--- title: Reflections from the Music Room description: Reflect on your music teaching this year with 10 essential questions to improve next fall and recharge this summer. image: https://blog.musicplay.ca/hubfs/IMG_2977.jpg --- [![musicplay-logo](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/musicplay-logo-2.png?width=2701&height=877&name=musicplay-logo-2.png "musicplay-logo")](http://musicplay.ca) Open main menu Close main menu # Reflections from the Music Room ![Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg?width=45&name=529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg) [Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/stacy-werner) [Share this blog post on Twitter](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=I+found+this+interesting+blog+post&url=https://blog.musicplay.ca/reflections-from-the-music-room) [Share this blog post on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://blog.musicplay.ca/reflections-from-the-music-room) ![](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hubfs/IMG_2977.jpg) [Note: This newsletter is best viewed in your browser for full access to all content.](https://blog.musicplay.ca/reflections-from-the-music-room) ## Reflections from the Music Room ![IMG_2977](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/IMG_2977.jpg?width=465&height=310&name=IMG_2977.jpg) As another school year comes to a close, it's tempting to race toward summer and leave reflection for "later." But taking even a few minutes now can make next fall feel much less overwhelming. Before you shut off the lights in the music room for the summer, here are 10 questions worth asking yourself. --- ## 10 Questions to Ask Yourself Before the School Year Ends ### 1. What lessons were the biggest hits this year? Which singing games, folk dances, recorder pieces, bucket drumming activities, or technology lessons had students fully engaged? Make a quick list now while it's fresh in your mind. ### 2. What lessons need a refresh—or retirement? Not every activity ages well. Which lessons felt flat, took too much preparation, or didn't achieve the learning goals you hoped for? ### 3. Which resources saved you the most time? Every teacher has a few go-to resources that make a busy week feel manageable. Maybe it was MusicplayOnline, a trusted book on your shelf, or a classroom routine that kept lessons running smoothly. Before summer begins, make a quick list of the resources you found yourself returning to again and again. ### 4. What should you organize before leaving? Are there instruments that need repair? Supplies that should be reordered? Bulletin boards to take down? A few minutes of organization now can save hours in August. ### 5. Which students made the biggest growth? Take a moment to celebrate student successes. Sometimes the students who grew the most aren't the ones who performed the best. ### 6. What classroom management strategies worked best? Were there routines, transitions, seating arrangements, or attention signals that made a noticeable difference? Write them down so you don't have to reinvent the wheel next year. ### 7. What should you stop doing? This can be one of the most powerful questions. Which commitments, activities, or habits added stress without adding much value? ### 8. What should you do more of? Think about the moments when your students were most engaged. Was it singing, moving, creating, collaborating, or playing? Consider how you might build more of those experiences into next year's lessons. ### 9. What would make next September easier? Could you label bins, update lesson plans, organize digital files, or prepare first-week activities before leaving for the summer? ### 10. How will you rest and recharge? Teaching music is demanding work. Summer isn't just a break—it's an opportunity to refill your creative cup. What will you do this summer that has nothing to do with lesson planning? **Let's learn from each other!** What's the best lesson, game, or activity you discovered this year? Reply to this email and share it—I may feature some of the responses in a future newsletter. ---   ## Sing! Dance! Play! ## Music Education is MONUMENTAL! ## Washington, DC ## July 10-12, 2026 ## [![Sing! Dance! Play!](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/Sing!%20Dance!%20Play!.png?width=643&height=433&name=Sing!%20Dance!%20Play!.png)](https://workshops.musicplay.ca/sing-dance-play/)Join us in-person or livestream for three days of inspiring professional development! Learn from Stacy Werner, John Jacobson, Katie Grace Miller, and special guests for 15 hours of engaging instruction. Get one-year access to all recorded sessions so you can watch anytime. ## In Person - FREE REGISTRATION!   (only 200 spots available!) ## Live Stream with Recorded Access  - $100  [Registration Link ](https://workshops.musicplay.ca/sing-dance-play/) --- ## Musicplay Team Updates: We wanted to take the opportunity to share some updates from the team: #### Content Updates: - Check again next week for future updates!  #### Development Updates: - New Drum Machine interactive - New Staff Lesson bass resources - Support for 2 beat rhythms in Word Rhythm Composition tool - Added the ability to disable student codes  - Navigation now remembers the last open state. - Notifications can now be dismissed more easily ![Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg?width=150&name=529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg) #### Stacy Werner Stacy Werner is a music specialist with 15 years of experience teaching elementary music in Alberta, Canada. She is the author of the “Super Simple Music Centers” series and the Education Director for Musicplay Online. Trained in Orff and Kodály, she’s committed to ongoing growth as an educator, guided by her mentor, Denise Gagne. ### Leave a Comment ## Related Articles [Blog Posts](https://blog.musicplay.ca/tag/blog-posts) [Assessment](https://blog.musicplay.ca/tag/assessment) ### [Recorder Solo Assessment Rubric](https://blog.musicplay.ca/recorder-solo-assessment-rubric) [Denise Gagne](https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/denise-gagne) [Read More](https://blog.musicplay.ca/recorder-solo-assessment-rubric) ### [September 30: A Day to Reflect, Learn, and Listen](https://blog.musicplay.ca/september-30-a-day-to-reflect-learn-and-listen) ## National Day for Truth and Reconciliation September 30th marks the **National Day for Truth and Reconciliation** in Canada—a day to honour residential school survivors,... ![Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg?width=45&name=529321003_10171907439470332_5222755718152529359_n.jpg) [Stacy Werner](https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/stacy-werner) [Read More](https://blog.musicplay.ca/september-30-a-day-to-reflect-learn-and-listen) #### Our Products - [MusicplayOnline](https://musicplayonline.com) - [Musicplay Store](https://store.musicplay.ca) - [Musicplay Downloads](https://downloads.musicplay.ca) - [Musicplay Workshops](https://workshops.musicplay.ca) - [Musicplay Help](https://help.musicplay.ca) Follow us on Facebook Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Instagram ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Stacy Werner", "url" : "https://blog.musicplay.ca/author/stacy-werner" }, "dateModified" : "2026-06-24T19:30:00.553Z", "datePublished" : "2026-06-24T19:30:00.000Z", "headline" : "Reflections from the Music Room", "image" : [ "https://blog.musicplay.ca/hubfs/IMG_2977.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.musicplay.ca/reflections-from-the-music-room", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.musicplay.ca/hubfs/musicplay-logo-2.png" }, "name" : "Themes & Variations Musicplay" } } ```