Soaring Higher in Music Bulletin Board

I love a good theme and when I got back to school this summer I found out my principal had decided to make our school theme for the year “Soaring Higher.”  Of course I wanted to find a way to connect with the theme and show students how we’re “soaring higher in music” but I wasn’t sure how I could showcase student accomplishments or give some sort of pep talk with that phrase. Then it came to me, connect the soaring concept with the National Standards for Music Education!

I love being able to put together a bulletin board like this where I can connect with the school theme but also teach parents, students, and administrators about the National Standards for Music Education.  It never fail that when I put a display like this outside my room I’ll find folks talking about it.  I overhead a parent recently ask their student something along the lines of, “How do you listen and analyze in the music room?  What are you listening for?”  It sparked a really wonderful conversation and I know it wasn’t the only one!

Once I had the idea of connecting the National Standards with the soaring theme the bulletin board came together pretty quickly.  Why not show “soaring higher in music” through flying or floating objects that kids recognize?  I found clip art with colorful hot air balloons and added the different national standards to each one, changing them from a basic standard to an I CAN Statement.  We also have a big focus on I CAN statements at my school and I thought students would be able to connect better with the content if I phrased it in that way.

There are different colored hot air balloons for each of the standards and I also created some extras for the bulletin board to really flesh it out.  As a header I added a plane pulling a banner behind it to mimic those planes that you often see at beaches or sporting events pulling along advertisement banners behind them.  I also included some fluffly blue clouds and together the header reads:  “We are Soaring Higher in Music!”

You could easily add to this bulletin board by adding birds, cotton ball clouds, a bright and shiny sun, or anything else that you think fits.  A display like this would be absolutely wonderful for any school where your mascot is an eagle or falcon.  Just add in your flying mascot next to the balloons and you’ll have even more connection!

I know not everyone would want to cut out the hot air balloons so I also included the option to have the hot air balloon on an regular 8.5 x 11 piece of paper or card stock so that you can print, laminate, and cut out either the balloon shape or the rectangular poster shape.  To learn more about the full set click HERE.

I try and make connections with the national standards all year long and bring a special focus on them during times like Music In Our Schools Month (MIOSM).  How do you connect with and display the National Standards in your classroom?