Sue harvie f-u-n: best bits & quick picks

​Saturday, February 7, 2026
8:30 AM-9:00 AM -- Registration
9:00 AM–10:30 AM -- Session #1
10:30 AM–11:00 AM -- Break
11:00 AM–12:30 PM -- Session #2
12:30 PM–1:00 PM -- Lunch
1:00 PM–2:30 PM -- Session #3

florence hallock school
16437 87 St NW
​Edmonton, AB T5Z 3X1
Explore, experience and enjoy F-U-N activities that students will love and learn. From Banana Splits to the Hanky Panky students will sing, play and move. We’ll look at literature and also revisit some of Sue’s oldies but goldies that have stood the test of time. Curricular outcomes are interwoven in joyful expression and stageable possibility.


​Sue Harvie
As an elementary music specialist, Sue has defined her work with students and teachers as a combination of joyful music and learning. She has her post levels training in Orff-Schulwerk and holds her Master of Education (Elementary Music) from the University of Alberta. Sue has presented workshops across Canada and the U.S and teaches Orff at the University of Alberta.  ​

In the pages of a book

date postponed!
Saturday, MARCH 7, 2026
8:30 AM-9:00 AM -- Registration
9:00 AM–10:30 AM -- Session #1
10:30 AM–11:00 AM -- Break
11:00 AM–12:30 PM -- Session #2
12:30 PM–1:00 PM -- Lunch
1:00-PM - 2:30 PM -- Session #3

florence hallock school
16437 87 St NW
​Edmonton, AB T5Z 3X1
Children’s books offer endless possibilities.  Don’t just read the words on the page – make each story come to life through movement, improvisation, drama, poetry, and song.  Reinforce the content you’re learning in your classroom even as you explore literacy concepts and connect with themes from history and culture.  Come to this session to hear new stories and explore ideas to revitalize old favourites. 


​David Row
David Row loves teaching music to kids!  A Nebraska native and Midwesterner at heart, David now lives and teaches in the Kansas City metro area for the DeSoto Unified School District.  He holds a Master’s Degree in Music Education from the University of Missouri – Kansas City Conservatory, Orff Schulwerk certification, and has extensive experience with critical thinking in the arts.  David is an active clinician and has presented workshops at national, state, and local conventions across the United States and Canada.  He is an AOSA-approved Orff Schulwerk teacher educator and teaches Pedagogy Levels I & 2 each summer in Orlando and St. Louis.  On his blog, MakeMomentsMatter.org, and through his podcast David shares ideas about classroom content, management, lesson plans, critical thinking, and more.  Catch up with David every week on his “Musical Mondays” LIVE videos on Facebook.

SHARING DAy: Music without borders - exploring & building community through global music
​
Saturday, april 18, 2026
8:30 AM-9:00 AM -- Registration
9:00 AM–10:30 AM -- Métis kitchen party
10:30 AM–11:00 AM -- Break
11:00 AM–12:30 PM -- music, dance, & traditions of the Philippines for elementary music classrooms
12:30 PM–1:00 PM -- Lunch
1:00 PM–2:30 PM -- The music in me: exploring identity & belonging through story & sound 

florence hallock school
16437 87 St NW
​Edmonton, AB T5Z 3X1
Celebrate the power of music to connect cultures and build community in the elementary classroom. This full-day event features three dynamic workshops. In the Métis Kitchen Party, educators Nicole and Tenielle share Métis culture through music, storytelling, and movement, offering strategies to respectfully integrate Indigenous perspectives. In Music, Dance, & Traditions of the Philippines, Hazel and Katrina bring Filipino folk songs, games, and dances to life through Kodály and Orff approaches, highlighting the impact of representation and inclusivity. The day concludes with Melissa sharing, The Music in Me, an interdisciplinary unit that blends music, literature, poetry, and visual art to empower students to explore identity, belonging, and self-expression. Participants will leave with resources, confidence, and inspiration to create vibrant, inclusive music programs where every child’s voice is celebrated.

MÉTIS KITCHEN PARTY
Join Métis educators Nicole Schutz and Tenielle Bennett to explore Métis culture through music, storytelling, and movement. Discover strategies and activities designed to educate, delight, and deepen students’ appreciation for Métis culture. Leave with resources and confidence to respectfully bring in Indigenous perspectives to life in your K–6 music program.

MUSIC, DANCE, & TRADITIONS OF THE PHLIPPINES FOR ELEMENTARY MUSIC CLASSROOMS
This workshop will explore the culture of the Philippines and how elementary educators can apply these teachings in a musical classroom. As first-generation Filipino-Canadians, Hazel and Katrina understand the importance of inclusivity and diversity in the curriculum. They have seen and experienced the positive impact representation has on all students. From a Kodaly and Orff lens, they will share Filipino folk music, games, dances, and additional resources that have been successful and meaningful in the classroom to provide the knowledge and confidence for teachers to share Filipino music and culture with their students.

THE MUSIC IN ME: EXPLORING IDENTITY & BELONGING THROUGH STORY & SOUND
This session is designed to show elementary music teachers how to create a more inclusive and student-centered curriculum. In this session, we will explore an innovative, interdisciplinary unit that weaves together music, literature, poetry, and visual art to empower students to express their unique identities.
Participants will explore a thematic unit that includes:
  • Integrating arts across the curriculum: Gain ideas of diverse children’s books as a starting point for musical and poetic exploration, making connections between literature and melody.
  • Building community through collaboration: Get practical strategies for fostering a safe classroom environment where students can collaborate in creating group compositions and a celebratory class gallery.
Celebrating the whole child: Find out how to use photography as a powerful tool for students to visually highlight “the best part of me,” culminating in a collaborative gallery walk that honours individuality.


​Nicole Schutz & Tenielle Bennett of Métis Voices Ed
Métis Voices Ed is an Indigenous-led initiative in music education founded by Métis educators Tenielle Bennett and Nicole Schutz, both proud Métis women with ancestral roots in the historic homeland of Batoche, Saskatchewan. They are passionate about integrating Métis culture, history, and music into classrooms across Canada.
With extensive experience as music specialists and curriculum leaders, Tenielle and Nicole provide professional development, resources, and guidance on Indigenizing music education. Their work emphasizes the inclusion of Indigenous knowledge, perspectives, and pedagogies in meaningful, culturally responsive ways.

Hazel Cavida & Katrina Sosa
Hazel Cavida (she/her) and Katrina Sosa (she/her) are musicians and educators from Edmonton, Alberta. Hazel has been teaching music since 2019. Since moving from the Philippines as an infant, she has been working on reconnecting with her identity as a Filipina woman in Canada. Her goal is to create a classroom environment that fosters culture appreciation and creativity. (Bachelor of Music - MacEwan University, Bachelor of Education - University of Alberta). Katrina has been teaching music since 2018. She is the choreographer for the Philippine Barangay Performing Arts Society, an international award-winning dance group for Filipino youth in Edmonton. Her goal is to share her culture through music and dance, not only for fellow Filipinos, but for children of all cultures and communities. (Bachelor of Music - MacEwan University, Bachelor of Education - University of Alberta). Additionally, Hazel and Katrina have been friends and musical collaborators since 2015. They often support each other in their personal musical projects and live performances (HazeCave and Yema, respectively) present at workshops across the province (EPSB PD Sessions, Alberta Kodaly Association Singposium 2025, ATA Arts Unleashed Conference 2025), talking about their dogs, Kaya the Bernese Mountain Dog and Tofu the Mini Golden Doodle.

Melissa Andrews
Melissa Andrews is a Kindergarten- Grade 6 Music and Literacy teacher in Edmonton, AB. She has been teaching at the same amazing city centre school for the last 20 years upon the completion of her Bachelor of Education and Orff Levels 1, 2 and 3 from the University of Alberta. One of the career highlights for Melissa has been working with Grade 6 students during the pandemic and seeing them journey through a co-creation of a "drinkable publication" in the form of a soda called POPOPOPOPOP. This project allowed students to research, compose and create along with local artists and musicians and to see their final product being sold in various local businesses in Edmonton with proceeds benefiting the arts and music program at the school. Melissa has also been featured as a spotlight educator for the Black Teachers Association feature called “Melanin Mondays” and in 2019 was awarded with Edmonton Public Schools District Recognition Award. Currently, Melissa serves as the Social Media Manager and is the incoming Vice President of the Alberta Orff Chapter as well as the Secretary of Carl Orff Canada.

passed events

Taste of orff: A Magpie, & a tiger, Oh my! 

Wednesday, september 17, 2025 
4:00 pm -- registration 
4:30 pm -- start of workshop
6:30 pm -- end of workshop
​
​hilwe hamdon school
13815 Cumberland Rd NW,
Edmonton, AB T6V 1V3​
"Our music ignites the soul and brings people together" (Celine, K-Pop Demon Hunters).

In this Taste of Orff session, we will use the images and ideas of a Magpie and a Tiger (as seen in both the movie and in traditional Korean artwork) to explore the media of Orff Schulwerk. Our music rooms can be places of connection to culture, languages, musics, and even current crazes. The Orff Schulwerk philosophy for music education provides an opportunity to draw on those influences and make music meaningful for our students. Come prepared to sing, play, move and create to the sounds of K-Pop and beyond! 

This FREE after school session is geared towards new music teachers, and teachers in the first few years of their career.
​

​Kim Friesen Wiens
Kim Friesen is the Orff Director and Levels II and III teacher educator for the Orff Levels at the University of Alberta. She has been teaching music for over 25 years and is currently the music director for Edmonton Public Schools annual Night of Music. ​​
Workshop notes - notes are for workshop participants only. Workshop notes will not be provided to anyone who does not attend the workshop in person and will not be sold separately.

Connect

Inquiries can be sent to the President of the Alberta Chapter of Carl Orff Canada via email at [email protected]

Photo Credit

Header photos courtesy of: 
Jan Studios.  
www.janstudios.com

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Alberta Orff, a chapter of Carl Orff Canada, supports quality music education by providing professional development opportunities, resources, and a community for music teachers in central and northern Alberta.