The F-flat Books Blog is a community-run blog exploring a variety of topics in music teaching and learning.
Browse posts by category or check out the most recent posts below.
Music Classroom Must-have Resources for the Fall
As I type this blog post, I'm currently nestled under a blanket and sipping hot tea. In Southern Pennsylvania (where I call home), we get the full spectrum of seasonal changes. Two weeks ago, my kids were swimming in 80 degree weather. Today, there's a chill in the air and the leaves are turning. It's fall! As a music teacher, I love the seasonality of the school year. Finding resources that align with cultural traditions and seasonal changes has always been important to me. It helps ground [...]
Leveraging AI for Quizzes in the Music Classroom
Assessment as Data One of the core memories from my undergraduate experience was in my assessment course taught by Dr. Darrel Walters at Temple University. On one mind-blowing morning circa 2006, he proposed that, as teachers, assessment was a tool to measure how well we taught our students. It was a method for learning and understanding more about the students and their needs. It was data. I couldn’t help but think back on my experiences as a student- assessments that seemed unfair or poorly constructed. The biology teacher [...]
From Notes to Dollars: Strategies for Monetizing Music Education Curricula
Introduction: The New Paradigm of Music Education The educational world has become a complete whirlwind where music educators are breaking free from the confines of traditional classrooms. Gone are the days when teaching was all about chalkboards, sheet music, and the occasional out-of-tune piano. Now, with digital platforms popping up like mushrooms after a rainstorm and entrepreneurial skills becoming the secret sauce to success, there’s a new challenge on our plate. We’re not just teaching students how to hit the right notes anymore; we’re helping them hit the [...]
Five Ways to Lead with Equity in Mind While Teaching Band in an Urban Setting
How can you lead with equity in your classroom while navigating the various barriers of working in an urban environment? Hello. I am Jammie Phillips, a passionate music teacher with 17 years of experience, 10 of which were spent as a band director. Having taught in Atlanta, Georgia's urban areas, and now in Montgomery, Alabama, I've encountered and navigated various challenges. However, I always enter each school year with unwavering optimism and a determination to help my students defy the odds. My ultimate goal is to inspire my [...]
Requests for Success: Music Education Majors Weigh in on Their “Post-COVID” Education Experience
The COVID-19 pandemic was, and some could argue still is, a historical event that continues to impact music education and students. Despite the ongoing ripple effects of such a critical event in human history, it almost feels inappropriate to talk about in professional settings. Though, when I discuss struggling students with colleagues I think it is on our minds more than we would care to admit. As my coworkers sigh or shrug it’s as if an unspoken thought bubble emerges reading, “is this leftover from COVID?” My own [...]
Last Minute Gift Guide for the Overwhelmed Music Teacher
Rejecting Common Narratives This last minute music teacher gift guide may be different than what you're thinking. Since transitioning to working at F-flat Books on a more full-time basis, I've been planning out our blog content months in advance. This week, I scheduled a post about our top five professional development sessions on our Learn site. But, as this week crept closer, it felt wrong to publish it. Why? This time of year is hard for a music teacher. And, while it's my first full-time year out of [...]
William’s Song is Our Song
William’s Song is Our Song More than a decade ago, I was thinking about music and all the places it met me. How music could be found on sunny days. On windy days. Rainy days and Mondays… but seriously, music has met me everywhere I needed it to be. In different seasons. Moods. Special moments. While I cooked. Or read. Or worked out. I love that about music!! How it expresses the things we can’t say, as Victor Hugo once said. As I thought about music, I decided [...]
Using Lyrics as a Springboard for Songwriting with Students
Using Lyrics as a Springboard for Songwriting with Students Recently, I've been spending time with my five-year-old niece, who is just learning how to read, and I was struck by a comment she made the other night when she was reading one of her books to me: "Once I learn how to read these books, I'll be able to read everything and it will be so cool!" I couldn't agree more. I love words. I think I always have. They seem to have magic – especially when [...]
Music By the People, For the People of Palestine
Established in 1993, the Edward Said National Conservatory of Music is Palestine’s first music conservatory. Since then, it has sought to spread a lively and creative musical culture in every Palestinian home by teaching, producing and promoting music in various ways despite the hardships of operating under occupation. Although the most recent ongoing military assault on the Gaza Strip was not the first, it has been the most devastating. The Gaza Strip was indiscriminately targeted to the extent of making it unlivable, especially the north of the [...]
Research to Practice: Standards-Based Instruction
Consider what we are intentionally or unintentionally saying we value based on what we cover with our students throughout their time in our classrooms. And, just like that, a conversation about standards-based instruction has entered the chat.
Affirmation and Celebration: the F-flat Grammy Nominees
The Grammys have long been associated with all the glitz and glamour that comes with the music industry. But, a few years ago, it became more than that as the Grammy Foundation started including music educators in their awards show. And, while the award has had its limitations (underrepresentation of women in education, for example), it still provides a much needed platform to amplify the work of not only the winner but the nominees. We have had F-flat representation for the past three years, and we are [...]
Research to Practice: Self-Care is More Than Finding Your “Why”
I was speaking with a student teacher about experiencing burnout symptoms and why finding their preferred self-care practices is important. In our discussion, I had mentioned that the most commonly stated piece of advice (whether given as real advice or delivered with an eye roll) is to remember your “why.” Our discussion was helpful, but I realized that the field of teaching can be just as rewarding as it is prickly.