EdCircuit Staff 
Amy Burns 
Amy Burns wrote and intriguing article called Thinking Outside the Music Box: Using Digital Tools to Teach Music. Immediately one could tell that she was an enthusiastic and energetic teacher, even after 20 years of teaching at Far Hills Country Day School in New Jersey. Amy’s strong drive lies in her steadfast commitment to her learners and a forward-thinking embrace of music technology.
Enhancing Music Education
Burns realizes the importance of music education in the development of children’s brains and the correlation it has to deeper critical thinking. Technology can enhance the teaching process and reveal complex avenues of learning that on the surface do not appear.
One avenue of learning is musical composition. Burns has seen a tremendous increase in musical understanding through collaborative software tools that lead to complex musical creations. Seven-year-olds are developing melody lines that become vastly layered, multi-instrumental professionally sounding songs. A Cloud-based recording studio makes collaboration easy between users and encourages ambitious students to continue classroom assignments at home.
Creating a Happy Learning Environment
In the interview, Burns paints a fascinating picture of her whole learner environment. The classroom is filled with singing, dancing, performing, instrument playing, and complex music composition; every student marching to the beat of their own drum. Technology is Amy Burns’ best friend, colleague, and production department – all wrapped into one. It’s an infectiously happy learning environment steered at the helm by a remarkable educator.
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