It's coming up to Christmas break and everyone is on-the-floor-tired but simultaneously proud of all their students have achieved this term.  After a raft of concerts, carol services and celebration assemblies we all deserve a couple of weeks off don't...

We're almost there....the end of term is approaching fast.  This week I received an SLT email reminding me of 'end of term procedures', including ensuring that all desks are clear (not sure I've seen the actual wood of my desk for a little while now.....) and that...

So it's almost the end of the school year and with only a few weeks to go it's likely that your students are starting to become a little restless.  It's also likely that perhaps your patience isn't as great as it was in September, am I right?  And we all know...

Christmas Songs.  Love them or hate them, this is the season where you begin to hear them endlessly and everywhere.  Shops, lifts, in the street, at work.  There's no escaping them.  And writing a new Christmas song can be a fun and worthwhile lesson...

It's that time of year when we are not only expected to teach great lessons, keep up with meeting, duties and the gazillion emails every day, but also arrange a plethora of excellent musical experiences in order to impress upon anyone who happens to be passing by that we...

Last week I was telling you about my top favourite traditional Christmas songs for quick and easy time saving lessons.  (You can read Time Saving Christmas Lessons right here) But don't we all have those students who shun the beautiful traditional...

Love it or hate it, Christmas is on its way and as music teachers we all know this is going to be a big time of year.  Personally I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!  Concerts, carol services, community singing, what's not to like?   And you have the added bonus that...

Class percussion lessons can be enormous fun and hugely rewarding for students and teachers alike.   Hand percussion is so accessible for all students, regardless of ability or experience and enables them to join in with a subject where they can easily feel out...

I always think of TAB as a bit like playing by numbers.  Or a grid reference on a map.  For years it confused me.  Why is it upside down?  What do the numbers mean?  Which line is which?  How do you know what rhythm to play?

For a lifelong...

Before I became a music teacher I had never even touched a bass guitar.  In week 1 of my first job I realised that I was going to need to step away from my woodwind comfort zone and understand how guitars actually work.  

In week 3 I played the very simple...