Session Proposals

Tiffany McGrew (she/her) teaches secondary choirs near Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and has taught for 18 years. She received her BME from Northeastern State University and her MME from Southeastern Oklahoma State University. McGrew, a 2021 Grammy Music Education award quarterfinalist, is an in-demand clinician and session presenter in Oklahoma.

Alex Rivera (he/him) is the DEI Chair for OkCDA and has taught for 10 years. He received his BME from the University of Oklahoma. Rivera is an in-demand clinician and has presented interest sessions at state and national conventions, including ACDA (Cincinnati, 2023). He and his wife are foster/adoptive parents.

Alex Rivera, Music Teacher at Hilldale Elementary School, Putnam City District

Every music teacher has experienced a moment in a rehearsal or class session when their musicians begin to experience brain fatigue and rehearsal has become less than productive. Many of us struggle with the concept of sacrificing rehearsal or class time to provide brain breaks to students, often moving from one difficult passage to another in an attempt to prepare for the next performance.
Early in her career, Tiffany heard an analogy comparing the brain to a pitcher of water: You can only fill that pitcher with so much water before it begins to overflow. If you want to fill it with more water, you must take a moment to pour out the water inside the pitcher to make room for more water. The brain works similarly- we can only give students so much information before the brain becomes overloaded and can take on no more new information. This analogy and its emphasis on brain breaks led her to a restructuring of her choral rehearsal plans and transformed her classroom culture.
Research has shown that students’ developing brains experience cognitive fatigue and need frequent breaks to increase productivity and cognitive retention. In addition, brain research indicates that breaks are actually as integral to the learning process as practicing the newly learned skills. The brain uses less active time, or brain breaks, to compress and consolidate memories of what was just learned. As a general rule, every 20 to 30 minutes of concentrated study calls for a 3 to 5 minute break. Neurologist and classroom teacher Judy Willis even recommends singing songs as a chance for students’ brains to replay what they have learned and prepare for more practice or new material.
In this session, two veteran music teachers will present their tried-and-true brain break strategies that allow students the ability to process newly acquired skills and knowledge, while simultaneously reiterating and reinforcing musical skills and knowledge. Session attendees will participate in this interactive session and learn specific musically-driven brain break activities that are sure to keep students engaged while allowing their developing brains to process what they have learned in rehearsal. A list of resources for additional activities will be provided to session attendees.

• Lower Elementary (Grades PreK-2)
• Upper Elementary/General Music (Grades 3-5)
• Choral - Middle School
• Choral - Secondary