Making May Musical Linky Party

I am so very excited to be hosting my very first Linky Party in celebration of the TpT Teachers Appreciation Sale May 5-6!  Most TpT Stores will be discounted at 20% off and you'll save more with the TpT Code THANKYOU at checkout for 28%!!!  If you're a blogger, please join us and link up!  Simply blog about the following three things:

1)  A resource from your own TpT store that you're excited to sell
2)  A resource from another TpT seller that you're excited to purchase
3)  A set of clip art you can't wait to purchase, too!

Include the following image in your post and link it back to this blog post AND please remind your readers to come back and check out all of the other blogger's posts who are linked up here!  :) 

1)  First, a resource from my store that I'm excited to be selling:  "The Case of the 3 Sneaky Singing Snails."  I have a Sol-La-Mi set and a Sol-Mi set available.  Your students are asked in these interactive PDF games to help the detective find the 3 "sneaky snails" who have stolen melody patterns.  The only way they can find out if they caught a snail is to sing a melodic pattern correctly.  There are 2 different cases so that you can play this game during more than one lesson and also adorable flashcards with melodic patterns starring the "sneaky snails."  I have a wonderful music teacher buddy who has the S-M-L set and he told me to introduce the game, he sat at his piano and said, "Oh no, boys and girls!  I can't remember the melody!  I wonder if it was the sneaky snails!!!"  And they ate it up.     

2)  Next, a resource from another music seller I'm excited to purchase during the sale:

 Last Summer, I had discovered Jennifer's awesome blog called "The Yellow Brick Road" via Pinterest.  Well, she had written about using these adorable "Rhythm Monsters" made from googly eyes and pom-poms - I was so inspired, I ran out to Michael's Arts & Crafts and made my own set which the kids BEG to use!  Now, she just recently posted this set above which is an interactive game is an "interactive game, in which students practice or review rhythms by speaking, clapping, or performing on rhythm instruments. The game introduces students to the rhythm monsters, friendly characters who use the special language of rhythm to communicate."  And there are printable worksheets, too!  Yep, I need it.

3)  And finally, a clip art set I just have to have!  

Educlips Ice Cream set has been on my wishlist and I'm drooling for it!  

LOL - could it be the pregnancy cravings?

 Well, that's all for now!  Remember the TpT Code THANKYOU at checkout!!!  Feel free to leave a comment or if you have a blog and would like to link up, here's the information below: 
An InLinkz Link-up

Worked for Me Wednesday

I'm excited to link up with the awesome Aileen Miracle at Mrs. Miracle's Music Room for her "Worked for Me Wednesday" linky party.  For our posts, music teachers will talk about something we've done before that we've found that has worked for us!  After you read my idea below, simply click on this picture below to go check out some more posts with great ideas!

My post today is about my magical wind chimes.  Yep, they're truly "magical" in my little music world.  Well, at least for behavior management!!! 

Years ago, I was teaching a very chatty first grade class and trying so hard to come up with something...anything to grab their attention and keep it.  I am still not sure how I came up with this and how it worked and has continued to work for years, but I would bet money on the fact that it works because kids WANT to use their imaginations naturally.  So....this is what happened one very magical music class:  

"Boys and Girls, the strangest thing happened the other day!  I was teaching a class and by mistake I came over here and played the beautiful sound of these wind chimes and the next thing you know...my whole class just...fell asleep!!!  The WHOLE class.  AND then, the STRANGEST thing happened, when I played the wind chimes again, the class woke up, BUT, they had NO idea that they fell asleep.  They just sat up, looked at me, and smiled, like nothing had happened at all.  It was so magical.  I mean, I wonder if it only works on that class....or maybe just on amazing listeners out there....I mean...I wonder...would it...maybe work...on well....no...I don't think so.....well, maybe I should just try.....(cue the wind chimes...and down they go with a giggle!!!  Silently "asleep")  WHAT in the world just happened!?!  These MUST be MAGICAL wind chimes!  Wow!  I wonder if I play them again...(they all wake up and look around).  "Kids!  You fell asleep!"  "huh?  no we didn't...etc." - I mean, no way would it ever work more than once" (wind chimes - down they go...giggles, etc.)  And so on.  

They.  LOVE. this.

From the day I introduce this, I now have one of the BEST classroom management tools ever.  Simply play the wind chimes....kids automatically "fall asleep" and I can teach while they're silently attentive!  I use this for all of my "listening lessons."  They love it and ask me if we are going to play the "wind chime" game constantly.  I use it with my "Carnival of the Animals" unit when I want them to focus their listening.  I can tell you that I've had less than a hand full of "non-believers," but with a little persuasion, eventually, they cave in.  I usually just say, "Well, these really only work on the best listeners..." and MOST of the time they lie down...only once in 15 years, have I actually said to a child, just play along and have fun with us.  Again, deep down, it's all about "play" and using their imaginations - for most, it's just natural.  I love their "acting" skills, too.  "What?  Who me?  I wasn't sleeping."  hahaha! 

I have to also share that one year, we had a part-time music position added to our school.  This teacher had some 1st grade classes with students I had the previous year.  She was teaching a lesson and singing a song where there were wind chime parts and played them - to suddenly find....lol......her whole class laying down on the floor pretending to be asleep!!!  hahahahahaaaa! Oh my goodness did I crack up laughing when she told me this - I remember her describing it as turning around and seeing her class of "narcoleptic children and being totally confused."  They told her later about the magic wind chimes - but what a gift to know that my silly idea had STUCK with them.  Ha!!!!

So, that's my idea that TRULY "Worked" for me.  I hope you enjoyed it!  Please feel free to comment below if you enjoyed this post or even share something that completely has "worked" for you in your music classroom.  Thanks for stopping by!

So Happy...My Cheeks Hurt From SMILING!

Sound the trumpets!  {Or just cue the music teacher...oh wait, that's me!}  Doot-doot-doo-dooooo!  I think it's finally time to share my happiest of news...and here it is:

Happy New Year, everyone!  Here's to a happy, healthy, exciting, prosperous, wonderful, and all you've ever wished for in the year ahead.  We are so thrilled that we have a little one on the way!  I wanted to take a moment to personally say thank you to all of those fans out there who have supported me with my "Totally Tuned-in" Journey! Thank you for your kind and supportive words with the excitement of my newest announcement, for following my Blog, (if you do!), FB posts and TpT store and all of your amazing feedback, which truly makes me work harder and excited to keep creating. I'm so excited for the new year and hope to kick it off asap with a 600 follower celebration - I'm at 594!!! p.s. My TpT Store will remain 20% until midnight, January 2nd, if you need to grab some materials for back to school.  

Oh no!  Did I say it?!  School!  Wah!  Cue the temper tantrum!!!  How has this winter break gone by so fast?  Were you like me and have a list of "want-tos"...but all the "had-tos" got in the way?  Comment below with something that you were SO happy to accomplish during break and something you wish you had a chance to do.  I'd love to hear from you!

"Sing"-cerely,