Blog 3: Let's talk about the Resource Notebook!

Dear Shannalee,

This Resource Notebook you hold in your hands is important! Here is why:

1. "The purpose of a RN is to create a single source of the most pertinent information from this semester, and put it into usable form for you as a beginning teacher."
2. "This is why your blogs are written to your future self and focus on the main points of the semester
3. "Organization and neatness are assessed with the assumption that you will use this resource at some point early in your career."

This notebook is extremely important to me. With it, I shall remember ideas that I have and keep topics discussed in class all in one place. Have fun looking through these pages!

Your friend,

Shannalee

Blog 2: My Core Values

Dear Shannalee,

As our class had a discussion on Core Values and Dr. Stark showed the powerpoint, I was thinking of the times when I'll need to remember what they are. I will need to remember my core values when it is really windy outside and my seventh graders let me know in many different ways that they do not like the song that they are singing. I will need to remember my core values when administrators tell me that they are thinking of making music class an "after school activity" instead of in the actual curriculum. Here are some things I need to remember and have right on my desk:

1. I have always had a love of children and love to work with them and teach them.
2. Every child has a right to learn.
3. Everyone has an aptitude in music. EVERYONE!
4. Music is worthy of curricular study on its own merit.
5. The classroom is a place of safety and freedom of expression. It is a place where children can discover and learn without fear.
6. Music is one of man's greatest accomplishments~it cannot lie.

Have a good day Shannalee!

Love,

Shannalee

Blog 1: Hello Future Me

Dear Future Me,

This is now an official post entitled "Blog 1: 'Hello Future Me'". If you are reading this, chances are the Zombie Apocalypse has not occurred yet and you have just accepted your first position as a music educator to a lucky school. Congratulations! What's that? Part of your duties will be to teach instrumental music? Don't sweat. There are entries after this one that will remind you of different topics you have learned in Instrumental Methods (Spring semester of 2012) and different ideas you had yourself. But for now, allow me to help you remember why you chose this field of study.

Remember your first recital with mom teaching and you sang "My Favorite Things" with a group of girls? Mom made a chart of the lyrics with pictures on it for those who couldn't read yet. Then there was one of the times you performed all by yourself and sang "The Melody Within" from Rigoletto with Mom accompanying at the Nursing Home. You were nervous but it was so fun and exciting performing in front of others.

You knew at an early age that music was an extremely important part of your life. It brings you so much joy and you've seen how it's touched other lives as well. Like when you worked in the Nursing Home and it made the residents so happy to hear you sing some of their favorite songs while cleaning the tables.

This is why it was so upsetting to see it not appreciated in the school setting. It brings you so much joy, so why were there some who were not as enthused? Eventually you decided that maybe you'd like to become a Music Educator and help shape the minds of future adults. You started to write down ideas from workshops you went to and some of your own ideas.

Now here I am. 2012 and I'm a junior at MSU pursuing a degree in the Education of Musicianship for grades K-12. It's all because I am passionate about music being available for all students. Not just available, but making the program so that students really want to be there and actively seek out opportunities to perform and better their instruments.

Now then future me, since you most likely have a couple of days (or hopefully weeks) to prepare yourself for the teaching of this instrumental class, you should do some things:

• Find all the phone numbers of your instrumental professors (especially Dr. Stark because he knows his stuff).
• Make sure you know exactly where the sections should go.
• Dig out all your Instrumental Technique notebooks so that they are in your office ready to be consulted.
• Decide on repertoire.
• What songs do you want them to work on?
• Get out your calendar, when are all of the concerts going to be?

THEN, you can read more of these blogs!

Sincerely yours,

Shannalee (Me)

Dear Future Me,

I am very excited to be compiling this informative instrumental methods information for you. I will be faithful in posting and try to be as interesting as I can with my informative writing. Hopefully I'll be able to post ideas of my own that will aid in the teaching of students as well as other ideas I hear in class. I shall close with a short haiku for you.

Dear reader you're wise,
blow your nose and cross your eyes,
Oh reader, read on.

I couldn't help but rhyme there. Haiku's (haiki plural?) are silly.

Sincerely,
Me (Shannalee)