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Friday Finds #20

Check out this amazing device! Watch a young boy play the piano with his eyes, accompanying the singing of Joy to the World. HERE

My New Years Resolutions!

Thanks for inspiring this Blog Post Mrs Miracle - for as you can see, one of my resolutions is to Blog more - so I am already on my way!
Mrs Miracle's 2015 New Year's Resolutions!

My first go at a Linky Party so wish me luck please.

Personal: The work/life balance thing is always tricky. How to be the best teacher as well as the efficient house keeper (I'm afraid I am an epic fail on that one!), a fabulous Mum and a caring, generous partner? How? I guess I will just work at it, trying to be 'present' when I am with my family instead of thinking of all the things that I should be doing. If I can do that I know it will help.

Professional: That is an easy one. Next month I am flying to the USA, first time visitor, to present at the Georgia State Conference http://www.gmea.org/in-service-conference/ . Oh just a bit excited. I will meet so many other music teachers, get so many ideas, make so many new contacts...just buzzing with the thrill. But wait, there's more! I am then going back to attend the OAKE conference http://www.oake.org/conferences/  and present a session there as well. I love working with Music Teachers, and this year will be no different, I will still love working with Music Teachers, just adding some Americans to my Network of FABULOUS Music Educators.

Classroom: After working for 33 years (on and off - with other bits and pieces thrown in the mix) in Primary schools (4 to 12 year olds) I am moving to Secondary School (12-17 year olds). All I can say is WISH ME LUCK! Seriously though, I am looking forward to the challenge and also looking forward to working with my colleague and friend Linda Mackay.

Blog/TPT: Not sure if I will start a TPT store..... I have my precious web site www.crescendo.com.au that I slave over (with free downloads but so much more for an annual membership) so I might stay focused on that. The NEW site will be launched on January 6th and I am so looking forward to it. It has been a long time in the making with loads of new features but I will blog more about that later. I plan to Blog more frequently - and make connections with other Music Educators just like this! (Again - New Years Resolutions already being realised and it isn't even the 1st yet!)

Just for me: Less Stress! Says it all really. I just want to keep doing what I am doing, just get better at turning off my brain from time to time to properly relax. I am sure many of you out there know exactly how I feel. It is one of the dangers of our profession. We care too much, we work too hard and we can't switch off!

To all my Crescendo Music Education Followers, to all my colleagues and friends, and to all of you I have yet to meet, have a fabulous New Year's Eve Celebration and I hope that 2015 has some wonderful surprises in store for you.

Humour in the Classroom

Not everyone is the Class Clown – I confess I am. Humour plays a really important part in my teaching style. Every teacher brings something unique to their classroom and I guess one of the things I bring is laughter. I have one puppet that is so naughty that he can’t come to school very often. Sheldon, the snail, is cheeky and just loves to make everyone laugh, so when he appears we get very side tracked. He is a Folkmanis large snail, well he was before he became mine.
I also have a ‘joke of the week’ for years 4 to 7. It really doesn’t take long, and some kids really look forward to it. I have heard some families get the weekly Joke at the dinner table on music lesson days! (Poor things!) I used to have one for all year levels, but the frustration of having to explain the joke to the little ones got to me! Besides, we have enough laughs with the little ones without a Mrs O’Shea slack joke! But of course the most important thing for me is to have a laugh with the students over things that happen in the lesson. I stress WITH the students. The biggest crime in my music room is to laugh AT someone. The Dragon Lady of the Music Room comes out if that ever happens.

I hope that you all appreciate the talents that you bring to your music room.

(From the Crescendo Free Newsletter - sign up on www.crescendo.com.au )

Striving for excellence rather than perfection 

From Anthony, M. & Swinson, P. When Perfect isn’t Good Enough. 1998. New Harbinger Publications, Oakland

As professionals or students, we are continually challenged to improve our performance by striving for excellence within our roles. However, the desire for excellence is not the same as being a perfectionist.

Individuals who strive for perfection are blind from the truth of excellence. Striving for excellence motivates us, whereas striving for perfection demoralises us. Essentially, perfectionists have standards that are unreasonable or beyond reach, and can lead to the following negative outcomes.

Procrastination, an avoidance tactic, occurs when individual’s fear not being able to live up to their own, or others, unrealistically high expectations.

Fear of Failure can result in apathy. This occurs when the person knows he or she will never measure up 100% of the time.

Paralysed Perfectionists are so afraid of messing up that they refrain from taking chances or making decisions until the perfect option is made available to them.

The workaholic Syndrome leads to trouble with delegation because no one can achieve their high expectations.

They also have trouble saying no, thus over-committing themselves and losing their life balance, and health and wellbeing.

Perfectionism can lead to depression, anger, social and performance anxiety, worry, obsessive-compulsive behaviour, and eating disorders. This is because perfectionists have unrealistic standards with work, relationships, and other activities. The following strategies may help reduce perfectionism. 

• Be less detail orientated. Sometimes near enough is good enough.
• Be less concerned about being judged by others. Have faith in your own knowledge and expertise.
• Become more tolerant of self and other’s imperfections. Sometimes your way is simply different not better.
• Accept yourself as an imperfect creature with faults and limitations.
• Whilst it is desirable to be approved by others, we don’t need it to survive. It is better to concentrate on self-acceptance and unconditional positive regard of self and others.

Nine Ways Excellence Outperforms Perfection

1. Excellence is willing to be wrong - Perfection is being right

2. Excellence is risk - Perfection is fear

3. Excellence is empowerment - Perfection is anger and frustration

4. Excellence is spontaneous - Perfection is control

5. Excellence is accepting - Perfection is judgement

6. Excellence is giving - Perfection is taking

7. Excellence is confidence - Perfection is doubt

8. Excellence is flowing - Perfection is pressure

9. Excellence is journey - Perfection is destination

Cosmic Laws

1. Law of Mechanical Repair - After your hands become coated with  grease,
your nose will begin to itch and you'll have to pee.

2. Law of Gravity - Any tool, nut, bolt, screw, when dropped, will  roll to
the least accessible place in the universe.

3. Law of Probability - The probability of being watched is directly
proportional to the stupidity of your act.

4. Law of Random Numbers - If you dial a wrong number, you never get  a
busy signal - and someone always answers.

6. Variation Law - If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one  you
were in will always move faster than the one you are in now (works every
time).

7. Law of the Bath - When the body is fully immersed in water, the
telephone rings.

8. Law of Close Encounters - The probability of meeting someone you  know
INCREASES dramatically when you are with someone you don't want to be seen
with.

9. Law of the Result - When you try to prove to someone that a  machine
won't work, IT WILL!!!

10. Law of Bio-Mechanics - The severity of the itch is inversely
proportional to the reach.

11. Law of the Theatre & Hockey Arena - At any event, the people  whose
seats are furthest from the aisle, always arrive last. They are the ones who
will leave their seats several times to go for food, beer, or the toilet and
who leave early before the end of the performance or the game is over. The
folks in the aisle seats come early, never move once, have long gangly legs
or big bellies and stay to the bitter end of the performance. The aisle
people also are very surly folk.

12. The Coffee Law - As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee,  your
boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

13. Murphy's Law of Lockers - If there are only 2 people in a locker  room,
they will have adjacent lockers.

14. Law of Physical Surfaces - The chances of an open-faced jelly  sandwich
landing face down on a floor, are directly correlated to the newness and
cost of the carpet or rug.

15. Law of Logical Argument - Anything is possible if you don't know  what
you are talking about.

16. Brown's Law of Physical Appearance - If the clothes fit, they're  ugly.

17. Oliver's Law of Public Speaking -- A CLOSED MOUTH GATHERS NO FEET!!!

18. Wilson's Law of Commercial Marketing Strategy - As soon as you  find a
product that you really like, they will stop making it.

19.. Doctors' Law - If you don't feel well, make an appointment to go  to
the doctor, by the time you get there you'll feel better - don't make an
appointment, and you'll stay sick.

Thought for a Sunday morning

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. -Confucius

More on Happiness

Keeping Positive! I seem to be always banging on about this. But you just have to! Teaching is a really difficult job and to do the job properly you need to remain 'happy' and 'content'. Music teachers are often quite isolated in their profession, usually the only one of their 'kind' in a school. I came across this article and thought they might interest some of you. Something to read through and maybe support you through those more 'negative' times that we all have.

Get Happy

Have a look through these free articles - it might help with the refresh on the Easter break.
Click on Get Happy above and you will go to the relevant page on happyschool.com

Inspiration

I have so much to say. I am not sure how to say it - or even where to say it. So I am choosing the Blog!
I had a great day today working with teachers in Toowoomba. Some came from Gundie and Kingaroy too! Is it selfish to want to lead PD sessions? I confess that I get so much out of these sessions for my own personal and professional development. So that means I have very selfish motives. But I can temper these thoughts with the fact that I genuinely care for what happens in schools. I truly believe that music matters. I honestly think that children have the right to a music education. In all faith, I know that music lessons and/or choir can provide incredibly positive and sometimes life-changing experiences in an impressionable child's life.
I am so lucky to be a music teacher.
Debbie

Dealing with the Burdens of Life

Here are some great ways of dealing with the burdens of life:

* Accept that some days you're the pigeon,
And some days you're the statue.

* Always keep your words soft and sweet,
Just in case you have to eat them.

* Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be
recalled by their maker.

* If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

* It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to be kind to others.

* Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time,
Because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

* Birthdays are good for you.
The more you have, the longer you live.

* You may be only one person in the world,
But you may also be the world to one person.

* We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp,

some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names,

and all are different colours, but they all

have to live in the same box.

*A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

Have an awesome day