It is time to host my 1st linky party!
I’ve been waiting for a great topic, so I have decided I will host a monthly ‘survival’ party for teachers.  3 or more tips, tricks and lessons that help motivate you for each month.  I will post the link up the first Tuesday of every month, and leave it up for the duration of the month for you to add in your ideas.  It is open to all teachers – specials, elementary, high school and everything in between.  So if you are a teacher blogger, join in!  Just use the common graphic above.  

So here we go! 

I’m not sure about you, but I do worse in January and February than any other months of the year.  I know that Seasonal Affect Disorder is not in the DSM anymore, but I still think it effects people.  In school, it was always my toughest quarter, as an adult, I am the least motivated.

I live in Michigan.  I don’t mind rain and snow, but the grey gloomy days definitely bother me.  The grayer and gloomier it is, the more I want to hide on my couch with a blanket and just not move. HOWEVER….this isn’t possible.  Not only would I probably go stir crazy, I do have to continue doing all those things I do the rest of the year!

So I here are my three things for January that I do to survive!
1. I’ll start with my favorite, and the thing I really look forward to every year.  In January, Music Education in Michigan all but shuts down for a weekend as everyone descends on Grand Rapids.  The Michigan Music Conference is a 3 day meet up of elementary, choir, band, orchestra teachers, collegiate professors, musicians, and AMAZING clinicians hosted at the Devos Center/Amway Grand Plaza/JWMarriott.  The sessions, the concerts, and the clinicians!! Last year,John Feierabend was a headliner, and this year it is Jill Trinka in the elementary realm.  It is by far the best PD anyone could ask for!

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2.  I try to find my own motivation.  This is the time of year, I try to go crazy on concert plans for my students.  I think the further ahead I can plan, the less craziness I will face come May.  This year, my students at the Lutheran school are going to be putting on a musical called “Here for the Gold“.  I am really hoping this year that the students in Praise Band can play all the accompaniments themselves, and that my band students will be able to add in some accompaniments as well! *Fingers crossed!*  Getting these done now means that I won’t be running around and sleepless in May, so I try to motivate myself by doing them.

3.  I’ve been thinking about doing this for a while, and I finally decided to do it this week.

I get overwhelmed by ads.  I also get overwhelmed by the large music teacher groups on Facebook.  7 questions about copyright, and 2 requests for a grade three piece that features contrabassoon for 7th graders later, I’ve forgotten why I went into the forums in the first place.  So to counter act that, I’ve decided to have an ad-free group. I know that if you read this or use things I’ve made, you must teach in a similar fashion to me at least some of the time. I’d love to collaborate with you.  I’ll post pins, lessons I’m working on, and make it more like a real-time blog. And you can do the same!!) If you use things I make, or want to request something specific, this is a great place to do it too!  I’d love to see more posts about folk songs and games, dances and things that really apply to my teaching.  This summer, I’m hoping to start my Kodály certification, and I’ll post about that also! I’d love collaborate with you.  And in return, I promise.  No Ads.  I will send out the occasional freebie for only the people in the group too!  🙂  So please join in the collaboration! 

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Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to link up!!

Melissa

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