October Favorites 2016

Can you believe October is coming to an end? I'm here to chat with you about some things I loved this past month- I'd love to hear what you've been up to in the comments! Pour yourself a nice cup of tea, take a deep breath, and let's take a minute to reflect on the wonderful things we enjoyed in October :)

October seems to be a popular month to get sick in my house, and this year was no exception. I was sick (and still am) all month with varying degrees of bronchitis/ chest congestion, and one of my daughters has been keeping pace with me most of the month as well. Being congested for weeks on end definitely made my already-loved homemade chai tea an even bigger hit this month! Not only is it soothing for my throat (and spirit) to drink, but when it's simmering on the stove it makes a perfect vaporizer and scent dispenser all in one! My daughter and I stood over that pot many a time and I LOVED it. Chai tea is not as hard to make at home as you might think- I shared my recipe recently so go check it out and try it for yourself if you're interested:

I found these fun, glittery fall leaves at the Dollar Tree recently and, as suspected, my students loved them! I used them to show melodic contour with a song about fall leaves and it was a hit! Those little things that add a little sparkle to the lesson can make all the difference in attention and retention, especially at this time of year (find the songs I used and other lesson ideas in these curriculum sets). The Dollar Tree seems to be really stepping up its game- at least the one near me- and I've been having pretty good luck with little seasonal finds like these. Definitely a keeper!

I finally started teaching ukuleles for the first time EVER this month and it was so exciting! I got ukuleles through a donorschoose project funded this past summer, and I'm using them with my 6th graders as part of the chord progression composition project I have been doing with them each year. So far we are all loving it! 

I found some wonderful music education blog posts this month! Take a few minutes to read through them- you'll find some great ideas you'll want to save, I guarantee :)

I hope you've all had a wonderful month! What were your favorite things this October? Let's here them in the comments! Want more? Subscribe right here to the Organized Chaos newsletter for more ideas and resources for home and school.