I'm finally back from Masters-land and getting ready to look at my plans for September. Only 3-weeks left to get my new classroom setup and all my September planning done! My new mantra is 'don't panic'. Teaching over 400-students can be very overwhelming at times but organisation is the key to my sanity. This year as part of my Professional Growth Plan I plan to look at how my existing music year plans support the cross-curricular competencies outlined in the Ministerial Order on Student Learning (#001/2013) with a view to modifying or adding to them if necessary. Music is pretty amazing in that it teaches all of these 21st Century competencies in a natural yet fun way, as do other practical arts courses like woodwork, auto mechanics, foods, and fashion (sewing). Even the Mythbusters agree, the key to raising test scores is to bring back band and shop.
I should probably be relaxing and enjoying some downtime since it is summer vacation. What am I doing instead? Only the best thing ever... learning about teaching music! I'm currently in residence for the rest of the month at an excellent University working on my Masters degree in Music Education. I can't wait to bring all the new ideas and strategies I'm learning into my classroom in September.
Musically yours, Mme J |
Teaching
|