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Naughty Kitty Cat - Great Song for K & 1
January 14, 2017

Naughty Kitty Cat – Circle Song

One of my favorite things about the Orff Schulwerk philosophy of teaching is the ability to go from something relatively simple to an experience that is complex and exciting.  You start with a song, add in movement, add in new layers, add in an ostinato, include a game, move students […]
Check out this blog post for 12 different ideas to use when teaching the 12 Days of Christmas!
December 3, 2016

12 Ways to teach The 12 Days of Christmas

I have always loved teaching the 12 Days of Christmas!  There are so many fun and funny ways to make this song relevant to your kiddos and lots of great activities to go along with it.  I’ve taught the 12 Days in a lot of different ways and thought I […]
Fast and fun way to reinforce the instrument families with your students!
April 28, 2016

Instrument Family of the Week – Rotating Bulletin Board

I’ve been spending a lot of time these last few weeks teaching students about each instrument family!  We’ve learned how to identify different instrument families by looking for clues on each instrument like a mouthpiece, strings, reeds, tubing, valves, mallets, and lots more!  I love teaching students to look for […]
Five awesome things I found on Pinterest this month!
December 15, 2015

Five Favorite Pins of December – 2015

I will admit, I spend a lot of time on Pinterest browsing ideas, getting inspiration, and seeing how other teachers decorate and plan for teaching.  Pinterest can be a really great tool to help you plan for your own classroom and inspire you to try new things.  Why not share […]
Organization ideas, tips, and trick for storing and sorting guitars in your classroom!
November 7, 2015

The Great Wall of Guitars:  Organization Tips and Tricks

I won’t lie, when I took my new job I was a little hesitant about having to teach two sections of guitar to middle school students.  The tuning, the maintenance, the constant attention they would need…. but enough about the students.  The guitars would need lots of help too.  Teaching […]
Check out my music room makeover, 2015!
October 25, 2015

Music Room Makeover!  Room Tour 2015

I’ll just start by saying that I don’t think my classroom will ever truly be finished.  There’s always something to add, alter, improve, eliminate, decorate, or switch out.  This summer I moved from Kansas City to Lansing, Michigan and that means that EVERYTHING I had was boxed up and schlepped […]
This favorite folk song is great for teaching song form.
October 10, 2015

Turn the Glasses Over – Playing with Form!

I love teaching this fun little folk song, “I’ve been to Harlem” a.k.a. “Turn the Glasses Over,” to my students!  I learned the basic version of the song at my Orff Level 1 training a few years ago and have been playing with how to teach the lesson ever since.​  This year […]
This dream classroom inventory gives you links, resources, and ideas to fill out any grant application, purchase order, or classroom wishlist.
October 4, 2015

Ultimate Classroom Wishlist

Many of you know that I moved to a new school this year.  With a new school comes some reorganizing, rebuilding, and reassessment of what is truly important for instruction.  When I opened up the door to my new classroom for the first time I started to take an assessment […]
April 4, 2015

Not the Easter Bunny… The Instrument Bunny!!

If you have a rabbit puppet, this lesson is for YOU!  I’ve been buying more puppets and experimenting a lot with puppet use for instruction in the classroom lately.  I definitely got inspired when I recently attended a local Orff chapter workshop with Lynn Kleiner of Music Rhapsody.  She uses […]
Tubano Tidbits - Ideas for a drum circle
January 24, 2015

Tubano Tidbits:  Ideas from a Drum Circle

Teaching drums to my kids is one of my favorite things to do!  They can’t get enough of the drums and see it as a special treat.  I love it because I can sneak in SO much content and so many concepts and the kids just think that they’re banging […]
This blog post gives you ideas and suggestions to make an instrument petting zoo work for your open house or parent teacher conference.
October 23, 2014

Instrument Petting Zoo!  Parent Teacher Conference Day Win!

Parent teacher conference days are always a struggle for me.  I have 500 students and theoretically I could have 500 kiddos and their parents running into my room to ask about grades and standards and concerts.  But that has never really happened.  I’m usually lucky if 10 of those 500 […]
Firikyiwa - A must-have instrument for the music classroom.
September 30, 2014

Tiny Time Saver – Firikyiwa African Bell Instrument

The Firikyiwa is a percussion instrument from African and is my newest favorite toy/tiny time saver in the music room.  I saw my friend Sarah Lillie use this years ago with her classes and I’ve ALWAYS wanted one.  This year on the requisition cycle I decided that I should spend […]
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Kansas City

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Mark Sixma