Christopher Kurt's guest appearances

Christopher Kurt

Choir Ninja, with Ryan Guth

Matt Curtis

John Hughes

Tim Brown

Steve Cook

Sarah Jarvis

John Wilson

Mark Hayes

Lynn Lyons

Linda Davis

Joe Miller

Chris deVries

Anthony Maglione

Nigel Short

Tim Sharp

Zac Hill

OwlTail

Just because you graduated high school, graduated college, and got a job doesn’t mean that you won’t sometimes still feel like the new kid. Ryan checks back in with podcast favorite and Ukulele Ninja Christopher Kurt about his first quarter teaching in a new school. Sometimes you just need to change your life. Whether that means a new methodology or a new zip code depends on you, but Ryan and Christopher cover some of the questions you should ask to help you decide. Listen [Subscribe on iTunes] [Subscribe on Android] Highlight to Tweet:         “I can be pretty chill and pretty awesome, but if you’re a butt, that’s gonna change.” - Topher Kurt Show Notes:  You know when it’s time for a change. Especially while you are young, try something new. Maybe a new city, with new opportunities is worth a look. Don’t just prepare for your first day; over-prepare. Have different lesson plans ready to go based on the students’ level of respect and class participation. First impression are crucial. Try to meet with others in the music department before the first day of school. Some students might remember you from an interview audition. But prepare students for the idea that you will teach in your own way. Authenticity is key. Establish procedure from the first day. You have permission to change your life. Christopher knew what his dream job was, and that he wasn’t going to realize it where he was. Ask yourself, “What do I want out of my career?” (not job). Not every transition means moving to a new state. But you have to choose to change something. A new job is kind of like being a new teacher again;  you might just be looking ahead a day at a time. For the first quarter, stick with what you know, and what you know you do well. Second quarter, add something new. Take a new approach to teaching a song. You can make changes to how you teach. Make your program your own. What can you bring to your program that is something no one else could do? What makes you indispensable? Be daring. Be vulnerable. Let yourself question a lot of what is going on, because only in the questioning will you find the answers.  Bio: Mr. Christopher Kurt is in his fourth year of teaching and his first year at Liberty Memorial Central Middle School. His first three years were spent teaching 6-8 General &amp; Choral Music at Aldo Leopold Middle School in Burlington, IA. He graduated from Wartburg College in May of 2014 with a Bachelor’s Degree in K-12 Music Education with a Vocal Emphasis. In his first three years, Mr. Kurt was nominated three times for The Hawkeye’s “Teacher of the Year” Award. In the Fall of 2016, he was a presenter at the Iowa Technology &amp; Educators Connection Conference. He has been a guest on the “Choir Ninja” podcast by Ryan Guth, on the episode “Uke, I Am Your Father,” in April of 2017. He will be presenting at the Iowa Music Educators Association Conference in November. He enjoys watching football, playing ukulele, and singing with the Heartland Men’s Choir in his free time. Resources/links Mentioned:  The First Days of School, by Harry Wong Uke, I Am Your Father (Christopher’s first Choir Ninja episode) NEW Choir Emoji Posters! Get them for free!!!  Choir Nation group on Facebook Email Patreon - Support the podcast!  Sponsored by: Sight Reading Factory (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for 10 free student accounts!)  My Music Folders (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for “last column” or best pricing - usually reserved for bulk purchases only!)

Just because you graduated high school, graduated college, and got a job doesn’t mean that you won’t sometimes still feel like the new kid. Ryan checks back in with podcast favorite and Ukulele Ninja Christopher Kurt about his first quarter teaching in a new school. Sometimes you just need to change your life. Whether that means a new methodology or a new zip code depends on you, but Ryan and Christopher cover some of the questions you should ask to help you decide. Listen <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/choir-ninja-with-ryan-guth/id980970922?mt=2" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">[Subscribe on iTunes]</a> <a href="http://subscribeonandroid.com/findyourforte.libsyn.com/rss" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">[Subscribe on Android]</a> Highlight to Tweet:         “I can be pretty chill and pretty awesome, but if you’re a butt, that’s gonna change.” - Topher Kurt Show Notes: <ul> <li>You know when it’s time for a change. Especially while you are young, try something new. Maybe a new city, with new opportunities is worth a look.</li> <li>Don’t just prepare for your first day; over-prepare. Have different lesson plans ready to go based on the students’ level of respect and class participation. First impression are crucial.</li> <li>Try to meet with others in the music department before the first day of school.</li> <li>Some students might remember you from an interview audition. But prepare students for the idea that you will teach in your own way. Authenticity is key.</li> <li>Establish procedure from the first day.</li> <li>You have permission to change your life.</li> <li>Christopher knew what his dream job was, and that he wasn’t going to realize it where he was. Ask yourself, “What do I want out of my career?” (not job). Not every transition means moving to a new state. But you have to choose to change something.</li> <li>A new job is kind of like being a new teacher again;  you might just be looking ahead a day at a time. For the first quarter, stick with what you know, and what you know you do well. Second quarter, add something new. Take a new approach to teaching a song. You can make changes to how you teach.</li> <li>Make your program your own. What can you bring to your program that is something no one else could do? What makes you indispensable?</li> <li>Be daring. Be vulnerable. Let yourself question a lot of what is going on, because only in the questioning will you find the answers.</li> </ul> Bio: Mr. Christopher Kurt is in his fourth year of teaching and his first year at Liberty Memorial Central Middle School. His first three years were spent teaching 6-8 General &amp; Choral Music at Aldo Leopold Middle School in Burlington, IA. He graduated from Wartburg College in May of 2014 with a Bachelor’s Degree in K-12 Music Education with a Vocal Emphasis. In his first three years, Mr. Kurt was nominated three times for The Hawkeye’s “Teacher of the Year” Award. In the Fall of 2016, he was a presenter at the Iowa Technology &amp; Educators Connection Conference. He has been a guest on the “Choir Ninja” podcast by Ryan Guth, on the episode “Uke, I Am Your Father,” in April of 2017. He will be presenting at the Iowa Music Educators Association Conference in November. He enjoys watching football, playing ukulele, and singing with the Heartland Men’s Choir in his free time. Resources/links Mentioned: <ul> <li>The First Days of School, by Harry Wong</li> <li><a href="http://choir.ninja/094-2/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Uke, I Am Your Father</a> (Christopher’s first Choir Ninja episode)</li> <li>NEW <a href="https://gumroad.com/l/choiremojiposters" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Choir Emoji Posters!</a> Get them for free!!!</li> <li></li> <li><a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/choirnation/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Choir Nation</a> group on Facebook</li> <li>Email <a href="https://www.patreon.com/choirninja" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Patreon</a> - Support the podcast!</li> </ul> Sponsored by: <a href="https://www.sightreadingfactory.com/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">Sight Reading Factory</a> (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for 10 free student accounts!) <a href="http://www.mymusicfolders.com/" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank">My Music Folders</a> (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for “last column” or best pricing - usually reserved for bulk purchases only!)

When You Are the New Kid, with Christopher Kurt

Christopher Kurt explains how you can become a Ukulele Ninja like him. Besides being quirky, fun, and astonishingly on trend at the moment, ukuleles have a lot of value to add to your choral or general music classroom.   Listen: Show Notes: He’s from Iowa. Not from Colorado. And that’s important. Christopher teaches 6th-8th grade general music classes and directs 3 choirs. When he began his job at Aldo Leopold Middle School he found he had inherited ukulele lab, including 35 instruments that had been there for 20-30 years. Having access to the instruments inspired Christopher to teach himself to play. Ukulele makes a great classroom instrument because the 4 basic chords are easy to learn, the instruments are cheap, accessible, and provide an immediate win for students. Multitasking is hard for middle school students (and for Christopher, who falls up stairs). Singing and playing at same time lets them multitask successfully. A little less than half of his time with 8th grade students is spent on the ukulele unit. They start off by covering the ground rules; how to hold it; c maj chord; how to strum; strumming patterns. He follows the teaching/modeling pattern: I do, we do, you do. Music literacy concepts include: what’s a chord, a triad, learning individual (plucked) notes, note value/rhythms. Composition concepts include: writing lyrics, chords, creating strumming patterns. Choral applications include: use as accompanying instrument instead of piano, talent show, pops concert, encourages listening, self-accompany solo singing Ukulele playing allows students to make a song their own, molded according to their own creative vision. Students might not keep playing ukulele once the unit is finished, but the practice habits and work ethic they learn are widely applicable. Christopher has written classroom ukulele curriculum on edmodo; it’s a badge achievement system with leaderboard to encourage competition across classes. Contact Christopher in the Choir Nation Facebook group for more info about his curriculum (being used in a collegiate level class). 3 Key Takeaways  Ukulele is an affordable classroom addition that can teach a wide variety of music literacy concepts. Several concepts cross-apply to choral education: listening, recognizing chord changes, steady rhythm. Ukulele offers a different path to success for some students who may not achieve elsewhere. Because it is fun and accessible, students can create their own music. Even if students do not continue to study ukulele after the unit is over, the concepts of good practice habits and work ethics will apply to many future pursuits.  Resources/Links mentioned:  Christopher’s Ukulele Unit on Teachers Pay Teachers His artist page on Facebook: Topher - Singer/Songwriter Support Choir Ninja on Patreon  Explore further:  Free resources for classroom ukulele Want to learn how to play on your own? Check out the app Yousician All your ukulele questions answered  Title inspiration:  Sponsored by: Sight Reading Factory (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for 10 free student accounts!)  Bio: Christopher Kurt is in his third year of teaching 6-8 General &amp; Choral Music at Aldo Leopold Middle School in Burlington, IA. He graduated from Wartburg College in May 2014 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education with a Vocal Emphasis. In his first two years of teaching, Christopher has been nominated twice for The Hawkeye’s “Teacher of The Year” Award. This past fall, he was a presenter at the Iowa Technology &amp; Educators Connection Conference. Christopher is passionate about music, fantasy football, warm weather, human rights, froyo, and Netflix. He has watched the series “How I Met Your Mother” ten times through within the past three years and states his vast knowledge of the show is one of his greatest attributes. At school, he wears fun and unique socks each day that often match his brightly colored shirts and manbun hair-ties. Though he has never gotten past the first round, he has tried out for American Idol three times and The Voice once, but did see Ryan Seacrest at one of the auditions and screamed like a 12-year old at a Justin Bieber concert, so that counts for something, right? IG: @topherk44 Facebook: Christopher Kurt

Christopher Kurt explains how you can become a Ukulele Ninja like him. Besides being quirky, fun, and astonishingly on trend at the moment, ukuleles have a lot of value to add to your choral or general music classroom.   Listen: Show Notes: He’s from Iowa. Not from Colorado. And that’s important. Christopher teaches 6th-8th grade general music classes and directs 3 choirs. When he began his job at Aldo Leopold Middle School he found he had inherited ukulele lab, including 35 instruments that had been there for 20-30 years. Having access to the instruments inspired Christopher to teach himself to play. Ukulele makes a great classroom instrument because the 4 basic chords are easy to learn, the instruments are cheap, accessible, and provide an immediate win for students. Multitasking is hard for middle school students (and for Christopher, who falls up stairs). Singing and playing at same time lets them multitask successfully. A little less than half of his time with 8th grade students is spent on the ukulele unit. They start off by covering the ground rules; how to hold it; c maj chord; how to strum; strumming patterns. He follows the teaching/modeling pattern: I do, we do, you do. Music literacy concepts include: what’s a chord, a triad, learning individual (plucked) notes, note value/rhythms. Composition concepts include: writing lyrics, chords, creating strumming patterns. Choral applications include: use as accompanying instrument instead of piano, talent show, pops concert, encourages listening, self-accompany solo singing Ukulele playing allows students to make a song their own, molded according to their own creative vision. Students might not keep playing ukulele once the unit is finished, but the practice habits and work ethic they learn are widely applicable. Christopher has written classroom ukulele curriculum on edmodo; it’s a badge achievement system with leaderboard to encourage competition across classes. Contact Christopher in the Choir Nation Facebook group for more info about his curriculum (being used in a collegiate level class). 3 Key Takeaways <ul> <li>Ukulele is an affordable classroom addition that can teach a wide variety of music literacy concepts. Several concepts cross-apply to choral education: listening, recognizing chord changes, steady rhythm.</li> <li>Ukulele offers a different path to success for some students who may not achieve elsewhere. Because it is fun and accessible, students can create their own music.</li> <li>Even if students do not continue to study ukulele after the unit is over, the concepts of good practice habits and work ethics will apply to many future pursuits.</li> </ul> Resources/Links mentioned: <ul> <li><a href="https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Manbun-Music-Teacher" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Christopher’s Ukulele Unit on Teachers Pay Teachers</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.facebook.com/TopherUkeAndMore/?hc_ref=SEARCH" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">His artist page on Facebook: Topher - Singer/Songwriter</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.patreon.com/choirninja" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Support Choir Ninja on Patreon</a></li> </ul> Explore further: <ul> <li><a href="https://www.ukuleleintheclassroom.com/resources_C6.htm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Free resources for classroom ukulele</a></li> <li>Want to learn how to play on your own? Check out the app <a href="https://yousician.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Yousician</a></li> <li><a href="http://ukulelehunt.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">All your ukulele questions answered</a></li> </ul> Title inspiration: Sponsored by: <a href="https://www.sightreadingfactory.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sight Reading Factory</a> (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for 10 free student accounts!) Bio: Christopher Kurt is in his third year of teaching 6-8 General &amp; Choral Music at Aldo Leopold Middle School in Burlington, IA. He graduated from Wartburg College in May 2014 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education with a Vocal Emphasis. In his first two years of teaching, Christopher has been nominated twice for The Hawkeye’s “Teacher of The Year” Award. This past fall, he was a presenter at the Iowa Technology &amp; Educators Connection Conference. Christopher is passionate about music, fantasy football, warm weather, human rights, froyo, and Netflix. He has watched the series “How I Met Your Mother” ten times through within the past three years and states his vast knowledge of the show is one of his greatest attributes. At school, he wears fun and unique socks each day that often match his brightly colored shirts and manbun hair-ties. Though he has never gotten past the first round, he has tried out for American Idol three times and The Voice once, but did see Ryan Seacrest at one of the auditions and screamed like a 12-year old at a Justin Bieber concert, so that counts for something, right? IG: @topherk44 Facebook: Christopher Kurt

Uke, I Am Your Father, with Christopher Kurt