Darla Hanley's Music Room

Creative Teaching for Students of Today (& Tomorrow) PK-8

Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash

Hi! I’m Darla, an experienced PK-12 music educator, college professor, and former Berklee College of Music Dean looking to connect with teachers, parents/caregivers, and others seeking to advance creative music making for today’s students — and their teachers. In Darla Hanley’s Music Room you will find teaching strategies, advice and teaching tips, playlists, and more.

Finding (and Being) Inspiration

Today’s post is all about inspiration and what that word could mean for music teachers and students.

Inspiration is a spark, a prompt, a shot in the arm to become motivated and do something. Most of the time it happens authentically… For example, when I go to a concert and hear super talented performers I’m inspired to practice my saxophone more (lol). Or when I dine at a fancy restaurant, I’m inspired to try to up my culinary game and see if I can create something in that style of cuisine. And one more, when I see how creative people can be with art, architecture, or innovation, I’m inspired to think beyond my usual day to consider what I could do to be even more creative.

I can find inspiration just about anywhere (lol). My late mother, Evelyn, taught me to look for themes and colors, shapes, and patterns—and to spot the unusual a mile away. She always made things, and made things happen. Here’s one: Evelyn once created an entire birthday party around a peach! That’s right, a peach. I’m talking peach colored party favors, balloons, gift wrap, and cupcakes! (And wait. I think she even made a “pin the stem on the peach” game for us to play riffing off “pin the tail on the donkey! OMG). Like all of us, Evelyn saw the world in her own way and was playful in it as she navigated life. And to my benefit, she taught me to do the same.

In my view, inspiration in the music classroom is a critical component of the work we do for and with students. As teachers we inspire students to explore, and try, and do—and they inspire us to bring our “A” game to see how many ways we can get them to show what they know. In a sense, students engage in the instruction we offer because we inspire (motivate and empower) them to do so. Further, students inspire us to try new pedagogical tools to make learning relevant as we connect with them musically, academically, and personally.

So, what am I talking about? And what do you have to do? Try these 2 things:

1. Listen to find meaning… and then

• There’s a lot of noise out there in our fast-paced world, but if we listen attentively we will be able to find real meaning in sounds and messages—and respond with consideration, thoughtfulness, and action.

  • We should listen to our parents and elders for the voice of experience and advice… letting them inspire us to live a full life.

  • We should listen to our kids for an unfiltered interpretation of the world around them… letting them inspire us to not be as rigid.

  • We should listen to our partners who know us best and tell us things we “need to know” but might not want to (lol)… letting them inspire our confidence, or change.

  • And as teachers, we should listen to our students for insights about how they access and listen to music, how our lessons land with them (i.e., are they making an impact, are they eliciting happiness AND art), and how they are doing (academically, musically, and personally)… letting them inspire our decisions for instructional content and format.

• I love a good playlist. The act of putting it together inspires me to search and discover as I compile songs—and then the music inspires me to dance, or groove, or chill.

  • Here’s a playlist I made with Allison Kipp for our “Jazz Is Elementary” book a couple years ago. (We had SO much fun finding these tracks and writing corresponding teaching strategies for K-5.)

• Make a playlist of some of your all-time favorite songs and listen to them to see what happens. Dig deep to include old and new songs… I think you’ll love it!

2. Embrace your inspiration

• Inspirational people change a moment, a day, an experience, or in some cases a life. I believe as teachers we can be inspirational people but sometimes forget the significant impact we can have on impressionable students finding their voices and place in the world.

  • When we inspire students they stretch and reach up because of our work, guidance, and influence.

• Think about people who have historically or who currently inspire you.

  • What did they do that makes them inspirational? Write that down.

  • Select one of the words or phrases you wrote and incorporate that characteristic or action into your work (in your voice).

Final Thoughts

Inspiration is organic. We cannot enter the classroom and say, “Hello everyone, today we are going to play instruments, and I will inspire you!” (lol). Our inspiration comes through in the “how” as much as the “what” we share with students. For me, this inspiration is all about the long game of ongoing leadership, reliability, consistency, compassion, empathy, respect, creativity, and talent. It’s about us demonstrating and inviting students to music.

Remember, oftentimes we don’t realize how much someone inspired us until weeks, months, or even years later. If that’s true for you (especially if that person was your teacher), reach out to let them know. I bet they’d appreciate hearing from you.

Thanks for checking this out. Be sure to leave a comment to let me know what resonates with you and your students.