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You may have seen the meme/gif going around with this word on it.  What a perfect way to describe how many of us feel at the end of the school year!  I'm sharing three ideas for what you can do when you feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and overstimulated. Instagram:  @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website: www.jessicagrant.org

How do we finish the year well when we're so tired?  What should we choose to push forward on and what do we ease up on?  Here are six things I'm doing at the end of the year to keep learning continuing in the classroom and reviewing material already learned.  Ideas include: Podcasting Lessons Teaching New Instruments (sounds crazy, but I'll explain) Short Unit Plans Reviewing material learned throughout the year Taking musical learning outside Online learning with Blookets, Kahoots and Gimkits Follow me on Instagram @howtoteachmusicwithjessica and head to my website www.jessicagrant.org  to learn more!  

I’ve often found it challenging to find books that I love to use with my older students so I created this fairy tale project to use possibly familiar stories in a way that allows students to work together to create short speech pieces/raps and put together an entire classroom performance, if you desire. Today I'm sharing the process I use with my students for this project over four class periods.  Use it as a guide with your students or follow it as shared! You can use this project with the fairy tale stories that I’m sharing today or use other themed literature: the little people musical artist books would work for this, Aesop’s fables, or any group of stories based on a theme.  Love the project and want to use it in your classroom?  Head to www.jessicagrant.org, click on shop and look for Fairy Tales: Drumming and Speech Piece. You can also read the transcript of the episode in the podcast page on the website. Book:  Endlessly Ever After by Laurel Snyder  

Calligrams are a word or part of a text where the design and layout of the letters or words create a visual image that relates to the word themselves.  They can be created using one phrase, individual words, song lyrics, poems, or specific text. In today's episode, you'll hear four ideas for using calligrams in the classroom and learn how I used a calligram project with my students based on song lyrics.  Want to purchase the project?  Head to www.jessicagrant.org and click on shop to purchase! Website: www.jessicagrant.org Instagram: @howtoteachmusicwithjessica

This past week I spent time backpacking in the Smoky Mountains with my seventh grade students.  Here are five lessons I learned in the woods that apply to teaching at the end of the year (or anytime really!) Website:  www.jessicagrant.org Instagram: @howtoteachmusicwithjessica

Allison Russo is a consultant, writer and educator who has written a fantastic book called “Planning Purpose.”  I’ve enjoyed working through the process within the book to find ways to implement my values and the values of my students into the content I’m teaching.  I’m excited for you to learn from Allison and encourage you to follow her on Instagram @thecriticalgood. Allison’s Bio:  Consultant, writer, and educator Allison Russo has dedicated her career to creating more ethical and effective arts learning spaces. She has a BM from Ithaca College and an MM from Boston University, both in Music Education. As an elementary band teacher and non-profit arts leader, Allison has designed and delivered music programming to thousands of students and teachers. Allison founded The Critical Good, an arts education consultancy in 2021, where she facilitates the creation of ground-up and equity-focused strategic plans for the arts departments of schools and nonprofits. She is also a graduate course facilitator for the Longy School of Music at Bard College, a collaborator with consulting firm WolfBrown, and freelance grant writer. She envisions a world where arts education is boundless, universally accessible, and joyful for all. Links:  Instagram - @thecriticalgood Website - www.thecriticalgood.com   Jessica Grant's Links: Instagram - @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website - www.jessicagrant.org     

Sharing ten things that are making a difference in my life right now.  Life lessons.  Specific content and apps.  Things in general. Instagram: @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website: www.jessicagrant.org

This project is a huge hit with my students!  Listen in to hear how you can use Minecraft, Flip, and Student Peer Reviews to help students learn about Musical Artists.  Purchase materials for the project HERE! You'll hear: *Ideas for using the project with your students *Four levels of implementation (peaceful, easy, normal, hard) *Student peer reviews *Rubrics and more   How to record your screen with Flip   Jessica Grant Website:  www.jessicagrant.org Instagram:  @howtoteachmusicwithjessica

I loved this chat with Ashley Brown Woodside.  Ashley is an incredible musician, dancer and educator who loves to inspire her students through the use of movement and music.  More specifically in using elemental concepts in movement to guide their learning and musical experiences. We talk about several movement ideas including: Defining elemental movement Making movement accessible and challenging Differentiating experiences to reach all learners Gaining confidence as teachers in our own movement  Supporting students in collaborative work Ashley's Bio: Ashley Brown Woodside is dedicated to exploring the interplay of creative dance and music education. She is an accomplished dancer and saxophone player with a Bachelor’s in Music Education from Syracuse University and a Master’s in Liberal Studies from Manhattanville College. She completed her Orff Schulwerk Levels at the San Francisco International Orff Course. Ashley has been an approved Teacher Educator in Movement Levels I - III, instructing at summer Orff levels courses since 2013. Her articles on elemental movement have been published in The Orff Echo. In addition to presenting workshops to school systems and chapters nationally and abroad, Ashley leads a Montessori Lower Elementary general education class, teaches PreK-6th grade children Music & Movement, and provides private woodwind instruction at The Tidewater School in Maryland. Ashley's Contact Information:  orangeashe@gmail.com Jessica Grant Instagram: @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website: www.jessicagrant.org

There is an art to designing a lesson plan.  Learning your personal pacing and the pacing of your students' work takes time and experience.  Here are a few ideas to help you figure out how to pace your lessons from start to finish! Follow me on Instagram @howtoteachmusicwithjessica! Website:  www.jessicagrant.org  

Have you ever had this happen: Your lesson moves at a faster pace than expected and you have extra time emaining.  Or your class time has ended, your students are lined up, but their teacher isn’t there yet and you might be there for a few minutes longer.  What do you do?  Five minutes may not seem like it’s that big of a deal, but in the teaching world it can feel like an eternity.   Here are five ideas for what to do if you’re waiting in the hallway and five ideas for what to do if you have five minutes left of class. Instagram:  @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website:  www.jessicagrant.org          

This conversation with Bryson Tarbet about differentiation is extremely relevant and insightful.  It will get you thinking about how you already differentiate learning in the classroom and things you might want to try.  Most of all I hope you come away from our talk being encouraged by what you’re already doing, thinking about how to give your students what they need where they are and allowing your students to share ideas and thoughts for trying things in new ways you may not have thought of. Brysons Bio Bryson Tarbet is a PreK-6th grade general music teacher just outside of Columbus, Ohio. He received his Bachelor’s of Music in Music Education from Ohio Wesleyan University and his Master of Music in Music Education with a Kodály emphasis from Capital University. Bryson spent his first year out of college as part of an elementary school intervention team and he fell in love with working with students with disabilities. Due to this experience, as well as his personal experience as a neurodiverse individual, Bryson feels very strongly about advocating for sensory and emotionally-inclusive classrooms. Bryson started That Music Teacher, LLC with the goal of sharing different perspectives on issues pertaining to the lives of music educators across the country. He also hosts That Music Podcast, a podcast for elementary music teachers and is the educator behind the Elementary Music Summit. More information about Bryson and That Music Teacher can be found at www.ThatMusicTeacher.com. Bryson can also be found on Instagram and Facebook @ThatMusicTeacher. BRYSON TARBET LINKS Instagram: @thatmusicteacher Website: That Music Teacher TPT Free Disabilities Guide   JESSICA GRANT LINKS Instagram: @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website:  www.jessicagrant.org Book:  Afternoon Ti Guide to Teaching Music F-Flat Books and Amazon  

In Episode 242 I talked about how to prepare a musical and shared four areas to get you started:  selecting a musical, gathering content ideas, holding auditions and getting started with the first rehearsal. Last week in episode 243 I talked about how to structure and organize your rehearsals so that you can maximize the time you have to teach scenes and songs. Today it’s all about the performance: creating a printed or online program, using checklists, pre-show warm-ups, exercises and chats, and celebrating the work that you and your students have done. I hope you've enjoyed this three episode series about putting on musical theatre performances with your students! Instagram: @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website:  www.jessicagrant.org Books:  The Afternoon Ti Guide to Teaching Music on F-Flat Books and Amazon

Get your Musical Theatre Prep Guide HERE!  The guide is a fully editable Google Doc with over 10 pages of content that can help you plan everything from auditions to casting to student groups, rehearsal schedules and more! Today's episode is all about how to structure and organize rehearals for musical theatre productions using rehearsal groups, student leaders and planning content. Check out last week's podcast Episode 242 to hear about how to prepare to teach a musical: selecting the musical, gathering content ideas, holding auditions and starting with that first rehearsal.   Website:  www.jessicagrant.org Instagram: @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Book: The Afternoon Ti Guide to Teaching Music at F-Flat Books and Amazon

Doing a spring musical?  Today’s focus is about how to prepare for the musical.  Some of the things you might want to think about before auditions begin and before rehearsals start.  All the things to consider as you select your musical, prepare documents for casting and costumes, the audition process and planning out your first rehearsal. Follow me on Instagram at @howtoteachmusicwithjessica Website:  www.jessicagrant.org TpT:  How to Teach Music with Jessica Grant    

Do you present at music teacher workshops and conferences?  Or is this something you're hoping to do?  I'm here to help! I'm sharing four things you should consider when presenting music educator workshops: 1 - Session Titles 2 - Session Content 3 - Pacing 4 - Visuals with Googles Slides, Powerpoint, etc. You'll hear ideas for how to get started, plan a session and implement what you already do in the classroom to share with other music teachers. Follow me on Instagram for more ideas:  @howtoteachmusicwithJessica Head to my website at www.jessicagrant.org and sign up for my free monthly newsletter that contains a free lesson idea and teacher content.  

The Afternoon Ti Podcast is shifting to a new name:  How to Teach Music with Jessica Grant.  There are several reasons for this rebranding, which I share in today's episode.  You'll hear what's staying the same (music ed content) and what's changing (titles of content). Another new change:  I have a new instagram handle.  @highafternoonti is now... @howtoteachmusicwithJessica If you listen to my podcast regularly, I'd love for you to rate the show and write a review.  It'd mean so much to have you share what you enjoy learning, what listeners can expect and anything else you'd like to share. Head to my website www.jessicagrant.org for more content and to sign up for my monthly newsletter.  Get free lesson ideas, information about music ed topics and more! Welcome to How to Teach Music with Jessica Grant!    

I'm always looking for new ideas to use for creative movement in the classroom.  There was a video that came across my social media feed of a large group performing choreographed hand movements that were sharp and precise.  The performers wore all black clothing and sat in a riser formation.  They used their arms and hands to create motions that moved in straight lines, parallel lines, and in canon.  This is called tutting. In today's episode I share the process I have been using to teach my students how to tut.  Tutting can be done with the entire body, but we've focused only on the hands and arms.  You'll hear how to get started with performing tutting in your classroom, allow students to create movements within the piece, and selecting music to use. Head to my website (www.jessicagrant.org) to access show notes that include links to videos and articles about tutting.  Click on the Podcast tab and find Episode 240. Follow me on Instagram @highafternoonti. Want more teacher content?  Purchase my book The Afternoon Ti Guide to Teaching Music at F-Flat Books or on Amazon.

Today I'm sharing how to create an Orff arrangement of a pop song using barred instruments, ukuleles or recorders.  You'll hear: - How to select a song - How to arrange and transpose the piece to work with instruments - Ideas for teaching the piece - Options for adding harmony and percussion parts Head over to my website www.jessicagrant.org for teacher content - blog posts, shop resources, courses and more.  While you’re there, join my free mailing list for monthly newsletters containing free lesson ideas, thoughts on music education, teacher health and wellness and goal setting. Follow me on Instagram at @highafternoonti where I share family life and teaching content.

Today I’ll be sharing how to process an Orff barred instrument piece.  Everything from how to read the score to leading students through the learning process. Head over to my website www.jessicagrant.org for teacher content - blog posts, shop resources, and more.  Join my free mailing list for monthly newsletter containing free lesson ideas, thoughts on music education, teacher health and wellness and goal setting.   Follow me on Instagram at @highafternoonti where I share family life and teaching content.