I get paid to this! and other musings

I almost am NOT a first year teacher. This is really exciting. Previously I've talked about how I felt like school days in general and teaching in particular were starting to slow down, and it really has all gotten better. Yes, the challenges are still enormous and usually come from out of the blue, but I really love what I do. As usual I'm going to tackle some of these different challenges and the attempted solutions in a near-Faulknerian stream of consciousness scattergun style.

Ok, so some kids just aren't into band. I understand that. I naively thought that I would be enthusiastic and excited and good enough that I would never have a problem with kids quitting. Wrong! So stinkin' wrong. You'll recall that I had a few stubborn 8th graders quit in the beginning of the year because my too eager, too tough, too soon grading policies and their complete reluctance and/or laziness to put forth any sort of effort.

That's all over, and we've moved into a new, more insidious version of quitting. I had the coolest 5th grader in school quit trombone back in November. He was the first kid to stick with it for a while and then decide it wasn't for him, and I felt like someone broke up with me. It's really hard not to take it personally! Just today I had a 5th grader who switched from trumpet to baritone (he couldn't play a stinkin' D on trumpet, so we moved him down and he did a lot better) quit after ditching the concert. I called home to check and see what happened at the concert, and after his parents talked with him, they returned his instrument the next morning. He and his mom said that he likes band and likes me, but that he just didn't want to do it anymore.

I would pay big bucks to get inside those 5th grade minds to see exactly what they are thinking. Are they bored? Terrified of performance? Lazy? It feels just plum impossible to actually get out a genuine, sincere answer from a 5th-8th grader, though. The baritone player just said "I don't want to do it anymore." The cool kid trombone player told me "I don't really like it." What's the real reason? Can I ever found that out so I can preemptively address those issues so that those students can enjoy and flourish in band? Do you have any experiences with this, or any success stories?

Probably the one that was most out of the blue happened just a few days ago. I have a 7th grader trumpet player who plays sports, has filled out his practice report every week, and although he dropped a few chairs at our last playing test, won an audition to play a solo in a number at our last concert. Yesterday he told me that he wasn't going to be in band next year. When I asked about why, he said he just didn't like it, and never really liked it. He's all but gone.

I know that this is all part of the game, but I want to have effective answers for these problems. I know that some kids can be bored if they aren't 100% engaged 100% of the time, so I make a point to have kids doing SOMETHING at all times, even if it's listening for mistakes in other students. I'm also usually off the wall energetic and often a little goofy at times to keep their attention and have an enjoyable atmosphere. I also try to find the balance between tough love, high expectations and a little bit of fun-time silliness.

Part of the reason that quitting is so anxiety-written right now is that I am picking up a program that is teetering near the edge of rock bottom. Every kid counts, even if they can't play. It counts for my administration's perception of the health of the program. It also count's for the student's perception of band. When kids quit, other kids talk about it, and I fear it just might get them thinking that "hey this is something I can just quit when I don't feel like working anymore." How do you reverse that mindset to get to the point where kids are clamoring to get into band? Where quitting is atypical? Can I build that with time? Am I laying the proper foundation to get to that point?

So that was a little dark. There are lots of awesome points too, and despite anxiety about some kids quitting, things are really on the up and up. We just had a concert where all groups performed quite well. The Jazz Band is playing several gigs in the upcoming months, and the band in general is sounding.......decent!

I got a very public shoutout from my principal today at a staff meeting as she read a gushing letter from an anonymous band parent's e-mail. The parent was lauding the students' performance at the concert and commending me for my enthusiasm, hard work, etc. That was really uplifting and encouraging.

In the meantime, I am looking ahead towards finishing up the year strong, making sure my 5th grade clarinets are feeling confident over the break, helping 5th grade brass players get down the Eb scale, and in general laying down the groundwork for success next year.

Sorry that this post ambled about and sidetracked - any comments and feedback, especially about quitting and retention, would be appreciated. If you haven't had it yet, enjoy your spring break, and keep motoring on toward summer!

...And Down the Stretch They Come!

Wow. I'm sitting here at the beginning of the 4th quarter of my first year. Reflection is due. It'll come after our concert coming up on this Thursday, I promise! It's been way too long since I've updated.

"The Bartman" and Other Cornerstones of the Wind Band Repertoire

Now that I have settled into second semester and concert band season is in full swing, I feel like I am pushing just ever so slightly beyond survival mode as a first year teacher. After the initial shock, I am starting to figure out some changes and initiatives I want to pursue in my position. I have a new procedure for distributing music and handouts, I held a "Maintenance Monday" and "Equipment Check," and my fifth graders have started to work with their high school band buddies (that's a separate post entirely, I'm really excited about this!). The biggest project I have right now though is organizing the music library.

I worked in the band library in college, and I learned a ton. Unfortunately, I also gained an understanding of how music ought to be kept and organized. As such, I am cursed with a feeling of moral culpability for my current band library, which is a shambles. I am reminded of my zany library boss, LL, and what she might say if she saw my band room.

Imaginary LL: Emma, you can rebuild it! Better, stronger than before!

Emma: But it will take freakin' forever, and I have other stuff to do! Plus, nobody's gonna care except me. Can't the next guy just do it?

Imaginary LL: You can't leave it like this, the horror!!! Do the job, do the job!

Emma: Well, it would make it easier to select and purchase literature...

Imaginary LL: That's the spirit... ::LL cackle::

So it begins, the process of organizing my library. Of course, the first step is convincing myself that this is a worthy use of my time. Let me first explain the problems. There is no computerized inventory of the library, so I have no quick way of knowing what we have. All of the music for the high school, middle school, and beginning bands are all stored together alphabetically(ish), which is fine until you run out of space in the "A" drawer. My literature selection this year has consisted of me wading through file cabinets and praying that I come out with something remotely A. appropriate and B. halfway decent sounding. I remember being elated when I discovered the cache of Christmas music the day after marching band season ended (otherwise I would've been hosed). This is a problem.

So, I devised a catalogue. I set up a system of call numbers to be grouped separately: B=Beginning, JH=Junior High, H=High School, C=Christmas, and P=Patriotic. I decided to separate out these latter categories because the Veteran's Day Program and Christmas Program are big events in the community and I wanted those pieces together for easy browsing. I am using Excel (with a list/sort feature) for the catalogue. I know that there are a lot of fancy database programs out there, but the previous director had started putting some pieces on the computer, and I didn't want to totally start over. My spreadsheet has all the usual suspects, check out the sample here.

The sick thing is, I actually enjoy the orderliness and busywork of this project at times. It can get overwhelming, but it's funny too! It's like looking at old photo albums. I loving seeing what the bands used to play at my school as far back as the 60s and 70s. For example, I have unearthed over 20 Swearingen titles, no exaggeration. The range of music includes orchestral transcriptions, standard school band fare, Sousa marches, a variety of Curnow pieces, the theme from "Cheers," "Ebony and Ivory for Concert Band," and my personal favorite, "The Bartman." Yup, as in the Simpsons circa 1990. Arranged... for... band.

Has anyone else organized a library before? What pitfalls did you encounter? Most importantly, is it worth it?? I'd love to hear about it in the comments. And of course, for your listening pleasure... check out the video below!

Bart Simpson - Do The Bartman by ernsthemingway