Orchestra classroom

Simple System for Classroom Management | Mysite

It's the last 2 weeks of school for me! I like to make sure students are engaged and busy through the end of the year. Otherwise teaching can start to feel too much like babysitting teenagers. Here are my plans for the rest of the year! Some have asked how to play Apples to Apples orchestra edition. Here's a tutorial:

Orchestra Classroom Ideas: Organizing Inventory and a little re-decorating

After seeing a fingering poster online that another orchestra teacher had created, I knew I wanted to make a set for myself. I cut strips of black paper at various widths to show the strings from thickest to thinnest (1/4", 1/2", 3/4", 1"), laminated the poster, then used Velcro to mark where each note would go. Each letter name bubble was cut out, laminated, and Velcro-ed. I also taped a plastic baggie to the back of the poster to store the unused notes. At one school, I have a strip of…

A few days ago a received a letter from a reader: I teach 4th and 5th grade beginning strings and orchestra. I absolutely love you...

I decided to make binders to keep on every music stand in my classroom. I got this idea from some awesome teachers in Georgia - shout out to Amy Clement and Sarah Ball! Every minute counts in an orchestra rehearsal. By placing materials in binders, every student will have what they need. No more hunting down music for that kid who was absent, or making a new copy of our warm-ups because somebody left theirs at home. I'm still going to give each student a folder and music they can take home…

These help my students get better, FAST!

I like to call Friday rehearsals 'Friday Fun Day!' I want Fridays to be a celebration of all we learned during the week, but also serve a...