Reflections from Student Teaching at NCHS
August 26, 2011
Today was my first day in my first placement. After sorting out a few issues involving my partner teacher being on leave because his wife recently had a baby, it turns out that I now have two partner teachers. In the long run, I think this will be more beneficial, since I will be able to teach music appreciation, choir, and band. My day was great. For first block, I went with the choir director to music appreciation. Right now, the students are working on an instrumental unit, and they rotate at stations for keyboard, guitar, violin, and hand bells. This was a team-teaching experience, since the teacher and I were around the room at different stations. By the end of the period, about 20 students were able to play a simple version of “Ode to Joy” on the keyboards. They still have a way to go in terms of reading music, but I had a fun time with teaching keyboards. Since my partner teacher had a sub, I ended up teaching on my own for a while today. It was not the most ideal situation because I was unable to make my own plans. The sub offered to teach, but I looked at the lesson plan and decided that I could handle it. The lesson was on Latin American rhythm, and I taught them a clave pattern. We also had a few vocabulary words that I promised a pop quiz on by next Friday. The lesson went well. I spent the beginning of third block in music appreciation, and since there was a sub in the class, my partner teacher had plans made for them to watch “The Sound of Music” and they were already half way through the movie. The remainder of third block was spent with the choir. Around 80 students are in the choir. I played piano, while the teacher conducted. Most schools only have one music teacher, so I am glad that I have this experience of teaching so many different classes. I fixed a clarinet, to my surprise, during band. One of the key mechanisms came completely off because a few screws came loose. I had no clue where the screwdrivers were, and I did not want to dig through my partner teacher’s desk, so I used my thumb nail and a bobby pin as repair tools. It worked, and the student was able to play for band class and after school rehearsal! My biggest problem right now is just keeping up with little things. There is a student here with an allergy to apples so bad that apples are off limits to the school. There is some sort of “advisor/advisee” class period that I suppose is like study hall, but the scheduling overlapped and confused me quite a bit.
9/1/11
Today was the first day for my music appreciation class to begin learning the fine art of playing instruments. I did not give them instruments, however, because I told them that they must "earn them" first by mastering the art of counting rhythms. This worked, and that statement got their attention because they know that if we are unable to move to playing instruments, then they will be stuck with book work. I told them that since I went to school for music, I will teach music, not book work. My main goal as a music educator is to get students to appreciate music, not hate my class. Music should provide them with a mental break from classes like algebra or language arts that they spend writing in for an entire block. I created a pre-test based on the CSOs I feel are the most important to cover in the short amount of time I am here. The CSOs involve reading music, understanding musical concepts, like rhythm and pitch, relating music history to world history and culture, American composers/jazz, and world music. I recorded the number of times questions on the pre-test were missed, and I plan on focusing on those concepts as much as possible. I was so sad to see that the students wrote answers like "Miley Cirus" and "TuPac" when I asked them to name an American composer. Not a single student answered the answer in terms of non-pop music. I was hoping for "George Gershwin" or "Aaron Copland", or even "John Williams". My overall plan for the 90-minute block involves the first 20-30 minutes teaching a short lesson on history, genres, reading fundamentals, etc. and then spend the remainder of the class with instrument rotation groups. The students will learn simple songs on piano, violin, guitar, and percussion. I believe that this is the best way to instill an appreciation for music in my students because they will realize the challenges of learning to play an instrument first-hand. The rhythm lesson was wonderful, and at the end, I wrote rhythms to songs like "Jingle Bells", "Mary had a Little Lamb", etc. and let them guess the title of the song after we clapped the rhythms. They really seemed to like that. If I can make it a game, they will not realize they are actually working! The only aspect of the lesson I would change would be that I would slow down while explaining concepts. I tend to get overly excited when I can tell that some students are understanding a musical concept, and this makes me talk really quickly.
9/7/11
I learned the value of a seating chart. The students complained about it at first, but I stood my ground and did not give in to students that begged to sit in the back (my rowdy ones). Tomorrow is the first day of students actually getting instruments in the music appreciation classes. I have them on a rotation plan, so they can work at their own pace while I go around the room helping the students that struggle. I will also have playing tests starting next week on the simple songs they learn. I have almost learned all of the names. I have 113 names to learn for my own classes, plus I will work with my other partner teacher in Choir and Strings on every once in a while for the experience.
I also learned today that homework requests from students show up about an hour (right while I am in the middle of class) before they are due to the office for the students that have been absent for days. Nice timing *insert sarcasm here*...
So far, I have only had one rough day, which was remediated with the seating charts.
9/10/11
Today is Saturday. We had a courthouse lawn performance and parade today in Summersville. Yesterday was another home game, and the band has improved. We still have a lot of work to do before competitions, but the students are well on their way.
One thing I have noticed about a band director's job is that they rarely have an open weekend. I have some sort of event to attend with the band every Saturday for the remainder of my placement, along with Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday after school rehearsals. Band for me when I was a high school student was never this involved because we did not take competitions seriously. I like this idea of constant hard work for high school students. I knew that this profession involves a lot of weekends when I chose to major in music, so it isn't too much of a shock. Some folks tend to forget that Saturday is also a "school day" for band students in the fall. My band students are some of the hardest working students in the school. I am lucky to have such a diligent group. I wish I could say the same about my music appreciation students. They seem to give up before they even try to play a simple song. If anything, I hope I can teach them that any skill worth having is rarely easy to develop.
Music appreciation is coming along, other than a few students that just do not care and took the class for an "easy A". I am determined to make them work for it. I am waiting for drum practice pads to arrive in the mail. If they come in this week like they are supposed to, I can organize my instrument rotation to involve that as well and the class will work more efficiently.
9/14/11
I have a student in one of my music appreciation classes that really surprised me today. The first day I taught, my impression of him was that he would fail the class because all he wanted to do was sleep. He would not participate in rhythm activities like everyone else would, and would try to sit off to himself when we had group work activities. I was constantly after him for something. At times he ignored me completely, but I made sure to stay persistent (even annoying until he participated). This student appeared to be careless, even in his appearance. After a few days, I created a seating chart and put this student and other extroverted (possible problem) students in the front row so I could keep an eye on them.
Currently, the remainder of the class tends to excel with keyboards, violin, percussion, and music-reading worksheets, and they all hate guitar because they complain that it makes their fingers hurt. I remind them on a daily basis that they have to start on the first page of their books and master certain skills first before they move on to the next page. On a daily basis, they seem to forget that. Today, the student I expected to fail was the first student out of both blocks of the class to play through the first song test on guitar. Also, he has a 98.2% average on his worksheets. He doesn't complain, and now I rarely have to remind him to work on something. I was totally amazed and it made my day to see him interested in something.
9/20/11
The band here is preparing to go to their first competition of the season this Saturday. I am beginning to realize that a balance is necessary for everything in life from bank accounts to band. I have worked with bands in the past that were non-competitive, 70% fun, 30% work. On the other hand, I have also worked with a band that had a week-long camp in 90 degree weather, from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. with breaks for lunch and dinner. They worked about 90% of the time and had fun 10% of the time. Both of those bands were about the same size, having about 25-30 students. I have 61 students on my band roster. I feel like this band I am working with has a nice balance of work and play. The students have a good time, but at the same time, they are very dedicated. I feel like this attitude my partner teacher has about competing with band is the most beneficial for students because it reaches more students. It is not so relaxed and entertainment-prioritized that it pushes away the harder working students, and it is also not so demanding that it pushes away students that may be slightly less dedicated. We have a nice balance here in those terms.
I had a band booster meeting last night. This band is lucky to have so many helpful parents. Then again, we still have a lot of parents that will not answer the phone if the band booster president calls asking for help with something. There is really no middle ground in terms of the parents. Some give as much time as they possibly can, show up to every game and competition, while I have yet to even be introduced to some parents because they simply are not around.
Music appreciation is coming along. I have to start working on being a little more commanding in the classroom. A small part of the problem is that I am only 5 years older than some of my students. The remainder of the problem is my fear of "being the bad guy". I do not want to be mean, but at the same time, I do not want to be too friendly either. I have a few students that tend to get rowdy. I did learn that switching the instrument rotation groups in shorter intervals tends to maintain the student's attention better, so perhaps that will help if I continue.
9/22/11
A number of other faculty and staff at the school have asked me what grade level I ultimately want to teach. I never have a definite answer, and my thoughts on this vary on a daily basis. I like the innocence of elementary students, and their enthusiasm. I like the middle school environment because most students begin band at that age. I like the high school environment because of their skill level in band, and the creative ideas they come up with. I still have trouble deciding.
I feel like I am mostly qualified in terms of content, but sometimes I am weary of classroom management. My organization skills in terms of maintaining worksheets, grading and recording grades, and keeping up with all of my students is still developing. I have established a “make-up work” folder, but still have trouble convincing the students that it is their responsibility to see me to get the work they missed if they were absent. I sometimes forget to put enough worksheets in the folder for absent students. GradeQuick is a breeze. I remember when the schools began using it when I was a high school student, and quite a few of my teachers complained about it. By now, I suppose that the glitches my teachers complained about have been worked out, which is probably why I am able to use it. My organization system works well only if I keep at it every day.
10/4/11
Last week was homecoming. Between rehearsals, performances, and classes, I somehow missed sending any reflections via email. I have been reflecting, on just about everything. I have noticed that if something fails to work, or just does not go as well as I intended it to during my 2nd block class, I have created some sort of solution by the time 3rd block rolls around. I suppose that coming up with solutions on short notice is one of my better traits.
Band directing involves much more drama than I ever thought it would. A few squabbles came about in a section of the band. This section argued all week over petty things, and my partner teacher and I finally sorted everything out by Friday. Most of it involved high school romance and being too enthralled with significant others during rehearsal time....Love is grand, but not in the band. My partner teacher and I had to step in and fix the problem before it became worse for the band as a whole. Everything was sorted out by the competition this weekend.
The competition was interesting. It was raining and about 40 degrees outside. We arrived and unloaded the trailer. In the meantime, I walked toward the field to get a glimpse of the ground conditions since I knew it was not artificial turf. Much to my dismay, the field looked like a mud-wrestling arena. I believe that it was the worst football field I have ever seen. It was in such a terrible condition that the competition staff had to spray new yard lines after each band. Still, our band warmed up. When we were lined up to go on the field, the band that had just performed was exiting the field through the same gate where we were standing. I looked down at their feet, and they had mud up to their knees. Quite a few of them were missing shoes, and some of them were also missing socks! The other band's flag twirlers followed, covered in mud, carrying a load of muddy shoes...
What did I learn at that competition? "Kids, make sure your shoes are tied tight". I stood on the sideline during the entire performance, ignoring everything musical about it. I was so nervous about someone falling and breaking something, or that someone would lose their shoes to that muddy abyss that someone decided would serve well for a band competition. The majorettes could not keep a good grip on the batons, which seemed to be flying all over the place. Out of 60 students, we only lost 1 shoe, and not a single person fell. We have six majorettes, and the last move for them involves throwing the batons up high and across a good distance from each other. 5 of the batons went up as normal, and the last one went a little higher. I believe the girl supposed to catch it took everything she had in her to get to it in time. In the most slow-motion-style movement I have ever seen, she slid through the mud with absolutely no grace whatsoever and CAUGHT it! What looked to be absolute chaos (well, it was) turned out to get us 1st place in our class for general effect, 1st runner up out of all classes, 1st place percussion, 3rd in marching, and a few other awards. I was very proud of them, given the conditions.
Today was ISE day, so I did not have students. I attended the faculty senate meeting. I believe I was the only person in the room that had actually taken the WesTest that everyone loves so dearly. The idea of changing block scheduling came up. As a music teacher, I like block scheduling because it allows for enough time to rehearse for band and even go outside to practice the show. I remember being in high school and hating block scheduling because I found it difficult to sit still for 90 minutes in math and English classes. It was great for science classes because we had enough time to complete lab activities. The math and English teachers seemed to like the idea of having their students all year because of testing. A survey with 5 different options was handed out for teachers to choose from. I came up with an option that was not on the survey. Split one block and have math and English all year. All of the teachers could still have their 90 minute planning period, required amounts of class times would be met, and the music and science classes would not suffer.
Today was my first day in my first placement. After sorting out a few issues involving my partner teacher being on leave because his wife recently had a baby, it turns out that I now have two partner teachers. In the long run, I think this will be more beneficial, since I will be able to teach music appreciation, choir, and band. My day was great. For first block, I went with the choir director to music appreciation. Right now, the students are working on an instrumental unit, and they rotate at stations for keyboard, guitar, violin, and hand bells. This was a team-teaching experience, since the teacher and I were around the room at different stations. By the end of the period, about 20 students were able to play a simple version of “Ode to Joy” on the keyboards. They still have a way to go in terms of reading music, but I had a fun time with teaching keyboards. Since my partner teacher had a sub, I ended up teaching on my own for a while today. It was not the most ideal situation because I was unable to make my own plans. The sub offered to teach, but I looked at the lesson plan and decided that I could handle it. The lesson was on Latin American rhythm, and I taught them a clave pattern. We also had a few vocabulary words that I promised a pop quiz on by next Friday. The lesson went well. I spent the beginning of third block in music appreciation, and since there was a sub in the class, my partner teacher had plans made for them to watch “The Sound of Music” and they were already half way through the movie. The remainder of third block was spent with the choir. Around 80 students are in the choir. I played piano, while the teacher conducted. Most schools only have one music teacher, so I am glad that I have this experience of teaching so many different classes. I fixed a clarinet, to my surprise, during band. One of the key mechanisms came completely off because a few screws came loose. I had no clue where the screwdrivers were, and I did not want to dig through my partner teacher’s desk, so I used my thumb nail and a bobby pin as repair tools. It worked, and the student was able to play for band class and after school rehearsal! My biggest problem right now is just keeping up with little things. There is a student here with an allergy to apples so bad that apples are off limits to the school. There is some sort of “advisor/advisee” class period that I suppose is like study hall, but the scheduling overlapped and confused me quite a bit.
9/1/11
Today was the first day for my music appreciation class to begin learning the fine art of playing instruments. I did not give them instruments, however, because I told them that they must "earn them" first by mastering the art of counting rhythms. This worked, and that statement got their attention because they know that if we are unable to move to playing instruments, then they will be stuck with book work. I told them that since I went to school for music, I will teach music, not book work. My main goal as a music educator is to get students to appreciate music, not hate my class. Music should provide them with a mental break from classes like algebra or language arts that they spend writing in for an entire block. I created a pre-test based on the CSOs I feel are the most important to cover in the short amount of time I am here. The CSOs involve reading music, understanding musical concepts, like rhythm and pitch, relating music history to world history and culture, American composers/jazz, and world music. I recorded the number of times questions on the pre-test were missed, and I plan on focusing on those concepts as much as possible. I was so sad to see that the students wrote answers like "Miley Cirus" and "TuPac" when I asked them to name an American composer. Not a single student answered the answer in terms of non-pop music. I was hoping for "George Gershwin" or "Aaron Copland", or even "John Williams". My overall plan for the 90-minute block involves the first 20-30 minutes teaching a short lesson on history, genres, reading fundamentals, etc. and then spend the remainder of the class with instrument rotation groups. The students will learn simple songs on piano, violin, guitar, and percussion. I believe that this is the best way to instill an appreciation for music in my students because they will realize the challenges of learning to play an instrument first-hand. The rhythm lesson was wonderful, and at the end, I wrote rhythms to songs like "Jingle Bells", "Mary had a Little Lamb", etc. and let them guess the title of the song after we clapped the rhythms. They really seemed to like that. If I can make it a game, they will not realize they are actually working! The only aspect of the lesson I would change would be that I would slow down while explaining concepts. I tend to get overly excited when I can tell that some students are understanding a musical concept, and this makes me talk really quickly.
9/7/11
I learned the value of a seating chart. The students complained about it at first, but I stood my ground and did not give in to students that begged to sit in the back (my rowdy ones). Tomorrow is the first day of students actually getting instruments in the music appreciation classes. I have them on a rotation plan, so they can work at their own pace while I go around the room helping the students that struggle. I will also have playing tests starting next week on the simple songs they learn. I have almost learned all of the names. I have 113 names to learn for my own classes, plus I will work with my other partner teacher in Choir and Strings on every once in a while for the experience.
I also learned today that homework requests from students show up about an hour (right while I am in the middle of class) before they are due to the office for the students that have been absent for days. Nice timing *insert sarcasm here*...
So far, I have only had one rough day, which was remediated with the seating charts.
9/10/11
Today is Saturday. We had a courthouse lawn performance and parade today in Summersville. Yesterday was another home game, and the band has improved. We still have a lot of work to do before competitions, but the students are well on their way.
One thing I have noticed about a band director's job is that they rarely have an open weekend. I have some sort of event to attend with the band every Saturday for the remainder of my placement, along with Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday after school rehearsals. Band for me when I was a high school student was never this involved because we did not take competitions seriously. I like this idea of constant hard work for high school students. I knew that this profession involves a lot of weekends when I chose to major in music, so it isn't too much of a shock. Some folks tend to forget that Saturday is also a "school day" for band students in the fall. My band students are some of the hardest working students in the school. I am lucky to have such a diligent group. I wish I could say the same about my music appreciation students. They seem to give up before they even try to play a simple song. If anything, I hope I can teach them that any skill worth having is rarely easy to develop.
Music appreciation is coming along, other than a few students that just do not care and took the class for an "easy A". I am determined to make them work for it. I am waiting for drum practice pads to arrive in the mail. If they come in this week like they are supposed to, I can organize my instrument rotation to involve that as well and the class will work more efficiently.
9/14/11
I have a student in one of my music appreciation classes that really surprised me today. The first day I taught, my impression of him was that he would fail the class because all he wanted to do was sleep. He would not participate in rhythm activities like everyone else would, and would try to sit off to himself when we had group work activities. I was constantly after him for something. At times he ignored me completely, but I made sure to stay persistent (even annoying until he participated). This student appeared to be careless, even in his appearance. After a few days, I created a seating chart and put this student and other extroverted (possible problem) students in the front row so I could keep an eye on them.
Currently, the remainder of the class tends to excel with keyboards, violin, percussion, and music-reading worksheets, and they all hate guitar because they complain that it makes their fingers hurt. I remind them on a daily basis that they have to start on the first page of their books and master certain skills first before they move on to the next page. On a daily basis, they seem to forget that. Today, the student I expected to fail was the first student out of both blocks of the class to play through the first song test on guitar. Also, he has a 98.2% average on his worksheets. He doesn't complain, and now I rarely have to remind him to work on something. I was totally amazed and it made my day to see him interested in something.
9/20/11
The band here is preparing to go to their first competition of the season this Saturday. I am beginning to realize that a balance is necessary for everything in life from bank accounts to band. I have worked with bands in the past that were non-competitive, 70% fun, 30% work. On the other hand, I have also worked with a band that had a week-long camp in 90 degree weather, from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. with breaks for lunch and dinner. They worked about 90% of the time and had fun 10% of the time. Both of those bands were about the same size, having about 25-30 students. I have 61 students on my band roster. I feel like this band I am working with has a nice balance of work and play. The students have a good time, but at the same time, they are very dedicated. I feel like this attitude my partner teacher has about competing with band is the most beneficial for students because it reaches more students. It is not so relaxed and entertainment-prioritized that it pushes away the harder working students, and it is also not so demanding that it pushes away students that may be slightly less dedicated. We have a nice balance here in those terms.
I had a band booster meeting last night. This band is lucky to have so many helpful parents. Then again, we still have a lot of parents that will not answer the phone if the band booster president calls asking for help with something. There is really no middle ground in terms of the parents. Some give as much time as they possibly can, show up to every game and competition, while I have yet to even be introduced to some parents because they simply are not around.
Music appreciation is coming along. I have to start working on being a little more commanding in the classroom. A small part of the problem is that I am only 5 years older than some of my students. The remainder of the problem is my fear of "being the bad guy". I do not want to be mean, but at the same time, I do not want to be too friendly either. I have a few students that tend to get rowdy. I did learn that switching the instrument rotation groups in shorter intervals tends to maintain the student's attention better, so perhaps that will help if I continue.
9/22/11
A number of other faculty and staff at the school have asked me what grade level I ultimately want to teach. I never have a definite answer, and my thoughts on this vary on a daily basis. I like the innocence of elementary students, and their enthusiasm. I like the middle school environment because most students begin band at that age. I like the high school environment because of their skill level in band, and the creative ideas they come up with. I still have trouble deciding.
I feel like I am mostly qualified in terms of content, but sometimes I am weary of classroom management. My organization skills in terms of maintaining worksheets, grading and recording grades, and keeping up with all of my students is still developing. I have established a “make-up work” folder, but still have trouble convincing the students that it is their responsibility to see me to get the work they missed if they were absent. I sometimes forget to put enough worksheets in the folder for absent students. GradeQuick is a breeze. I remember when the schools began using it when I was a high school student, and quite a few of my teachers complained about it. By now, I suppose that the glitches my teachers complained about have been worked out, which is probably why I am able to use it. My organization system works well only if I keep at it every day.
10/4/11
Last week was homecoming. Between rehearsals, performances, and classes, I somehow missed sending any reflections via email. I have been reflecting, on just about everything. I have noticed that if something fails to work, or just does not go as well as I intended it to during my 2nd block class, I have created some sort of solution by the time 3rd block rolls around. I suppose that coming up with solutions on short notice is one of my better traits.
Band directing involves much more drama than I ever thought it would. A few squabbles came about in a section of the band. This section argued all week over petty things, and my partner teacher and I finally sorted everything out by Friday. Most of it involved high school romance and being too enthralled with significant others during rehearsal time....Love is grand, but not in the band. My partner teacher and I had to step in and fix the problem before it became worse for the band as a whole. Everything was sorted out by the competition this weekend.
The competition was interesting. It was raining and about 40 degrees outside. We arrived and unloaded the trailer. In the meantime, I walked toward the field to get a glimpse of the ground conditions since I knew it was not artificial turf. Much to my dismay, the field looked like a mud-wrestling arena. I believe that it was the worst football field I have ever seen. It was in such a terrible condition that the competition staff had to spray new yard lines after each band. Still, our band warmed up. When we were lined up to go on the field, the band that had just performed was exiting the field through the same gate where we were standing. I looked down at their feet, and they had mud up to their knees. Quite a few of them were missing shoes, and some of them were also missing socks! The other band's flag twirlers followed, covered in mud, carrying a load of muddy shoes...
What did I learn at that competition? "Kids, make sure your shoes are tied tight". I stood on the sideline during the entire performance, ignoring everything musical about it. I was so nervous about someone falling and breaking something, or that someone would lose their shoes to that muddy abyss that someone decided would serve well for a band competition. The majorettes could not keep a good grip on the batons, which seemed to be flying all over the place. Out of 60 students, we only lost 1 shoe, and not a single person fell. We have six majorettes, and the last move for them involves throwing the batons up high and across a good distance from each other. 5 of the batons went up as normal, and the last one went a little higher. I believe the girl supposed to catch it took everything she had in her to get to it in time. In the most slow-motion-style movement I have ever seen, she slid through the mud with absolutely no grace whatsoever and CAUGHT it! What looked to be absolute chaos (well, it was) turned out to get us 1st place in our class for general effect, 1st runner up out of all classes, 1st place percussion, 3rd in marching, and a few other awards. I was very proud of them, given the conditions.
Today was ISE day, so I did not have students. I attended the faculty senate meeting. I believe I was the only person in the room that had actually taken the WesTest that everyone loves so dearly. The idea of changing block scheduling came up. As a music teacher, I like block scheduling because it allows for enough time to rehearse for band and even go outside to practice the show. I remember being in high school and hating block scheduling because I found it difficult to sit still for 90 minutes in math and English classes. It was great for science classes because we had enough time to complete lab activities. The math and English teachers seemed to like the idea of having their students all year because of testing. A survey with 5 different options was handed out for teachers to choose from. I came up with an option that was not on the survey. Split one block and have math and English all year. All of the teachers could still have their 90 minute planning period, required amounts of class times would be met, and the music and science classes would not suffer.
posted by Mary Sue @ 8:45 PM
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