Here in Georgia, I lead classes for all three grades of the middle school years-sixth, seventh and eighth. I love getting to experience their growth during the three years, but my teaching improved a lot when I really this important fact: 6th, 7th and 8th graders are vastly different. For sixth graders, the world […]
sight singing
Jimmy…A Lesson in what really matters
Jimmy…A lesson in what really matters. People say that teachers have an indelible impact on the lives of the students they teach. Well…So often during my 25 year career in public school choral music education, it has been the other way around. …Like the time one of my most talented boys opted to leave the […]
Faiz-The Boy From Afghanistan
My specialty is sight singing. …Teaching literacy to middle school beginners. I teach it to my students from day 1 of sixth grade. By eighth grade, they are fluent and competent at a level higher than my own when I was a freshman in college. Scheduling limitations cause it to be impossible for me to […]
Puppies and Middle School Children-Some Classroom Management ideas
During summer, I like to reflect on the previous school year with my middle school chorus and plan for the next one. I reflect on what worked and what I’d like to do better. I think about why I do things the way I do them, and how I can tweak and improve my work […]
First 10 minutes of the first day of Middle School Choir!
It’s the final day of preparations before the children arrive! It sort of reminds me of Christmas Eve. It’s all finished. On the first day, I want my middle school singers to know that I will wrap the arms of structure around them immediately, and that we are going to have fun too! They […]
The Brain on Music
I’ve taught choral music to public school middle school children since 1989. In the early years, I couldn’t figure out how to teach my young beginners how to take the notes and symbols off of the page and sing with accurate pitch and rhythm. One day at a time… One failure at a time… Deliberately… I […]