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For band directors in SC Iowa, SCIBA is a support system is resource center. Through their website, directors receive information on honor bands, All-State auditions, and district festivals. SCIBA also provides important resources for directors, such as the JEI (Jazz Educators of Iowa) website. For directors in the district, this is a must.

This article talks about defending music education in the wake of budget cuts in a school district.

This article talks about defending music education in the wake of budget cuts in a school district.

This is my states take on the national music standards. As an educator in Colorado these are what my district looks to for guidance on music education.

ArtScan, a project of the Arts Education Partnership, is a searchable clearinghouse of the latest state policies supporting education in and through the arts from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

A great resource for music advocacy as well as how other teachers are promotting their programs for the overall development for their students. Music Matters is a foundation that provides funding to schools who are in danger of losing their programs or need assistance in raising funds for their programs.

This site offers resources about the current state of music education as well as useful articles about music advocacy. The purpose of this site is to inform people about the importance of music eduction and keep them updated about the important events happening today that may change the state of music education. My school district was actually recognized as one of the districts to receive "Best Community for Music Education" by NAMM. Not only is this site useful for music educators, but it also has articles about the role of community members and administrators in advocating for music education.

NAMM (National Association for Music Merchants) is a leader in music education. Their trade show every year draws the most important music companies from around the world. NAMM helps music education by providing a place for music educators to learn about the innovations and products available to them. Their website offers grant opportunities for teachers, and information for parents.

I first became familiar with this resource while enrolled in the Creative Thinking course, and it has tremendously helped me fine tune my lessons and procedures. The National Core Arts Standards is a resource that every Music Educator should be familiar with. Educators can reference this resource often to make sure that their planning and activities align with these standards.

The purpose of this resource is to provide a detailed breakdown of the National Core Art Standards. Here you can find standards by subject and strand as well as model cornerstone assessments and student work. This is especially useful if your school district aligns to national standards.

This collection of podcasts features presentations and examples of communities and school districts that have made changes to increase their music offerings to children. Many of the podcasts promote music advocacy and the benefits of making music available to all children.

These are the new 2014 anchor standards. I reference these often to make sure my lessons are not just meeting district standards, but national standards as well. They also help give me ideas if I am struggling with lesson ideas.

This is a list of SmartBoard programs applicable to music, organized by a teacher in Plattsburgh, NY. These activities are mostly aimed at K-5th students, but they are all very good resources. Note that clicking a resource takes you to that resources page, not the schools.

Event info and audition information, district minutes, ways to get involved in FBA.

This website is an important one for Florida band directors to have book marked. The Florida Bandmasters Association provides a variety of educational experiences for students including performance evaluations and honor band experiences. In addition, FBA is a community of educators who support each other by helping each other to grow professionally. The FBA website provides a "best practices" section as well as articles and other resources that are helpful for band directors as they seek to improve their skills.

This website has resources for technology and teaching music in general. It includes Sheet Music, Tales From The Podium, and much much more.

This interview makes an excellent argument for choosing iPads over Chromebooks, as well as addressing other district one-to-one directives. It also touches on some practical uses of technology in the choral classroom.

When integrating technology in the music classroom, teachers need to know exactly what having technology in music looks like. A representative from Choral Director Magazine conducts an interview describing how a teacher has integrated technology in his choir. He provides two examples such as SmartMusic to aid in sight-reading skills and Attendance 2 allowing students to take roll through QR codes as they walk in.

DonorsChoose is a great place to start looking for additional aid for your classroom. You can pose a project that you need funding for, if its more instruments, books, materials, and/or other resources that you may need, but can't get your district to obtain. It is very easy to use and you create a project where people can find or search and donate their own money to fund. You can have several people donate and you can share your proposal on various forms of social media to help spread the word. The choral teacher and I did a few projects and we were able to get Orff Instruments, Drums, and even Ipods for the kids. You have to follow up with DonorsChoose and send photos and thank you letters from the students to show how you are using the materials in the classroom. It is a perfect way to receive that additional funding for your program.

DonorsChoose is a miracle for programs with little to no budget. You can create an account as an educator and create projects that go towards your classroom. You can ask for anything from Chromebooks to instruments and sheet music. Donors from all over the world can donate and support your classroom. This is the resource that helped me build my band program.

Best Practices for Children's Choir is a podcast with Matthew Parker discussing his best practices when working with a children's choir. The discussion content ranges from choosing music to engaging in warm-ups. Matthew also shares his favorite octavos, composers/arrangers, warm-ups, and tips when choosing music. This is very useful information and a great resource to use when working with your elementary and/or middle school choir.

Podcast and synopsis of best practices for children's choir. I want to reference this if the world works my way and places me in an elementary school next year.

Tips and tricks for utilizing movies for content reinforcement or introduction.

Great questions to ask in an interview for a music teacher position.