Andrea Orem has three bachelor’s degrees in K-12 Vocal Music Education, Music Composition, and Bible from the University of Northwestern, St. Paul. as well as certifications in Dr. John Feierabend's First Steps in Music and Conversational Solfege. She has been teaching music to young people in one-on-one lessons, small groups, and school classroom settings for 11 years. Andrea has also taught adult ukulele lessons and classes in a community setting for 3 years. In her free time, Andrea enjoys singing in an adult choir Two Rivers Chorale, gardening organically, serving others in her wellness business, puppy raising service dogs in training, reading, and serving in various ways at her church with her husband, Gabe.
As a student myself, I attended a K-12 Christian school in Rochester, MN called Schaeffer Academy. I hold my Classical Christian education background highly and credit my relationships with the amazing staff there as a key role in giving me experiences, drive, and opportunities early in life to pursue my calling as a music teacher and mentor. Throughout my time at Schaeffer, I was given so many chances developmentally and musically to grow my leadership skills, set and accomplish far-reaching goals, and cultivate in character spiritually, academically, and relationally. There are many key moments in my experience where a teacher or staff member at Schaeffer was able to come alongside me, shaping my thinking in ways that impact who I am as an educator now. I desire to be a teacher and mentor that feels and thinks critically with my students; I am not afraid to have hard, thoughtful, or playful conversations with my students, as I know that music touches our souls as humans in deep ways, spurring on many deeper conversations and creating an ample environment for growing in this way. The thought of bringing up a generation of Christ-following, well-rounded individuals who can interact with their community meaningfully through bringing music into their home, worship, and ministry inside and outside of the church excites me. I desire to inspire and prepare students to grow into creative individuals who engage thoughtfully and meaningfully with the culture around them, becoming lifelong lovers of Christ and of the world He created. I want students to develop the God-given talents and unique voice He has given them to share with the world rather than imitate others.
For those that are not religious? I teach to the goals you have. I do not impose my beliefs on you in any way. Simply put, the above is the backdrop for why I do what I do, and you are welcome to be your own self within that. If you resonate with the growth mindset, playful-yet-deep way I approach teaching and life, we may be a great fit no matter the belief system behind why we do what we do.
I implement John Feierabend's First Steps in Music 8-part workout as the framework for early childhood and elementary age music classes. For building music literacy, I use Dr. Feierabend's 12-steps of Conversational Solfege. Whether I am teaching voice lessons or ukulele lessons and classes or piano lessons, I desire to make musical learning playful, applicable to daily life, and meaningful for the student(s) context.
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