025 - New Year, New Teaching Goals (What I'm Learning from Bob Ross)

025 - New Year, New Teaching Goals (What I'm Learning from Bob Ross)

I have to be honest: I have a love-hate relationship with goals. I’ve had years of setting detailed goals in categories like Business, Teaching, Professional, and Personal. I’ve set monthly goals and sometimes weekly goals to stay on track.

Other years, I’ve been happy with a few new habits and a book list. And that's where I'm finding myself this year.

How do we plan and set goals for the year ahead when everything feels misty and grey? How do we change and grow when things around us are staying the same?

Today, I'm sharing a few helpful strategies and a glimpse at what my pseudo-goal-setting process looks like this year.

024 - The Secret Strengths of Introverts (+ Survival Tips for Teachers)

024 - The Secret Strengths of Introverts (+ Survival Tips for Teachers)

Are you an introvert or an extrovert?

Society often makes us feel like we are one or the other, but in reality, these personality traits are two opposite ends of a spectrum, and most of us fall somewhere in the middle (source).

I’ll admit it took me a while to figure this out for myself. When I realized what I was feeling was a natural part of being an introvert, I planned my days and weeks differently. I became aware of how and when I used my social energy and I was much more intentional about rest and alone time.

The secret is to use your natural strengths. And that’s what we’re going to talk about today.

023 - How to Practice Efficiently in 30 Minutes Or Less

023 - How to Practice Efficiently in 30 Minutes Or Less

Playing your instrument helps keep your musicianship skills sharp — your aural awareness and reading abilities, your commitment to a beautiful tone and balance and expression. It helps you stay in shape technically, and it makes you a better teacher — you know what practicing requires and you know how to pick and choose the strategies that will help you be most efficient with your time.

With that said, here are a handful of quick tips for practicing efficiently in 30 minutes or less:

022 - On Being a Lifelong Learner

022 - On Being a Lifelong Learner

As lifelong learners, we get to discover new things, new people, and new ideas. We explore things that are new and unfamiliar, whether that’s reading a short biography about a composer or sight-reading a new piece; outlining a new learning sequence or figuring out how to use a new app.

But what does this look like as a music professional? Here’s a personal and practical look at what lifelong learning looks like for me in this season.

021 - How to Use Praise with Intention

021 - How to Use Praise with Intention

In the last few years, I’ve spent some time reflecting on how best to encourage and motivate my students to continue learning on their own. I started thinking about how I give praise and offer words of encouragement.

"Is there a way to do this that promotes learning?” I wondered to myself. "How can we use our words to foster the development of intrinsic motivation and a positive self-image in those we teach?"

Praise is a powerful tool and one that we as educators can use to equip and empower those we teach. We can use praise to inspire creativity, cultivate the pursuit of excellence, and celebrate milestones. And we can use it to motivate learners to keep moving forward and keep exploring.

Learning is a lifelong process, after all.

I did a little research on this topic and today, I want to share a few simple ways we can offer praise with intention — those meaningful words that inspire, encourage, and motivate others — and 12 practical phrases you can use in your teaching and tailor to your students.

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020 - Asking the Right Kinds of Questions

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020 - Asking the Right Kinds of Questions

As teachers, we ask a lot of questions.

  • What’s the first note?

  • What’s your hand position?

  • Which finger plays the black key?

  • What kind of note do we sing in m. 8?

  • Are these notes stepping or skipping?

But, did you know there are different kinds of questions (or ways of asking questions) that can actually promote learning?

A good question does more than assess student learning or mastery of a concept; it can actually foster a deeper level of understanding, open space for productive dialogue, and promote self-reflection.

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019 - The Benefits of Rote Learning & How to Use It in Your Teaching

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019 - The Benefits of Rote Learning & How to Use It in Your Teaching

When we learn something by rote, we start by listening, then experiencing it ourselves — imitating what we see or hear, listening again, and repeating it until we can do it on our own.

Today, I want to talk about why rote learning is important and three of the primary benefits of rote learning in music education, and offer some practical, step-by-step techniques for incorporating rote-learning into your teaching approach.

018 - This is What an Elementary Piano Buddy Lesson Looks Like

018 - This is What an Elementary Piano Buddy Lesson Looks Like

At the beginning of this year, I had a buddy lesson with 2nd grader, Samantha and 1st grader, Colby. Both students started with me about 9 months ago. They are halfway through the Faber Piano Adventures Primer book and we’re also working through the second book in the Wunderkeys Primer series by Andrea Dow for skill and concept reinforcement and some supplemental repertoire and games.

Today, I’m giving you a behind-the-scenes peek into one of our buddy lessons this spring—these are notes straight from my teaching journal.

017 - How to Channel Your Inner Child and See the World Differently

017 - How to Channel Your Inner Child and See the World Differently

I love working with five-year-olds.

I love their creativity, their fearlessness, their willingness to try new things, their crazy imaginations, and the way they make everything silly and fun.

Of course, we were all five once. But it’s all too easy to forget what that sense of wonder feels like, to be curious and inquisitive, to ask questions and seek out the answers, to try something you’ve never tried before. Today, I’m sharing eight ways to channel your inner child and see the world differently.

016 - 7 Unconventional Approaches to Starting the New School Year

016 - 7 Unconventional Approaches to Starting the New School Year

Most years, the beginning of the new school year feels fresh and exciting. Everything is new and bright and full of possibility.

This year, in the midst of a global pandemic, things feel a little different.

As such, here are a few unconventional ways to prepare for the new school year ahead.

Follow along with my creative work and daily adventures: @ashleydanyew

Maybe this is an unpopular opinion— But in this season of goal-setting and checklists, I think it’s important to acknowledge that not everything can be measured. Not everything follows a set of orderly steps (as much as I may try!). Tha
What’s the biggest challenge you’re facing in your music career? Here’s what I hear most often: “I don’t know where to start” “I don’t know where to put my focus” “Not sure which path to ta
Sending you love and warm wishes this season! Here’s to another year of teaching, writing, creating beautiful music, and building community wherever we are. 💛🎵🥂 Love, Ashley, Steve, and Rory