Good afternoon!
It's a nice feeling when the fruit of your labors begin to pay off. School teaches you what you want to learn, and finding and using these wanted concepts in the real world can be refreshing. It makes school feel worthwhile. First, I'll talk about three concepts / theories from my Educational background, then one theory from Music.
One important theory to me comes from the basic interaction a teacher (or anyone really) has with a child. How you talk to children is a big part of how they view you and how then, they respond to you. A teacher (or any adult) should show the same respect to children when speaking to them as they would show to anyone else. Children can tell when they're being looked down upon. Being close to eye-level with a person when you're talking with them is also a big deal. Children are generally shorter than adults, so kneeling when you're speaking with them is a good thing to do. It also ensures that you have the child's full attention, and they are more likely to take what you are saying more seriously, remember it better, etc. These two concepts mentioned are always used with any child I may talk with. Usually, when I do kneel down and don't talk down, I get a great response from the child. They end up telling me a story or expanding on what we were talking about.
I found that "wait time" is also an important concept to know and practice. A lot of the time, when the teacher asks a question, and hands are raised, the called-on student can say the answer he / she was thinking of in no time. But, when the student is unsure, and does not answer right away, I've found waiting is an important thing to do. The silence and waiting can be pretty awkward, as it is easy to want to call on one of the other students with anxious looks and raised hands. But, giving that first student a little extra time is usually all they need to know what they want to say. I've found waiting on these students usually gives you the right answer, too.
When teaching, it's important to make sure your lesson was heard. In music, asking the class to "be your echo" is a great way to hear if they're ready to go on with the lesson. When we learn new songs, we first sing them, then start by singing one line at a time, the class echoing after each line. The song is memorized in no time, and the class is ready to learn the dance or instrumentation along with it. Teacher- "Be my echo, please.", Class- "Be my echo, please." Going into solfège review next is a daily lesson. Teacher- "Sol, Sol, Mi, Mi", then the class, "Sol, Sol, Mi, Mi" singing and echoing in the correct pitches.
I hope you've enjoyed this post, and please let me know what you think. I'll post a cute story soon.
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Hows it going Sarah this is Chris Bandusky. I really enjoyed your post especially in the music portion of it. My major is in Business and Music and I believe music has a huge impact on a childs life. I perform and teach for a living and love what I do! I especially like the part when you talked about solfege because that is a fundamental idea for children to learn. Children seem to catch on quick to music that is why it is always good to start them early on a instrument. Children also seem like they like to sing so activities such as solfege are good exercises in the classroom. Well I really enjoyed reading your blog hope you have continued success in the classroom!
ReplyDelete- Chris
Hi Sarah. Your internship sounds awesome. It seems like you really enjoy working with kids, and you’ve found a way to do it without giving up your passion for singing. You seem to be gaining a large amount of information and skill during your time spent in the classroom. It seems as though you are well on your way to being a great teacher. I have worked with young kids before, and you are definitely right about getting down to their level when you speak to them. Adults are annoying when they stand above you and tell you that you’re wrong or what your have to do. To be face to face with a student does make a huge difference. Good luck with what you are doing. –Wayne Jepsen
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteThis is Kristen Leigh, just read through your posts and congratulations on buying the house I know that is a very exciting purchase but also extremely stressful! Anyways, I think that it is really awesome that you are working in the music education field! I always loved my music classes and actually started my college education pursuing a degree in vocal performance. So I applaud you our schools need all the good music teachers they can get I know that when I was in school going to my music classes what the highlight of my day! From what you wrote about this past week it seems like you really understand how to communicate with your students at there level which is great because that is not an easy skill! Hope that all is continues to go well in the classroom for you!