Paulette Meier
Singer, Songwriter, and Peace Educator
Main Focus
Paulette uses music to build unity and to introduce skills and concepts for resolving conflict peaceably, respecting diversity, building healthy relationships, and thinking critically about the causes of violence. Classrooms come to life when Paulette visits with her musical message of respect for children’s feelings and experiences. The songs she’s written reflect real issues children face, and students participate eagerly in discussion, skits, and activities based on them. Classroom teachers who have attended her workshops for professionals come away with engaging and effective tools for creating an inclusive, peaceable classroom environment.
Background
Paulette’s work as a social/emotional learning specialist and peace educator in elementary schools informs both her songwriting and peacemaking workshops. A former classroom teacher, Paulette began her career in peace education as a trainer with Cincinnati's Center for Peace Education, an affiliate of Creative Response to Conflict (Nyack, NY), in the early 1990’s. By 1994 she was working independently as a trainer/consultant in schools, helping teachers create peaceable classrooms through positive discipline approaches and training students and teachers in peer mediation, conflict resolution, and other social-emotional learning skills and concepts. She expanded this work to Kentucky through the Peace Education Program in Louisville, and to Texas through the Travis County Health Department in Austin. Currently Paulette is working with students and teachers in the Philadelphia area.
Paulette recorded her nationally acclaimed children’s CD, Come Join the Circle: Lessonsongs in Peacemaking with the assistance of a group of 5th and 6th graders from Cincinnati Public Schools, whose voices are featured on nine of the CD’s songs. The music is diverse in style and captivating for children of all ages. Typical feedback from students after Paulette visits is this one fifth grader’s comment: “I like your songs. My favorite is the one about affirmations. People in our class started giving less put-downs.” Reba Barkley, an elementary school principal, observed that Paulette’s songs “enhance and reinforce our school-wide peacemaking program perfectly. We have been using them for assembly programs, with students doing skits around some of the stories in the songs. The students really love the music!”
Offerings
Assembly Programs and Workshops for Students Grades 1-8
Get students talking out conflicts and singing in unity with assembly programs and workshops. Classroom-based workshops can be customized to address particular skills/issues/concepts you would like to raise with your students. (Go to www.lessonsongs.com for more information.) Here are two sample programs:
§ LessonSongs and Activities for Peacemaking (grades 1-8)
An interactive performance or workshop that combines singing and signing (ASL), while exploring the concepts and skills needed to build and maintain positive relationships. Based on her original, musically diverse songs and her experience teaching conflict resolution and social skills, Paulette addresses a variety of topics—conflict resolution, dealing with anger, listening skills, affirmations vs. put downs, etc.
§ LessonSongs and Activities for Inclusion and Understanding (grades 4-8)
Students will explore—through musically diverse songs and activities—topics such as diversity, self-esteem, gender bias, mutual respect, peer pressure, and competition around things such as clothing. Paulette will individualize her sessions to the particular issues facing students in your school. Tackling serious issues can be fun with sing-alongs and songs ranging in style from gospel and reggae to blues and hip hop!
Workshops for Teachers, Counselors and Recreation Professionals
- LessonSongs for Peacemaking:
Songs and Activities for a Peaceable Classroom
Fun and rewarding workshops for elementary school staff, based on social-emotional learning concepts and songs from Paulette Meier’s CD: Come Join the Circle. Participants will leave with many tips and ideas for classroom practices and routines to help create a peaceable classroom. Paulette’s songs, peppered throughout, reinforce lessons in peacemaking and raise spirits; teachers leave feeling rejuvenated and seeing the benefits of including singing in their classroom routines. Staff development workshops are customized according to needs, based on selected skills and concepts, such as listening skills, creative problem solving, dealing with feelings, speaking up for oneself, de-escalating conflicts, giving affirmations, critical thinking under social pressure, respecting differences, and recognizing commonalities.
Achievements, Awards, and Endorsements
- Presented hundreds of workshops in classrooms in Kentucky, Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania.
- Led scores of professional development workshops for teachers.
- Performed at scores of school assemblies, rallies and concerts.
- Awarded nine-month Artist in Residence Scholarship at Pendle Hill, a Quaker education center in Pennsylvania (2004-2005)
- Come Join the Circle: Lessonsongs for Peacemaking CD and Songbook (to hear sample MP3’s visit www.lessonsongs.com). Come Join the Circle was a "Parent's Pic" for Parenting magazine's 2003 holiday guide, 2003 Children’s Music Web award winner, 2002 Parents’ Choice Approved award winner, and endorsed by musician John McCutcheon, five-time Grammy award winner, by Peggy Seeger and by Naomi Drew, author of Peaceful Parents, Peaceful Kids and Learning the Skills of Peacemaking
- Harmony for Social Justice recording with Ginny Frazier, 1991
- Maurice McCracken Peace and Justice Award, 2001, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Availability
OH, KY, IN, NC, PA, NY, MD, DE, NJ. Other areas of the country can be considered.
Fee
Student Programs: Length: 45-60 minutes
Maximum Attendance: Assembly program: 500 (Amplification is necessary for groups larger than 100.); Workshop: 30
Limit # Sessions per day- Assembly programs: 2, Workshops: 4
Cost: Assembly program- $400 first session/$200 each additional
Workshop: $250 first session/ $100 each additional
Teacher Programs:
1 hour: $300.00
2 hours: $400.00
3-6 hours: $400.00 plus $100.00 per hour
Included in the fee are one CD and one songbook with notated songs.
Mileage will be charged at 37 cents per mile for any distance beyond 30 miles round trip. Added costs per teacher for materials, if needed, will be negotiated with each school. For smaller schools with a low budget, please express your needs; accommodations can be made.
Contact
Paulette Meier
LessonSongs Music
P.O. Box 23171
Cincinnati, Ohio 45223
Phone: (513) 404-2700
E-mail: paulette@lessonsongs.com
Website: www.lessonsongs.com
