Appreciation Week

I have had nine concerts this Spring season, which has been a great way to wrap up the year (and my job :-)  and say good bye to my students, school secretaries, and principals.  I have felt very loved and appreciated.  At my final concert at Rosecrest, one of my absolute favorite schools, my principal presented my coworker and I each with a HUGE bouquet of flowers in appreciation for our hard work as music teachers at their school.  I have taught music there for four years!  Our principal was holding back tears as she told the audience how much she appreciated us.  I had to hold back some tears at one point.  I was so touched.  I have such great relationships with the secretaries, principal, and custodian there :)  It's nice to feel loved and appreciated.  I thanked them for being so great to work with!   

A few of my students have also presented me with some thank you gifts in the past two weeks.  Two sixth grade boys even!  I think that is so sweet.  Here are some pictures of the thoughtful things my students have given to me.   What wonderful students I have had!!  Here is that gorgeous bouquet of flowers.

My New Job :)

This week has been great!  I was offered a teaching position in my district as the Instrumental Music teacher at Jefferson Junior High.   I am thrilled!  I feel very blessed.  There were a lot of people who applied for the position, and my principal said that I was their top choice!  I am glad that I will continue to work in the same school district. 

Here is a list of the things I am excited about:
1)  I will have my own classroom, and I won't be traveling to nine schools twice a week anymore!  I am really looking forward to being at one school  (I have been teaching at eight, but next year would have been assigned a ninth school).
2)  I get to take all the brand new instruments I received from my grant last year with me!!  I will still lend some of them out to the elementary schools so that students who can't afford an instrument get the chance to play, and they can feed into my program in a year or two!
3)  I am sooo excited to have my own classroom with two offices, a music storage closet with six filing cabinets that store music for all of my playing  groups.  There are extra filing cabinets-- perfect for the music and other supplies I have collected the past four years.  This means that the trunk of my car will not be my office anymore with paper, instruments, and teaching materials.  Yay!!!
4)  I have a wonderful principal who is so supportive of music.
5)  Lots of school instruments available, like Tenor saxophones, Bass clarinets, an oboe...  I look forward to teaching these as more and more students come into my music program.
6)  I have a projector in my classroom, so I can hook up my laptop to it, and students can see powerpoints, or anything I want to show them on the big screen.  Also, I actually have a microphone to use when I am teaching, so I don't have to worry about projecting my voice so much.  Having access to this technology is such a blessing.  It will make my life easier.
7)  I get to teach some of the same students that I started in fifth and sixth grade.
8)  The teacher this past year purchased a brand new drum set, and got a grant and 12 new guitars, so she set me up really well.
9)  Two of my wonderful colleagues are going to help me prepare for Jazz Band, and teach me how to teach strings.  It is so fun learning new things!!!
10)  I won't have the stress of job security like I have been dealing with.  I don't have to worry from year to year if the board is going to keep the music program or not.  Whew!
11)  I get a built-in 80 minute prep hour everyday!!   Fabulous!  

So, what will I be teaching?

Beginning and Advanced Band, Jazz Band, Beginning and Advanced Orchestra, several Guitar classes, and a Music Appreciation class.

This summer will be fun and busy taking violin and guitar lessons, practicing, and getting ready for my new teaching experience this Fall.  I am happy about this new opportunity.  I am excited for a new challenge and growth.  Wish me luck!!! :)