As a First Steps in Music© Teacher Trainer, the most common concern I hear about the workout is that teachers can’t fit all 8 parts into each lesson. I have the luxury of seeing all my Kindergarten and 1st Grade classes for 45 minutes once per 5-day cycle. Forty-five minutes is more than enough time to complete the workout, which affords me additional time to repeat steps more than recommended for even more aural reinforcement. However, I know that 45 minutes per week is significantly more than many Music teachers see their students, and they struggle to get the workout done. 

In my district, when there is a half day, specials are shortened to 20 minutes. When I was a beginning general music teacher, I would plan a, “filler,” lesson, (i.e. A video, Instrument BINGO, etc.) for all the classes that week so that no section of a grade would be a week behind the others. Then, there was a day that we were surprised by an early dismissal, specials were shortened, and I knew I had to get all 8 parts of the workout in to make sure all sections were on the same week of lessons the following week. When I managed to finish all parts in the limited time, I challenged myself to try it again the next time we had a half day scheduled. After I successfully taught the entire 8-part workout in 20 minutes on a few half days, I decided to video myself, so others could see how I manage to fit it all in.

There are two things I do that contribute to the success of a shortened lesson: Preparing all materials ahead of time and establishing the classroom routine and behavior expectations early in the school year. In the early classes of the school year, I spend an extended amount of time going over, “My turn, your turn,” so that I don’t have to stop every class to correct students who sing at the same time as me. I also faithfully follow the workout steps as they are ordered in the back of the curriculum book. I do not deviate from that order in any lessons, so the students know what type of activity comes next. Oddly, I often do not get through the entire workout in my 45-minute classes the first few weeks of a school year because I spend so much time correcting students who sing when I do or don’t act appropriately during movement activities. I find I spend less time redirecting students over the span of an entire year when I spend the extra time in the beginning of the year establishing these expectations.

As you can see in the recorded lesson, I don’t spend much time introducing each activity. I may spend more time on an activity the first week I introduce it, such as the basketball activity, but once they’ve learned it, I give a one or two sentence prep, and we get started. One time-saving routine you can see in the video is the integration of the microphone for individual singing. In the first week of using the microphone, I explain how the microphone allows only one person in the room to sing at a time, but from then on, I just hold it up while the students are singing as a group, and they know that when I point it to somebody, it’s time for one student at a time to have a turn.

If you have short classes, invest your time in the beginning of the school year establishing routines and behavior expectations. It’s okay not to have a “flow,” at the beginning of the year if it means the rest of your year will flow more smoothly, and you can get all parts of the workout done faster. You may have to stop six or seven times your first few lessons to make sure the students don’t sing at the same time as you. Committing to redirecting students that many times, early in the year, will show them that it’s an important part of the lesson that they take turns with you, and they will be less likely to continue to take your turn later in the year.