On September 15-16, 2017 I attended "Tanglewood Conversation" at Boston University. It was a meeting of music educators from within the Boston University music education community to discuss issues of importance to music education in 2017 and to mark the 50th anniversary of the original Tanglewood Symposium held in 1967. What follows are a few … Continue reading Musical Literacy and Inclusion
General Music
Toccata Blocks: A Tool To Help Teach Rhythm
No matter what method you use to teach music, be it Kodaly, Orff, or any other, when it comes to music reading there are certain aspects of our music notational system that are counter-intuitive and confusing to students who are just beginning. One of those difficulties is often the irrelevance of how the notes are … Continue reading Toccata Blocks: A Tool To Help Teach Rhythm
Demystifying Pre-assessment
Pre-assessment can be a confusing, even upsetting thing for teachers and students. Most of the confusion and upsetting arises from a sense of unfairness; how can students be tested on something we know they don't know? When approached in this manner, pre-assessment stirs up anxiety for teachers and students alike. Considering this, the first step … Continue reading Demystifying Pre-assessment
Using Portfolios to Improve Music Instruction
Portfolios in education are collections of student work and of documents related to those pieces of student work. They make possible the documentation of student activity and learning, the reflecting upon work even days or weeks after it is completed, and the charting of progress over time as work collected at various moments is compared … Continue reading Using Portfolios to Improve Music Instruction
What Are The Fundamentals of Teaching Elementary Music?
Whether you will be starting your music teaching career next fall, are assuming your first ever elementary music position after previously teaching at another level or an instrumental program, or are a seasoned elementary music teacher who benefits from reminders and self-challenges (that's me, by the way), I thought it would be helpful to go … Continue reading What Are The Fundamentals of Teaching Elementary Music?
After The Concert
Recently, a sort of firestorm on Facebook was started by a music teacher sharply criticizing colleagues who stop teaching the curriculum after the final concert of the year. He stated that in doing so, these teachers are "degrading" their music programs. He went on to vent and in so doing offended some. The post was … Continue reading After The Concert
Assessment Is A Good Thing–Even For Music Teachers
There is a feeling among many music teachers, especially at this time of year when student progress must be documented, that assessment in music is a necessary evil, required by mandated teacher evaluation and/or school districts. While assessment is required by these authorities, it should not be handled merely as nuisance paperwork, because there is … Continue reading Assessment Is A Good Thing–Even For Music Teachers
What Does ‘Explain and Demonstrate’ Mean?
As teachers, we are all familiar with asking students to explain something. Explaining requires that students go beyond reciting a memorized answer, or randomly deciding on a response. Explaining involves giving reasons for why an answer was given, and the giving of evidence from a text. Demonstrating, on the other hand, is showing or doing … Continue reading What Does ‘Explain and Demonstrate’ Mean?
Singing and Rapping: Two Vocal Traditions
Every now and again, when I say to a student, "please stop talking and instead sing," I get a reply of "but talking and singing are the same thing." I used to be amazed that anyone would not pick up on the differences between spoken word and sung lyrics. But then I stopped to reflect … Continue reading Singing and Rapping: Two Vocal Traditions
Using Student Feedback to Improve Instruction
In order to provide the best possible instruction for our students, we must be informed about what they are experiencing as they go through the learning activities we have planned for them. We must know what difficulties individual students are having, what progress each student is making, and what connections the student is making between … Continue reading Using Student Feedback to Improve Instruction
mister a music place 
You must be logged in to post a comment.