I agree on how little classroom management is taught in college. Luckily my elementary music professor was also still at k-12 music teacher and had all kinds of good advice. Also, you get to see your kids every day?! I’m so jealous! Haha!
That was a very good presentation! It's bit tiring to have to constantly give specific directions, but correcting misbehavior is more so. I've got to build the habit of saying that your ukulele goes on your lap when we're not playing. Or "if you play before I say, I will..." Thanks!
Same here! I was taught all music content and almost nothing about classroom management in college. Then everyone was shocked when I had no clue about student behaviors.
I am so glad I found this video! I just did a two week music camp and taught 100 classes, realizing that I need to improve my classroom management skills... I'm transferring to a new school with a bigger classroom in my district as well and I really want to start out on the right foot. THIS WILL MAJORLY HEP!
I’ve decided this year that if a student is not participating in the lesson prior to instruments being used, they don’t get the opportunity to play the instruments. This has helped to get the non participating students to participate all the way through.🙂. Love your videos! They’ve been very helpful to me as a new teacher.
Same thing, if they are misbehaving in my classroom or even when they enter the class, they don't get to play instruments. I give them one warning to follow directions, such not to fool around or play the instruments until given permission or when music starts, and if they break that rule, they get a warning. Next time they get a time out from that activity for as long as it takes them to show me they are ready. They don't like time outs and get scared of them and start participating and behaving straight away when they see other people who are behaving are playing instruments. I used to repeat the rules a lot and raise my voice because I didn't enjoy giving students consequences and felt bad when they would cry if they get a time out for misbehaving. But then I noticed that when they do get consequences and take responsibilities for their actions and KNOW what's expected of them and the consequences if they fail to meet their expectations, they stop acting out and behave A LOT better. I still don't enjoy taking their privileges away from them but it is necessary sometimes. Taking their privileges away is the hardest thing for me to do and my least favorite part of the job as a music teacher because I feel bad and so do the students, but it has to be done if that's the only way a student is going to learn. Then when I see an improved version of that student not just as a musician but as a good person, it is very rewarding. Seeing what the students do and how they react to my instruction definitely helps me become a better musician and a better music teacher. Sometimes I feel I am learning more on how to be better in music from teaching than playing. It's amazing really. Kids WILL test you but when they do follow directions and play instruments very well and have fun, sometimes their ideas and creativity is remarkable. Children are very smart and extremely creative. Sometimes they can make the music activity even more fun by sharing their creativity with the class. As a music teacher, it's not just lesson planning, it's all about improvising and building on our skills, constant improvement and modification.
First year K-6 music teacher here! My 5th grade have a lot of behavior issues. I'd love to do games for them but they cannot handle the volume level for me to be able to instruct, an unwarranted screaming. We cant play instruments because they cant care for them. They cant handle groupwork because of the volume level. Its been engrained in their memory that the music classroom is room for them to do whatever they want per their last music teacher.
Hello, thank you very much for your videos. I have learnt a lot. This will be my first year teaching elementary music. K-4, What instruments to you typically tech and what grade level? Thank you very much.
Thanks for all of this great info, Becca! I am an experienced classroom teacher (28 years - now retired). I recently was given the opportunity to work a few hours/week as a general music teacher in a private school. Unfortunately because of COVID, I have to travel from class to class on a cart, the kids are at their desks, there is very little room for socially distanced movement (the rooms are small), and I am finding it difficult to manage behavior, instruments, and attention. Honestly, in all my years of teaching I have never seen anything like this - I am wondering if the lack of social skills is a result of the online/in-person inconsistency throughout the past 2 years. I have conferenced with all of the teachers and they agree some of the kids are “difficult”. Unfortunately, I am not finding anything that works! I would love to see a video regarding this type of situation. TIA! 💕
Social skills are a struggle and I personally hate going into the teachers classroom so I feel you on that one. If you check out my videos from this time last year we had kids hybrid and so 2 to 3 days a week I was in their room with them socially distanced I’m wearing masks and all of that. So those videos might be helpful
I'm on a cart because of our lack of classrooms, and it's so frustrating. I'm supposed to let them move, but I've had to turn in incident reports because there's not enough room to do so safely. So many preventive classroom management strategies are inaccessible to me because I don't have my own space and don't control where the students sit. I'm trying so hard to be the music teacher they need, but I'm not even sure I'm the teacher I need to be at this point.
Hi, im hoping you read my comment. I have a question about the cards. What happens if you tell a student to go get a yellow card and he flat out refuses to get one, or he argues with you saying he didnt do anything wrong, or blames his bad behaviors on another student? I have had so many problems with students being defiant. Or what if they get a yellow card and just throw it or crinkle it up? What actions do you to take then?
I had a kindergartener throw a chair because I took an instrument away because he was not playing properly. How do I handle taking away instruments when there's a risk that the student may escalate the situation where other students are unsafe? (And no, he was not the only one to lose his instrument, and yes, I was going to give it back once he calmed down and was redirected)
Today was my first day in 5th grade music/6th grade choir. 40 kids per class. It wasn’t a disaster by any means, but it wasn’t great either. I’m ready to dive into this video.
