Don’t come at me. I’ve got some hot takes. Some of it’s for all of us, some of it is for new teachers. What’s your take?
1. Set Boundaries
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. I had ZERO boundaries before and it is SO easy to just add on, add on, add on, especially when you love what you teach. Music teachers are teachers whose hobby is also their job. Most math teachers aren’t doing math gigs on the side, don’t go play in the math pit during the school math performance, and didn’t grow up with math as their outlet. Teaching math lessons (while a totally viable side gig) isn’t a thing that most people ask of math teachers. (Oh – do you teach math privately too?) You get the idea.
It is SO easy for music teachers to let that boundary line slip. This post goes into boundary setting a little more in depth.
2. Students need support
Every teacher has a relationship with their students. You get these kids for 6 years (K-5)
Kids can’t focus when they are hungry, when they are starved for attention, when they are missing a basic necessity, if they aren’t sleeping well, if they are parenting their siblings while parents work.
Sometimes you need to step back and remind yourself that students may be missing something. There is a reason for behaviors. Some we can fix. Some we can’t. But support your students the best you can. Be a place they look forward to coming to. Make music making joyful and not a chore. Make them feel welcome no matter who they are, what they look like, what they believe, practice, do outside of your classroom. Connect their real life to what you do in your room. “Academic” music that we get accustomed to in college definitely has a place in our classroom. But so does what gets kids in the door.
3. Celebrate GROWTH, not perfection
This is probably one of the most difficult things for music teachers. We are drilled to be better, more perfect, more musical. But it is GROWTH. Celebrate the GROWTH of it, not the PERFECTION of it. Music will never be perfect. It is NOT perfect. What is perfect to one is not to someone else. If you want perfect from your students, you do it first.
4. Mistakes are not the end
We get hung up on perfect performances, concerts, etc. Which is understandable. But we aren’t going to get it. Something will go wrong. Someone will make a mistake, forget something, wave during a song, cry, pass out, throw up, or you will forget to book a tech guy. It is OK. It’s about the experience, not the product. We need to drill this into our heads, our admin’s heads, our students’ heads, our community’s heads.
5. The most important people are….
The secretary.
The janitor.
The IT person/sound person
The PE teacher/Athletic Director
It is not your admin. Hate to say. It’s the people who get things DONE when you need it AND it is the person who having a relationship with can make your program. Being kind to your janitor means they WILL take your rug that got puked on outside and hose it off. Being friends with the AD/PE teacher means that you can cultivate a program where music and sports work together and not compete. Knowing the secretary is THE person who gets stuff done and is the person who will really help you get stuff together for things like field trips, collecting money, pushing things out to families is SO important.
I really got along with one of the PE teachers I used to work with. When COVID hit, that man was on instagram playing his guitar, and I was working out in my basement because I wasn’t moving as much as I normally was. I guess this is why we were friends. But we also felt similarly about our content areas being about growth, experience, and cultivating love/enjoyment rather than pushing for perfection and competitiveness.
6. Don’t isolate parents
If you teach K-5, those are your students for 6 years. SIX. Classroom teachers may have them more during the week, but you have them for a longer time period. You WILL see them grow physically, musically, mentally, behaviorally, etc… Getting to know parents, including them in your classroom, and making them part of your room will help them feel more invested in your class.
Something we want to acknowledge here is that there are parts of musical practices that are isolating.
- Restrictive clothing
- Performance practices (when to clap, don’t get up, etc)
- Only communicating with parents if there is negative behavior.
7. Try to actually eat food not poptarts (raises hand)
For heaven’s sake, meal plan. Even if your meal plan is leftovers for lunch and something like Monday dinner: leftovers Tuesday dinner: Lean Cuisine, Wednesday dinner: soup and sandwich. Thursday: breakfast food, Friday: pizza.
It WILL save you from having cereal every night, stopping at the nearest fast food place every night, or ordering takeout. Especially as a new teacher, the job can take over, chances are you will get sick frequently, and you will have days that you are wiped out, especially at the beginning of the year. Planning food will help you save money and make sure you eat healthier than every night takeout .
8. Prep sub tubs early
ESPECIALLY if you are a new teacher – I was sick from September 15 to mid May my first year teaching. Make sure you have things so that you CAN stay home! This post links to most of my blogs about sub tubs and should help you prep one.
9. School is NOT family/Do It For the Kids
I know this goes against that whole “Our Class is a Family” book which a lot of people love. And I get why. Some kids don’t have a wonderful home situation, and really need love.
BUT
It is also a way to use teachers. Unpaid labor. Teachers give extras to make things more special but it comes out of our own pockets and time. Sometimes at the expense of our actual families.
Doing it “for the kids” is a way of guilting teachers (whether from admin/community or self-imposed) to create a situation where we try to fix it all for them, and do everything for them. But at the end of the day, you have to remember that no matter how much time you spend at school, it isn’t your family.
Job =/= family.
EX: See Covid.
EX: See budget cuts
EX: See programs begin dissolved
EX: See admin problems
At the end of the day, they aren’t our kids. You cannot do everything for them. Even if you do, there are still life realities that may effect your job situation.
You CAN give them your best.
You CAN support them.
You CAN help them find resources if they need.
You CAN do all those things you want to do to help them grow.
The point here is not that you shouldn’t do these things. It’s just a reminder of life.
10. Plan ahead!
Set your goals early. It’s not a “we’ll see where we get”. You need to know where you want to go. Otherwise it’s very easy to just coast along and pull out a lesson. And then the “I need something to teach” starts.
Trust me. Everyone has been there.
But setting long term goals helps you figure out what sort of activities to look for.
What do you want student to know by the end of the year in each grade?
What do you want out of their concert experiences?
As a new teacher, THIS is what you need to focus on. If you want to read more about things new teachers need, check out this post.
This post helps break down the elements of planning.
Bonus:
Just because it’s “always been done this way” does not mean it has to continue to be done this way. Change is ok!!
“Seasoned” teachers, what do you wish someone had told you before you started teaching music? Leave a comment to help the newbies out!
Do not just teach a concept or skill without helping students to do so musically. Teach them to “listen” to what they play. Experiment with performing things: proper playing technique vs. sloppy technique…..help them understand the difference in the sound; same thing with singing; same thing with movement. All ages need to see the difference between quality vs quantity; simple vs complex; etc to establish musicality even at all ages. Always integrate creativity and musicality and be supportive of that development.
Another thing that is on my mind that is difficult for any teacher, staff, administrator, community to hadle is the grief of losing a student whether it be tragic or due to battling an incurable disease. Just realize that it affects everyone differently depending on each occurrence. Honor the family’s wishes first and for most. I tend to reach out quietly to honor and try to ease the pain of others first, but also remember to take care of yourself. There is no right or wrong to handling grief…..what I’m saying is…..it does not do any good to complain about how things are handled.
I am not one to start singing songs to honor a student at the elementary level. Their minds are not like those of a high school level. Sometimes, kids may or may not be aware of what has happened. I’ve learned to try and leave as much of yhe discussion to the parents. classroom teachers. and counselors. I do not ignore student feelings or having discussions if necessary but I sometimes change up the curriculum for a week or two to do activities that keep the kids from becoming overwhelmed with the death ……..usually something fun….different….engaging.
As for myself, I also take care of me. Find that colleague, mentor. administrator to help you move through the grief. I had a young student pass from a debilitating disease. He had already beat the odds even with a known outcome. I found myself at the piano…..composing a song. I shared it with his family. A relative played it at the funeral. I did not get to hear it that day because I stayed back to help cover classes for other teachers to be able to go to the service. However. there is only one printed copy in existence which is the one I gave to the family. The other copy is the one I can still play from memory.
Years later, I shared the song with 5th graders as we talked about inspiration behind compositions. An awareness was created that day. I heard it in their comments and in the silence following my performance.
Grief is tough for everyone. Work through it with each other as a staff. always being aware with the fact people process grief in many different ways. Do not let grief become overwhelming.
Yes. I’ve been there on several different ends. It’s incredibly difficult. I am very much someone who does not want schmultz or the “touchy feely” end of things. I would much rather crawl in a hole. You have to balance kids who are in all places.
At the end of each day, think of something positive that happened – no matter how small! I learned this from the fabulous Monica Genta and her 180 days of awesome – give credit where credit is due! For example, I was having a terrible day, and my last class, a student came up to me and noticed we had the same shoes on. She thought that was just the coolest thing ever. Kids notice even the little things and it can totally make their day – and yours if you let it!
YES. This is a great idea!
I am starting my 39th year teaching band, choir and music. I have not only changed schools, but changed districts after 38 years. I’ve landed in a wonderful place and I am so excited to start this new chapter. Number Four really resonated with me. There will be mistakes. ALWAYS. Doesn’t matter how much you rehearse, nerves will always play a part-even for me. The parents, admin and whoever else might be there, they aren’t going to know. Performances are about the kids-not the director-the kids. This is their time to shine. Keep that in mind.
YES! I think it’s easy to get too hung up on that!