that they are re-opening for in-person instruction 5 days a week beginning in January. While some parents will choose to continue some remote learning, many will welcome the return of sending their children to school. In my area, a recent survey found that sixty percent of … Continue reading We’re Back…Now What?
Navigating Conflict with Conversations
I'm sure we have all experienced being sidetracked in our lessons by students' emotional flareups. Sometimes they come without warning, other times we see the knarled brow and clenched fists from the moment a child enters our classroom, communicating to the observant teacher that the child's emotional condition is volatile and that the child could … Continue reading Navigating Conflict with Conversations
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