ℳ𝓈. 𝒟𝒾𝓋𝓃𝒾𝒸𝓀

A true honor to perform “American Tune” with #PaulSimon and the incredibly talented students at Juilliard. As I said in the article, I remember first looking at the lyrics of “American Tune” and going “Oh, my God — did you write this yesterday?”

My admin posted a video of me teaching a class and captioned it as a brain break for the kids.

*breathes*

I'm glad she saw that the children were engaged and enjoying music class, but THAT'S NOT A BRAIN BREAK. It's music class.

The arts are not a break from "real learning." It IS real learning.

Dalcroze would be proud of this pianist.

The brain fog has been intense today. Even forming sentences was a challenge.
I'm so tired, and I have so many things to do, and the school year hasn't even begun yet.

I'm gonna need a lot of serenity prayer this year.

Music nerd rant:
I'm watching a training PD video, and this person changes keys every single time she stops talking to sing. She's sticking between F-A Maj, but … it's killing me! She is Kodály trained - like, where the heck is her tuning fork?
Whoooooo. Okay. Moving on!

Sure, because dad stepped up.

Ah, patriarchy.

(This was from a book from the 1970s.)

It's taking approx 1 minute per percent right now, and if (96 minutes from now) it tells me that the file is too big, I will cry. I won't be surprised, but I will cry. @SeesawLearning has this weird thing about full-quality videos, after all.

I was reminded of this quote today in Kelly Whisinnand's #CTO workshop. Don't wait to be perfect - do what brings you joy.

#Orff #ElemMusicEd

The woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.
-Henry Van Dyke

I posted a handful of videos from my #TMEA2025 presentation on www.tiktok.com/@doremidivnick / www.instagram.com/doremidivnick/ - tried here, but the size limit is miniscule. Go check 'em out!

Let's go! Finally back after the PHENOMENAL President's Concert, ready to recharge for tomorrow. I've got about 15 sessions I want to attend in under 10 hours. #ImagineTheImpossible #TMEA2025

Ooõh, that quartertone flat 8th/octave is SPICY! (But like, some sort of unexpectedly earthy spice, not like heat spicy.)

Had a great time presenting and collaborating with #ElemMusic teachers in Round Rock ISD today! #RRISD #ElMusEd #MusicTeachers #PreKMusic

Come get your #PreK fix on Friday at #TMEA2025

I will share a #PreK4 learning sequence that flows seamlessly through the basic comparative tenets of music (tempo, dynamics, pitch), including at least one easy-to-integrate activity for each comparative. It's gonna be a blast!
#ElemMusEd #ECE

...but only under sixty seconds... 😭

*pouts in first-world problems* It seems that every day I get "new follower" notifications, but no views, likes, or comments on posts. I just want a little interaction, that's all.

(No, not on THIS post, dingbats, on the meaningful, music ed ones.)

holding a 2-inch rubber gingerbread ornament, with bumpy body, inset eyes, mouth, and cheek, grooves for frosting decoration, heart, and scarf, and holding a whirly lollipop.

Screenshot of my facebook post, reading: This little rubbery gingerbread man ornament was a gift from a student. I received it after we returned from break, and set it down on my little cart (rather than taking it home). A few days later, a little one was upset and explained that she wanted her mom. I replied "oh, let me see..." (pretending to look for her mom in all my stuff, I held up the ornament) "is this your mom?" She said yes, it clearly was, so I shrugged my shoulders and handed it to her. The little one hugged it for a few minutes, and then gave it back. I mean, okay - if it works, it works! Another day, one of my most ADHD kiddos ever was having a true struggle managing his impulses. I walked over to him with the gingerbread man and said "this is my dad - can you keep him safe please?" He looked at me like I was fully insane (because obviously a rubber ornament isn't my dad), but he accepted his challenge. He had the ornament jumping, spinning, doing flips, rolling around (all the things the kiddo wished he could be doing, essentially), but he himself stayed put, stayed quiet, and was actively listening and answering questions during a focused part of the lesson. A few minutes later, when it was game time again, he gave me my "dad" back. A couple more days later, another sensory-seeking kiddo was struggling. He kept picking at the tape on the shelf he was next to. Seating him elsewhere would have caused a whole different set of issues, so I handed him the ornament. Kiddo ran his fingers over the bumps and grooves of the design, pretended to have the gingy eat his lollipop, and spun the string around and around, and otherwise managed himself beautifully. This gift that I had no idea what to do with has come in very handy these past couple of weeks!

The little ornament has been much more utile than anticipated! #EarlyChildhoodEducation #ExecutiveFunction #SocialEmotionalLearning #Fidget #ADHD

www.instagram.com/p/DDi3Ea8sd7e/ Plate-skate prep.

Speaking of the plate skate, here's how the "rink" is set up this year. My smart sister suggested that I invest in some King sized sheets, grommets, and magnet hooks in the future. Brilliant idea! www.instagram.com/p/DDipah3pcgo/

How I prep the plate-skate: last week we sang "here come the royals riding," while Ss took turns on some pool-noodle hobby horses. This week we ∆ it to "…royals sliding" and practiced on sturdy plastic plates. Next week we'll go to the "skating rink" and use paper plates, shuffling along to ❄️ music.

But it's so true! We've taken advantage of this in education since ... forever!

'Tis the season to pivot. Make it work.

It's the song "Paige's Train," but instead I sing Turtle's Train and Cheetah's Train... and change some words for fun, too. *Bluesky has super-tiny allowances for videos, so if you want to see a video of it in action, head over to my tiktok or insta (same handle).

Amongst other things, today I stayed late to add two new hobby horses to my collection. Their names are Rosa and 'Rillo. They proudly join the originals, Verda and Moradito. #HotGlueAndYarn

This week, we started fast vs. slow with the #PreK4 kiddos, and they "rode" Turtle's Train and Cheetah's Train for #KinestheticAwareness. All the corners and angles help them stay safe and focused, even when they are speeding along the track. #MaskingTape #PreKMusic #MusicTeacher #ElementaryMusic

Blue skies smiling at me - nothing but blue skies do I see.
(And just like clouds on a clear day, there might not be many posts from me for a while.)