Between the Staves: Choral Questions, Candid Answers, is fresh take on the classic advice column—this time for all things choral music! Modeled after the beloved “Dear Sally” format, this blog will answer your questions about choral music education, performance, and leadership. Whether you’re curious about vocal technique, rehearsal tips, repertoire selection, or the “other” side of our profession (business, fundraising, scheduling, recruiting, communication, audio engineering, etc.!), Between the Staves will have you covered.
This Month’s Question Is:
How do you manage all the responsibilities as a choral director, especially during the busy spring season with state assessments, additional concerts, trips, recruitment, and performances, etc.? How do you balance all of these demands while effectively managing your time and maintaining a healthy work-life balance?
This Month’s Response Are:
This is a very complicated question! I think of keeping track of the responsibilities as two halves: macro and micro. I keep a very detailed calendar in my office with all the dates for the entire semester, so I can see the overall big goals of the year. Every morning, I update a short to-do list on my desk that has tasks that need to be accomplished that week, and I cross them off at the end of every day if I did them. Finally, I keep emails that need to be responded to or have an associated task pinned at the top of my inbox until I actually complete the task – that way I can’t ignore them! The calendar is the macro, the to-do list and pinned emails are micro. In addition, I write every email that I send out about recurring events in OneDrive and keep it saved in the cloud. That way, every year I can re-open that same email document, update the info for the current year, and copy and paste it to the parents! This saves me a ton of time. I have kept these systems in place for years because it’s what works for me. It’s incredibly important to find a system that works for you.
Work-life balance is admittedly really tough. At the high school level, I find delegating things to my student leadership to be crucial. Those students feel important, and it takes small tasks off my plate! Leadership students are the ones to send a lot of Remind messages (once I proofread them, of course) and make announcements at the beginning of class. As far as after-school events go, those are unavoidable. Though it’s tough being at rehearsals until late in the evening multiple nights a week, the program as a whole functions better, and the students feel more fulfilled being involved in successful events. The additional time is worth it!
Megan Schuitema, Choral Director; Harrison High School/Cobb County Schools, Kennasaw, GA
11 Years experience
Google Calendar and a to-do list in my Notes app are my best friends. My prep period is always busy, and I often spend it walking around the school asking questions, making copies, and answering emails. I stay motivated to get everything done in that period by the fact that I do NOT want to bring work home. A big part of managing my time means minimal phone use so that I can focus on all my work. When I started teaching, I used my prep period partially as a time to unwind in the middle of the day, but it’s become so much easier to just work nonstop the entire day and then relax at home.
I never bring work home, and unless I have a rehearsal scheduled after school, I always leave as soon as the bell rings. Work stays at work, and home stays at home because the time I have with my friends and family is what helps me fight burnout. I don’t answer emails or parent messages at home either. There’s no such thing as a choir emergency.
Zoe Large, Choral Director; McAdory High School/Jefferson County Schools, Birmingham, AL
3 years experience
It is often difficult to manage the responsibilities of a choral director, especially during the spring! In addition to my duties as choral director, I also teach dual enrollment music appreciation, AP Music Theory, and Theatre III/IV. This also includes music directing and assistant directing the spring musical and other theatre performances. It is a hectic season of life as we get through daily after-school rehearsal for the musical, prepare for assessment, and get ready for All-State, SCPA, etc.
I balance all of these demands by trying to be as organized and proactive as possible! For me, I’ve found the most effective method for me is making a very thorough to-do list and prioritizing my time at school. I’ve tried a new method this year of making a giant checklist for every major event that repeats annually (concerts, auditions, honor choirs, etc.). Under each event, I mark off every single thing I need to do for that event, such as field trip paperwork, securing buses, making copies of documents related to the event, etc. This way, I can easily track what I’ve done and what I still need to do. And, I don’t have to recreate the wheel every single year because I can anticipate what I have to do and I’m not caught wondering, “What did I do in this situation last year?” It helps me tremendously by giving me a visual of what needs to get finished and keeps me on top of things.
I also work really hard at prioritizing my time. The longer I teach, the more I realize that I need to maintain that life-work balance and have a life outside of school! I make time for my hobbies, such as reading and running as much as possible. To help with this, I make sure to use my planning/prep period to get work done so I don’t have to work as much during school hours. It’s tempting sometimes to just take a mental break at my desk or talk to teacher friends during my planning period, but I remember that if I take care of as much as possible at school, then it’s way less to worry about outside of school hours. Then, I can enjoy my free time at home instead of stressing later! I’d rather have the trade-off of more time at home or at the gym after school/rehearsal.
It is definitely not easy to maintain the work-life balance, but I’ve realized that I have to prioritize getting work done at work so that I make time to enjoy my hobbies outside of school to avoid burnout.
Tyler Jones, Choral Director; Thompson High School/Alabaster City Schools, Alabaster, AL
8 years experience
Advanced planning is key. I use a monthly calendar and consult it often so I can maintain long-term planning. Also, I use a weekly planner and live by reminders of all kinds. This includes reminders to send out reminders to kids and parents. I keep kids informed of events with memos and daily agendas. What also helps them (and me) is a monthly wipe off calendar I create and put up in the classroom so everyone can see how many days we have for whatever and the reasoning behind the need to expedite rehearsal time. I have also learned the hard way that too many activities can work against you – even if you’re fine with it. If your community or kids/parents aren’t bought in, it’s not good and it becomes wasted effort on my part.
I spend some time reevaluating the previous week and look at the week ahead on the weekend. Maybe a couple of hours (depending) on a Saturday at my favorite coffee shop. I’m involved in my church, my family, and friends, so there’s always more to do than school work that keeps me going.
Sarah Timothy, Choral Director; Pelham High School/Pelham Park Middle School-Pelham City Schools, Hoover, AL
25 years experience
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Between the Staves is an initiative of the ACDA Education and Collaboration National Standing Committee. For questions, contact John McDonald at .
Thank you to Stacy Daniels, Member of the Education and Communications Committee, for providing this month’s content.
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