The Elementary Music Teacher Podcast: Music Education

I just wrapped up elementary music coaching week and it was amazing. If you missed it, this episode will share a wrap up and a condensed version of what was talked about in the various sessions. I'll also be talking about how the Harmony membership will help you continue gaining forward momentum as an elementary music teacher all school year long. Find out more about the Harmony membership, watch...

In this bite sized PD, we'll talk about accountability and what that can look like for you as an elementary music teacher.   We'll talk about: what accountability is and why you need it action steps to take the way you can stay accountable all school year long   The resource this week is the Harmony membership site. This site was created in part to address the needs of music teachers nee...

In this bite sized PD, we'll talk about your uniqueness and believing in yourself including:   how your uniqueness is a GOOD thing  resources to help you move forward  action steps to take   The resource this week is Elementary Music Teacher Coaching week.  It's happening June 26-July 3 right here: https://subscribepage.com/elementarymusiccoachingweek2022

In this bite sized PD, we'll talk about finding fulfillment including:   how to find fulfillment as a music teacher  resources to help you move forward action steps to take   Resources mentioned include:  1. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/rediscovering-your-fulfillment-as-teacher-allen-mendler   2. https://www.thedomesticmusician.com/how-your-background-makes-you-a-better-m...

In this bite sized PD, we'll talk about finding peace including:   ways to do this  resources to help you move forward  action steps to take   Resources mentioned include:   1. https://themodernschoolmarm.com/how-i-maintained-peace-of-mind-as-a-teacher/ 2. https://anchor.fm/thedomesticmusician/episodes/188--Trusting-your-Intuition-e1dd47g Sign up for the "Teach Elementary...

In this bite sized PD, we'll talk about feeling unappreciated including: why you feel this way resources to help you move forward action steps to take Resources mentioned include: 1. https://www.verywellmind.com/7-things-to-do-if-you-feel-unappreciated-5081881   2. https://www.thedomesticmusician.com/4-ways-to-reframe-negative-thoughts-about-teaching/ 3. https://anchor.fm/thedomesticmusician/...

In this bite sized PD, we'll talk about beating the overwhelm including:   where it's coming from  resources to help you move forward  action steps to take   Resources mentioned include:  1. https://teachsmartwithme.com/stop-the-overwhelm-tips-for-overwhelmed-teachers/ 2. https://anchor.fm/thedomesticmusician/episodes/132--How-to-keep-moving-forward-when-the-overwhelm-is-s...

This summer, I want you to focus on letting it be the summer that YOU need. Make no plans, make plans for fun, and then make plans for relevant professional development. We'll talk about all of this in this episode.  Sign up for Teach Elementary Music with Confidence coaching week right here. Find out more about the HARMONY membership here. Get your copy of Make A Note: What You Really Need t...

While wrapping up the school year, there’s a lot of things to check off of your to do list. It can feel overwhelming while thinking about what you need to get done before heading out for summer. In this episode, we’ll talk about how to go about wrapping up the school year for yourself, your students, and your classroom. Read the blog post that goes right along with this episode right here. Sign up...

Technology is something we all use in our every day lives. There are so many different ways to use technology for yourself and your students. It can be confusing knowing what to use and how to use it. That's the exact reason I asked Katie Wardrobe to come on the podcast. She is the "music technology lady" as I so lovingly refer to her and talking about all things technology is her jam! In this epi...

We're creative people, and in fact, we were created to be creative. Part of reaching into that creativity is by using musical play. There are two different types of musical play, behavioral and then playful type of play. Students need to experience play that allows them to learn, find joy, and reveal new parts of themselves they've never been able to experience before.  In this episode with T...

Today, we're celebrating episode 200! I honestly can't believe that we're this far into the podcast friend. On this episode, you'll hear Jessica Grant interview me. She prepared questions, without me knowing what she was going to ask me ahead of time. What a fun way to celebrate and give you a chance to get to know me a bit better. Oh yeah... and to continue the celebration, I'm giving away two co...

Teaching isn't always going to be sunshine and rainbows. In fact, it's easy to get caught up in what I call the negative thought pattern swirl. Things can be straight up hard and it can cause you to feel the overwhelm big time. In this episode, I'm sharing 4 ways you can reframe the negative thoughts you might have about teaching. I talk about: Remembering your why Knowing the hard days will come...

Maybe you're teaching, but you want to dive into being an entrepreneur as well. This episode with Bree Noble and Katie Zaccardi goes into how you can do that successfully, while being yourself and getting past any mindset issues. Connect with Bree and Katie here: Get on the Out to Launch waitlist here: www.katiezaccardi.com/outtolaunch Bree's Instagram @profitablemusicianllc Katie's Instagram @kat...

On a day you played one of your classes favorite songs, did you see their faces light up with excitement? Have you ever stopped to think about why? Some kids don’t associate the music they learn in school with what they listen to outside of school. There’s “music class music” and “other types of music” according to some of your students. Honestly, I didn’t try to bring popular music into my classr...

Maybe you want to make extra money as a teacher, but you don’t know where to start. There are truly so many awesome ideas available, and the first place to start is to figure out what aligns with you.  Then, think about if you want to start a teacher business (like we discussed in episode 166 of the podcast) or make extra money on the side of your full time teaching career.  In this epis...

This episode goes deep into mental health in both your teaching and home life. Mental health isn't something to take lightly, and through Lauren's story, our goal is that you know you're not alone and are able to take the steps to get the help you need.  Throughout our conversation, we discuss: Why it's important to treat yourself like a best friend or a child The longest relationship you hav...

It's tough to teach music without enough instruments. But, it's not impossible. I started my elementary music teaching career with one broken hand drum. That was it. Although it was frustrating at times wanting to use a classroom full of instruments and not having that, music was still taught to my students.  Sometimes it's not about what you don't have, but teaching with what you do have. Th...

This episode is all about helping students find a sense of belonging in the music room. Once teachers develop an empathy based approach with your students, you'll notice it leads to connection, which therefore leads to belonging. Students need to be able to come into the music room knowing they belong there. The music room is a safe space where students should be able to take a risk and make a mis...

Assessment in elementary music is something that can be a bit tricky. Unlike a general classroom where formative assessments are done all day long in reading and math, a lot of what happens in elementary music is performance based. Therefore, the assessment waters can get a bit confusing and it’s overwhelming trying to figure out when and how to assess every student. Honestly, there’s not one size...

One day, you might find yourself at a school where you're responsible for building the music program from the ground up.  This was my exact situation, and is also the story of my guest Natassia Perrine.  In this episode, she shares her journey from going from teaching high school music to teaching elementary music at a school that didn't have any resources or a budget for her to work wit...

It’s easy to feel stressed and overwhelmed as you’re juggling everything in your teaching and home life.   It’s a lot to handle and might feel like you need to clone yourself somedays to get everything done. I get it, and have been there and done that.  So, I want to share these organization tips for teachers that have worked so well for me.  In this podcast episode, you’ll hea...

Bringing literacy into the music room is so important.  But, sometimes music teachers can feel stuck in knowing how exactly to do this.  That's the reason I brought Vicky Weber on the podcast.  She's not only a children's book author, with music education focused books in fact, but she's passionate about brining literacy to kids. In this episode, she talks about literature in music...

What exactly does it mean to trust your intuition when it comes to teaching music?  It means that a lot of the times, you already know what you need to do when it comes to teaching a lesson, classroom management strategies, assessing your kiddos, planning virtual ideas, putting on performances, and so on and so forth.  But, actually doing these things is tough.  In this episode, we'...

Bringing guest teaching artists into your music classroom might be something you've thought about doing before, but you're just not sure where to start or how to do it.  I brought Allison Russo on the podcast to talk about why bringing in guest artists (both in person and virtually) is so beneficial to you and your students, ways to get the funding you need, and a breakdown in how to prepare...