What to teach vs How to teach

How does a teacher realize their potential as an effective and creative educator?
The task of lesson planning often focuses on WHAT to teach, but to be effective and creative focuses on HOW to teach.
I am a K-8 music specialist at a Core Knowledge school.  Core Knowledge is a program focused on curriculum alignment and scaffolding. The sequence has been given careful attention and research to identify and create  age appropriate content that builds from one grade level to the next.  Classroom teachers and specials teachers have a content connection that strengthens the scope of learning the given topic.
I for one want to spend more time on the HOW so that the WHAT is engaging and internalized.
 K-8 is a wide span and a lot of lesson planning.  My goal, in time, is to be effective at every grade level throughout the entire school year.  The Journey continues!