Hello! My name is Isla, and I am applying for the freelance position, working with multiple groups in a musical setting. I believe I am a good candidate for the role, as I am a strong and determined individual, passionate about passing on the craft, which is music. I endeavour to create inclusive environments, ensuring that many individuals over different ages and abilities will flourish with support. I have had experience working with children in multiple settings, such as my placement at Counting House nursery, where I sang nursery rhymes and other early ages songs to 1-4 year olds. I have also had experience working with older children from the ages of 7-13, at an Easter music school, where they experienced what it was to be like in a band.
The previous clip consists of me teaching a harmony exercise in a community choir setting. Since community choirs can be so diverse, and will include many people over a range of ages and abilities, it is important that I am alert, and aware of any struggles the choir may face, if that is if the timing seems off, or if my desired energy is not found amongst the group. In my community choir, I encourage the ‘Reflective Practice Theory’. “Reflection is an active process of witnessing one’s own experience in order to take a closer look at it, sometimes to direct attention to it briefly, but often to explore it in greater depth.” (Amulya, 2004). Although my choir are all working together, I admire the idea of each individual, including myself, going home after rehearsal, and reflecting or journaling what went well, and how they can improve their performance, if that means that they were struggling on a particular part of a song that they would like to go over, or if they feel proud about how the rehearsal went. I believe that this theory produces positive feedback within each singer. Since my singers are above the age of 18, they are naturally more independent than younger ages, so therefore can take the information and instructions I’m giving them, and interpret it to what suits them in reflection. For example, I could give my singers an arrangement, and if there are certain parts that they are struggling with, they may decide to change roles.
It is possible that I will have mature singers, therefore it’s important that I know how to manage their aging voices. “The flexible tissues that are responsible for vocal fold vibration during voicing (known as the superficial lamina propria) become thinner, stiffer and less pliable” (Sean Parker Institute for the Voice). Since my older singers may not be able to stretch their voice as far as they used to when it comes to singer notes higher and lower than their comfortable range, I can consider options to make a fair and enjoyable environment, such as choosing a rep which uses simple chords in the middle C range, or making the decision to have a separate older peoples community choir.
I believe that positive reinforcement and encouragement can be impactful to anyone. “Positive reinforcements increase response probability by adding to the situation” (Rumfola, 2017).
In the clip of me teaching this warmup to ‘I Wanna Dance with Somebody’ by Whitney Houston, I encouraged my singers to listen to each other after the first run of the part we were learning, and recommended that not only do they try and stay in time with other people on their part, but to listen to the other sections as well, to create the best mix possible. Since the members of my community choir are all 18 and above, I am able to be more flexible with my indications, as they will all be able to understand what I want quickly, and if they do struggle to fulfil the task, I am more than happy to repeat myself, or alter the task to be less challenging. During my time on placement at ‘Counting House’ nursery, I would use socratic questioning subconsciously. “Socrates, the early Greek philosopher and teacher, believed that disciplined and thoughtful questioning enabled the student to logically examine and validate ideas”. (Schadt, 2021). An example of this in my teaching, would be when we would sing a song all together, and I would ask questions after, such as “how do we think that went?”, and “how do you think we could change this”. The children would often be very vocal and give suggestions, specifically in a song we would sing every week, called ‘Chocolat’, which is played in the style of ‘Double double this this’, where we would carry out clapping motions on the floor in front of ourselves and speed up each time. After asking the children what we could do to switch it up, they would have fabulous ideas, such as using a lower or silly voice.
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“Repetition is an especially useful tool in the area of music education. The success of repetition can be enhanced by accurate and timely feedback” (Saville, 2011). Since children’s brains are so young, they need to be shown new things over again, to fully acknowledge it. “We conclude that repetition suppression paradigms are valuable tools for investigating neurodevelopmental processes” (Nordt, Hoehl, Weigelt, 2016). If I was moving on to a new song every 2 minutes, they simply wouldn’t remember them the next week. “Music teachers can avoid the pitfalls of boredom and mindless repetition by constantly shifting teaching strategies and including new goals and framing techniques” (Saville, 2011). Since repeating the same thing multiple times at once can easily become boring and disengaging, I have thought of certain ways to switch up the song, but still have the same melody and words, so the children can get the hang of the song in a more exciting way. For example, I have sped up the tempo of the song, introduced different items such as cloth and animal figurines, and encouraged the children to come up with their own ways to sing the songs, which they are often passionate about.
An Excerpt from my Reflective Practice Journal as a Reflective Practitioner
I believe teaching is an opportunity given to children, allowing the largest shift in their academic lives and progress. As a teacher, it is important to me that I nurture my class with a positive energy, but also ensure I have their focus at all times in order for them to succeed. I feel as the teacher, that it is important that I deliver all of the information possible, for them to then be able to take it away and develop their learning in their own independent methods. Growing up, I have always been an individual who empathizes with others, and I want to take that same mindset into my teaching. I want to display myself as a caring character at all times, if that involves bringing my energy up or down to match each student’s, or repeating the task again in a simplified manner for someone who may find a particular topic more challenging than others. I believe that a successful teacher has the right balance of being relatable and charismatic to catch the student’s engagement, but to also be firm with the information they are delivering, conveying its importance to the students. It is important to me as a teacher that my students are able to collaborate in my classroom, if that involves answering my questions confidently, or working together with each other in a positive manner. In order to achieve this classroom environment, I will display my core values proudly, carry out tasks which children lead independently after listening, and always offer advice and help when asked.
Bibliography
Aging Voice | Sean Parker Institute for the Voice. (n.d.) voice.weill.cornell.edu. Available online: https://voice.weill.cornell.edu/voice-disorders/aging-voice [Accessed 29 Apr. 2026].
Amulya, J. (2004) What Is Reflective Practice? 1–4. Available online: https://www.careinnovations.org/wp-content/uploads/what-is-reflective-practice65.pdf [Accessed 30 Apr. 2026].
Nordt, M., Hoehl, S. and Weigelt, S. (2016) The use of repetition suppression paradigms in developmental cognitive neuroscience. Cortex, 80, 61–75.
Rumfola, L. (2017) Positive Reinforcement Positively Helps Students in the Classroom. Available online: https://neerigenbrookps.wa.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Positive-Reinforcement-Professional-Reading.pdf [Accessed 30 Apr. 2026].
Saville, K. (2011) Strategies for Using Repetition as a Powerful Teaching Tool. Music Educators Journal, [online] 98(1), 69–75. Available online: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0027432111414432 [Accessed 6 May 2026].
Schadt, S. (2021) Socratic Questions | Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. UCONN. Available online: https://cetl.uconn.edu/resources/teaching-your-course/leading-effective-discussions/socratic-questions/ [Accessed 4 May 2026].
