Bacon

I’ve learned several things from my first 2 weeks as a preschool music teacher.

1)      Be conscious of the clothes you wear.  Some things may be obvious to avoid, but others may not be so obvious.  Since I spend a majority of my day sitting on the floor it’s best to wear jeans (no skirts for me).

2)      There is a MAJOR difference between 12 months and 18 months, or 2 and 2 ½.  When you’re little 6 months makes a world of difference.

3)      Even the best behaved kids can get pretty out of control when you ask them to stomp around the room like a dinosaur.

4)      Passing the beanbag around a circle isn’t as easy as it sounds.

5)      Over plan, over plan, over plan – there’s nothing worse than going through all of the songs in 15 minutes when you have the class for 25 minutes.

6)      Always give a 1 year old something to hold…it’s best if they can have 2, one for each hand.

7)      Shakers are fun for all ages! 

8)      BE FLEXIBLE!  There may be a song that you’re really excited about and convinced that the kids will love, then when you play it for them they just sit there.

9)       When doing “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” be aware of how many times the song asks you to touch your head, shoulders, knees and toes.  You may get more of a workout than you’re prepared for.

10)   Name tags are VERY important!  Sometimes you may not understand a child whose name is “Beckham” and may spend much of the class calling him “Bacon.”