Lesson 1

For my first recorded lesson, I chose the Symphonic Band. I recorded both the warm up

and lesson for my first lesson and noticed some really great things for one of my first times in

front of this group of students. I liked that I gave a lot of relevant feedback each time they

finished an exercise or section of music and I also followed up with them after they did what I

suggested. I also gave feedback while doing a few sections of music; this is very easy to do with

the fancy microphone. Another element that I really enjoyed watching in my teaching was my

ability to keep a lot of energy and enthusiasm. I have a hard time believing that I have a

presence that isn’t boring. My goal in every class is to make my students laugh and have fun

and what I’ve noticed in high school is that they often times zone out and seem uninterested; so

as someone who needs that validation it is hard to keep the energy up when it appears to not

always work.

One thing I noticed that I can give a lot more attention to is my conducting. As the lesson

went on, I was using a lot of mirror conducting with both hands which is okay but I know I can

utilize cues and dynamics more in my left hand. I think I should also do more preparatory beats

only instead of giving them a full measure before they start. I think I could simply try this by

having them watch and not saying anything initially. This not only will reinforce them watching

more but their independence as a player as well. Listening to the responses of the students, I

also think that I can grow in my listening comprehension and catch more mistakes within the

ensemble. With that being said, I have discovered as a teacher, you don’t always have time to

stop every time you hear something wrong.

Lesson 2

During my second lesson with the Symphonic Band, I had a lot more energy than before

and really felt a connection with all of their personalities. What I loved the most was that their

response and attention gave me the energy to continue having fun and most importantly, make

them laugh. Everyone was responding to my questions and interacting and it was by far the
most fun I’ve had teaching a class. Again, I also like that I am consistent with my feedback and

that it is helpful to them. They respond very well to the comments I make which tells me that my

instruction is coming across nicely. I took initiative this time to stop and fix the things that were

wrong instead of just letting them slide. There were still a lot of things I didn’t address but I

managed to fix the majority of the musicality issues I heard.

I would like to see myself do a better job of reinforcing some of the things I am telling the

students to do. For example, if I tell them to do dynamics with my conducting, I should do the

exercise again with that in mind and listen specifically for it myself as the teacher. I also think my

conducting can still improve; I noticed that I have a tendency to point with my left hand and

splay my fingers out which I have never done before. I also am very self conscious about how

much I talk and how I sometimes talk way too fast to get my point across. If I need to say

something, I need to say it clearly and in as few words as possible.

Overall

Between the two lessons, I felt a lot more confident in front of the students by the second

lesson. I tried really hard to make connections with them and bring out their personalities in

each lesson. I want to try my best to always make their band classes enjoyable and I felt like I

achieved that a lot more with the second lesson. I also think I did a better job in growing

confidence with my own knowledge of instruction; I double guess myself when teaching

sometimes and I am now able to speak what comes to mind and believe that it is

knowledgeable information for them.