MALI Teacher Leader Story: Danielle Sullivan

Music Educator

This is the one of several blog posts in 2018 that include stories of the Maine Arts Leadership Initiative (MALI) Phase 7 Teacher Leaders and Teaching Artist Leaders. This series includes a set of questions so you can learn a little bit about each leader. CLICK HERE for more information on MALI. CLICK HERE for more information on the 93 Teacher Leaders and 8 Teaching Artist Leaders. CLICK HERE for Arts education resources. CLICK HERE for the MALI Resource Bank. Search in the “search archives” box on the bottom right side of this post for past teacher leader stories. Thank you Danielle for sharing your story!

Danielle Sullivan teaches music, band and chorus at Etna-Dixmont School. This is her second year at the school and her 8th year teaching. Danielle teaches general music PreK-6th Grade, 4th grade band, 5-6 grade band, 7-8 grade band, 5-6 grade chorus, 7-8 grade chorus and jazz band.  There are about 230 students in the school.

What do you like best about being a music educator?

I love seeing students do something they thought was impossible.  At the beginning of the year they believe that there is no way they’ll be able to play/sing this song and by the end of the year (quarter, semester…) they’re able to. It’s wonderful to watch.

What do you believe are three keys to ANY successful visual and performing arts education?

1. Administrative and community support are huge. Without support you’re always fighting for what’s right.
2. Teachers who care
3. Students who want to learn

How have you found assessment to be helpful to you in your classroom? 

I love hearing students play and sing alone. The student and I learn so much about their ability when they play alone. Quiet and shy students who either need more support or other opportunities can be lost in a large group if they never sing/play alone.

What have been the benefits in becoming involved in the Maine Arts Leadership initiative?

I love all the new people I have met and the ideas we share.

What are you most proud of in your career?

I am most proud of teaching young students to love music. If you can get them young then you have them for life. Being able to teach young children to love music is of the utmost importance to me.

What gets in the way of being a better teacher or doing a better job as a teacher?

All the other duties that aren’t teaching; paperwork, curriculum work, meetings, emails. Doing all these other things makes it harder for me to find time to do research new lesson ideas and work with colleagues.

What have you accomplished through hard work and determination that might otherwise appear at first glance to be due to “luck” or circumstances?

Having older students who consider themselves ‘musicians’.  All of the students that come through the music room door are musicians. When they are young (as is the case at my school) they don’t have a choice; everyone has music class.  But as they get older (middle school and high school) they are no longer required to take music, band and chorus are optional. Having a strong music program with a lot of older students may seem like luck, but if you get students to consider themselves musicians then they will seek out music when it’s no longer obligatory.

Look into your crystal ball: what advice would you give to teachers?

Don’t be a workaholic! It doesn’t benefit you or the students!

If you were given a $500,000.00 to do with whatever you please, what would it be?

For school, I would buy enough instruments so that any student who wanted to play and couldn’t afford it could use a school instrument.

Imagine you are 94 years old. You’re looking back. Do you have any regrets?

Not learning the banjo earlier in life.

MALI Teacher Leader Story: Kris Bisson

Music educator: Kris Bisson

This is one of several blog posts in 2018 that include stories of the Maine Arts Leadership Initiative (MALI) Phase 7 Teacher Leaders and Teaching Artist Leaders. This series of blog posts includes a set of questions so you can learn a little bit about each leader. CLICK HERE  for more information on MALI. CLICK HERE  for more information on the 93 Teacher Leaders and 8 Teaching Artist Leaders.  CLICK HERE  for Arts education resources. CLICK HERE  for the MALI Resource Bank. Search in the “search archives” box on the bottom right side of this post for past teacher leader stories.  Thank you Kris for sharing your story!

Kristine (Kris) Bisson, Music Teacher and Chorus Director for Marshwood Middle School, grades 6, 7, and 8, in Eliot, Maine. She has been teaching a total of 16 years, all of them at Marshwood Middle School. Kris teaches 350 students throughout the school year in six classes: guitar/ukulele, piano, Composing Music, and three grade level Chorus classes (Grade Eight Chorus, Grade Seven Chorus, Grade Six Chorus). In addition, Kris offers several music classes as extra-curricular groups after school. These are always offered as multi-age ensembles open to all students and we have had students participate from grades four through twelve join us for Select Chorus Ensemble, Rock Band, Guitar/Ukulele Ensemble, Piano Class, and Songwriters Workshop.

A unique fact is that I taught here ten years, then had my maternity leave and decided to stay at home to raise my children. After nine years I returned to my position at Marshwood Middle and have been here since. I consider myself very fortunate to be able to return to the teaching position I have always loved. She also is very fortunate to teach my own two children in my music classes.

What do you like best about being a music educator?

I absolutely love my profession. I love music and am reminded every day of why I love it. I have the amazing opportunity to share what I love with young people and help them embrace what they love about music, too. We do a lot of reflection in class: “Why did the composer choose this note? this rhythm? how would you sing this if you were really feeling these lyrics? how would you sing this differently?”

I love to personalize music making and music creating. Everyone can respond and it can be different to each and every person, and that is acceptable. This is personalization.

Every day we laugh, learn, make music, and work together to discover new things about ourselves. My favorite phrase in the classroom is, “Who else is having this much fun?”

What do you believe are three keys to ANY successful visual and performing arts education?

1. Personal expression is unique to the performing arts. Every day and every item of study should carry an aspect of how there is a human response. I try to establish an environment of trust and respect between teacher and students and foster this every day. We work together as a team and support each other. I remind my choruses that this is what an ensemble does: we work together.
2. Passion is an important element in the classroom. Being able to explore music as an art means being able to share first-hand experiences and giving students that opportunity as well. When you create music you have a story to tell. Tell it!
3. Taking time to process what we are learning has been a key part of reflection in learning. Taking time to listen and hear my students respond to what they are learning is important learning. Why are we learning this? How does this moment in our learning affect other areas of our lives? I strive to help students continue to think about music beyond our classroom walls.

How have you found assessment to be helpful to you in your classroom?

Teaching performance-based classes (Choruses, creating compositions in Guitar, Piano, and Composing Music classes) can sometimes create some confusion around the subjective and objective qualities present. Authentic assessment has created a more objective and transparent method of demonstrating learning. Students can compare the rubrics we use with those similar in every class at our school. It validates the arts. It also provides measurement that can be effectively reached by various means. There are multiple pathways to learning, thus creating a broader spectrum of learning. This has been extremely rewarding to me as an educator and likewise, to my students.

What have been the benefits in becoming involved in the Maine Arts Leadership initiative?

MALI has provided a generous amount of support and enrichment to my teaching career. Being able to collaborate and learn from highly motivated and skilled teaching artists and teacher leaders has awakened a new area of growth for me. It has reminded me of the risk I ask my students to make daily to try something new and take a leap of faith into the unknown. MALI has brought that desire to succeed closer to me and I carry this with me in my classroom.

What are you most proud of in your career?

Kate Smith and Kris at the summer institute, summer 2017

With the help of my extremely supportive husband and two amazingly awesome children I earned my Masters in Music Education at the University of Southern Maine last year. It was an incredibly busy four years, but everything I studied and researched and learned I have used directly in my teaching classroom. The best lesson from this has to be that while I was working on my Masters, my husband was working on his MBA and our children witnessed first-hand how dedicated we both were to our goals in our careers, in our studies, and with our family. From our example both of our children have expressed how valuable education is and I know they will always remember this.

What gets in the way of being a better teacher or doing a better job as a teacher?

Time: 

• I always make time for a student who wants to keep improving or delving deeper during lunch breaks or after school.
• Researching new material or reading up about improving learning or my own teaching takes time.

• Getting the word out to the newspapers or parents about the goings on of our trips, activities, and concerts takes time.

• Sending out “I got caught being awesome!” emails to students and their families takes time.

• Needing the sleep for the energy my job demands sometimes gets in the way, but is absolutely necessary time! 🙂

What have you accomplished through hard work and determination that might otherwise appear at first glance to be due to “luck” or circumstances?

When I returned to classroom teaching after a nine year hiatus I hadn’t touched my resume, my certification had expired, and I hadn’t interviewed in nineteen years. I put my full effort into the entire process and committed myself fully. This took a great amount of work and I knew it was the absolute thing to do.

Look into your crystal ball: what advice would you give to teachers?

Love what you do. Love giving that thirst for knowledge to others. Love being with the age group you work with. There is no greater satisfaction than loving what you do and sharing and seeing that grow in others.

If you were given a $500,000.00 to do with whatever you please, what would it be?

I would love to start a music school that extends our learning for Marshwood students – and our surrounding community – giving scholarships to children and adults who want to learn beyond their classroom music experience and grow more music in their lives. Choruses, rock bands, jazz bands, and private lessons on instruments they love or haven’t even explored yet would be definite possibilities to so many people. Having intergenerational ensembles where the people you sit beside are sharing the same love of learning is an amazing experience for any human being. I attended small schools that did not have any band experiences and now I conduct four choruses and a Rock Band. The experience one learns in an ensemble is unique. Every person should experience being a member of a music ensemble.

Imagine you are 94 years old. You’re looking back. Do you have any regrets?

Kaitlin Young and Kris at the MALI summer institute, August 2017

I really hope I do not have any regrets. One of my favorite rewards of teaching is the surprise meeting with former students and their family members. I sincerely love finding out who they have become, where they are, and what they are doing. It means so much to know that they look back fondly on their learning in my classroom and have taken some of our learning with them in their pursuits. I can honestly say that I have made music, laughed, and learned every day and hope my students do, too. For this, I have no regrets.

Another Arts Teacher’s Story: Jenni Null

Fine Arts Coordinator, Instrumental and Choral Music Instructor, K-12, SAD #61 

This is the ninth blog post for 2014 and the third phase of the Maine Arts Assessment Initiative of this series sharing arts teachers’ stories. This series contains a set of questions to provide the opportunity for you to learn from and about others. Jenni was a guest on the MAAI webinar from April on Common Core and the Arts. You can see/listen to the archive by going to http://mainearts.maine.gov/Pages/Education/MAAI-Webinars. Jenni is also working on the team of teacher leaders who are developing resources. The webinar scheduled for June will provide the opportunity for you to learn more about the arts ed resource bank.

Jenni Null is the SAD#61 K-12 Fine Arts Coordinator, Instrumental and Choral Music Instructor. She has taught for 36 years, 35 of which have been in my present district of Lake Region. Jenni teaches Grades 4 and 5 instrumental music in three different schools in three different towns (Bridgton, Sebago, and Naples), and has a very healthy chorus (60+ students) in Naples. When I am not in the classroom, I am overseeing the art, music, and dance program for the District, which includes the scheduling of our fine arts events for the year, as well as assisting colleagues in developing and reviewing the arts curriculum and assessments.

What do you like best about being an arts educator?

I love seeing the excitement in my beginning instrumental students when they are successful
on their respective instruments for the first time.  Coupled with that, is fast forwarding through the years and attending middle and high school concerts where I hear these same students performing. It’s very rewarding to think I gave them their start or awakened a talent within that they didn’t know they possessed.

What do you believe are three keys to ANY successful visual and performing arts education?

A successful visual and performing arts education should have:

1. Passionate arts educators – These are the think-outside-the-box people who don’t let all the obstacles of the daily minutia get them down. They are the problem solvers!
2. Supportive administrators –  All administrators say they are supportive, but the ones who truly are, find other areas to cut at budget time. The administrators I admire recognize that the square pegs don’t fit in the round holes. They provide QUALITY time so that arts educators can access students in a meaningful way, rather than seeing how many different classes can be stuffed into the day.
3. A partnership between arts education and the surrounding arts community, where we share our resources, including performance and art display venues. Professional artists share their expertise in the classroom and provide workshops and mentor opportunities. High School students can work in tandem with these arts professionals and hopefully glean a vision of the arts as a vital part of their lives beyond their K-12 education.

How have you found assessment to be helpful to you in your classroom?

Assessment has helped me to stay focused on the key elements of my program. It also compels me to reevaluate and adapt in accordance with the needs of my students. A fringe Assessment has helped me to stay focused on the key elements of my program. It also compels me to reevaluate and adapt in accordance with the needs of my students. A fringe benefit of assessment is that students pay attention to the grading rubrics and what is required of them to meet standards. In this regard, I feel that today’s students take the arts classes more seriously than their predecessors.

What have been the benefits in becoming involved in the arts assessment initiative?

The Maine Arts Assessment Initiative has introduced me to some passionate arts educators statewide. Participating in this initiative has consequently energized me both in and out of the classroom. We must all be continually involved in advocacy, both individually, and collectively. MAAI has taught me that, “One of us is never as strong as all of us,” and that as a cohesive unit, we have been empowered to elevate arts education for the students of Maine!

What are you most proud of in your career?

For five consecutive years, I was able to organize a school-wide Arts Week for grades 4-6, centered around a musical production. Students learned the musical numbers in general music, and thanks to a grant, I was able to bring in professional artists to work with students in multi-age groups. Each day, the multi-age groups rotated through activities related to the play and aligned to the Maine Learning Results: making props, painting the scenery, working on lighting, (including the scientific properties of combining different colors), the cultural and historical background, and of course being entertained by the visiting professional musicians, dancers, and artists. The entire school was involved through the culminating activity, which was the musical production.  The students worked together as a community and learned so much in a meaningful way that was arts based.

What gets in the way of being a better teacher or doing a better job as a teacher?

People without vision who prevent me from pursuing mine!

What have you accomplished through hard work and determination that might otherwise appear at first glance to be due to “luck” or circumstances?

I worked for two summers for The Edinburgh International Film Festival. I had to fly to Edinburgh for an interview and convince my perspective employers that an American could learn the city well enough to organize all levels of accommodation, from student flats to luxury hotels, as well as travel arrangements for festival attendees.

Look into your crystal ball: what advice would you give to teachers?

• Don’t let the small stuff get you down!  The endless meetings, paperwork, and duties will not disappear, but in spite of it all; remember you get to do amazing things with students and perhaps transform their lives in a way that others do not.
• Don’t let boredom set in.  Change it up with a new lesson, new curriculum, or new job!  If you are bored, you can be sure your students are, too.
• A network is critical for the arts educator to survive, so build one within and outside of your school or district.
• Advocate for the arts with everyone you meet; administrators, parents, colleagues, and your students.  People need to be reminded why arts education is important.

If you were given a $500,000.00 to do with whatever you please, what would it be?

If I suddenly had a large sum of money, I would set up an endowment that would provide for students to travel to New York City to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Center or Carnegie Hall, and attend a Broadway Show. All students deserve the opportunity to have their senses awakened by such world class artistic experiences.

Imagine you are 94 years old. You’re looking back. Do you have any regrets?

If I were to start again, I would formulate a plan for my professional life.  I never really did that, but rather just let life happen.  I think that teachers entering the profession today are more forward thinking about where they want to be 10 or 20 years from now.

Glenburn’s Chorus

Star Spangled Banner

Last Thursday morning I had the pleasure of attending the opening of the legislative session where 44 students out of Glenburn Schools 54 person Chorus performed at the State House. They had been invited and were the guests of Representative Stacey Guerin. This is the 3rd year that the Glenburn Chorus has had this wonderful opportunity. The students enjoyed being able to perform for the opening of the session and always look forward to this trip.  The Chorus is directed by Sarah Williams.

Along with directing the chorus Sarah teaches General Music, grades 5-8 Band at the school. There are 102 students in band and chorus and 141 students in grades 2-4 who meet once a week for 45 minutes. You can read more about Sarah and her program in this blog post called Another Arts Teacher’s Story: Sarah Williams.

Another Arts Teachers’ Story: Shari Tarleton

Featuring one teacher’s journey as an educator

This is the eleventh in a series of blog posts telling arts teachers’ stories. This series contains a set of questions to provide the opportunity for you to read educators stories and to learn from others.

Shari Tarleton has been teaching music for approximately 21 years in Pennsylvania; Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; and Brunswick, Maine. She began teaching in Brunswick 15 years ago at Coffin Elementary School and 6 years ago she moved to Brunswick Junior High School. Her teaching responsibilities include choral music in 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade, beginning band and 6^th grade general music. There are currently about 185 students who participate in the choral music program at BJH. They also have extra-curricular music theater, show choir and advanced choir. Shari is a Teacher Leader with the first phase of the Maine Arts Assessment Initiative.

What do you like best about being a music educator?

I feel the best thing about being a choral music teacher is the interaction that I have with my students. While there are times when I am the instructor and they are the learners, the final creation is a cooperative endeavor between all of us. And those performances, whether they are in class or in public are incredibly powerful; a blend of technique and emotion and whatever is impacting us at that particular moment. I like to remind my students that one difference between music and athletics is that in music, I am right there with you while an athletic coach is confined to the sidelines.

Tell me what you think are three keys to ANY successful arts ed program?

The first item in a successful arts program I feel is having the culture to support arts education. This happens in the school, in the community and at home. The second item for a successful program is creating a learning environment that supports both the technical aspects of the arts as well as the space for creativity. There needs to be a balance between the two. Finally, clear lines of communication are necessary between teacher/students/parents/administration and community.  Culture, balanced curriculum and communication; I feel these are the driving factors in a strong arts education.

What specific way(s) do your assessment practices tie into the success of your program?

Each student owns a piece of the learning process and each student has control over their own learning. Assessment practices support this. When standards are clearly presented and students are aware of the standards, then they work toward achievement. There is no timeline for this. We work together and we support each other. The learning is not dependent on me as the teacher, but it is owned by the student. I provide skills, knowledge and opportunities that support the learning process, but the student learning is owned by the student.

What have been the benefits in becoming involved in the arts assessment initiative?

I have certainly increased skills and awareness of standards-based assessments. The technology support has been amazing through the initiative. I also very much appreciate the network of teachers in the arts initiative and the collegiality and the professionalism that is shared.

What are you most proud of in your career?

This was very hard for me to answer! I am very proud of all of my students every time they choose to be involved in music. Some of my former students are music educators, theater performers, and “in the spotlight” and many of them continue to sing in church and community groups. I am very proud to see that they have chosen to continue in music.

What gets in the way of being a better teacher or doing a better job as a teacher?

My current frustration is schedule. There are so many ways to teach and provide opportunities, but when the students are not able to be present for instruction or the instruction cannot be offered in an optimal way, then learning suffers and adds a layer that is out of my control.

Apple or PC?

 Apple at school but PC at home!

What have you accomplished through hard work and determination that might otherwise appear at first glance to be due to “luck” or circumstances?

Vocal instruction! I am a piano player with an instrumental background. I need to work very hard to learn how to guide students, especially middle school students, through the skills of singing!

 Look into your crystal ball: what advice would you give to teachers?

Be flexible. Do as much as you can with what you have.  Keep up with the technology. And don’t lose the enjoyment.

If you were given a $500,000.00 to do with whatever you please, what would it be?

I would put in a performance area so my students would not have to perform in the gym. Or take a long vacation to somewhere warm!

Thank you Shari for sharing your story!

Another Arts Teachers’ Story: Alice Sullivan

Featuring one teacher’s journey as an arts educator

This is the second in a series of blog posts telling arts teachers’ stories. This series contains a set of questions to provide the opportunity for you to read their stories and to learn from others. This post features Alice Sullivan who has been teaching music for 27 years. Alice is one of the Maine Arts Assessment Initiative’s Teacher Leaders, Phase I, and represents the region of Washington County.

Alice is currently teaching, grades K-12, at Woodland Jr. Sr. High School, Woodland Elementary School and Princeton Elementary School. She has been there for 6 years teaching 200 students, band program grades 4-12, some classroom music K-4 and junior high general music, digital arts class and music theory at the high school, and one small elementary chorus.

What do you like best about being a music/art/drama/dance educator?

I really like the opportunity to use my organizational skills in an environment where I can also be creative. The music room is a great place to find a balance between hard and fast standards and finding numerous ways of meeting those standards. Twenty seven years of concerts with no two being the same, but every year I strive to provide every student with the same well rounded music education.

Tell me what you think are three keys to ANY successful arts ed program?

•  a commitment to stretching the limits (your own and those around you)
• a belief that what you do is important
• enough confidence in your skills to take risks

What specific way(s) do your assessment practices tie into the success of your program?

Developing solid assessment practices sends the message to those around you that you believe your program is valuable and worthy of reflection. This instills a sense of importance in your students and as a result they strive to reach higher goals. I often say to my students – “who wants to belong to the good enough club”? An assessment is a tangible way for my students to prove the level they have attained, to themselves and others.

What have been the benefits in becoming involved in the arts assessment initiative?

There have been so many benefits to being part of the arts assessment initiative. The first that comes to mind is the great opportunity to network with other educators. It has also helped to keep assessment practices foremost in my daily teaching. With so many things to do each week, priorities become a necessity. Having weekly connections through the arts initiative wiki has ensured that assessments make my priority list.

What are you most proud of in your career?

I’ve always believed that music is a gift that all students can and should receive. My classes have always been available to all students. I’m most proud of the moments when the reluctant musicians realized they did have musical talent.

What gets in the way of being a better teacher or doing a better job as a teacher?

SLEEP!

Apple or PC?

Both – depends on the job I want to get done.

What have you accomplished through hard work and determination that might otherwise appear at first glance to be due to “luck” or circumstances?

Exceptional concerts are a reflection of hard work and determination. A good performance is often attributed to talent or “good” students. I believe even very young and inexperienced performers can present quality programs with hard work and determination.

Look into your crystal ball: what advice would you give to teachers?

Enjoy what you do. Focus on the positive forces in your environment and link arms with those who also have a positive outlook.

If you were given a $500,000.00 to do with whatever you please, what would it be?

I would travel. I want to see the world and share those experiences with the people around me.

This is a link to the wiki that Alice created that includes her marvelous resources: https://meaningfulassessments.wikispaces.com/. If you have comments or questions for Alice please put them in the “comment” section below.

Thank you Alice for telling your story!