I've talked before on my blog about how much I love using music in my classroom. After regularly using music throughout the day for the past three years, I cannot imagine a quiet, music-free classroom. I use my ipod throughout the day as well as songs that I embed into my ActivInspire flipcharts. (Sadly, we cannot use Pandora at school...) Read the full post about the different ways I use music here.One of the first ways I began incorporating music into my classroom back in the day was by playing classical music during writing time. Since then, I've increased the parts of my day during which I play background music to include testing time, independent work time, group work time, etc. One problem came up this year, though: While I add to my "relaxing music" and "upbeat music" playlists frequently, my "classical" and "instrumental" playlists have grown a little...stale. If I have to hear the same four Mozart albums one more time...well...needless to say, it's no longer having the same relaxing effect on me!
A few weeks ago, I walked into my colleague's classroom after school and loved the quiet, relaxing music she had playing. I asked if it was a playlist on her ipod, and can I please get the songs from her??? Imagine my surprise when she told me she was streaming through YouTube! She told me that if you just go to youtube and search "Meditation Music," you will find hour, three-hour, eight-hour, etc. videos of soothing, quiet music complete with calming visuals. Jackpot!
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| Works for after school grading time too--Don't we all need a little help relaxing during grading?? |
Do you use music in your classroom?
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