Keys to Music Learning

In this Between Lessons episode of Keys to Music Learning, Krista and Hannah dive into one of their favorite topics: props! From rhythm sticks and bean bags to pom poms and stretchy bands, they explore how simple materials can transform early childhood classes and beginning piano lessons. You’ll hear practical, creative ways to use props to strengthen macrobeat and microbeat awareness, support body coordination, prepare keyboard technique, and keep the musical mind fully engaged—all without b...

In this first “Between Lessons” quick chat, Krista and Hannah dive into the world of early childhood music education, sharing fresh experiments, big questions, and joyful discoveries from their classrooms. Krista returns to teaching early childhood at a Montessori school and reflects on the power of immersion, play, and patience. Hannah shares how a summer seminar reshaped her thinking about music literacy, leading her to experiment with looping, overlapping class structures, and emergent mus...

In Part 2 of our conversation with Amy Chaplin, we go deeper into the messy middle of learning and teaching through Music Learning Theory (MLT). Amy reflects honestly on feeling overwhelmed early in her MLT journey, how those experiences shaped her empathy for teachers, and why “micro progressions” have become central to both her teaching and her professional work. We talk about tonalities, singing, and audiation, the emotional responses MLT can bring up for teachers, and what it means to sha...

In this episode of Keys to Music Learning, we sit down with pianist, teacher, blogger, and podcaster Amy Chaplin for an honest and thoughtful conversation about her journey as a music educator. Amy shares how her background in choral education shaped her teaching, the moments that left her wanting more for her students, and how she eventually found her way to Music Learning Theory. We talk about discovering MLT through graduate studies and professional development, the realities of experiment...

In Part Two of our conversation with musician and educator James Kessler, we dive deeper into what it really looks like to teach through audiation—across instruments, ages, and experience levels. James shares candid reflections on his early discomfort with singing and movement, how vulnerability became a powerful teaching tool, and why mentorship is essential when learning to teach through Music Learning Theory. We explore meaningful connections between Music Moves for Piano, Jump Right In, a...