Primary Music Magazine
Issue 1.0 Spring 2018
Top 10 Tips for Primary Music Teachers by Dr Elizabeth Stafford @DrLizStafford
So they’ve made you music coordinator even though you know ‘nothing’ about music? We’ve got you covered…. 1. Don’t panic! So you’re the only musician in your school? Or maybe there are no musicians in your school at all? Don’t tell anyone we told you, but you don’t have to be ‘a musician’ to teach primary music, in the same way that you don’t need to be J.K Rowling to teach writing! However ‘unmusical’ you feel, you WILL be able to teach primary music because it’s at a level designed for 5-‐11 year olds, and you are much older and wiser than that.
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2. Invest in quality teaching resources. Make things easy for yourself and invest in an up-‐to-‐date curriculum scheme and modern resources. You don’t need to create everything from scratch yourself, particularly if you’re not confident about music. Let the experts do the
legwork for you and use commercially available resources that you can adapt to suit your class. Adaptation is easier than invention – shout-‐out to Disney and their live-‐action-‐remakes!
3. Clear out that music trolley. If it’s broken – chuck it. If you don’t know what it’s called – find out. If you don’t know how it works – find out. If you haven’t got a full class set of instruments, or at least one between two – time for a fundraiser. You can’t teach music effectively without providing functioning instruments for your pupils to play – it’s in the national curriculum and everything! 4. Talk to your local music education hub or service. In England your music education hub is specifically charged with helping YOU teach music better, so don’t be afraid to
