2026 Maine Music Educators Association Conference

Let's start from the beginning! Learn how to modify movement, make connections to your current curriculum, and get comfortable teaching folk dance in general. We will adapt two basic dances and learn how to progress them for any age.

Rainy days. Special schedules. The last days of school. All these seem to give students extra energy. Instead of dreading these times, what if we used them to our advantage? Strategically planning movement activities or pulling out a colorful manipulative could be the trick to tapping into students’ excitement and continuing to reinforce curriculum.

This session will explore different tried-and-true movement activities. It will also discuss ways to use puppets, scarves, and more to hold students' attention and dig deeper into their musicianship. You’ll gain a toolbox of easy-to-use activities for your classroom!

Curious about music centers but not sure where to start? This hands-on workshop introduces practical strategies for creating and managing engaging, student-centered music centers. Designed for teachers new to the concept, participants will explore how centers can support creativity, independence, and differentiation while making assessment more authentic. Together, we’ll look at examples of rhythm, melody, listening, composition, movement, and technology centers adaptable for any classroom setup. You’ll leave with ready-to-use templates, activity ideas, and a plan to start small and grow confidently—bringing structure, variety, and joy to your music classroom. Note: This workshop works as a standalone workshop. This also pairs well with its part 2 counterpart--in which teachers further engage to create a center rotation for their own classroom.

In this hands-on follow-up session, teachers will apply what they learned in Part 1 by designing music centers tailored to their own students, space, and curriculum. Participants will brainstorm, plan, and create ready-to-implement stations that align with musical goals, foster creativity, and encourage student independence. With guided support, examples, and collaboration time, teachers will leave with practical, classroom-ready music centers that can be used immediately—whether teaching rhythm, melody, instruments, or creative movement. This session is ideal for educators ready to move from inspiration to action in bringing music centers to life.

This session, inspired by a TikTok video, is designed to give elementary teachers in grades K-4 lesson ideas for engaging their students through solfege singing and/or Orff instrument playing.

Have you ever been curious to see how other teachers plan and select songs for their curriculum? This interactive session will present findings of a 2025-26 survey of Maine elementary music teachers. Participants were asked what resources they use most, what their top criteria in a good song choice was, and what would lead them to remove a song from their curriculum. Findings show popular trends in Maine elementary music education, the planning practices of Maine teachers, and recent shifts in the ways that music is selected for PreK-5 programs in the state. This research was done under the advisory of Dr. Casey Schmidt at the University of Southern Maine.