Ahem...

The National Association for Music Education Collegiate Chapter #225 at the University of Maryland, College Park is now recognized as a student organization by SGA!!!!

That is all.

Event Summary: "From Shambles to Success"

 We might not have blogged for a little while, but that doesn't mean we haven't been busy! In the past month, we've attended a conference, listened to two speakers, volunteered at All-State auditions, and started to plan our Barnes and Noble fundraiser–more on that later.

This past Monday, Oakland Mills Middle School band director Lori Reichl generously offered to give us a follow-up masterclass after we saw her speak at the MMEA-inservice. NAfME member Amanda Staub gets the story straight on "From Shambles to Success: Part II."

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In case you missed it, Mrs. Lori Schwartz Reichl, who spoke at the MMEA conference last month, came to our NAfME meeting for a master class last night! If this did indeed slip past your radar or you were otherwise unable to attend, here is a review of some of the neat stuff that you missed!

         Mrs. Reichl has experience going into a school as a new band director where the teacher before you has left you with practically nothing. She told us that this was something that we, as first year teachers, were likely to encounter, so she gave us some pointers.

         First, she displayed her “Hierarchy of Organizational Tasks”. It looks something like this:

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She highly recommended that, far before your first day, get into the school AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE so that you can take inventory of what you have and what you don’t. “Make a spreadsheet!” Before the first day, make sure you have gained some administrative support by talking directly to the principle and getting them on their side. Later on, she says you can brag about your kids to keep this relationship strong. Mrs. Reichl also said that, in order to be the best prepared for the first day, the best thing you can do is PLAN AHEAD. This means decorate your room in advance, plan out your behavioral procedures and how you expect the class to go on a daily basis.

         When the first day comes, Lori insists that we “set the standard from day one” by teaching students your expectations in behavior before you begin teaching any material. The ideal, for her, is to be firm and strict, but reasonable. This is what, she says, students respond best to. She also mentioned that it is good to have these things very clearly laid out in a handbook for the parents and students to keep and look back on. She also says that getting to know your students by greeting them at the door and learning who they are as individuals is a great way to build a relationship with your students. In terms of discipline problems, Mrs. Reichl says that calling home is a very useful tool when used properly, pointing out good aspects of the student before telling the parent what their child is doing wrong.

         Once you’ve gotten started, the best way to build up a program is to get the parents involved and to get involved in the community. Get your students to play anywhere they can! It can bring great publicity and the principle will feel good about being able to brag about them.

All in all, I gathered that the best thing we can do is be as prepared as possible by making connections, scheduling and setting standards early. 

If you've got an event you'd like to share with everyone, feel free to email us at nafmeatumd@gmail.com