classroom management

Engaging Larger Class Sizes: Creative Strategies for Music Teachers

Engaging Larger Class Sizes: Creative Strategies for Music Teachers
Teaching music to larger class sizes can be both exhilarating and challenging. In the past few years, I have had around 40 singers each in my 3rd-4th and 5th-7th grade homeschool choirs that meet once per week, so I understand the desire and need to connect with students individually but efficiently. The key to success lies in finding ways to engage every student while managing time effectively. One of the most effective methods is to incorporate activities that involve solos, instruments, and games in a way that allows each student to take turns over multiple class periods. This approach not only keeps the class fun and engaging but also provides opportunities for individual connection and assessment. Here’s how you can implement this strategy in your music classroom.

Rotating Turns: A Balanced Approach

1. Plan Your Activities Well

When planning your lessons, consider activities that can be broken down into smaller segments, allowing for individual participation. Here are a few ideas:
  • Solos During Echo Songs or Tonal Patterns: Encourage students to sing back a short echo for a warm-up, call and response or echo song, or tonal pattern (if you use Conversational Solfege). In this way, you can truly have every student sing a solo (one line of the echo song) even in large classes and it takes less than 3 minutes!
  • Instrumental Rotations: Utilize an instrument for a beat-keeping activity that holds attention (a loud one you don't use often is good for this because you only take out one at a time!). Each student takes a turn playing that instrument to the steady beat while the class speaks or sings a rhyme or simple song to the beat that student set the tempo with. You get to assess that student's steady beat! And each student eventually gets a turn with the special instrument. Pro tip: write down the student's assessment score (referencing a rubric if needed) to check off that they got a turn.

2. Divide and Conquer

Instead of trying to give every student a turn in one class period, spread the activity over two or three sessions. This approach ensures that each student gets a meaningful opportunity to participate without feeling rushed. Here's how you can structure it:
  • Session 1: Begin with every student doing the echo or beat keeping on their lap together. Ensure that they can confidently do it as a group.
  • Session 2: Begin with confident students/students you know will be a good model of what you are wanting to accomplish if they are new at this. Take requests of who wants to go next or follow a predescribed pattern like "go around the circle."
  • Session 3-4: Complete with the remaining students, ensuring everyone has had a chance to participate.

Keeping Track: The Importance of Documentation

1. Use a Turn Tracker

Create a simple chart or spreadsheet to track which students have had their turns. This can be as straightforward as a checklist with student names and dates. Keeping track ensures fairness and helps you plan future sessions. I used a spreadsheet with student names and columns describing which activity and the date so I could track their growth over time and do multiple assessments in one class period easily if needed.

2. Assess and Reflect

While students are taking their turns, use this opportunity to assess their skills and progress. Make notes on their performance, strengths, and areas for improvement if needed. This documentation will be invaluable for providing feedback and tailoring future lessons to meet individual needs.

Building Connections: The Power of Individual Attention

1. Personalized Feedback

After each student's turn, offer personalized feedback if the activity makes sense. In an echo song where each student echos one line, this wouldn't work. In a steady beat activity though, you may say, "Thank you, Johnny, for keeping a steady beat. Pass to Suzie." or "You sped up at the end, Johnny, we are trying to keep a steady beat. Pass to Suzie." Highlight their strengths and provide constructive suggestions for improvement. This individual attention can boost their confidence and motivation.

2. Foster a Supportive Environment

Encourage students to support and cheer for each other during their turns. This creates a positive classroom atmosphere and helps build a sense of community. In younger grades, this could look like a clap for each person after their turn, a thumbs up to their classmate if they could hear that they sang in tune, or a smile as they sit down.

Final Pro Tip

Allow a student to pass their turn if they are not yet comfortable with the activity, you as the teacher, or the classroom space. This could be because it's the beginning of the year, they are shy, they are new to the school part way through the year... there could be so many reasons why a student chooses to pass on any given day. I encourage them to try but if they choose to pass, know that they are still learning and engaging, just in a different way that day. Near the end of the year, I always encourage students to try and occasionally have "no passing" days where everyone tries. I have found that I earn their trust, especially at the beginning of the year, by having this policy.


By rotating turns over multiple class periods, you can effectively manage larger class sizes through keeping the pace moving while also ensuring that every student gets a chance to shine. This approach not only keeps the activities engaging and fun but also allows you to connect with each student individually and assess their progress. With careful planning and documentation, you can create a dynamic and inclusive music classroom where every student feels valued and inspired. For more ideas for larger class sizes (I teach a lot of big groups!), check out Freelance Music Teacher Moms.

What is "Mystery Musician" and How I Implement it in my Choir Rehearsals

What is "Mystery Musician" and How I Implement it in my Choir Rehearsals
"Mystery Musician" is a term I came up for a way to implement a small piece of my classroom management system.

Can I just call out something I HATE about the modern educational movement? I HATE prize boxes and reward systems. There, I said it. BUT, that said, I do utilize one in a very rudimentary way that focuses on developing habits in my choir singers that I want to develop. In my experience, this has worked best for grades 3rd-7th, but you could likely adapt it for older or younger singers.

Read to the end for some winner items I've included in my "Mystery Musician" box that my students love, is NOT edible, and doesn't break the bank.

But first. What is the "Mystery Musican" and how do I use it?
A "Mystery Musician" is someone who...
  • Is organized. They have their materials (music folder and pencil) and come prepared to rehearsal if they were given a practice assignment.
  • Works hard. They use our time well during rehearsal.
  • Stays focused. He or she does not distract others during class but pays attention to what page we are on.
  • Helps others. If their neighbor doesn't know what page we are on or where I am at, they help them find their spot without causing others to get distracted.
  • Tells the story of the piece of music. They express emotions when they sing, making the audience feel happy, sad, or excited based on what we are singing. They use a smile or engaged face to draw the audience in!
  • Follow the leader. They follow their conductor's directions really well. It's important for everyone to listen and work together as a team!
  • Are curious! Mystery musicians are always learning. Their goal is to become even better singers! There is always something new to learn or discover.
There you have it! I reinforce these characteristics with my students during class by saying things like, "Wow, I see the mystery musician is sitting tall with eyes on the conductor, ready to see when she will start the piece." or maybe, "Thank you, mystery musician, for remembering to bring your music folder with you before class started! If you forgot yours, no biggie, go grab it from your bag after warm-ups are done."

This allows me to teach these habits to my singers without singling anyone out in either a positive or negative way -- and it keeps my students focused on what they are doing rather than what someone else did or didn't do. Many students may be demonstrating mystery musician traits that day, but I try to think of who that singer is as soon as they walk in the door. If that person doesn't really demonstrate these traits that day, I just pick someone else at the end of class who was and circle back around to that student another day.

So, do you do something similar in your classroom? If so, how is it similar or different to how I do it!

Oh! And bonus: 4 Winner Items I add to my box that students LOVE:
1) TINY duckies! I don't know why, but my students are OBSESSED with these cute little guys.
2) Cute erasers -- these are always a hit! I look for different ones each time I need a restock to change things up.
3) Music stickers -- can't get these anywhere else they know of (not in bulk!)
4) Jumping frog toys -- so simple, and so fun!

These have lasted my box YEARS, and I just add a new item or replenish a favorite item around once per year to change things up and keep it fresh. Cheap and fun!


This is my health story

 

I have always been sensitive. That's a word that has described me, my body in particular, my whole life. I have skin sensitivities to fabrics, bruise easily, I get cold easily, I tend to be on "alert" all of the time (no coffee needed here!), I'm a musician and very creative, and I don't even THINK about using any conventional personal care or other products that are scented... they bother my skin, and they bother my respiratory system too. I've never been able to use any scented products because of the discomfort and increased sensitivity they cause. I can't be around people who wear perfume or scented deodorant, because I can't breathe well and my head has discomfort. I can't go into a public bathroom that has been just cleaned because of the toxic chemicals they used to clean it. I can't enjoy candles or most lotions or makeup like most women I know because I'm sensitive to it.

During my first semester of college, I started to develop debilitating discomfort in my jaw, which I was later told is TMJD or temporomandibular joint dysfunction, not just the kind of little twinge when you bite down on something too hard, but long-lasting aching, along with clicking and cracking. It was exacerbated by singing, gum-chewing, caffeine, and other things, and I was easily able to cut out all of the things listed on my doctor's list except for one -- singing. I was a vocal music education major, and singing was my livelihood (or at least soon-to-be), so I couldn't just not practice! I struggled so hard for 2.5 years through long choir rehearsals, voice lessons, practice sessions, and more. By the end of the day, it would be so bad that I'd almost be in tears. My roommates and boyfriend (and his roommates!), bless their servant hearts, would bring me freezing cold ice packs to numb my face enough so that I could fall asleep at least, though I would wake up in the night unable to fall back asleep due to other sleep issues I also was dealing with.

It seemed like a vicious cycle that I needed to stop. Maybe I needed to change majors and give up my dream of making music, of teaching others to make music too. Maybe I needed to pick something that didn't require so much singing and talking. Even smiling a lot bothered me, so maybe I needed to pick a major or job with less human interaction. But THAT idea broke my heart. I didn't enjoy any of the things I could think of! My boyfriend at the time (now husband!) and I had many conversations about what I should do... singing was part of the fabric of my BEING. I am MADE to sing. If you know me, you know that hardly an hour went by without me humming or singing some little tune. But my jaw bothered me so much most of the time that I needed to change SOMETHING. But what?

And that's when change came...

I found some natural and pretty simple solutions -- though simple doesn't always mean easy! It required a LOT of discipline and self-control on my part.

I'm blessed now to have so many versatile tools in my tool box for any emotion, body system, or issue I may be experiencing. So, where am I now? Healthier than I’ve EVER been. I have NO jaw issues anymore when I keep up my self-created protocol. I sleep through the night. I feel so much better now that I'm sleeping more and deeper. I've spent 4 years now working through the emotional issues I faced in early career, and I am so happy that I can now FEEL emotions without feeling completely run-over and frozen by emotions. I’m also happy to say that I have only had little illnesses since finding solutions, not the constant strep throat and other illnesses I was getting at least once per month before! And, that’s saying a lot as I was constantly around germs while working full time with 500+ elementary students. But once I started supporting my immune system, I stopped getting sick every couple of weeks. I can clean with the most amazing smelling cleaner without coughing. I can wear my own homemade "perfume" and get compliments, and not only does it smell good, it supports my body systems. I can use amazing smelling shampoo now! I can have twice as much energy for the day without drinking any coffee or sugary drink. When I started having these successes, I was at first in disbelief, and now in awe at all that God's created, I believe, and given us for our good. Now these are my first line of defense, my go-tos, the first thing I do when something is off, which is not very often anymore (usually just when the weather changes, ah MN life).


I look forward to living a beautiful life of freedom and feeling empowered every single day, enjoying the life I was meant to live. That life includes sharing my story of overcoming and helping you also find better, safer solutions to overcome your daily struggles.

Are you ready to live empowered to be your own best advocate? Let's chat.

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