Top 10 Posts from 2024

I am so grateful for the opportunity to connect with other music teachers around the globe through my little corner of the internet, and it is such a good feeling when readers connect with something I've written. Each time a new calendar year rolls around, it's so fun to look back and see which of the posts I wrote the past year have been read the...

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Effective Lesson Plans for Difficult Days

Whether it's a specific class that is always challenging, or it's a time of year that is particularly difficult, finding lesson plans that will work for those challenging days can be a struggle. The specifics will vary depending on the exact situation and group of students, but here's what I look for when I'm planning for a lesson that I know is going...

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Favorite Songs for Teaching Syncopa

I love teaching the syncopated rhythm pattern eighth - quarter - eighth. It's such a fun rhythm to perform and the songs I use to introduce and practice the rhythms are some of the most fun my upper elementary students have all year! There are a lot of great songs to teach the "syncopa" rhythm pattern but today I'm sharing my top two favorite songs...

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Native American Heritage Month in the Music Room

In the United States, November is recognized as Native American Heritage Month. We still have a very long way to go in recognizing and responding to the treatment of Indigenous people in this country, and making sure we all find ways to give our students opportunities to learn about and celebrate the many Indigenous peoples and their cultures is one...

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