As Education Through Music continues to grow and evolve, we are committed to remaining grounded in our mission of providing music as a core subject for all children. This school year, the leadership team at ETM came together to identify a theme that would guide and anchor us to our mission throughout the year. We arrived at three words: Engage. Teach. Motivate. ETM.

We work to embody this theme every day. See below for some examples of how this theme has come to life already this school year:

 

Engage

Teachers in ETM partner school engage students by selecting repertoire that is appropriately challenging, culturally relevant and that facilitates self-expression. Teachers are in the process of working with their Instructional Supervisors to select great repertoire tailored for their school community to perform at upcoming winter concerts.

ETM engages the entire teacher community in a school by facilitating professional development sessions with homeroom teachers that connect the work done in the music classroom with the work done in reading and math classrooms. Instructional Supervisors have already held Launch PDs with classroom teachers in our new partner schools to introduce them to the benefit of music education in their schools.

 

Teach

ETM teaches the families of students in our partner schools about the value of music education for their children through workshops and parent events. Teachers in partner schools with bands and orchestras have begun the process of teaching parents about music education through Ensemble Info Sessions.

ETM teaches music educators to become more effective in their classroom through differentiated professional development opportunities that address teachers needs at a variety of experience levels. Already this year we have launched a Conducting Masterclass series, held several intro-level PD sessions for new teachers and will soon be holding a series around Launching a Jazz Band.

Motivate

ETM motivates music teachers at ETM partner schools to constantly grow by giving bite-sized, achievable feedback to help teachers achieve fast success in their classrooms. Instructional Supervisors are in the process of completing the first formal observations of teachers for the school year.

ETM motivates elected officials and other important advocates in the community to effectively advocate for funding and other support for school music programs by inviting them to participate in events with ETM partner schools. This week, a number of elected officials joined ETM in celebration of a new partnership with PS 196K in Williamsburg.

I am incredibly proud of how the entire ETM community has embodied our Engage-Teach-Motivate team in the first eight weeks of the school year. I am confident that we will continue to live this theme every day as we continue working to provide high-quality music education to the children of New York City.