Before your next rehearsal, try a few things that will make all the difference in the world. Simply slide the first chair in the second row over so that the middle of that chair is behind the gap created between the first two chairs of the first row. Align every chair in that row the same way. Then slide the middle of the first chair of the third row over so it’s behind the gap created between the first two chairs of the second row, and so on. In this way, every student will be looking between the heads of those in front of them, rather than directly into the back of someone’s head. Then to make it even better, rotate each chair so it points directly at where you will be on the podium. So that when they look up, their eyes will be “aimed” directly at you with less obstructing their line of sight and blocking their view. I know it sounds like a tiny change, but what a difference it will make!
Peter Loel Boonshaft, Director of Education
KHS America
About the Author
Dr. Boonshaft is the author of the critically acclaimed best-selling books Teaching Music with Passion, Teaching Music with Purpose, and Teaching Music with Promise. Dr. Boonshaft is currently on the faculty of Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, where he is Professor of Music and Director of Bands. He has also been named Director of Education for KHS America. He was honored by the National Association for Music Education and Music For All as the first recipient of the “George M. Parks Award for Leadership in Music Education.”
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