Start Your String Programme with FREE Resources from SMT!

It’s the beginning of the school year and there is so much to do.  Did you know you can download a bunch of helpful free teaching materials at Smart Music Teacher?   Teach beginner tunes by ear.  Download a note-reading reference for violin, viola, cello and bass.  Teach a lesson on how to set up a string orchestra classroom.

Here are some SMT Member favourites:

Seating Plan Template for String Orchestra

  Time to get organized! It’s the beginning of the school year and it’s time to make up some new seating plans.  I thought I’d tweak my seating plan and share it with those of you who don’t have one, … Read More

Music Sign-Out Sheets and Music Collection

It took me a few years to streamline my system of signing out and collecting the many, many pieces of music that we go through every year.  My first few years of teaching, I didn’t even even bother signing out … Read More

Teach By Finger Pattern: Get Started With Free Finger Pattern Handouts!

Using just six finger patterns can greatly simplify how you teach violin, viola, cello and double bass and help you achieve more in less time.  I first wrote about The Six Basic Finger Patterns back when I started this blog.  Since … Read More

Teach by Finger Pattern: Free Blank Fingering Charts

When I started to teach by finger pattern, one of the first activities I had my students do was to draw the fingering charts for each of the keys they were learning.  This is a great way to give students … Read More

Hoodie-Free Zone!

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Custom Lesson Planner for Smart Music Teachers – FREE for a limited time!

Looking for the perfect teacher planner?  Tired of agendas that don’t meet your needs as a music teacher?  Perhaps you are someone who ends up scribbling things in different notebooks or scraps of paper, or somewhere in your agenda only … Read More

Start Your String Programme with FREE Resources from SMT!

It’s the beginning of the school year and there is so much to do.  Did you know you can download a bunch of helpful free teaching materials at Smart Music Teacher?   Teach beginner tunes by ear.  Download a note-reading reference … Read More

Free Beginner Bass Scales

The nice thing about teaching strings is, unlike band instruments, all the instruments are the same… almost!  The double bass is somewhat of an oddball, being played standing, only able to play two notes per string, and tuned in fourths … Read More

Do Your Students Have Major Pattern Addiction?

You know those students who really aren’t listening?  The ones who never adjust their finger patterns from string to string?  The ones who are totally unaware of how they actually sound?  How do you motivate these students to play the … Read More

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