Music with Melodie

I’ve been a private teacher for over a year. I enjoy it so much. It started with a homeschooling mom, who referred me to her homeschooling friends, and my school keeps growing!

I enjoy connecting with my students, learning a little about them, what they want out of the lessons and what goals they (or moms) want for them. ;)

Music is a large part of my life. I am so happy to share with others what I’ve been doing most of my life. It brings me great joy when they’re excited as well.

  • Doubling my clients

    I’ve been very blessed to go from five homeschooling students to 10 students: 5 homeschool and 5 traditional students. 10 total in the last three months. Thanks to some wonderful referrals from awesome moms, I now have double the students I used to have.

    With new students comes new ways of adapting and making room for my students and my home life. I try not to have the two converge, but sometimes it is hard to achieve balance when you have a family and young children at home who need you.

    My kids at home are 12 and 17. They are here for such a short time; a realization made after my 20 year old went on a church mission for 2 years.

    Fortunately, the moms I work with are amazing and they are willing to shift their schedules to accommodate mine so that I can be at most of my kids after school events, music and sports.

    The thing that how to change was me being more organized with my student schedules. This required me to start using Google Calendar instead of just storing everything on my calendar on my phone.

    At first, it seemed to cumbersome entering all the names into Google Calendar, but it’s easier because I can share my calendar with my family so they know my schedule.

    Things are much easier now that I have a “rhythm” in place; I expect my students to come each week ready to learn.

    I also found it’s not worth rearranging my schedule for one student. I did that last week and she ended up not able to come. I arrange my schedule for myself and my family. That’s what matters.

  • different kinds of learners

    I’ve been teaching music to my own kids for close to 12 years. I started teaching private lessons over a year ago. From these experiences, I know kids learn differently. As such, I cater my lessons to how the child/teen learns best. Some are visual, others verbal, and some both.

    Repetition does seem to also be a common way for them to learn. I like teaching by asking questions and even having random “pop quizes” asking pertinent questions relating to what level of musical theory they are at.

    Flash cards are my current “go to”. You can put anything from order of sharps: F=fat, C=cows, G=go, D=down, A=after, E=eating, B=breakfast, F=fish; Or the order of flats: BEADGCF, which is the order of flats.

    Another flash card I make is note memorization. Those musical will recognize E-every, G-good, B-boy, D-does, F-fine or spell the word F-A-C-E for the spaces. Don’t forget the bass clef “shortcuts” for the notes. A-all, C-cows, E-eat, G-grass for the spaces. G-great, B-big, D-dogs, F-fight, A-animals for lines in the bass clef.

  • How do you deal with uncertainty?

    I’m religious person so I deal with my uncertainty with prayer and contemplation.

    I also seek advice from trusted friends and family.

  • Switching musical instruments

    Going from teaching piano, to voice to violin all in an hour and a half, then back to voice again. This definitely fries my brain after about 3 hours of this is fried! I have been known to retreat to my closet afterward and decompress by “doom scrolling” for about thirty minutes or so. Then my brain feels better.

    The good news is, I’m seeing a lot of progress in my students. From a student who is starting to gain confidence in herself, singing louder and with more feeling. It is also so rewarding to watch the growth my students are making! One of my piano students is making great strides. She knows her notes now. She did it in her own time, but she DID it! Yet another student who is starting to count their rhythms. It’s definitely a process. Another student is discovering how much benefit it takes to use correct breathing and soar when she sings!

    Music teacher plays violin with children at piano and cello; whiteboard reads “Practice Scales!”
    On the other hand, I feel like this is truly my calling. I’ve been looking for the right “J-o-b” for a while, but it needed to be the right fit. It needed to be a flexible schedule, go with my busy family’s schedule. What better way than to teach from the convenience of my home, with mom’s who are often accommodating with their schedules, especially when something comes up. I love kids! I love working with them and teens! They have no pretense and are (almost) always honest.

  • DIY dill pickles

    Last Saturday was the day before school started. I was feeling pressured to get things done before school came on Monday. I looked in my fridge and on my counter and saw all of the various types of cucumbers that were starting to go rotten. so I looked on my 12-year-old son Ben and said will you help me make homemade pickles to which he said yes! Thankfully, I have a go to recipe I’ve made several times that it’s delicious. Courtesy of my sister-in-law Emily, it’s super easy.

    DIY dill pickles 4c. Vinegar 4c. Water 3-4 sprigs fresh dill Minced garlic 1c. Salt. Bring to a boil and then stuff quart jars full of cucumbers (I used Armenian and lemon cucs). Once the brine comes to a boil, pour it over the cucumbers and stuff in some fresh dill and garlic. Then process for 10 to 15 minutes in your water bath. Benjamin was in charge of scrubbing and chopping cucumbers. I was in charge of stuffing dill pouring on brine and getting them in the processor. It was quite a task but we got it done in about 2 1/2 hours. In 6 to 8 weeks they will be ready to eat!

    Cutting and stuffing them in jars probably takes the majority of the work.
    Ready to process!
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