"I teach, therefore I learn"
Student Teaching
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Kayleigh completed her semester of student teaching during the coronavirus pandemic of 2020. These experiences have challenged her to adapt and overcome the unexpected like never before. Through the use of technology and creativity, she designed and created curriculums accessible to all students, in order to give them the immersive, engaging, musical experience that they'd expect during a "typical" school year.
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Pictured Right:
A glimpse into a day of virtual teaching for elementary general music. Visuals, resources, and instruments are all ready to create an engaging lesson across screens!
Pictured Left:
Kayleigh approaches her last week of teaching in a hybrid scenario (half of the students in front of her, half on a Google Meet screen in the classroom). Prepared with her mask & ukulele, she's ready for a full day of teaching!
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Elementary School
Kayleigh's first placement was at Gayhead Elementary School, in Wappingers Central School District. With the guidance and support of mentor teacher Meredith Amato, Kayleigh designed and taught lessons for students enrolled in grades K-5 general music and fourth grade choir. Through the use of online programs, including (but not limited to): Google Classroom, Google Forms, Drumbit, QuaverMusic, and Screencastify, Kayleigh created successful musical experiences for students in virtual, hybrid, and in-person learning scenarios.
Featured below is the "Bitmoji Classroom" that Kayleigh created for her elementary students on Google Slides. This resource was particularly helpful for younger students, as it provided an alternate, fun way for students to interact with musical materials online independently.
High School
Kayleigh's second placement was at Cornwall Central High School, in Cornwall Central School District. With the guidance and support of mentor teacher Anthony Ravinsky, Kayleigh designed and taught lessons for students enrolled in grades 9-12 choir. Through the use of online programs, including (but not limited to): Google Classroom, Google Forms, Edpuzzle, SightReadingFactory, SoundTrap and Screencastify, Kayleigh created successful musical experiences for students in virtual, hybrid, and in-person learning scenarios.
Featured below is a short clip from one of the Virtual Choir recordings Kayleigh put together as the music director for the virtual Fall Drama production of "It's A Wonderful Life". She arranged music for the choir, string quartet, and pianist, and made recording tracks and tutorials so all students could submit recordings of themselves to be edited into the final product.
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This audio is from the "WBFR Jingle"; the opening tune for the radio station in the play.
Movement in Music
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"There are many ways to engage with materials, concepts, and learning. I believe that movement is vital to a child's understanding of music. Everyone, particularly young students, has energy they need to expend throughout a day. Particularly in the pandemic learning environment, students are constantly forced to sit still; either at home in front of a computer screen, or in school at their designated socially distanced desk. I prioritized movement in all of my lessons, so that students would engage their bodies and minds in the lessons, and truly interact with the content to build an enduring understanding of the music and skills we focused on."
Students engage in the "Hello Song" Kayleigh introduced this semester that involves full-body movements. They loved the creativity involved when they got to choose which movements to change!
**This video is blurred for the privacy of students.
Kayleigh creates a video where she clearly demonstrates the movements and words for the "Hey There Friend" Hello Song, so that her mask does not inhibit understanding, virtual students can practice at home, and all students can engage with the song and movements on their own.
Additional Teaching Experience
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While at Crane, Kayleigh created and developed relevant and engaging music curriculums for her practicum students. She has taught those lessons in several practicum courses in the Potsdam area, including:
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K-2 General Music, SUNY Potsdam Childcare Center
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4-6 Grade Elementary Choir, St. Mary’s School
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K-2 Special Education General Music, Lawrence Avenue Elementary School
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6-8 Grade Special Education General Music, A.A. Kingston Middle School
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Kayleigh has also served as the Music Director for Clarkson University’s a cappella groups for the last two years, where she taught music, individual & group singing techniques for 6 hours a week to non-music majors with varying levels of experience and skill. Since 2016, she has worked as Discovery Counselor for Usdan Summer Camp for the Arts, where she has supervised groups of students from Pre-K to 2nd grade to facilitate an enriching and creative summer camp experience. In 2019, Kayleigh also worked as a Kindergarten Classroom Aide for Erie 1 BOCES Summer School in Maryvale, NY.
Kayleigh has been teaching private music lessons for over four years, and strives to provide her students with relevant experiences and lifelong musicianship skills. Kayleigh offers engaging musical instruction tailored to the needs, skills, and genres of individual students. Much of her teaching experience is working with children and young adult musicians.
Kayleigh has observed over 100 hours of teaching at elementary, middle and high schools in NYS. She recently completed her student teaching experience in the Hudson Valley, and earned her NYS teaching certification in January 2021.
Kayleigh began teaching full-time as a middle school General Music and Choir teacher on Long Island in January 2021.
ACDA Lab Choir Rehearsal
February 2020
Photo by Haven Gotham