Great question.
There is something that
music can offer that I don't think very many disciplines can.
I think it's unique in that it teaches
in so many different aspects.
It teaches history, teaches math, it teaches patterns and reasoning.
And all of those things that we say academically are important.
It teaches them.
But it also teaches how to get along.
It teaches patience.
It teach, it teaches persistence.
It teaches responsibility because you have to be a responsible person
to hold and be a part of an ensemble.
Teaches cooperative learning.
And then it, it teaches, it teaches emotion.
I love it when I have a song that the kids know and love.
There's a song that we do called, Together we can change the world.
Wonderful song.
And some of my little kindergartners get up there.
Together we can change.
Their faces are so drawn to what they want to sing about.
That message.
They understand the message. I want to teach that. I want that.
I know we have talked about that, but that's why I think they should have it.
They need to be able to feel that.
And I think that's what, what, it can do.
A lot of musical things I do outside.
I write music.
And you know, I have a lot of people that ask me,
how do you have time to teach
and then be a composer and do all that.
And I always come back with, well, do you have a hobby at home that you like, you garden?
Do you read?
You know, somebody always has something that they like to do. Well, you know,
I like to read. Well do you spend a lot of time doing that? Yeah.
In my spare time I do. Well. That's what I do in my spare time. I compose.
But I find time for that. Cause it's my hobby. And that's how it started.
So I do that, but it's a release time for me. It's not like it's another job.
Um, I teach private lessons.
And I do that because I love the one-on-one
contact that I get with kids by doing it.
Number two, it strengthens my program. Number three, I get paid.
So that's another musical thing that I get to do.
And I get to do a lot of workshopping.
But again, you know what?
All I'm doing is teaching big kids when I workshop.
So I get to do the same sort of thing in my classroom,
but with adults.
And it's, that's a neat thing to be able to give them resources,
things that I have and things that I've, you know,
developed or stolen from somebody else and developed.
It's nice to be able to give that to those teachers.