Using Technology To Improve Communication In Band Class
One constant issue that all band directors face is communicating with students, parents, the school, and the community. We can greatly reduce the amount of time it takes to communicate while increasing the amount of people we reach if we could find the right tool to communicate with everyone.
Remind.com
Websites like Remind.com allow teachers to text and email their entire class from a website, smartphone, or tablet. It is very easy to get up and running. The first time I used this system it took me about 15 minutes to get my high school students into the system. Two incredible features of this system are that messages can be scheduled ahead of time (I scheduled all of my summer reminders regarding marching band before school let out for the summer) and members of your class can reply to the text within predetermined hours set by you (no more late night disappointing messages or family interruptions).
Classroom Management Systems (CMS)
If texting isn't your thing then perhaps a classroom management system is a better option. There are several to choose from but among the most popular (right now) are Edmodo.com, Google Classroom (available only with a Google Apps account), and Schoology.com (there is a free version and a paid version) all of which are free. A classroom management system is a virtual classroom that allows access to class information at all times. This not only allows you to communicate with your students (and parents), but also allows you to create assignments, post pictures, add blogs, make assessments, and file all of those very important documents that don't always make it home to parents. Imagine this: You are teaching the 6th Grade how to play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. On your management system you post a listening/music history assignment that has a recording of Mozart's Variations on Twinkle Twinkle. It has a short bio video about Mozart. You have also posted a short video on form. A rubric for grading their performance of Twinkle and a self grading assessment is posted at the end to assess the students knowledge of the song. The students can learn a lot more about Twinkle than just the performance it and it can be done largely on their own time.
Website
You may think that you don't have enough skills to create your own website, but, despite the apparent difficulty, it has never been easier. Using Weebly, WikiSpaces, or Google, to name a few, you can quickly get a site up and running. There interfaces are easy to understand and you do not need to know any coding to make a great website. Websites are a great option for information that stays consistent throughout the year and from year to year. Information on concerts, festivals, the calendar, etc. are great on a website because they can be accessed by anyone without login. One great option to combine all three elements discussed in this article is to embed your Remind.com announcements and your CMS's announcements right into your homepage. This allows parents, friends of family, and grandparents to easily access current information from your class. Having the text update automatically on your page will give your students and their network a reason to frequent your page.
If you have any questions, ideas, or need help setting any of these up let me know in the comments below and I will do what I can to help you.
One constant issue that all band directors face is communicating with students, parents, the school, and the community. We can greatly reduce the amount of time it takes to communicate while increasing the amount of people we reach if we could find the right tool to communicate with everyone.
Remind.com
Websites like Remind.com allow teachers to text and email their entire class from a website, smartphone, or tablet. It is very easy to get up and running. The first time I used this system it took me about 15 minutes to get my high school students into the system. Two incredible features of this system are that messages can be scheduled ahead of time (I scheduled all of my summer reminders regarding marching band before school let out for the summer) and members of your class can reply to the text within predetermined hours set by you (no more late night disappointing messages or family interruptions).
Classroom Management Systems (CMS)
If texting isn't your thing then perhaps a classroom management system is a better option. There are several to choose from but among the most popular (right now) are Edmodo.com, Google Classroom (available only with a Google Apps account), and Schoology.com (there is a free version and a paid version) all of which are free. A classroom management system is a virtual classroom that allows access to class information at all times. This not only allows you to communicate with your students (and parents), but also allows you to create assignments, post pictures, add blogs, make assessments, and file all of those very important documents that don't always make it home to parents. Imagine this: You are teaching the 6th Grade how to play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. On your management system you post a listening/music history assignment that has a recording of Mozart's Variations on Twinkle Twinkle. It has a short bio video about Mozart. You have also posted a short video on form. A rubric for grading their performance of Twinkle and a self grading assessment is posted at the end to assess the students knowledge of the song. The students can learn a lot more about Twinkle than just the performance it and it can be done largely on their own time.
Website
You may think that you don't have enough skills to create your own website, but, despite the apparent difficulty, it has never been easier. Using Weebly, WikiSpaces, or Google, to name a few, you can quickly get a site up and running. There interfaces are easy to understand and you do not need to know any coding to make a great website. Websites are a great option for information that stays consistent throughout the year and from year to year. Information on concerts, festivals, the calendar, etc. are great on a website because they can be accessed by anyone without login. One great option to combine all three elements discussed in this article is to embed your Remind.com announcements and your CMS's announcements right into your homepage. This allows parents, friends of family, and grandparents to easily access current information from your class. Having the text update automatically on your page will give your students and their network a reason to frequent your page.
If you have any questions, ideas, or need help setting any of these up let me know in the comments below and I will do what I can to help you.
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