Lessons from the Virtual Music Room
Mar 13, 2026
Trust, Wait Time, and Relationships That Matter
By NAfME Member Dawn Firak
When people imagine an elementary music classroom, they often picture movement, laughter, instruments, and voices filling a shared space. Music teaching has traditionally been rooted in togetherness—students singing side by side, drumming in unison, learning through play, and building community through shared sound.
So when I began teaching music in a fully virtual environment at Missouri Digital Academy (MODA), I found myself asking a big question: How do you build a meaningful music classroom when your students are not physically in the room with you?
Virtual teaching is not simply “in-person teaching on a screen.” It requires a different kind of attentiveness, flexibility, and intentionality. Over years of teaching, I have learned that the most important part of a thriving, engaged classroom is the connection you build with your students. It is always about the people. It is about creating spaces where students feel safe, giving them room to process, and building relationships that support learning beyond the music standards.
Three practices have shaped my virtual classroom and are lessons for all educators:
- Creating a culture of trust
- Understanding the power of wait time
- Building meaningful relationships with students and families
These lessons continue to guide me as I look for new opportunities to help my students thrive—musically, emotionally, and socially.
Creating a Culture of Trust
In any classroom, students bring more than their academic readiness—they bring their whole selves. In a virtual classroom, that reality is sometimes even more visible.
Some days, students arrive eager, talkative, and ready to sing or play. Other days, they do not. In my classroom, this may look like a student who keeps their camera off. It may look like a student who is unusually quiet, who doesn’t respond right away, or who chooses not to participate in an activity that normally excites them.
I’ve come to understand something important: A camera being off or a student who never raises their hand does not always mean disengagement. Sometimes students are dealing with distractions at home. Sometimes they feel self-conscious. Sometimes they are tired. Sometimes life outside of school is simply heavy.
In a brick-and-mortar classroom, these moments might look different. A student may avoid eye contact, withdraw socially, or just need a quiet moment. Virtual teaching requires the same instinct, recognizing when to give space, even if we cannot see everything clearly.
Building trust means resisting the urge to immediately force engagement. Instead, I try to create an environment where students know:
- They are welcome, even on hard days
- Their presence matters, even if they are quiet
- Music class is a safe space, not a performance
Sometimes trust looks like saying, “I’m glad you’re here today. You can participate in any way that feels comfortable to you.”
Over time, I’ve watched students begin to take more risks, unmuting themselves, sharing ideas, and building confidence, because they know they are not being judged. In music education, where vulnerability is part of the art, trust is everything.
The Value of Wait Time
One of the most unexpected lessons I learned from teaching virtually is how valuable it is to slow down.
In a virtual setting, silence can feel uncomfortable. Teachers often feel pressure to fill every pause, to keep things moving, to avoid losing attention. But I have found that some of the most meaningful learning happens in the pause.
Wait time, giving students a moment to think, process, and apply, is essential in any classroom.
When I ask questions like:
- What do you notice about the rhythm?
- How does this melody make you feel?
- What might happen if we change the tempo?
Students need time. Not just to answer quickly, but to reflect.
In my classroom, I often encourage students to take a breath before responding. I’ll say, “Let’s take a moment. Think about it. No rush.”
That simple practice changes everything. Wait time allows students to:
- Process musical concepts more deeply
- Build confidence before speaking
- Feel less pressure to be immediate or perfect
- Engage thoughtfully rather than reactively
And perhaps most importantly, wait time communicates respect: Your thinking matters. Your voice is worth waiting for.