114- Creating engaging content for elementary music students with Darlene Machacon

Today's episode is a such a great conversation with Darlene Machacon.  We're both pianists AND music teachers, and we talk about how to bring that unique perspective into the music room.  Darlene talks about how she goes about planning her lessons and why she leaves space in her planning to add in new activities she finds throughout each month.  Also, she talks about the importance of meeting your students where they're at and why it's important to stay flexible.  Darlene Machacon is a TK-6th grade elementary music educator, chorus director, and private piano teacher in Orange County, California. Her experiences include designing group piano and general music curriculum, overseeing studio group music programs, accompanying for the Intermediate group of the Emmy award-winning Southern California Children's Chorus and playing keyboard for various church worship bands in the area.  After experiencing her Carnegie Hall solo piano debut in 2019, she quickly realized that performing was not her calling and decided to focus on reforming general music education for diverse students. She holds a dual Bachelor's of Music degree in Music Education and Piano Performance from Biola University and is currently pursuing a Master's in Music Education degree at VanderCook College of Music. You can connect with Darlene on: Instagram @thedarlingmusicteacher TikTok search for @thedarlingmusicteacher You can also check out Darlene's new podcast "Coloring the Melody"  I'd love for you to leave a rating and a review of the podcast on I-tunes, be sure to share the podcast with any music teacher friends who would find it helpful and be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook.