This week, I have the privilege of presenting as part of the NYSSMA Winter Conference. NYSSMA, the New York State School Music Association, conveniently hosts their annual conference in my home town of Rochester. This event brings together music educators from across the state for 3 days of conference and the Conference All-State festival for students. We always hope for good weather and this week, luckily, we're not predicted to get snow.
The topic of self-care for music educators has been on my mind since the beginning of the pandemic. I've spoken to countless teachers who express their stress and exhaustion from teaching during this difficult time, and I worry about our profession. I set out on a research journey to find out all that I could about the real issues and what research says we can do about it. This presentation is only a step in the research journey.
Below are links to my slides from the presentation (they include all of my references) and a link to one of the activities from the session. As you might guess, I'm passionate about this topic. If you have questions, thoughts, or just want to talk further, please feel free to reach out!