Are you a new music teacher? If so, you totally rock. The first year is the hardest, but that’s because it’s the year you grow the most. Back to school season always reminds me of that terrifying time of being a first year music teacher thrown into a new environment. There are so many things I wish I’d known, and I’d like to share some of that information with you today. And if you’re an experienced teacher, these might resonate with you, too.
**This post contains an affiliate link. This means that if you purchase using the link provided, I may make a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you!**
1. Prepare playlists for different occasions.
On the day of an assembly or other special school event, there’s a big chance that someone at the school will run up to you at the last minute and ask you to put on some music. The first time it happened to me, I had three playlists total. All three were on CD’s, and none of the music was right for the event. A frantic administrator who approaches you five minutes before an assembly is not looking for a mix of Sousa marches and the Surprise Symphony. 😉 Since then, I’ve created kid-friendly playlists for different situations like pep rallies, field days, and promotion ceremonies. If you use Spotify, you can click here for my pep rally playlist.
2. Get to know the staff.
You’re new to your school, so you don’t have time for eating in the lunchroom, chatting while making copies, or meeting up at the staff happy hour. Right? Yeah, no. You need to know the people you work with. First of all, you’ll make some great work friends who will watch your class when you need to run to the bathroom. 😉 But seriously, there will be some amazing people from whom you can learn a lot.
And how else would you learn that one of the Kindergarten teachers’ husbands is a drummer who is happy to help out with the talent show? Or that Third Grade does a unit on the science of sound that you could tie into perfectly? Or how the school secretary is Filipina, and would love to help you introduce Tinikling to your classes? Getting to know your school community makes such a difference.
3. Get to know your sound system.
How much sound tech experience did you get while in your degree program? If yours was anything like my college, you had no experience. But for some reason, school staff always assume that we naturally know our way around every sound system. Ha! Nope. So as soon as you are settled into your classroom and your routine, that’s the next thing I would take a few hours to get familiar with, new music teacher. If you need guidance, check with your school custodian, other music teachers in your district, or good old YouTube. 🙂
On a related note, this portable sound system has come to our rescue on several occasions. When our school sound system wasn’t working on concert night, we made do with this. Was it amazing? Nope, but the show was able to go on! I use this in my classroom all the time, and during rehearsals to get students used to using a microphone. But I love that it has a rechargeable battery for when you need to bring it out to the field for field day, or roll it around the school for a parade.
4. Prepare for a Sub
You never know when an emergency will come up. Unfortunately, I can tell you about that from experience this school year, but I’ll explain in a future blog post. But really, it can happen any time, so don’t let it loom over you; set up a sub tub. To read about what you should put in your sub tub, click here. It’s good to have at least a week’s worth of emergency sub plans and activities ready to go, including any photocopies. And those teacher friends you made earlier? They’ll be happy to help if you show them where you keep everything a sub should need.
5. Say no.
Any of my fellow millennial teachers out there remember the D.A.R.E. program? “Just say no” was the motto, and I think that should be the motto for easily guilted teachers, too. Join a committee or two, but feel no pressure or guilt about passing on any additional groups. Help out with the fall festival and the book fair, but go home on time for the math night. What I’m saying is that those boundaries will keep you sane and prevent burnout. Remember that no is a full sentence; you don’t need to explain or come up with an excuse. Just. say. no.
If you learn when to say no, familiarize yourself with your community and resources, and make a few preparations, the rest of your school year as a new music teacher will go much more smoothly. Is there anything I missed that you would add to this list? Leave a comment below.
Happy teaching!
No Comments