I am a Guitars in the Classroom trainer in rural WV as well as an elementary school music teacher. Many teachers in our county have taken Guitars in the Classroom training and their classrooms have been transformed in so many positive ways. Firstly, the kids love singing and singing is a great way to learn their curriculum goals. Guitars in the Classroom puts instruments into the hands of the teachers and the children, and that creates a classroom environment that is invigorating and fun for all. Guitars in the Classroom teaches teachers to get their students writing and singing songs that makes learning fun and memorable. I can't recommend this hands on approach to learning more.
Guitars in the Classroom is transforming classrooms by giving teachers effective tools to improve the academic performance of their students. The students gain skills to improve their own retention of subject matter, and they get to have a lot of fun doing it! There is no other charity as effective at addressing this specific need as Guitars in the Classroom.
I teach part time for Guitars in the Classroom and have seen first hand the difference teaching with music can make on a huge, trickle down, number of children in the classroom. Music inspires even the most challenging learners in a way that is both fun and memorable. I am proud to have made a difference in so many teachers lives as they learn a skill that both enhances their own spirit and the spirit of the children they teach.
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I am so proud to be a part of Guitars in the Classroom! I am an instructor and have seen so many people benefit from learning how to use the guitar and song as a motivational teaching tool. For every one teacher I instruct, hundreds of children will benefit! Thank you GITC for helping me help others with the gift of music!
I've had the pleasure of teaching Oaks and Acorns a program of Guitars in the Classroom. This intergenerational program is designed to teach both elementary aged students and senior citizens how to play the guitar and sing songs. Three to four times during the school year, both groups get together to share their musical learning experiences...followed by a snack and conversation. Every time both groups met, it was magical, always smiles and songs.
I have been involved with GITC for about 4 years. It has revitalized my teaching. Just adding more music to my teaching was an excellent benefit, but I've gained so much more from my training. Jessica Baron's method of teaching has been such a wonderful example of how teachers should guide and support their students in their quest to learn ANYTHING! Because of this program I am a more creative, patient, and understanding teacher than I was beforehand. Putting content standards to the tune of familiar songs has made learning fun and easier for my students. As a teacher, this program is the best gift I have ever received.
I've taken two classes offered by Guitars in the Classroom. I teach blind and visually impaired children. By utilizing this skill I learned, I was able to foster a unique learning opportunity. We would create songs, and the student was motivated to read and write it in braille. The strings and vibrations made provided great tactile feedback. Using the guitar as a teaching tool helped my student better hone her creativity and her braille reading and writing skills.
I've been involved as an instructor and coordinator for Guitars in the Classroom for several years. Through their guitar-training program, I have been able to work with over 75 educators in that time frame, with guitar instruction as well as song-leading instruction. These teachers overwhelmingly bring these guitars back into their classrooms, (often the next school day after the first guitar session!) and integrate music into their every-day education. This impacts their students immediately, engaging even the most difficult-to-engage students with the music. Through their training, the teachers are empowered to be creative with music-making as well as given the tools to be creative in finding ways to teach their core curriculum using music/the guitar. I've seen many teachers pass this creative-work on to their students, asking them to do song-writing to help them remember concepts - or (in the case of younger students) to help them through school-day transitions, and remember basic class procedures. All-around, the impact has been overwhelmingly positive and with the support of the music industry in providing the basic supplies needed for these classes - we can, (and do) do a lot with the resources we have. I love being an instructor and coordinator for GITC!
This has been such a wonderful gift! I stumbled onto this organization because I wanted to share my skills and wished to touch into other lives, it has done what I expected and has pushed me to give more of myself. I can only speak for myself when I say that this program has given me the avenue and confidence to train and teach students to accept the diversity of the community and of skills that are brought into class, honor communication by singing and writing music and celebrate the expression of soul all while enjoying the playing and learning about the guitar.
I've been a GITC instructor for five years. GITC has given me everything I need to fill a critical educational need in my community--providing music education to students by regular classroom teachers after school music programs were eliminated by budget cuts. I've been able to train over 100 teachers, providing ongoing music education to thousands of students in the local area. GITC provides the curriculum, guitars, accessories and training to make this possible. The ongoing support is timely and unfailingly generous. My collaboration with GITC has helped me grow professionally and personally.
I am a teacher from San Diego Unified School District who received free training in guitar and song leading from Guitars in the Classroom. This program empowers teachers to use a different, more charismatic approach to presenting content area material as well as to bring back a culture in which school children feel comfortable singing. I am greatly impressed by the purpose and vision of GITC.
GITC is amazing. Every year, the education bureaucracy cuts the arts to make room for tested subjects--completely overlooking the substantial research that arts and MUSIC integration enhances learning and student achievement. GITC makes it possible for thousands of classrooms to be vibrant, musical, collaborative learning communities--bound in song. Aristotle said that music is vital because it makes the mind ready for other kinds of learning. So right.
Well done, Jessica Baron and company. Well done.
I manage a one-time musical grants program for the CA Arts Council, a state agency. GITC was one of 42 successful applicants who received funds to provide valuable music education for underserved and mostly bi-lingual children. Jess and Colibri were a joy to work with, and it is gratifying to know that the activities made lasting impact on teachers, students, as well as parents and the community. GITC's story has been featured on our official website as an exemplary organization, and I know that it gets much support from many instrumental makers as well as great musicians and schools. Having given up earlier aspirations in music as an immigrant, I wholeheartedly support the mission, work and staff of GITC.