Elementary/General Division
Our Glass is Spilling Over! Melissa Thomason, President, Elementary General
As school gets underway, we often get bogged down in the logistics - scheduling, programs, class size, cur- riculum, correlations, ARI, No Child Left Behind, and many more tasks or activities.. We are often accused of being "unimportant", "frivolous", and "the class- room teachers' break". Many of us spend each year worrying over whether we will have a classroom, or even a job, the next year while others of us feel unap- preciated and overlooked in all that we do. We ALL, of course, know that what we do IS core and extreme- ly important in many ways for our students. Music makes more well-rounded students and contributes to skills necessary for learning all other subjects. During these times, I try to remind myself of the infamous expression of "looking at one's glass as half full, rather than half empty."
While walking down the hall the other day, I found myself jerked to a halt by a small hand attached to a lit- tle Kindergarten girl who grinned up at me and said "Hey singing lady! I love you!" Several thoughts ran
through my head. First, "what grade will she be in when she learns my name?". Secondly, "will my arm ever be the same?" Finally, and most importantly, I think about how I will have the wonderful opportunity to see this child grow, develop, and learn over the next several years. To me, this is such an exciting adven- ture! I stand each day in awe of my older students and think back to how they were in Kindergarten. Some look and act exactly the same. Some have changed considerably. Some have loved music since the first week of Kindergarten.
Some have pleasantly sur-
prised me in their later years as they have become leaders in choir or in music class. Others, I continue to search every week for ways to ignite their genuine love for and appreciation of music. What I find so grand about my job is that I get to consistently watch them develop and learn. I get to see them go from get- ting that steady beat down pat in the first years to sight-reading a simple piece for their recorder by the time they hit the older grades. I get to see their eyes
8 ala breve - August 2005
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64