Year after year, I receive stories like the ones above. Stories by elementary music teachers from all across the country describing how they have lost (or are about to lose) their music teaching classroom space. Sometimes a music teacher might get temporarily kicked out of their music room for Picture Day or for several days during state testing. Other times the inconvenience is for a slightly longer duration (several months to a year or so) to accommodate school renovations or a construction project. However, the emails most common in my inbox are from the “indefinitely” camp of music teachers who have lost their music rooms and are unsure if they will ever regain a music classroom space again. The reasons for this can be many, including:

• Increased student enrollment
  
• Creation of a lab (STEM or maker space)
  
• Addition of a self-contained special needs classroom
  
• Addition of a BSI, ESL, or other type of special services classroom space
  

Finding out that you’re losing your music room and going to be teaching music on a cart is disappointing for sure. Yet when I hear about music teachers receiving such notification just a few days in advance (like I quoted above), it’s just heartbreaking! And for that unfortunate music teacher dread, disappointment, and panic start to set in.

So what do you do...other than feel completely overwhelmed? Or begin freaking out? Or a combination of BOTH?! I’ve already addressed some broader points to remember when one finds out that they'll be teaching music on a cart in this blog that shares my own cart story:

But for this blog post, I’d like to delve deeper and talk through some more detailed steps to implement that involve you, the other teachers in your school building, and your administrators. Reflecting on my own experience, I've boiled things down to 3 categories that I believe can be immensely helpful in setting yourself up for success in implementing music lessons from a cart. So let's get to it!

WARNING!!

This is going to be a lengthier post, but I want to properly give you information that'll be super helpful for your cart teaching situation! 😃 

Time 

Is there any time allotted for transitioning between class periods? When I was first put on a cart, my district had 3 minutes scheduled in between class periods. Then over the years as various principals came and went, it shrank down to 2, then 1, and now I have ZERO! Yup, zero transition time. So one class period technically starts the same exact time the previous one ends. Hang tight, because I’ll address this further in point #2.

Distance 

Do you have to trek all the way across the school from one class to the next? Do you have classes on multiple floors? Is there an elevator to utilize? Do a walk-through the way your schedule is laid out and find out how long it takes you to get from class to class. You’ll probably need to add a minute or so to that travel time as pushing a cart slows down your usual speed compared to traveling by foot alone. If you already have a cart, go ahead and do your walk-through while pushing it...with some instruments or items to weigh it down, too.

Layout 

As you perform your walk-through to check time and distance, you should also scope out the layout of the different classrooms. How have teachers arranged the desks, tables, bookshelves, and other furniture in their space? Where are the outlets located if you need to plug in speakers or charge equipment? In which area of the room can your music class take place? What kinds of distractions are in and around that area? While these are all good to address at the start of the year, be forewarned! Classroom teachers can decided to completely revamp how their room is arranged at any given point of the school year. Get a general idea of how the classrooms look initially, have a plan in place, yet keep in mind that it might change as the teacher also adjusts to the dynamics of his or her class and changes the space accordingly. 

If you're going to be teaching music from a cart, then of course you'll need the most optimal cart for your teaching needs and one that's best suited for maneuvering around your school's hallways and doorways. But I must warn you, bigger is NOT always better! In another blog post, I'll address what types of carts you can choose from (there are many options!), exactly what characteristics you need to look for when securing a cart, and how to fully outfit it for your teaching, but for now, consider the following:

• Size - You'll need to push this bad boy around all day, so think very carefully about the size of your cart along with the ease of maneuverability because you don't want to injure yourself. Will bending down to push it hurt your back? Is the cart already heavy even though it's completely empty? Can it easily fit through the doorways of every classroom you'll be entering?
  
• Storage - This is not only how many shelves are available on the cart, but the ways in which you can utilize ALL areas (inside, outside, upside, and down) of your cart. This could also include a locked storage section on your cart, if that's important to you.
• Electrical requirements - Does your cart come with an extension cord or have the ability to incorporate electrical equipment that you'll need? Will you need to put a music playing device on your cart? Bluetooth speaker? Keyboard? Laptop?

Cart preparation is a whole other discussion and I'm very excited to share with you how I've rocked out my own cart in order to successfully implement my music lesson activities! But for now, what are your thoughts? Does your teaching schedule have absolutely no transition time between periods like mine does? Have you considered writing down your expectations and sharing them (in a super kind fashion) to the teachers whose rooms you'll be teaching in? Have your administrators given you a prep space? Have you considered sprucing up your cart to make it practical, but fun? I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas in the comments below!

Encouraging you to rock as you roll,

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They are the first ones to arrive at school. The last ones to leave. On a snow day, they can't turn off their alarm, snuggle further under their covers and sleep in. They are always on call and on their feet throughout the entire school day. Every moment throughout the day they hear → "Can you do this? Can you take care of that? Can you fix this? Can you move that?" And on and on it goes. Who am I talking about? 

Being on a cart tends to amplify feelings of isolation. As a ‘specials’ teacher, you tend to already lack the naturally occurring community that the other subject-area teachers experience because they share common planning time, curriculum meetings, lunch times, and the like. As I rolled through the hallways, passing by our school custodians again and again, it began to dawn on me that they lack such community, too! So I began to make it my mission to simply not ‘pass by’ anymore, but I started to reach out. I'd stop and ask how they were doing...and actually wait and listen to their response. And then sometimes ask follow-up questions. One year, I found out with one particular custodian that we shared something in common at that time: we were both taking care of a sick relative. After realizing this, we would both be sure to share an encouraging word whenever we chatted. I also saw that the kindness I put forth was coming right back to me in ways that I didn't expect. Although they were always helpful and kind to me, they now went the extra step with anything that I needed. Not just for concerts, but also for my cart-teaching needs at school, pointing out a parking space when I arrived mid-day from another school, bringing me something I left behind in a classroom, so many acts of kindness! One rainy day, my car battery died in the school parking lot. Most everyone had already left at that point of the day, but I ventured into the office anyway hoping to find someone. One of the custodians was there and as I explained what happened, he stopped what he was doing and went out into the rain, no umbrella, and pulled his truck up to my car to jump start my battery.

I sought to extend appreciation of our school custodians beyond just myself by incorporating my students in the acts of appreciation, too. Especially working with little ones, it’s easy for them to generalize and assume that things just magically become clean and in order overnight as they enter their elementary school building each morning. Side note: shout-out to all you moms and dads possibly feeling similar misunderstandings from your own children regarding *your* work around the house!  So below, I list several ways in which your students can acknowledge the hard work of school custodians, along with examples of how I and other staff members show some love to our school custodians throughout the year, too!

But how about custodians? Where's the love?! What I like about my schools' Sunshine Club is that in December, they include our school custodians in the gift-giving festivities and offer them gift cards! For several years now, I go above what the Sunshine Club does mid-year and I give each of my schools' custodians a gift card for something I know they can use and enjoy, and give it to them on the final day of school. This is just something I personally have felt moved to do to show my thanks for all of their help not only with my cart teaching, but also for ALLLLL of my concert performances. I conduct 11-12 concerts a year and they set up and break down over 200 chairs for each concert, along with schlepping the bulky metal risers to multiple schools, hoisting them on and off of the stage. What a job! Especially on top of everything else they must do. So I feel that they deserve some extra appreciation from me. I know *I* feel the love with each Dunkin’ Donuts, Starbucks, and Amazon gift card I surprisingly get from students in December or at the end of the school year, so I like to pay it forward by purchasing gift cards I know would be of value to our custodians in their “free” time over the summer. Buying gift cards not your thing? Strapped for cash or teach in a larger district? Consider making something of value to share instead. Do you cook? Bake? Paint? Sew? Whatever your gift, make it, wrap it up and share it! Anything that sincerely comes from the heart is a beautiful, valuable thing. After the whirlwind of a chaotic school year, what better way to express your thanks to them than offering something that they can enjoy before going your separate ways for the summer months.

How about you? Does your school district do anything to acknowledge the custodians? Have you done anything special or encouraged your students to show their appreciation in some way? Do you get the chance to talk to your school custodians about stuff other than concert setup? Can you recommend another “thank you” song that you’ve used with your students before? I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas in the comments below!

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Teaching and working with children is quite the learning experience! This has been especially true in teaching my students with special needs. As time goes on and I continue working with students in a variety of settings, I’m constantly learning how to adapt and modify my lessons to help with the flow of music class, which in turn provides the best environment for them to learn. These changes often occur on a weekly (and even a daily) basis depending on which students I’m teaching, what time of day their music class is, how their day has gone so far, if they like/dislike the shirt they’re wearing, if they like/dislike the shirt I'm wearing...you get the idea! Lots of factors can influence the success of music class, but I’ve found four consistently helpful strategies that maybe you can also consider if you’re teaching elementary music from a cart in a self-contained or mainstreamed classroom.

It’s a good idea to touch base with the teacher to see what ideas s/he may have for when music time rolls around (Anyone else get that cart joke? Just me? Oh...okay moving on 😆 ). For example, some situations you'd might want to address could be:

• Will students sit in a circle on the floor or would sitting in chairs setup in a line or a semi-circle provide better physical structure and boundaries? 
• How many paraprofessionals or teacher assistants will be present during music time? 

• How will those adults sit in accordance to the students they work with (side-by-side, behind, etc.)? How involved with the students do you want them to be?

Determining the answers to those questions, along with asking the teacher to have the students ready and waiting for when you arrive, helps eliminate a lot of wasted time for your music class. Also, be mindful of what direction your students are facing. Are they facing the teacher’s computer which causes a distraction as the teacher types emails or lesson plans during music class? Are they sitting near or facing an area with lots of toys or books that they may be tempted to pull down or take out during music time? Don’t be afraid to bring up your concerns with the teacher and work together towards a solution.

Teaching from a cart means you have to bring ALL your necessary materials with you for a good chunk of the day or until your next opportunity to switch out instruments or materials. Often, this means that some classes may work with certain instruments that other classes will not. Add the fact that you’ll want to keep your cart in close proximity to where you’re teaching in the room. But think about it...you’ll have quick and easy access for grabbing things, but so will your students!  To help eliminate the chances of snatching fingers and grabbing hands, you may want to consider making your cart items "disappear" by hiding them with:

• A large poster or two→ hung on the side of your cart to cover what's behind it (poster examples can include your class rules, the lesson objectives, an inspirational saying, music quote, etc.)
• A makeshift curtain→ use a large piece of fabric to hang up on your cart with Velcro®, magnets, tape, or if you want to get *really* fancy -> a small tension rod!
• A blanket →simply drape it on top of the instruments you're not using at the moment
  

I’ve had times where one of my students successfully lunged for an item and, to avoid total meltdowns while attempting to get it back, I had to employ a ‘bait and switch’ or distract them and get their attention onto something else. I’m always be amazed at how the smallest hands can have the tightest death grip! Or, instead of the death grip, my instrument gets hurled across the room to unceremoniously crash into the wall or hit an unsuspecting victim. Other times a student might ask me repeatedly when we’re going to use *insert instrument name* over and over and OVER again. There’s nothing wrong with occasionally acquiescing so I'll sometimes allow them to musically experiment with said instrument on the spot (it's a great learning moment), but sometimes when you’re trying to hit certain curricular points (SGO’s/SLO’s anyone?) the constant questions each and every music class will suck up tons of time. But, if it’s covered up and can’t be seen, it eliminates the time spent addressing it. Out of sight, out of mind! 

Speaking of eliminating wasted time, if you want to make the most valuable use of your music class time, it helps to have short, succinct phrases to redirect off task behavior. Whenever possible, I like to boil it down to simple 1- or 2-word phrases. Rather than saying, “Michael, I know you’re excited but you can lower your voice a bit because I’m sitting right here a few inches in front of you,” just say, “Indoor voice.”  Instead of, "Anna, you have to take that out of your mouth," simply say, "No mouth."

Redirecting behavior and giving verbal prompts with as few words as possible is a technique that many special needs teachers incorporate because it clearly and concisely lets the student know what they need to do. Along with that, these short phrases will save you time PLUS save your voice. And while we’re on the topic of saving your voice...

I’m all about using a good visual to get the point across! Having a picture that demonstrates what you want the student to do is great because you can easily point to it or hold it up without saying a word. An example of this in action is when I’m singing melodic echoing patterns with students one at a time, and while I’m using my 'pretend microphone' working with one student, another student might interrupt by trying to take their turn or asking about the most random thing ever. I’ll simply take the Quiet Voice poster and hold it up while continuing to echo with the student I’m working with. Or, if it was an interrupting question, I'll hold up the Raise Your Hand poster as a reminder. No time lost and no vocal explanation needed! The Quiet Voice picture I use is an enlarged up copy of a PCS (Picture Communication Symbol) through BoardMaker software. BoardMaker is quite expensive, but it's a very standard purchase districts make for certified special needs teachers to use in their students' communication charts and visuals around their classrooms. Ask the teacher in your school building and they'll probably be more than happy to help and print out images for you to use since it matches what their students see daily in their programs.

I asked for a bigger copy of the 'quiet' PCS and added the words "Quiet Voice" on top before laminating it. BEST DECISION EVER!  In trying to teach skills such as taking turns, waiting, and listening, the four posters above are easily my most often used posters (for ALL of my classes, really). So think about the key phrases, verbal prompts, or redirects you repeatedly say and ask the special needs teacher at your school if they have a corresponding visual that they use for similar situations in their classroom. Print it. Laminate it. Add magnet strips to the back of it. And use it!  The consistency of visuals is good for your students and your voice will thank you!

How about you? What are some difficulties you face being on a cart in a special needs classroom? What techniques or strategies have you found helpful in your music classes? “Sharing is caring” so leave some valuable jewels of wisdom in the comments below!

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I’ll never forget it. It was the spring of my senior year of college, which for many education majors means “student teaching” time. All of us music education students met together with our professor once a week to debrief on our daily teaching adventures in the classroom. I remember sharing about all the amazing instruments and resources my music teacher mentor had available in both of her elementary music rooms (she taught at two schools) and how I enjoyed writing and implementing all sorts of musically engaging activities. Another friend of mine also shared about the lessons she successfully taught, however there was one big difference: her mentor was on a cart, therefore, she also had to teach music from a cart.

I distinctly remember saying how much I admired her being able to teach under such circumstances and how challenging it must be. She shrugged and said it wasn’t as bad as she expected it would be and that it was a good experience. In my head, I thought, “Ugh...I’d never be able to teach on a cart.”

There will be future blog posts detailing more specific steps of what to do to prepare for teaching music from a cart, but for now here’s 3 points to remember should you also find yourself in a similar situation of finding out that you’re losing your music room.

So how about you? Do you fear of one day losing your music room or are you already teaching from a cart? Do you have any other pointers that you'd like to add to this list? Let’s get the dialogue going in the comments below...we’re in this together!

Encouraging you to rock as you roll,

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