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Using centers in the music room isn't as scary as it sounds. There are ways to plan for centers and ways to provide choice centers to your students. Along with that, centers are a great way to assess your students. In this episode, Aileen does a great job explaining what centers are, different ways to group your students, and why you can adapt centers to work for your students.  Aileen Miracle teaches general music and choir in the Olentangy Local School District near Columbus, Ohio; this is her twenty-fourth year teaching. Aileen received her Bachelor of Music Education from Central Michigan University in 1999, and her Master of Music in Music Education from Capital University in 2003; she completed her masters studies at the Kodály Institute in Kecskemet, Hungary. Aileen has served as President of the Tri-City Kodály Educators in Columbus, President and Treasurer of the Midwest Kodály Music Educators of America, and has served as the National Program Chair for the 2015 OAKE conference, co-chair for the 2019 OAKE conference, and will serve as chair for the 2023 OAKE conference. Aileen has taught Level I Methodology and Folk Song Research for Colorado State University's Kodály Program,  Level I and III Methodology and Folk Song Research for DePaul University's Kodály Program, and Level III Methodology and Folk Song Research for Capital University's Kodály Program. In 2016, Aileen was awarded "Teacher of the Year" at Cheshire Elementary. She has presented at OAKE Conferences, and currently presents workshops around the world. She enjoys sharing music education ideas through her blog, Mrs. Miracle's Music Room, and her podcast, The Music Room. Her family includes her 18-year-old daughter Jenna, who plays flute, guitar, and ukulele, and is an English major at Ohio University, and her 10-year-old daughter Macy, who loves to Irish dance! Connect with Aileen here:  Her website: www.mrsmiraclesmusicroom.com On Facebook @mrsmiraclesmusicroom On Instagram @mrsmiraclesmusicroom On TikTok @mrsmiraclesmusicroom Facebook group: The Music Room with Aileen Miracle | Facebook Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Join the Facebook group.  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

Following a roadmap is the way to successfully build a curriculum for your classroom that you love. In this episode, I'll talk about the steps of that roadmap and what to do in order to get to your end goal.... a curriculum. Part of the roadmap is simplifying lesson planning and you'll learn how to do just that. Enroll in the Curriculum Design Roadmap course today!

Assessment and lesson planning work together and not against each other. So many times, teachers (including myself) do a great job lesson planning, but feel frustrated their students aren’t connecting the dots between concepts and it ends up making you feel frustrated. But, when you plan for assessment and not just plan the actual lesson, you’ll notice how much more your students are retaining. On this episode, I’ll talk about how you can assess your students and why it fits like a puzzle piece when it comes to lesson planning. Save your seat for the FREE "How to Design Curriculum for your Elementary Music Classroom" workshop Read the blog post that goes along with this episode that includes links to every website and app mentioned. Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music

Every grade level that comes into the music room has a different set of concepts you need to cover. It's the how to do it part that can get a bit confusing. When you use concept based teaching in the music room, you'll notice how much more efficient and effective lesson planning becomes. Instead of wondering what to teach and when, you know that you're focusing on the concepts and are checking for student understanding. In this episode, I’ll talk about how to use concept based teaching in the music room and why it’s helpful to do things this way. Save your seat for the FREE "How to Design Curriculum for your Elementary Music Classroom" workshop Read the blog post that goes along with this episode that includes links to every website and app mentioned. Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music

Curriculum development in the music room is already happening every day. Yes, you’re a curriculum developer and designer whether you know it or not. When you lesson plan, plan for units, prepare for programs, and use assessments, you’re a curriculum developer. But, maybe you’re wondering “if you’re doing it right” or aren’t sure the steps to take when you sit down to plan both long and short term. In this episode, I’ll talk about 4 ways you can incorporate curriculum development in the music room. Save your seat for the FREE "How to Design Curriculum for your Elementary Music Classroom" workshop Read the blog post that goes along with this episode that includes links to every website and app mentioned. Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music

There are many types of instructional models. Some are used to design courses, others are used to design lessons and curriculum, yet all can be used by you, the teacher. Although there are many instructional design models to choose from, the ADDIE instructional model is one of the most popular. In the ADDIE model, you’ll analyze, design, develop, implement, and evaluate the teaching and learning happening in your classroom. It’s used to design courses, whether online or in person, but there are many ways the ADDIE instructional model can be used in. In this episode, I’ll explain no only what the ADDIE model is, but you can use it to design instruction for your students. Save your seat for the FREE "How to Design Curriculum for your Elementary Music Classroom" workshop Read the blog post that goes along with this episode that includes links to every website and app mentioned. Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music

In your first 5 years of teaching, it's important to set yourself up for success. While it's important to build a strong music program, it's also important to focus on your why, your who, and your what. When you do this, you'll center everything else around these three questions. Along with planning and teaching, taking care of yourself, setting boundaries from early on, and prioritizing your life outside of school are things to consider from the get go. In this episode, Adrian Gordon and I talk about all of this and how setting yourself up for success in the first 5 years will carry on into the next 5 years. Adrian currently serves as the Director of Orchestras at Providence Day School in Charlotte, NC. He believes in the power of music education in a child’s life and understands the necessity of having passionate, confident, and supported music teachers at the helm, promoting great musical experiences for students.  Find out more about Adrian and connect with him here: His website: www.adriangordonmusic.com On Facebook @adriangordonmusic  On Instagram @apgordonmusic On Twitter @apgordonmusic On Youtube @leapyearmusiconline  Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Join the Facebook group.  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

Most of the time, you probably sit down to plan lessons on your own. As an elementary music teacher, more often than not, you’re the only music teacher at your school. Also, it’s hard to find the time to collaborate with other music educators, whether online or in person, due to time constraints. Maybe you want to plan with a “team” like you see the grade level teachers doing, but you honestly don’t know where to begin this process. If this sounds like you, then this episode will show you how to effectively plan with other music teachers.  Read the blog post that goes along with this episode that includes links to every website and app mentioned. Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Join the Facebook group.  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

Why are you more than a music teacher? How can you inspire your students day in and day out in the music room? What are ways you can build authentic relationships with your students? Throughout my conversation with Franklin Willis, we talk about all of this and so much more.  For more than a decade, educator, and leader, Franklin Willis has served the students and families of the Nashville. Through music, Willis has educated, mentored, and developed young minds to be forward thinking contributors to society. A servant leader specializing in authentic culturally relevant teaching, empowering student contributions, and developing teachers to reach their full capacity, Willis finds true joy when at the service of others.  Read more about Franklin and his work here.  You can connect with Franklin here:  His website: fwillismusic.com  On Instagram: @fwillismusic  On Facebook: @fwillismusic  Listen to Franklin on episode 97 of the podcast  Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Join the Facebook group.  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

Maybe you've wanted to bring more technology into your elementary music classroom, but you're needing new ideas. There's so much amazing technology available to use and it can get overwhelming knowing where to start and what to use with your particular crew of students. In this episode, you'll hear a full list of music technology ideas for elementary students that you can pick and choose from. There are ideas mentioned for lower, upper, and all elementary students. You know your students better than anyone, so feel free to pull from each of the lists and use them as you see fit. Read the blog post that goes along with this episode that includes links to every website and app mentioned. Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Join the Facebook group.  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

In this episode, I'll recap 10 of the most popular episodes from 2022. 2022 was a great year, and 2023 will bring new solo and guest episodes! Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Join the Facebook group.  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

What do you do when you feel like quitting music teaching? More than ever before, teaching has gotten harder for a variety of reasons. Maybe you used to love your job, but the thought of doing it anymore just drains you. If so, this this blog episode will inspire you to keep going and to remind you that you’re doing a heck of a lot better job than you think you are. Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Read the When You Feel Like Quitting Music Teaching blog post. Sign up for teacher coaching or business coaching with Jessica.  Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. Join the Facebook group.  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

You’ll be amazed at how well students pay attention when they have to completely focus on what you’re doing and not just what you’re saying. As you’re singing and talking all day every day, try to plan for days where you’re doing less talking and singing to not only save your voice, but to change things up in your classroom a bit.  In this episode, we'll go over ways you can talk less during: Instructional time Transitions in the music room Activities Grab your free Simplifying Lesson Planning guide. Read the Talking Less During Instructional Time blog post. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

As a music teacher, you may be wanting to put work you've created into the world. Or, you want to consume more content, but aren't sure where exactly to go. Whether you're a consumer or a creator, the resources shared in this episode will help give you ideas you can easily use and implement.  Jaime Slutzky is an experienced and knowledgeable online technology strategist who works with music teachers who have caps on their income and time to create scalable online products and services. With her degree in Computer Science, 11+ years in corporate IT and over a decade supporting online businesses, she has the expertise, insight and grit to help you expand your music studio business online.  After about 8 years working with anyone who wanted to hire her, she chose to work exclusively with music teachers because of the opportunities that they afford their students. The biggest thing that comes up time and again is a visible disconnect between what her clients want to achieve and how to get there. She fills in that gap with coaching, consulting, group programs and online courses. You can connect with Jaime here: On Instagram @jaimeslutzky On Facebook @jaimeslutzky On her website at www.techofbusiness.com Sign up for business coaching with Jessica here Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

Most of this episode comes from what is written in chapter 4 of my book “Make a Note” and other parts of the episode come from personal experience, different coaching I’ve done, or from conversations I’ve helped foster between music educators. You get your teaching position, and whether it’s your first year or your 25th, there are some things that you kind of had to figure out on your own or that weren’t ever really discussed. I know that was the case for me anyways. So, in this episode, we'll discuss that to help you realize you're not alone in the way you might be feeling.  Check out F-flat Books and the Musicast podcast here Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

You may have never stopped to think about how much the creative process promotes innovative thinking and problem solving skills in the music room. As a music educator, it's important to put on your creative mask first, then you'll have so much more to give to your students. Remember that musical studies are both a science and an art and while students are involved in the creative process, it's about honoring the process over the product or performance. Allowing students time to explore creatively, have input on what they're learning, and giving them a seat at the table is so important to this process. In this episode, we'll explore all of this and so much more.  Initially a visual artist, Kathryn Patricia Cobbler sees the world through shape and line—a vision that has laid the groundwork for many of her musical creative projects. Kathryn’s current explorations of the loop pedal have led to the development of her workshop/concert, Sound In Living Colour, where she draws connection between the technical use of the paint brush and her viola bow, guiding her listeners through a music inspired painting experience. After switching to music as her artistic path, she would receive degrees in viola performance from Western University (B.M.) and the University of Ottawa (M.M.). Ms. Cobbler has also performed as an orchestral musician, appearing within the Toronto Symphony’s Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Ottawa Symphony Orchestra, and the Ottawa Jazz Orchestra. A native of Windsor, Ontario, she makes her home in Ottawa. She performs on a viola by luthier Sibylle Ruppert and a Boss RC-30 loop pedal.  You can connect with Kathryn here: Her website at kathrynpatricia.com Her music at kathyrnpatricia.bandcamp.com On Instagram @kathrynpatriciaviolist On Facebook @kpviolist Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

Implementing technology into the music room can be overwhelming. There are so many different technology platforms to use with your students, yet so little time to figure out what to use. In this episode, David Smolover of MatchMySound gives such great advice around how to use technology in your music classroom.  He talks about: easy assessment ways technology can enhance what you're already doing in the music room how students can take ownership and ways you can incorporate student centered learning how students can be incentivized to practice David Smolover is a career musician, music educator, and serial entrepreneur whose lifelong mission has been to find ways to make it easier for more people to bring music into the world. He has founded several innovative and successful businesses in pursuit of that dream, including the National Guitar Workshop, DayJams, Workshop Arts Publications, and WorkshopLive. He is now the CEO of MatchMySound. You can connect with David and MatchMySound here: matchmysound.com MatchMySound on Twitter MatchMySound on Instagram MatchMySound on Facebook Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

Sometimes, you’ll get a class that has more students in it than normal.  Or, there might be a certain day you’re asked to combine classes since a teacher on your electives team is out for the day. It gets a little overwhelming trying to teach that many students and it’s easy to feel stuck. I’ve been there and done that and know how much it feels like you’re herding cats.  If you’re needing ideas for teaching a larger class size, this episode (and this accompanying blog post with other helpful blog posts included inside) will share the exact strategies that worked for me. Podcast episodes to explore further: 125: 5 Things to Consider if a Lesson Plan Bombs 5: Classroom Management in Elementary Music 214: Why Trial and Error is a Good Thing in Teaching 194: How to Teach Elementary Music Without Enough Instruments 170- How to do Centers in the Elementary Music Room Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

SEAL focuses on art, music, dance, and drama and they integrate with the 5 SEL competencies. The awesome thing is that the possibilities are endless when it comes to incorporating SEAL into the music room. Incorporating SEAL isn’t one more thing to do but it’s understanding what you’re already doing and building upon that, and in this episode Elizabeth Peterson does a great job explaining how exactly to do that. Elizabeth Peterson has devoted her life to education and to reaching out to other teachers who want to remain inspired.  A former music teacher and current elementary general ed teacher, Elizabeth loves to bring artistic and creative experiences into her classroom. An arts integration specialist, she is the host of www.theinspiredclassroom.com providing inspiration to other educators who know the value of arts in learning through informative articles, workshops and professional development opportunities. You can connect with Elizabeth here: www.theinspiredclassroom.com YouTube @theinspiredclassroom Facebook @theinspiredclassroom Instagram @theinspiredclassroom www.teachseal.com  Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.

You may want to bring Classical music into the music room, but aren't quite sure where to start. You need engaging activities and want your students to really connect with the music they're learning. If so, this episode (and in this blog post) you'll be provided with some ideas for you to begin bringing Classical music into your music room. Other links mentioned in this episode include: Black Violin Classics for Kids Who Sampled Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need to Know About Teaching Elementary Music Head to my website to grab your free music teaching resource. I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.