Session Proposals

Jared Johnson is a veteran music educator with over three decades of experience in the elementary music class. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education from Northeastern State University and a Master of Music Education from Elizabethtown College. He is certified in World Music Drumming and First Steps in Music. He is a member of OkMEA and Percussive Arts Society.

Jared is the Music Specialist at Cherokee Elementary School in Muskogee, Oklahoma, with the World Music Drumming curriculum as his focus.

As a performer, Jared is first-call freelance drummer/percussionist, playing gigs, concerts, shows, and recording sessions in the Northeastern Oklahoma area and beyond. Among his compositions and arrangements are "The Grapes of Wrath Project" and "The Music and Peacebuilding of Fred Rogers".

Have instruments in your classroom but not sure how to use them? In this session, veteran drummer/percussionist and educator Jared Johnson will share practical and innovative ideas for group drumming in the classroom. We will explore how classroom instruments such as congas, tubanos, rattles, bells, and mallet instruments can be utilized in the creation of music-making ensembles. Topics will include: technique, movement, orchestration, and improvisation. We will also learn how ensemble playing can promote teamwork, community, and pro-social behaviors.

• Lower Elementary (Grades PreK-2)
• Upper Elementary/General Music (Grades 3-5)