Calm? Check. Thoughtful? Check. Caring? Check....

Recently, I was attending one of our district's mentoring meetings on the topic of Parent-Teacher Relations.  The speaker referenced the book, How to Deal with Parents who are Angry, Troubled, Afraid, and Just Plain Crazy by Elaine K. McEwan-Adkins.  There were many useful solutions and suggestions just in the presentation, I'd like to delve into this book myself in the near future.  However, I'd like to share this quote from the presentation that struck me as particularly appropriate to my Jedi-Teacher theme:

"As professionals, it is our responsibility to be calm, thoughtful, caring, intelligent, articulate, direct and honest at all times and in all situations."

October Music Education Blog Carnival!!

Dr. Joseph Pisano of MusTech.net is hosting the Music Education Blog Carnival for the month of October... and one of my more "mysterious" posts is included!!!

Dr. Pisano presents a variety of terrific resources for music education, private music teachers, Recreational Music Making (RMM), music technology, music advocacy, professional music networks, and music composition.  Please check out the carnival!

September Education Buzz

Ahhh...the weekend! It's here after our first five-day week of the year, and it's a great time do check out the Meet the Teacher Edition of the Education Buzz–Life's a Carnival, hosted by Richie at Bellringers! I'll be taking some of my busy weekend time (between going to a workshop for cooperating teachers at SRU on Saturday and hosting my youngest child's third birthday party on Sunday, with soccer, dance, and church thrown in the middle!) to read all of these terrific entries!



...and here's the birthday girl!



September Music Education Blog Carnival!

Sing Imagination is hosting the Music Education Blog Carnival for the month of September... and one of my posts is included!!! Sweet!

As if our minds aren't swimming in enough to think about at this back-to-school time, Yoon presents a plethora of terrific resources for music education, music technology, music advocacy, music listening and performance review, music hardware/software, and music tips/learning reflection. I can't wait to start reading, I just have to find the time! Please check out the carnival!

"Where Children Sleep"

Documentary photographer James Mollison recently published a photo book entitled "Where Children Sleep" which developed from his idea that a photo of someone's bedroom can reveal much more about them than a portrait ever could.  The book gives a fascinating view into the personal lives of children, and is an especially stark compare/contrast tool for the "haves" and the "have-nots" around the world. (And the pictures are going to be excellent as an extension to our "Hello to All the Children of the World" song in the Third Grade "Share the Music" series.)

Imagine if all of your students arrived at school with a picture of their sleeping place in hand. In our communities, we would likely see a very diverse a group of rooms, and some may be just as startling as "Where Children Sleep".  Understanding just where our students are coming from is a big step in a new teacher's understanding of their students, and a useful reminder to teachers to use patience with our students. This is why many school districts have begun to incorporate the home visit.  More ideas on home visits can be found here and here.

Good Reading: "So You Want To Teach?"

Are you a "List Person", that is always making lists of tasks to be completed, and then gaining satisfaction as you cross them off one by one? Yeah, me too.

Joel of "So You Want To Teach" is a list person, but of a different sort. He is terrific at making lists that pertain to our lives as teachers, and they are often full of positive messages.  Every teacher, music or otherwise, will gain insight from his blog, and his online persona seems like he is a teacher in the Jedi mode: cool, calm, meeting any crisis with finesse, etc.  Check out his list of "Fifty Reasons to Love Your Job as a Teacher".  (And he doesn't even include summer vacation!) Also, "15 Ways to Stay Positive" and "10 Things for a First Year Teacher to Do".