Ms. Reed creates community in her classroom with music and excitement. photo by Evelyn Jackson
Spartan students can join her musical classes in room 149 if they’d like to sing or play piano.
Tambyr Reed attributes to the Denver Public Schools music program heavily with her choir and piano classes. Reed has taught for 19 years and has been a part of the Thomas Jefferson High School community for 13 of those. She started teaching at Overland Trail Middle School immediately after attending college at Colorado State University in Brighton, Colorado. She then transitioned to teaching vocal music classes at Delta Middle and High School in Denver.
Reed teaches the two classes piano and choir, and she struggles to pick a favorite subject out of the two. She thinks there are positives in both. She loves seeing the immediate success and growth that students have in her piano classes as well as seeing the sections of music that perplex her students. Her vocal classes will always hold a special place in her heart because that is what she went to school to do. While she played the trombone and piano in her last few years of college as well as participating in several band ensembles, vocal music will always be her primary subject. Overall, Reed enjoys seeing the TJ community grow; she said, “I like watching friendships blossom and seeing inside jokes forming …and the way students banter back and forth. Watching people enjoy each other’s presence and company is fun.”
Surprisingly, Reed does not have a favorite musical artist. “That’s like asking a parent who their favorite child is. I don’t have a favorite,” she explained. She listens to pretty much anything she is in the mood for when she is enjoying some much needed relaxation. Sometimes, isolation and quiet time is what a teacher needs after dealing with “…teenagers [that] are a little rowdy, a little loud.”
Reed believes wellness is highly important for students and faculty alike. She provided some advice for the students to help succeed; she explained that an accordion folder is better than regular separate folders, for all work, but for sheet music especially. She suggests that students also get some small binders to make organization and finding things easier and cleaner. After all, watching a folder flop and all the papers slide out of the flimsy little pockets are a little disheartening. She also believes it is beneficial to go to events happening at the school like the art show, concerts, or JROTC events.
Reed welcomes any and all students to join her class. Her reasoning is that anyone may learn things that aren’t in other classes, like vocal training and harmonizing. Music students can even learn about some new cultures, history, and languages like Swahili or Latin. Lifelong skills are learned in these classes, even if students have yet to realize it.
Finally, some life advice from the choir teacher: “In general, remember you’re all human, and that everyone makes mistakes, including adults….” Reed also advises that students most importantly should wash their hands, get rest, and fuel the body appropriately. Reed cares deeply about her students, and she makes sure to keep the classroom positive and kind. Sophomore Jamie Rigney takes Reed’s sixth period choir class, and she says that, “She brings me a lot of joy… She brings kindness with her… She treats everyone [like] with respect, like we deserve it.” Make sure to support Reed and her students at the winter choir concert on December 10th.
