Virtually there for my students…video sub instruction!

I’m sitting at the San Antonio Airport – but it’s a Friday! Don’t worry – my kids will still have me as their teacher thanks to a little thinking ahead and the beautiful power of video instruction.

I’m a (slightly obsessed) runner and Disney fan so this weekend is one that I look forward to every year – Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend in Florida! Running is what keeps me sane (and healthy!) so I try really hard to not feel guilty about taking a day every now and then to go run a race or two. Saturday morning I’ll run a 10k and Sunday I’ll run the half so I’m pumped and have my tutu ready!

Today my kids are in the capable and present hands of a few other band directors to run rehearsals and obviously monitor behavior, but in two of my beginner classes I am trying an experiment that I have thought about for a long time – video sub plans. These are less of a plan and more of simple video instruction. In fact, I really just expanded a “ninja challenge” into today’s lesson.

Thinking about how to do this, I wanted to keep class running as smoothly and normally as possible so I have them doing our normal routine of things – a normal warm up, some scale review, and then, as if I were there, a new concept that they have been prepared for in class by me. This is where the video comes in. It is about 6 minutes and teaches them about key signatures and why their order is important (basically order of flats and sharps). This is the normal ideal amount of time I would spend on a lesson like this in class, but I would have normal class distractions so it might take longer in person. Not to mention, I have everything in this video worded precisely as I want – the detail is what makes video instruction so great!

Here is the fun part for students: during class today they will work in small a groups in practice rooms and watch this video on one of their devices. I am excited! I told them that I would be virtually with them – creepy!

Yesterday, I explained to them how it would work and put them in groups with students who have access to the Internet on their device. I also gave them an instruction page that has a QR code to the specific part of our website that they need to visit in order to view the video – scanning a QR code is fun! This way, if a student is absent today, they can still complete their assignment at home over the weekend.

I make QR codes for free using this website. It’s so easy!

Sometimes QR codes don’t work as smoothly as we might like, so I also included tinyurl addresses. Tinyurl.com will transform a long URL into a short one with a keyword of your choice so if you type in http://www.tinyurl.com/bassoonninja it will take you to my bassoon page. Another fun tool for you to use!

Here is a link to the key to key signatures video that students will watch today.

I’ll let you know how it goes! I am thinking positive about it!

Related Posts

  • Pancakes and Pro TipsPancakes and Pro Tips   "can you make a video about that and post it on the website?" -my favorite student Just kidding...we're not supposed to have favorites, but it makes my flipping band […]
  • What I DON’T do – top secret behind the scenes infoWhat I DON’T do – top secret behind the scenes infoHey there, internet friends! I feel like I am working on lots of projects to share with you guys right now! I just LOVE being a helper - I truly hope that you are finding useful tips […]
  • Voice Over AdviceVoice Over AdviceWhen I started making these videos, as I have mentioned before, I was a little reluctant to listen to myself speaking on the videos and avoided it for the first few that I made. I […]
  • Teaching Music in the Midst of Global PandemicTeaching Music in the Midst of Global Pandemic This global pandemic may not be violence by war or bloodshed, but it is a violent change to all of our lives and all of our students lives and it includes a violent amount of panicky […]
  • November Free Webinar: Google Slides and PeardeckNovember Free Webinar: Google Slides and Peardeck I can't believe that it is November and that Thanksgiving is this week! Over the past few months, I've offered free webinars that focus on Google Tools once per month. I truly hope […]
  • That Flipping Bootcamp Week 1: CanvaThat Flipping Bootcamp Week 1: Canva If you have looked around on thatflippingbanddirector.com very much at all, you have enjoyed my Canva designs. I make them for pretty much everything. I am a little obsessed! Your […]