Tag: sustainable teaching

Exhausted?😒 Physically struggling? 😢 Feel like you’ll never be caught up no matter what you do? 🤷‍♀️ Do you recognize the impact of the stress that comes with all the things demanding your time and energy and realize it’s not sustainable? 🤮

You’re not alone. I know the feeling all too well. As a music teacher, you pour your heart and soul into your work. But are you finding that your passion is turning into pain? Are you feeling overwhelmed and stressed, with no time for yourself or your loved ones?

I understand the challenges that come with being a music teacher and what that does to one’s well-being. The constant demand for lesson planning, rehearsals, fundraising, community events, sporting events, trips and performances can leave you feeling drained and burnt out.

And if you have a family or want to have a life outside of school, yeah, we all know what that feels like after a long day of work.

But there is hope.

I have found a solution that has helped me regain control of my time and energy and reignite my passion for teaching music.

I would like to introduce you to The mPower Method, a unique approach to teaching music that helps music teachers to find a healthier balance and reduce stress.

The mPower Method is a combination of unique classroom strategies, time management techniques and self-care practices that have been specifically designed for busy music teachers.

Over the course of the next few months, I’m going to share bite-sized strategies you can use to help you combat the drain that teaching music, especially since the pandemic, has become.

From the classroom to your personal life, the mPower Method addresses the unique stressors and challenges that come with the demands of being a music educator and gives you “homework” that will have you looking at your current practices and what you might be able to tweak to do this job in a more sustainable way.

Imagine if you had a student who was struggling playing a passage on trombone. She was trying to go quickly back and forth between a Db and an F, desperately attempting to repeatedly go from fifth to first position and feeling frustrated because it is hard. If you saw her struggling, you’d likely introduce her to the option of using an alternate position for F, in sixth position, so suddenly it becomes very easy to quickly go between fifth and sixth positions. It’s a small change, but the result is mastering something with more ease and in a more effective way. She saves time and wasted energy with this one slight change.

That’s the principle behind the mPower Method. I share the strategies that have worked for me and thousands of people I’ve worked with to help you find ways to do things that bring as much ease as the discovery of an alternate fingering for a difficult passage does for a struggling musician.

Through the mPower Method, you will learn how to:

  • Identify the areas in your life that are causing the biggest threat to your physical and mental well-being
  • Create small changes that have enormous impact on your time, energy and ability to keep doing this important work in a healthier way
  • Implement practices to maintain your physical and emotional well-being while still delivering a fabulous experience for your students
  • Have more time and energy for doing the things you love, like spending time with friends and family without being drained

Stay tuned for mPowered Mondays and begin turning things around now!

Don’t let the demands of being a music teacher consume you. Join me on a journey to discover the power of the mPower Method and reclaim your love for teaching and passion for music.

If you can’t wait for the weekly tidbits and want to get started on a healthier journey now, click the button below for a complimentary strategy session where we will talk about your particular challenges and I’ll help you fast-track your transition from loving the job that’s killing you to loving your job and reducing your stress!

Imagine how good it will feel to finally take control after three years of teaching through unimaginable situations. This has been a rough road and I want to invite you to hop on board for this health journey.

Get started now!

From Stressed-Out to Streamlined: Making Music Education Sustainable in the Modern Music Classroom

I don’t need to tell you about the challenges we’ve faced on personal, professional, and an even bigger levels in the past couple of years and how those things have made being an effective music educator even more time-consuming as we have had to constantly adapt to change and circumstances that are not conducive to in-person ensemble music making.

Have the past couple of years put you in multiple teaching modes? Have you had to pivot and create (and then re-create) lessons and plans that can be adapted and accessed when students are out in quarantine or when new restrictions come up?

At the end of the day, are you mentally and physically just plain done?

What about your energy for your own interests or quality time with your family at the end of a workday? Have you expended all your creative juices and find yourself too busy mentally preparing for your next day instead of feeling fully present with your family?

This. Has. Been. Exhausting.

As music teachers, the constant adapting to new situations while trying to deliver high quality music experiences for our students in ways we have not been trained to teach has required all kinds of mental gymnastics. The way we always have done things aren’t always working with students or circumstances now days.

You’re busting your butt…are you getting the results you want?

  • Are your students on-task and focused when you are teaching?
  • Are students retaining the content you’re teaching?
  • Are students actively engaging with the activities you present or in rehearsals?
  • Do you have a way of planning lessons that is efficient and effective?
  • Do you have systems in place that help your classroom community run smoothly?
  • Do your lessons and activities support your and your students’ social and emotional needs?
  • Are your students demonstrating interpersonal skills that support a collaborative environment?
  • Are you enjoying your job?

Would you like to be able to shout a resounding HELL YES answer to each of the questions above? I’d like to help you!

Like you, I’ve been navigating these weird times in music education. I was about to begin the manuscript for my third book where I plan to share the five key pillars I’ve found that have made it possible for my students and me to navigate these changes and grow as artists and musicians.

But people don’t want to wait six months to a year to get their hands on this. They are asking for the information now so they can (re)build their music program in a way that is sustainable and doesn’t suck all their time and energy and leave them depleted at the end of the day.

So here’s the deal – I’m releasing an ONLINE CLASS specifically for MUSIC EDUCATORS who meet a few criteria:

  • They love their job (at least most of the time)
  • They know the work they do impacts students and makes a difference
  • They want to continue to do this important work for a long time and are looking for proven ways to make this a sustainable career
  • They see the importance of the wholistic approach – not just teaching a student to play the clarinet, but nurturing the social and emotional needs of the student so they can successfully participate in the music community
  • They are looking for strategies that help them do this important work with more ease, joy, and grace

If this sounds like you, I’m inviting you to be part of my BETA COHORT for this NEW COURSE! What does that mean?

  • You’ll get access to new content each week
    • There are five units that take you through the key elements of assessing your current practices and how to implement them in your own classroom
  • You can work at your own pace, moving as quickly or as slowly as you need to in order to be successful in understanding and implementing it.
    • The investment of time varies, but most people have spent an hour a week on content (videos / journaling / activities) and an hour once or twice a month on our live group Q&A calls
  • You’ll earn The mPowered Music Room Level 1 Certification upon successful completion of the series.
  • You’ll have a powerful system for planning, implementing, and teaching that will make your job much easier and more efficient.
  • BETA BONUS: As part of this Beta Cohort, you’ll be invited to LIVE Q&A with me twice a month for the first two months you are in the program – a $200 value for FREE!

How does this work?

  • You receive access to new recording each week that outlines one of the five components of The mPowered Music Room
  • The videos (15-30 minutes) come with journaling and/or reflection activities that help you assess your own practices and learn the five key elements in a successful music classroom:
    • The “F” Word – Focus: What is YOUR focus and intention as a music educator?
    • The SOCIAL needs of your students and why addressing these needs is so critical to a successful and well-rounded music education
    • A daily protocol for tuning your students’ brains and bodies for music class to get their attention and focus where it needs to be for optimum learning
    • The key to planning effective CONTENT for your students so they’ll remember and connect with what you are teaching them
    • A proven way to quickly and effectively assess individuals and groups of students every single day for feedback about anything you need, from comprehension of content to a mental health check-in so you can more easily plan follow-up lessons
  • When you’ve completed all the units and activities, you’ll earn a Moffat’s mPowered Music Room Level 1 Certification and you’ll have a plan that becomes your blueprint for a streamlined music classroom that leaves you with plenty of energy for yourself and your family at the end of the day!

If you’d like to join this Beta Cohort, all you need to do is click the SIGN UP BUTTON below. When the course is officially launched, it will be offered for $199 with optional live coaching for an additional $100 per month, but the total investment for the Beta Cohort is $99 and includes all the course content AND Live Q&A with me on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month during January and February! This is a $500 value!

SIGN UP!

What are you waiting for? Won’t it be nice to know you have a plan and support in place to help you do this important work in a more sustainable way? Think of the relief that comes with knowing you’ve got someone there to help you figure all this out!

I look forward to helping you find your groove and making your life’s work a little easier in 2022 and beyond. 🙂

Lesley