I have no words

I am a teacher so I will often be in the classroom with no opportunity to listen to anything other than the sound of my own voice and the occasional interjections of the students! When I am planning I will keep background noise to a minimum, even escaping from my old staffroom when the conversation became too distracting.

However, I will often be found with headphones on or, if I am on my own, music coming out of a CD player or speaker if I am marking. I am one of the quickest markers around and part of the reason for this is my ability to focus. Music helps immensely with this process, but it has to be music without any lyrics. If there’s lyrics in a song I listen to them and completely lose my thread! So, what do I listen to? Two types of music, classical and electronic.

My Spotify Playlists for Marking

I love making Spotify Playlists and I have three in particular that I earmarked for the marking process. First up is this one

I have always loved synth instrumentals and the first track, Alpha by Vangelis is my absolute favourite. For anyone who wants to concentrate whilst being taken on a journey that track is the absolute best. I have included soundtrack tunes and a number of the 80s greats to create a playlist that will wash over you while keeping you focused.

Next we go classical

It’s a selection of my favourite pieces of classical music, some familiar, some not. My favourite on here is Vltava by Smetana which I loved from the first time I heard it in music class. It is sublime and perhaps the only piece of music on here that I can be distracted by because I love it so much!

Finally we come to one of the forms of music I grew up with, the TV Theme Tune.

This is an instant nostalgia rush with tunes from the 70s in the main, the tunes that were so familiar to my younger self. If I had to pick a favourite it would probably be Galloping Home, the theme from Black Beauty, but there is some absolute gold on here.

So there you have it, three playlists that fuel my concentration when marking. Please feel free to add these to your playlists and if you do please let me know what you think, or perhaps give it a like on Spotify. Happy listening!