Music in/is teaching

I am now listening to a great radio station, Romantic Fm , actually my favorite category is Romantic Fresh; great music to my ears...Micatone-Handbrake and while I was typing it got changed into some Asian song that dropped a smile on my lips...innocent, sweet, modern and classic at the same time- worth listening.

Music has always been a part of my life, it has changed shape just like myself, it has cried, smiled, wondered and lost hope, then again it rose and sharpened or softened according to the mood, it has even disappeared from the stage for a while...There have been times when I thought waking up and going to sleep with music could only be a teenager timetable, not a mature person's one.But I was so wrong...I realized that music (good one I am talking about-the quality and the talent that saps the lyrics and sound) can offer us redemption in a world where there is no much soul-wise reflection and where people seem lost and scared most of the time.
Then I also noticed that I work better with music, I can plan great lessons and then I have constantly used music in my classes not only to practice some skills, but to "animate" my students, as class management so to speak.
Why is music very that important in teaching? I would be curious to hear what your opinion is- if you think is important or maybe you consider it a "waste of time"...
I can simply assure you I experienced great moments among my students, I saw shy or introvert people ('cause I work with adults) becoming "somebody else" when listening to a great voice, noticed the nostalgia in their eyes when I played Beatles or Leonard Cohen, or ABBA...Secondly these great artists composed clear music- that is the one students can understand and follow throughout the entire song.It's like catching two birds with one stone- entertainment and apprehension.
Then, feeling the music (in a wider sense) is a quality that any teacher should posses, meaning any teacher should feel the student/s , tune his own style and methods of teaching in order to achieve real and long-term understanding of the language.
Music is more than a word , it's a phenomenon that's still under discovery by musicians themselves, philosophers, writers, scientists.That's why is fascinating...it can shape its meaning according to the context or purpose. As written in the definition the word derives from the Greek  mousikê (tekhnê),it actually says the Muse, the inspiration -and don't we, teachers need that sometimes? Some scientists talk about the music as a language or a treatment, some refer to it as a marked-based, problem-solving method such as mathematics.
I think is always a great challenge to find the tune and have my students sing along, together as a group.
What would you make of music in teaching and in your lives?

Just another day ...A fun day

What would a fun day look like for you?
It all started after planning an activity for some students.They were asked to fill in a timetable of a day when they only do leisure activities, when they are allowed to HAVE FUN the entire day.
What was the big discovery? Me and my colleague teacher observed that our students timetables were filled with exotic places, creative nature spots and lots of shopping-wise intentions, while our timetables read: "having coffee, sleeping, meeting a friend, relaxing":)
That got me thinking how little we needed to be happy or relaxed, how insignificant actions valued so much for us. And then I remembered once a trainer talked about "tasks or goals prioritizing" and I learned that by means of such a simple task we can actually understand the others better. Basically a simple exercise told so many about the others' goals, style of life, values and dreams.
Try and do this by yourselves:

Now that I have more time to think I tried to imagine a more thorough description of my fun day. So here it is:
08:00- I wake up, it's sunny and warm, a feel somebody close to my heart breathing next to me and I smile
09:00- I finally have my flavored coffee in my small kitchen, looking outside the window, watching the same pigeons that found shelter on the nearby tree: a wonderful acacia hooding my window. 
10:00- I go strolling in the forest and then, why not, have a great picnic (with lots of friends if possible)
15:00 - I go back home, lie down and read a bit just to set the climax for an afternoon nap...
17:00 - ( I am sure I can't prolong the nap enough for a too-busy-person as I can call myself, but I am allowed to dream, aren't I?) There I am ready to go out, see a film, move around...
20:00- Romantic dinner with my husband at the fanciest restaurant in town (Now she comes to her senses, you might say...)
22:00- Still wandering the streets in a summer night, a full moon and a sea of stars waving over us as if the night  had been set on fire and its warriors inhabiting  invisible chariots are now set free in the world...

...and all that should not happen far, but in my Town. Exotic? Not necessarily long distanced, but rather warm and friendly close to the heart.Extreme? Not really bungee jumping, but rather warming up  the same bench, smiling for the same reason, kissing like never before...Entertaining? I let you find the definition for that...

Spring is in the air...

Shouldn't we feel reinvigorated and ready to conquer the world, now that it's a new spring in our lives?
Spring is here, the slow chilly wind still whispers the remains of the winter, but all these Spring Events (Martisor, Mother's Day), the chirps of the birds, the sun rays knocking timidly the windows and human faces can only share that new-life air we are all in search of. But, then, why do I feel so tired?Why is it that, whenever spring comes, my body fails me and asks more and more for sleep and recovery (like from a long disease)?
So many women's magazines and health articles tell us to eat vegetables, go jogging and forget about the problems...but it isn't that easy, is it?
So I must "ingurgitate" Spring my own way, slowly get used to this and start living just like the others.So here is how I do it:
- I open my eyes and I see there is more light on my pillow than it has ever been (for the past 3 months)
- My coffee smells better even though I bought a cheaper one this time
- It suddenly hits me that I haven't met my friends in a long time and I should consider doing it
- I juggle between being a woman (...flowers are on the way...) and being an employee (...so much work overwhelms me sometimes)
- I read a great book (to keep up the spirits)...just like I can't get enough of SISTER (Rosamund Lupton)-I think this is the perfect time of year when this book should be read, so that one can understand the joys and the chills of the book by sharing the season with the author.It's like an audio book, one reads and the sound it's just outside one's own window, there is snow, and sleet and spring all together...
- I clean the house-this is what's making me feel secure and neat ( a poor struggle to bring these adjectives into my own life)

-I call my family (I miss them more than ever, spring gives it the lost and abandoned shade)and try to make them happy, see them smile and hoping and strong, yelling for those security strings they used to pull in my life.
-I buy presents for my loved-ones
-I dream of long strolls in the streets and ready to swallow the blossomed trees flavour, until the soothing balm of the air gets into my veins and gives me strength to wake up and walk the next day.
-I write (here) as if you reading it can actually bring back the sense of belonging to humanity and force open 21st Century Pandora's box (wonder what can be hidden inside).
-I become...

P.S. Spring is not my favourite season, but it gets me contemplating, maybe even seeing things clearly, so I should thank IT for triggering all that in a woman's mind, shouldn't I? (It definitely beats the high-scores of "how to live..." type of articles)