Asbury Educator of the Month: Collin Berner

Is it only coincidence that Shearer Elementary in Winchester sits on Broadway? After all, music teacher Collin Berner has turned the school into a mini-Broadway production company.

In March, the school finished a six-performance run of Disney’s “The Lion King Kids,” which played to rave reviews and sold-out audiences at Leeds Center for the Arts in Winchester.

The cast of 66 children sang, danced and acted, displaying skills beyond their years.

“We had a ridiculously talented class of fourth graders to lead the show,” said Berner, who added that the show was fully costumed and choreographed.

“I heard comments that compared our show favorably with middle school and high school productions,” Berner said.

This year’s show was the sixth that Berner has staged, following “Annie,” “The Aristocats,” “Sleeping Beauty,” “101 Dalmatians” and “Aladdin.”

Asked about the quality of the shows, Principal Mark Rose said: “They’re amazing. It’s unbelievable what these kids can do. These shows are a great thing for our school and our community as a whole.”

Some of the profits from the shows go back into the music classroom, which features two pianos, a guitar, a full array of percussion instruments and a wall full of brightly colored ukuleles, paid for by school shows.

In his 13th year at Shearer, Berner teaches five classes a day and sees every student in school, showing all that there is more to music than just rap and country.

“My main goal is to develop their musical sensitivity and open up their world to classical, show tunes, camp songs, folk music and more,” he said.

All kids can sing, Berner said, so that’s what they do in class. Along with learning musical concepts like tempo and rhythm, kids play musical games and sing rounds like “Row Row Row Your Boat.”

Sounds like fun. “It is, but we take music seriously here, too,” he said. “I try to create an encouraging, supportive environment.”

“When I first observed [Berner] I was so enthralled with his lesson that I was hanging on every word he said,” Rose said. “He knows the kids, knows the flow of the lesson and knows how to assess to make sure kids are learning. What a teacher.”