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Beginning of the Year Exhaustion.

I find that building a new year takes up so much energy.  There are issues such as scheduling.  Then, there are classes where you have to prove yourself in a sense.  This depends on the school.

Scheduling is difficult when you are approaching your limit - good news!  I have added new students this year - 7 I believe so far.  I also accepted an additional day in an after school grant program. This has about filled my schedule.  

I teach in two music schools and there are 2 Dalcroze teachers at one of them.  We don't compete in any significant want.  The other school has at least 6 Dalcroze teachers.  Not everyone teaches the same ages as I do, but there is competition.  The first 4 weeks are critical.  If someone does not like you class they can drop.  They can essentially switch classes at any time too, but this mostly happens in the beginning.  The tough part is to teach quality classes where you are setting out on the path of music discovery with solid pedagogy AND be entertaining too.  The former is tough enough.  Most of my classes in this setting have parents or caregivers so there are 2 levels to the class.

The other school where I do not really compete is where I have the children alone.  I have not started there yet, but last year the 3 and 4 year old classes had major crying due to separation. Finally, I put out drums and said to I believe the 4 year old class, if you cry, you don't get a drum.  This was around the third week. It worked! Then I knew it was fake, habitual, attention grabbing crying and not truly fear anymore.  It would not be something to do a first or second week, but by the third or fourth week when I did it, I knew it was time.  Almost every one of these children went to preschool so this was something I knew I could do.

I have been busy busy and sleeping so much to get into gear.  The other most exhausting part of the year is the end.  You have spent hundreds of hours - maybe over a thousand - building this year of music and it has to end - like a sand mandala you have to let it go!

Off to teach, have a rehearsal, and on and on.  Make music today!