The Adaptive General Music Teacher

Every student in our classroom has needs. Many children learn best in a variety of ways - with multiple paths for engagement towards understanding. Through the lens of access, equity and inclusion, this experiential and interactive session focuses on the struggles that general music teachers face as they strive to ensure a quality music education for all of their students. Participants will learn about the "big four" modes of adaptations that they can implement to promote students' learning as they experience, first-hand, general music activities that promote kinesthetic, aural and visual learning. This session is highly interactive and will include opportunities for movement, exploration, and music-making while engaging in tried and true strategies for creating a more accessible general music classroom.

Integrating Social and Emotional Learning in the K-6 General Music Classroom

In this hands-on workshop, teachers engage in musical activities with children’s literature that successfully foster the various skills and domains for social and emotional learning (SEL) within their students. Learn how to address self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and social awareness, within the core artistic processes of Performing, Creating, Performing, Responding and Connecting. Teachers will engage in practical ideas that will meet the needs of the whole child in the music classroom.

Beginning Steps Towards Culturally Responsive Teaching

This interactive workshop introduces novice teachers to beginning steps they can take to become more culturally responsive in the classroom. Participants will “learn by doing” as they practice using tools and strategies that will foster self-reflection on their own development and experiences as students and teachers, identify hidden curricula regularly promoted within the music classroom, and engage with each other through meaningful steps that will help them go beyond removing inappropriate repertoire from their curricula.

A Curriculum and Assessment Refresher: Teach Less, Do More!

Looking for more "buy-in" from your students? Learn how to take the mystery out of teaching and learning by allowing students more agency of their music learning. Learn how students learn best—and why this is so important to mitigate the need to "re-teach" things in your classroom. Become a facilitator of knowledge—not the gatekeeper! Note: This session involves some real-world application though curriculum development, so please bring a lesson plan that you are willing to refresh.

Mentoring Music Educators Towards Culturally Responsive Teaching

Many early career music teachers and students learning to teach music within their teacher preparation programs lack sufficient training in culturally responsive pedagogy. Similarly, teacher educators as well as those who mentor early career teachers might also need development in this area. This interactive session, designed for music teacher educators and music teacher mentors, will focus on how mentors can successfully help their mentees to become more culturally responsive in the classroom. Specific topics addressed include how to facilitate reflection within early career teachers through investigating hidden curriculum commonly encountered in music education and music teacher education programs, as well as through providing beginning teachers what they specifically need during the various stages of teacher development. Guided by their own reflection as culturally responsive music educators, participants will practice mentoring techniques and strategies through role play and will be given specific web-based tools that will support the facilitation of beginning music teacher reflection, development and growth.

Let’s Get Moving: Authentic Folk Dancing in the K-8 General Music Classroom

The best general music classes have our students on their feet, engaged, and moving! Come learn authentic folk dances that really inspire students to engage with each other and the cultures that they are learning about. Ways to adapt dances to meet the diverse needs of students will be addressed, as well as general tips for overall success when integrating folk dance into your classroom.

Stop the Madness: Using “Informances” in General Music

Too often, general music teachers find themselves required to put on formal performances with their general music students. This often results in teachers having to use valuable class time so that they may sufficiently prepare their students for upcoming performances. Embracing informances is one way to meet in the middle when it comes to performing requirements and the K-12 general music class curriculum. This workshop is for general music teachers who wish to highlight learning taking place in their classrooms, while emphasizing process over product, for their students. Teachers learn practical strategies for advocating for informances in their schools, how to engage students in informance planning and preparation, as well as ways to ensure that learning remains front and center throughout the entire process. Student participation, accommodations, as well as performance anxiety are also addressed.

Mentoring from the Inside Out: A Framework for Mentoring Early Career Music Teachers

Designed for both beginning and veteran music educator mentors, this workshop highlights the developmental stages of early career music teachers—their characteristics and needs—while providing tools and strategies for mentors to help music teachers navigate their first years of teaching. This interactive workshop allows mentors time to use strategies and tools, role play scenarios, practice giving feedback to mentees, and strategize ways they can help their specific mentees.

The “Ins and Outs” of Equitable Assessment in Music Education

In the realm of music education, assessment plays a pivotal role in shaping student learning experiences and outcomes. However, traditional assessment practices often overlook the diverse needs and backgrounds of students, leading to inequities in the classroom. This interactive workshop delves into the concept of equitable assessment and its application within the context of music education. This workshop will provide practical solutions to biases and systemic barriers often encountered within traditional assessment practices and help teachers develop practical inclusive and authentic assessments that honor students’ diverse needs and varying musical abilities while allowing space for student voice and agency.