Courtesy NAFME file photo. Figure 3.1 Something to sing about!
Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.
Benjamin Franklin
Children learn by doing! Active hands-on music experiences enable children to demonstrate their conceptual understandings. Learning seems to be most effective when a concept is experienced through several modes: aural, motor, visual, tactile, and verbal. Music learning and the three artistic processes of performing, responding, and creating can be demonstrated through several kinds of behavior such as singing and playing instruments (performing), listening and moving to music (responding), creating music, and reading and notating music (performing, responding, and creating). These music-making experiences are precisely what the National Core Music Standards (www.nationalartsstandards.org) for prekindergarten through grade 12 articulate as critical for helping students become musically literate.
In this chapter, the following music-making experiences are described and guidelines are offered for teachers to consider as they engage students in active music making. While each is addressed separately, almost always children are engaged in several of these activities during a musical experience.
Singing has always been an important part of the elementary music curriculum. In fact, singing (or vocal music) was introduced in 1838 as part of the Boston public school curriculum. Music educator Lowell Mason persuaded the Boston School Committee that vocal music met their curriculum criteria because it was intellectually, morally, and physically of benefit to students. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, music programs in elementary school consisted mainly of singing. Gradually the school music program expanded to include other music-making experiences: listening, playing instruments, moving, creating, and reading music.
Singing is definitely one of the most natural ways for children to make music. The voice is their own personal instrument that they carry around with them every day! They need frequent opportunities to sing as they mature physically, emotionally, and socially . Students need opportunities to sing every day.
Courtesy NAFME file photo. Figure 3.1 Something to sing about!
Singing is a developmental skill that improves with practice. Young children often need help in distinguishing among their many voices and to find that special voice just for singing. For example, their playground voice is different from their singing voice and their speaking voice is different from their higher singing voice. (See teaching tips in Rutkowski and Runfola, 2010.) A child's singing voice should be clear, open, and light—not heavy, pinched, or forced. A clear, open, and light voice requires good singing posture for breath control. When making up singsongs and stories, children can often sing a wide range of pitches, but their song range at ages 5 and 6 is limited to about five or six pitches. They increase their singing range to 12 or more pitches by the age of 10 as their voices develop and their bodies mature. Because the development of singing is dependent on maturation and experience, individual variation can be tremendous and most children need help with singing in tune and maintaining a light, unforced vocal quality.
The following Developmental Stages in Singing chart outlines what teachers can generally expect with children and their voices during the elementary school years.
Many children enter kindergarten with a rich musical background provided by parents, caregivers, and preschool teachers. They can sing short songs or song fragments fairly well in tune. However, some children need to learn that singing is different from speaking, shouting, and other vocal expressions. Teachers need to assess what their students can understand and do, and then plan singing experiences accordingly. For example, to find out if a student can vocally match pitches, the teacher can create short questions using the teasing, sing-song chant of childhood (teacher sings: "What is your name?" student sings: "My name is Laura"). Using arm/hand movements at high or low levels also helps youngsters to understand their higher- and lower-pitched voices. In the photograph below, the children are using Curwen/Glover hand signs to indicate pitch direction (see the complete hand signs in Appendix A).
Kindergarten children can generally sing in tune within a range of five pitches, D to A and first graders within a range from C to B (see chart above). Teachers need to keep these ranges in mind when choosing songs to sing. Songs should be short: eight (or 16) measures in length and the words need to be age-appropriate. Songs are easier to learn when they have repeated words or pitches. Children love to accompany their songs with rhythm instruments and movements. They especially enjoy songs, simple singing games, and chants about their world of animals, friends, family, neighbors, make-believe, the seasons, and special occasions. These interests offer multiple opportunities for curriculum integration.
The majority of second-grade children can sing familiar, simple songs in tune, and their voices remain light and fairly thin. (Again, their singing skills and music experiences may differ markedly.) Their singing range expands, with second graders' range extending from C to C and third graders' range from B to E (see chart above). Because their physical control has improved, they can hold pitches longer and can sing with more attention to dynamics and changes in tempo. Second-grade children can manage more complex singing games, but songs still need to be short in length and have repeated words or pitches. They are also able to sing or play simple ostinatos (repeated patterns) on mallet instruments.
In grade 3, short songs with repetition are still easier to learn and memorize, but phrases can be longer. However, uncertain singers will need more individual help and opportunities to sing limited-range songs (four to six pitches). They also can "chime in" when easy song parts repeat.
Some third-grade students are ready to sing in parts (harmony) if they can sing unison songs accurately and confidently. Teachers can begin with ostinatos, a type of harmony that is either improvised or derived from part of the song. For example, the "din, din, don" phrase of "Frère Jacques!" (p. 268) becomes an ostinato when sung continuously with the melody. Ostinatos can be created from many rounds, such as "Scotland's Burning" (p. 313). Partner songs create another form of harmony. They are different songs, but share a similar meter and sequence of chords and may be sung simultaneously when they are in the same key and tempo. Each of two groups sings a different melody, which makes it easier to "hold on" to one's own part. For example, "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" (performed twice) and "Three Blind Mice" (performed once) can be sung together as partners. At this age, children also enjoy singing in a round (a melody performed by two or more groups entering at different times). For example, divide the class into two groups and perform "Frère Jacques!" with the second group entering when the first reaches the second phrase "dor-mez vous?"
The world of second- and third-grade students expands and they enjoy songs about early America, great adventures, transportation, fantastic and media characters, geography, and song of other peoples (including easy foreign language songs). Think of all the possibilities for curriculum integration!
Upper elementary school students may differ greatly in their singing experience. Girls' voices remain fairly light, and boys' voices gain added richness (resonance). Their vocal range expands from approximately A (below Middle C) to F above high C (see chart above), but teachers will once again find tremendous variation. (Uncertain singers still need limited-range songs to develop their vocal skills.) And some boys at this age may begin to experience their first vocal changes. Because most students will have greater physical control of their voice, they can handle songs with more challenging rhythms, dynamics, articulation, and sustained pitches. This means that they can sing with considerable expression and modify dynamics, phrasing, and diction—producing an artistic interpretation.
Children in grades 4 and 5 continue to "grow" their harmonic experiences by singing ostinatos and progressing to rounds that are more challenging. They like to perform easy rounds in two parts, but as they become more secure in "holding their own" in part singing, they can move on to three-part rounds. Teachers need to remind students to listen carefully to one another and work on balancing the two or three parts. Also, a reminder about "follow the conductor" is always in order.
Courtesy NAFME file photo, Figure 3.3 Fourth- and fifth-grade singers.
Two tips for helping students be successful in singing in harmony are: (1) Assign special seating arrangements for music, so hesitant singers are seated in tandem with stronger ones—without singling out either type of singer for attention. (2) Divide the class into groups of unequal size and have the larger group sing harmony (especially if the harmony part sounds weak). Since boys are often the most hesitant singers, they should not be automatically grouped together.
Children's interest at this level includes history, adventure, and transportation, and contemporary popular songs and songs from other cultures and countries intrigue them. Again, given the range of topics that interest them, there are numerous options for curriculum integration.
Every teacher needs to learn how to select, teach, and lead songs appropriate for the level of their students. It is important to select a song that is developmentally and musically appropriate. The song should also match the children's song interests and offer opportunities for increasing their understanding of music. Use this checklist as a start in the selection process.
Table 3.2 Checklist for selecting age-appropriate songs
| □ Is the song in the appropriate vocal range for the specific class? |
| □ Does it match the song interests of this age level? |
| □ Are the words appropriate—not too "childish," or too "mushy"! |
| □ Are there specific rhythmic or melodic concepts that can be emphasized? |
| □ Are there obvious repeated patterns or words to focus on? |
| □ Would you feel comfortable singing and teach this song or is there an available recording to help? |
| □ Can the song be integrated with other activities or subjects in their curriculum? |
A song may be taught by rote (imitation) or by note (reading music notation). In the rote approach, students hear the song over and over. Then, they echo parts of the song, presented sequentially. Gradually, they put the parts together until the whole song is learned. In the note approach, they learn the song by reading music notation. They may begin by chanting the rhythm of the song. Or they may discover particular rhythmic or melodic patterns to read first. The goal is that the song will be learned through music reading.
There are also variations or combinations of approaches. For example, the "whole song" or immersion method is similar to the rote method and actually the way children teach songs to one another: they repeat the song over and over again, with children joining in when and where they can, until the whole song is learned "by heart." Teaching a song one phrase at a time is the "part" or segmented method. When all the phrases are learned, they are joined together to form the complete song. In studies comparing the two approaches, children heard a new song repeatedly and joined in singing when they felt comfortable; the immersion method was determined to be the better approach (Brand, 1998; Klinger et al., 1998). Each method has a long history. However, many teachers use a combination of these ideas.
Whatever approach or combination of approaches is used, it is important to introduce a new song using techniques that will "grab" the students' interest and attention. Some ways to motivate singers include giving background information about the song or telling its story. Asking students to show what they hear allows the teacher to actually observe what the students perceive as they listen to the song. What follows are some ideas for introducing a song by asking them to do one of the following:
This "introduction" to the song can be repeated, with students doing the same activity or a different one. Repeat the song several times, and if they are ready, invite them to join in. Or have them echo parts of the song until they have learned the entire song.
When leading a song, a teacher needs to consider some basic techniques to make the process move quickly and keep the singers on task. Before the "leading" process, the teacher should decide whether he or she will sing or play the song or use a recording. An analysis of the song is important to determine the starting pitch, the meter of the song, on what beat the song begins, etc. Memorizing at least one verse of the song is a must! What follows are some tips for leading a song.
Table 3.3 Tips for leading a song
| 1 | Sing the song, perform on an instrument, or use a recording to introduce the entire song (unless it is already familiar to students). |
| 2 | Think the first few words of the song to yourself (and the rhythm and pitches, too!) before singing or playing the starting pitch of the song. |
| 3 | In the tempo of the song, sing or say "one, two, ready, sing" and give a clear signal for the singers to start. Use a hand gesture or nod of the head. If using a recording, make sure that you are familiar enough with the music to be able to give the signal to start. |
| 4 | Keep the singers together by using conducting (or any gesture) that would indicate a steady beat and give them a sense of the timing. |
| 5 | Maintain eye contact with the students at all times; show your enjoyment of the song! |
| 6 | On the song's last note, give a clear signal so the singers end together. |
As soon as they are able, children should sing independently and unaccompanied without the help of the teacher's voice or recordings. Keys to independent singing include knowing a song well—probably from memory. At that point, singers can concentrate on achieving high levels of accuracy in pitch, rhythm, diction, dynamics, and the other elements that are necessary for an artistic performance.
Some school districts have an elementary music specialist for classroom music and some do not. When a specialist is available, the classroom teacher helps implement the music curriculum and reinforces learning between the specialist's visits. A classroom teacher who sings confidently and accurately can be very effective in helping children develop their singing skills. But a teacher who does not feel vocally secure can use song recordings. What is necessary is that a teacher has an understanding of children's voices, the need for age-appropriate songs, and the willingness to engage children as often as possible in singing. Since every child with normal hearing and vocal physiology can learn to sing, every teacher needs to be encouraging and positive toward the singing efforts of each and every student.
Playing instruments is great fun for children so it is no surprise that musical instruments are an exciting part of music-making in elementary classrooms. Playing instruments is also an excellent way to help them improve their motor skills and coordination as they develop concepts about music. Children can play and create songs on melody instruments, create and play accompaniments to songs with a variety of rhythmic and harmonic instruments, and create sound effects for movement, stories, and poems with all sorts of interesting instruments.
The array of instruments available is amazing. Instruments that are typically used in elementary classrooms include: rhythm instruments; recorders; barred or mallet instruments such as xylophones; Autoharps®/Chromaharps® and Qchords® (digital guitars); acoustic and electronic keyboards; stringed instruments such as guitars and ukuleles; and handbells and chime bars.
As teachers, it is important to keep in mind the following guidelines in using instruments with children.
Table 3.4 Guidelines for choosing and using instruments with children
| 1 | Choose instruments that match the level of the student's musical and motor development. |
| 2 | Purchase high-quality instruments and maintain all instruments in good working order (store in a secure place, check instruments that need to be tuned, etc.) |
| 3 | Establish routine classroom procedures for distributing and collecting instruments. |
| 4 | Teach children how to handle the instruments properly and develop correct playing techniques. |
| 5 | Make sure that ALL children have the opportunity to play. |
Small percussion instruments, playable with a minimum of instruction, are usually referred to as rhythm instruments. A variety of durable instruments with good musical tone should be available in every classroom or school. Sets of rhythm instruments often include several types of drums, tambourines, sleigh bells, rhythm sticks, sand blocks, wood blocks, finger cymbals, and triangles. Percussion instruments of various cultures should also be available such as maracas, guiros, gongs, and a conga drum.
Young children learn much about their world through experiences with objects, texture, and shape. As soon as children can stroke or tap, instruments should be made available to them. They can use rhythm instruments for sound effects with songs and stories such as using higher-pitched and lower-pitched instruments to fit the Mama Bear, Papa Bear, and Baby Bear in "The Three Bears." When they can tap a steady beat with a song or listening selection, they can transfer their tapping to rhythm sticks or a drum.
They can also learn to classify rhythm instruments by how they are played—ringing instruments (triangles), scraping instruments (sandblocks), and tapping instruments (rhythm sticks). Or learn to classify by the material from which the instruments are made, for example, skins (drums), metals (finger cymbals), woods (wood blocks), and gourds (maracas).
Figure 3.4 Playing the guiro and the tambourine. Courtesy of Sonor Instruments.
Older children can learn a classification system developed by world-music specialists in which instruments are categorized by the vibrating material that produces their sound: for example, the vibrating skin or membrane on a drum results in drums being classified as membranophones. For a teaching strategy using this classification system, turn to Model Experience 38 and learn about membranophones, idiophones, chordophones, and aerophones. Older children can also make and play their own replicas of rhythm instruments. For example, students can use two smooth pebbles to serve as ili ili (stone castanets) to accompany a song from Hawaii such as "Hawaiian Rainbows" on page 273. And they can choose a variety of rhythm instruments to use as they create a sound piece accompanying a haiku poem as illustrated on page 200.
Recorders, small wind instruments, are included in many classroom music programs. They are relatively easy to play for both teachers and students. While the recorder comes in several pitch ranges and sizes, the soprano recorder is usually chosen for elementary school children because it is small enough for children's hands. It has a brilliant tone, is high in pitch, and is a good match with children's voices. The soprano recorder is used mostly for melody playing.
Figure 3.5 Playing the soprano recorder. Courtesy of Rhythm Band Instruments, Inc.
Instruction usually begins in third or fourth grade, when most students are able to coordinate finger placement with breathing. While almost any song can be played on a recorder, instruction usually begins with songs limited to three pitches (usually B, A, and G). "Hot Cross Buns" is a favorite starter song and creating "BAG" tunes is also a part of early instruction. An instructional section for soprano recorder, complete with many appropriate recorder songs, is included in Appendix B of this text.
Barred or mallet instruments come in many sizes, have either wooden or metal bars, and are played using mallets. The smaller instruments are placed on tabletops or desks, and the larger ones, built with legs, are played while standing. Many are constructed so that bars can be removed when not needed. Examples include xylophones, metallo-phones, glockenspiels, resonator bars, and step bells. (See the Orff Approach in Chapter 5 for more information on xylophones, metallophones, and glockenspiels.)
These instruments can be played by students of all ages, according to their level of physical development. They are used for both melody and harmony. Young children can play a single bar as an accompaniment for a melody—for example, playing the C bar to accompany "Sally, Go 'Round the Sun" (p. 312). Slightly older children can progress to playing two pitches simultaneously—C and G (called a bordun or drone ) as an accompaniment to the song. Full chords can be handled next by playing C, E, and G simultaneously as an accompaniment. Complex mallet work should be delayed until students are older and have greater eye—hand coordination.
Figures 3.6 and 3.7 Resonator bars (left) and step bells. Courtesy of Rhythm Band Instruments, Inc.
The Autoharp®, the Chromaharp®, and the QChord® (Digital Song Card Guitar) are primarily harmony instruments because they are used for accompanying songs. All three are popular instruments in elementary classrooms.
The Autoharp® and the Chromaharp® are trade names (each being the trademarks of a particular manufacturer) for the chorded zither—a chordal, stringed instrument that is strummed while chord bars are depressed. (See chord bar chart in Appendix B.) Because both are relatively easy instruments to learn to play and are portable, they have become a valued instrument to accompany classroom singing. The easiest playing position and the one generally used for children is placing the instrument on a table, one's lap, or on the floor. The other playing position is to hold the instrument upright (in a slightly diagonal position) with the left hand pressing the chord bars and the right hand crossing over the left to strum the strings. This position is called the Appalachian style.
Both students and teachers can learn to play Autoharp®/Chromaharp® accompaniments by reading the chord names that appear above the melody and pressing the designated chord bar while strumming the strings. Chordal harmony is the result. Prior to learning to read notation and follow the chord symbols, children can experience the instruments in several different ways. Kindergarteners are thrilled to strum as the teacher presses the chord buttons for favorite songs such as "London Bridge" (p. 290) or "A Tisket, A Tasket" (p. 245). First and second graders can share these roles, with one pushing the chord button and another strumming (best to start with a song that requires just a one-chord accompaniment!). When students are ready, teachers can display a chart of just the chords for easy reading. Fourth and fifth graders can play the instrument by themselves, but they need practice time before they can keep a steady rhythmic accompaniment as they finger different chord buttons and follow the music.
The QChord®, like the Autoharp® and Chromaharp® is an electronic instrument that is used in similar ways—mostly to accompany singing. It has a built-in amplifier and is completely portable. It can be played on a tabletop, or in guitar position when a guitar strap is added. It will simultaneously produce chords in a choice of rhythms and style.
Figure 3.9 QChord®. Courtesy of Suzuki Corporation.
The Qchord® comes with 84 preprogrammed chords, and can be programmed to play a repeating series of chords for the song of your choice. With just the touch of a button, the QChord® can provide an automatic bass line for a song, or you can program an introduction and ending, or add a "drum fill." When a player strums the plate, ten different timbres, e.g., guitar, banjo, and vibes, are readily available. However, rather than strum, the player can choose from ten preset rhythms, such as waltz, rock, and country. The instrument offers a multitude of ways for teachers to accompany songs and older children are fascinated with learning how to play the Qchord® to accompany singing.
More information on these instruments, complete with suggested Musical Classroom songs to accompany, is included in Appendix B of this text.
The piano and electronic keyboard can both be used to play melodies, chord tones, song fragments, borduns, ostinatos, and full chords. Playing a keyboard instrument offers students of all ages concrete experiences with music concepts and notation, and helps develop spatial reasoning skills. Electronic keyboards are found at every grade level in many different teaching/learning situations.
Figure 3.10 Keyboard technology lab. Courtesy of Korg Education, a division of KORG USA.
The keyboard's white and black key pattern for both the piano and electronic keyboard is the same (as is the pattern found on barred and mallet instruments).
Figure 3.11
They differ in that electronic keyboards provide chord accompaniments that are automatic or manual. In addition, they offer preset rhythms (percussion only—no pitched sounds) of different styles and meters. For example, a preset rhythm might be in waltz time or in banjo or rock style. What fun to choose a preset rhythm "backup" in a suitable style such as banjo for a song such as "Oh, Susannah"! And given that these keyboards can produce an array of timbres such as a honky-tonk piano, organ or clarinet, the possibilities for interesting accompaniments are unlimited.
An instructional section for keyboard is provided on the companion website.
The guitar and ukulele are stringed instruments that are included in some elementary classroom music programs. Both can be introduced when a student's small-muscle coordination is adequately developed. This can be as early as third grade. The instruments are used primarily to accompany songs and require tuning before each use.
There are many types of guitars, from acoustic to electric, with bodies and strings of different materials. The classical (acoustic) guitar has a mellow tone and is a good choice for beginner players, as it has nylon strings (rather than steel strings) and a fairly wide neck. These two features make it easier on the pads of the fingers and allow a bit more space for fingering chords. Introductory guitar work begins with chord roots, simplified chords (using only four strings), or chords that use only one or two fingers.
Figure 3.12 Soprano ukulele. Courtesy of Rhythm Band Instruments, Inc.
The ukulele is a Hawaiian instrument that was developed from a small guitar brought to the islands by the Portuguese in the late 1800s. The ukulele comes in soprano and baritone sizes. The smaller soprano "uke" has six strings and a somewhat metallic sound. It is better for small hands because of its size and its higher pitches match better with the vocal range of young singers.
The baritone ukulele is larger and has a more mellow tone. It has a wider fingerboard than the soprano, making it somewhat easier to finger chords. Learning the baritone ukulele can precede guitar study, because the baritone's four strings are the same as the highest four strings of the guitar, making it easy to transfer skills to the guitar.
Chord charts, playing positions, and Musical Classroom songs for guitar and baritone ukulele accompaniment are presented in Appendix B and additional guitar information is on the companion website.
Handbells and chime bars are high-quality, expensive instruments used in some elementary music programs. A handbell is a bell with handle; a chime bar is a tube with an attached mallet on the top. Both are made of metal and come in sets of graduated sizes (pitches). Each handbell and chime bar is portable and is held in the hand.
By grades 4 or 5, most children have developed the motor skills to be successful playing these instruments. They require control and timing to play at a precise moment in the music. A player is assigned to a specific handbell or chime bar and plays only that pitch when it is needed. Each instrument has a particular playing technique. Hand-bells are often used for melody, but they can also be used for harmony. Available chime bars are called Choirchimes and ToneChimes, each name being the trademark of a particular manufacturer.
Figure 3.13 ToneChimes. Courtesy of Suzuki Corporation.
A virtual instrument is a type of software that acts as a sound module. Virtual instruments use your computer's CPU and other resources to create sound and the program running on the computer is the virtual instrument itself. The types of instruments that can be created are limitless and you can have as many as you like. The GarageBand software application is one of the most accessible means for inviting children to try playing virtual instruments via an iPad. This Apple application offers everything from a virtual drum set to virtual guitar, bass, strings, and piano. Children as young as preschool can experiment with virtual instruments and even create a layered composition using an iPad and GarageBand (Hanna, 2016: 78).
Listening, or the aural mode, is central to every aspect of music making. In addition to the aural skills required in playing instruments, singing songs, and creating accompaniments, "pure" listening or listening for its own sake should be the focus of many music-learning experiences. Students hear music all around them every day, but pure listening to music is an active skill, and one that needs to be developed and nurtured. To become perceptive, critical, and successful music learners, children need to develop specific listening skills. They need to "learn to listen" and "listen to learn."
Learning to listen attentively to music is a challenge for children. Music-listening experiences that involve them as active participants help focus their attention. For example, movement or visual aids can elicit responses to particular events in the music. If children are listening to music that has changing tempos, they could respond with fast and slow walking. Or they could use puppets to show the long and short sounds in an orchestral piece. These experiences are effective ways to demonstrate perceptual understanding.
Teaching students to listen to music involves gradually increasing their attention span. Initially, listening experiences should feature shorter pieces and gradually increase to longer ones. No matter what the length or complexity of a particular selection, students need to hear it many times—they need to become "old friends" with the musical work. And they need to listen for something specific in the music each time the piece is heard. As they engage in repeated listenings, their understanding of the music will deepen and, as a result, their enjoyment of the music will be greater. Consider the following guidelines when engaging children in listening experiences.
Table 3.5 Guidelines to encourage students to listen attentively
| 1 | Maintain eye contact with students when music is being played. |
| 2 | Be an active participant in the listening experience. |
| 3 | Show interest and excitement about the music through facial expressions. |
| 4 | Model attentive listening behaviors. |
| 5 | Give full attention to the music to encourage students to stay "on task." |
| 6 | Refrain from talking while the class listens—insist that students do the same. |
| 7 | Give good oral directions before the listening experience and only visual cues or non-verbal signals (nod of head, smile, hand gesture) during the listening. |
To facilitate music learning, numerous techniques and teaching aids are used to help structure and organize listening experiences. Listening maps, guides, and call charts have proven to be successful tools for focusing student attention on specific events in a piece of music. Puppets, scarves, or particular objects can also help illustrate and enhance a musical example.
A listening map, like a road map, guides the listener through the music and provides helpful information. "Music listening maps consist of pictures, graphs, shapes, words, and lines that are created and 'performed' as one listens to music repeatedly and in 'real time'" (Kerchner, 2014: 92). Listening guides are generally written descriptions of the musical highlights of a composition. Listening maps can be either teacher-designed or student-designed (with teacher guidance!) while listening guides are primarily teacher-designed. These visuals can be presented to a class on a board, large chart, SmartBoard or other projector. Or they can be prepared on paper and duplicated for each student. A call chart, a written or visual guide to the important events in a musical selection, differs from a listening map in that it identifies the particular musical events by number. The teacher indicates silently the number, or "call," that coincides with each music event as it occurs.
Check out the following examples of visual aids for listening experiences used in this text.
Listening maps, grids, guides, and call charts are just several of the instructional tools that are effectively used to guide the listener through a piece of music. Teachers should be creative in designing similar tools to facilitate focused listening.
Table 3.6 Planning steps for listening experiences
| 1 | Plan well-organized lessons that will—through movement, visual aids, and the like—engage students as active participants. |
| 2 | Select music of appropriate length and complexity for the age of the students. |
| 3 | Direct students to listen for something specific in the music each time the piece is heard. |
| 4 | Engage students in repeated listenings to specific pieces of music. |
| 5 | Use quality sound equipment to play recorded selections so that students experience the very best performances. |
Children are naturally physically active. Because they use their bodies and minds to help them understand their world, movement seems an ideal way for children to explore music. Through movement, children can experience all three of the artistic processes—creating, performing, and responding.
Figure 3.14 Swing your partner. 1stock©Peoplel mages.
Musicians and music educators have long recognized the importance of movement; for example, two European curricular approaches make extensive use of movement with music: Dalcroze (eurhythmics) and Orff Schulwerk (see Chapter 5 for both). Both approaches demonstrate the close association between movement and playing instruments.
All the elements of music can be expressed through movement; melody, rhythm, form, texture/harmony, and expressive qualities. As a result:
Movement can be categorized as fundamental movements, creative movements, and singing games and dances. All three need to be frequent experiences, at every grade level.
Fundamental movements can be either locomotor or non-locomotor. Locomotor movement may be defined as moving from one place to another or across space. And don't children love to walk, run, hop, jump, gallop, slide, and skip? Since non-locomotor movement suggests moving within a stationary position or in place, children can swing arms, bend, twist, shake, and sway in all kinds of interesting ways.
Creative movements are interpretive, sometimes rhythmic, sometimes not. Children can express themselves by creating movements to show high and low pitches, fast and slow tempos, and long and short sounds. Sometimes they may synchronize their movements to the steady beat of music. Other times they may respond freely to live or recorded music in their own special ways.
From preschool on, children enjoy being engaged in singing games and dances. Initially, they create movements that are suggested in their songs. For example, the action song "If You're Happy and You Know It" encourages the children to "clap your hands," "nod your head," and try all sorts of actions and movements with their bodies. Simple singing games come next such as "Sally, Go 'Round the Sun'" (Model 4) and folk dances such as "Shoo, Fly" (Model 18). These types of movement experiences provide lots of physical activity, which elementary school children love.
The activities that are outlined next describe the kinds of movement experiences appropriate for students in grades kindergarten through grade 5. These kinds of experiences will help children internalize music concepts and enable them to grow musically.
Most children enter kindergarten with locomotor movements that are well developed; they can run, slide, jump, and hop. They are beginning to develop skills for galloping, skipping, and jumping rope. Kindergarten children are ready for simple circle or follow-the-leader dances and games such as "The Hokey Pokey." (Consider having a premarked circle or preplaced rubber "Jumbo Markers" in the movement area, and by having a rest between activities that involve holding hands!) Their small-muscle control needs more refinement through pattern rhythms (such as echo clapping) and through playing rhythm instruments with their own movements.
Kindergarteners and first graders can express their musical understandings in all kinds of interesting ways, for example, creatively moving to show high and low pitches heard in the music. Children of this age often have difficulty adjusting their movements to fit the tempo of the music, but this improves as they mature. Just as kindergarten children enjoy simple circle or follow-the-leader dances and games, first graders enjoy circle and partner-swinging dances that require more structure.
Second and third graders can follow the beat in music and respond through movement to changes in tempo and dynamics. They also enjoy conducting to demonstrate their understanding of beat groupings (meter) and rhythmic accuracy as Maestros (see Model 25)! They can show their skill in patterned movements when they clap and pat (and even do a stick game) to show the meter in "The Stars and Stripes Forever" (Model 24). Because their small-muscle coordination is greatly improved, they are ready for opportunities to play the recorder and keyboard. Again, creative experiences should be part of the movement curriculum at this grade level and ideas for devising a creative "dragon dance" is offered in the "The Dragon Song" (Model 29). The visual below (as are others throughout the text) are intended to show the movement setup being introduced.
Figure 3.15
More complex folk dances that involve circles, lines, squares, and partners will also engage children of this age.
Performing more challenging body rhythms and patterns is very appealing and engaging for students in grades 4 and 5. In Section II, the jazz piece "Take Five" (Model 42) challenges students to perform beat groupings of five! And the hand jive for "Piffle Rag" (Model 41) really makes them listen and perform with accuracy. Creative movement experiences should obviously be front and center with this age group. An age-appropriate example in Section II is Model 34 where students create actions of various clock figures to fit the rondo form of "Viennese Musical Clock." Older students are somewhat hesitant to move with music if they have had few previous experiences, so fairly structured and "adult" activities may be in order. More sophisticated Latin American or Native American dances may interest them.
Table 3.7 Guidelines for movement activities
| 1 | Provide enough space for children to move freely and safely. |
| 2 | Create an accepting environment, but establish simple movement rules such as "move without touching anyone" and "stop when the music stops." |
| 3 | Plan movements carefully making certain to balance structured and spontaneous responses. |
| 4 | Devise procedures and techniques to help move students from one area to another (such as playing beats on a tambourine or repeating a part of the music that was just heard). |
| 5 | Model specific movements with one or two students before the whole class moves. Make sure that directions are clear before students begin the activity. |
| 6 | Use props (such as streamers, scarves, hats) to encourage creative movement and encourage students who may be self-conscious. |
| 7 | DO participate with the students in the movement activity. |
Opportunities to create music should be a part of every classroom music experience, at every grade level. "All students have the ability to create music that is uniquely their own" (Kaschub and Smith, 2017: 13). Creating is one of the artistic processes that is integral to the Music Standards (National Core Music Standards, 2014). The standards specify that children should be encouraged to imagine and generate musical ideas, develop those ideas, refine them, and finally share them. This is not difficult for children because they are innately creative, and their creativity should be cherished, nurtured, and expanded through quality music experiences. Creative experiences help children understand how melody, rhythm, form, texture/harmony, and the expressive qualities of music work together. Typically these classroom music experiences make use of, and are based on singing, playing instruments, and moving to music.
But how do teachers build creative skills in creating music? First, they engage children in multiple experiences to build the foundation or vocabulary for creating. For example, children need to sing a wide repertoire of chants and songs, play small percussion and other classroom instruments, and move to music in all sorts of ways. Then, teachers invite children to explore different ways of singing, playing, or moving to music emphasizing that all choices are "right." For example, children can change the words to a favorite chant or song, show different ways of playing a familiar instrument, or find new movements for familiar singing games and dances.
These exploratory experiences naturally progress to improvising and composing experiences. For example, students can make up "on the spot" (improvise) modified versions of a familiar melody, rhythm or movement pattern (such as singing an "answer" different from a teacher's sung "question" or playing a rhythmic "answer" phrase to a drummer's "question" phrase). They can also experiment with their own variations on familiar songs. Since composing is not instantaneous as improvising is, it requires more planning and time to craft one's ideas as well as reflect and revise. While teachers often find it challenging to allocate the necessary time for children's composing projects, the resultant musical and cognitive growth for children is well worth it!
For exploratory experiences, kindergarten and first-grade children love to make up new words and movements for a favorite song. For example, for the song "Riding in the Buggy" (p. 310), children can create new vehicles to ride in (bicycles, buses, spaceships, etc.) and explore movements depicting them. They especially enjoy creating dramatizations for a song. "Five Angels" (p. 266) is a great song for creating and acting out the different jobs of the five angels.
They also need lots of opportunities to discover all the different sound possibilities of their voices and mouth sounds (sigh, hum, pop, tongue clicks) as well as instruments and how to use them creatively. Teachers should use pictorial or iconic notation to represent a variety of sounds and encourage children to do the same. Ask "Let's make our voices swoop down!" Then, ask how you might draw a picture of it. Or "how would pop look?"
Figure 3.16b “Pop.”
Sound stories or instrumental accompaniments to stories and songs are two additional ways children can express their creative ideas through sound exploration. Such experiences help heighten aural perception and sensitivity.
Second- and third-grade students can continue their exploratory experiences by creating a "sound story" using a variety of classroom instruments along with a story which has two contrasting sections, such as Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. Encourage and explore pictorial or iconic notation to visualize the sound story or use recording technology to make an aural record. Their movement experiences can progress to improvising movements to accompany two contrasting pieces of music. For example, think of the interesting movements that might accompany the "Russian Dance" versus the "Arabian Dance" from The Nutcracker Suite (Spotify/iTunes)!
In small groups, students can create hand games in beat groupings of twos or threes (for example, clap, snap for twos and clap, snap, snap for threes). They can perform and have the class decide whether the example is in two or three. Again, a simple notation, either iconic or music notation, can be used. More creative rhythmic experiences can include making up "answers" to the teacher's "questions" using clapping or other body sounds. For example, teacher claps a four-beat rhythm pattern and the students echo. Then, the teacher challenges the students one at a time to clap a different "answer" to the "question." Or another approach would be after the four-beat echoing of a pattern by the teacher, individual students become the "teacher" and improvise a pattern for the class to echo.
Creating and arranging ostinatos (short melodic fragments) to accompany songs are great experiences for trying out musical ideas. The song "chatter with the Angels" (p. 255) is an excellent example where the ostinatos can first be taken from the song itself and repeated over and over. For example, the rhythm of „"hatter with the angels" could be a rhythmic ostinato performed on a hand drum, while "all day long" could be used as a melodic ostinato.
Children should be encouraged to create their own ostinatos and plan an introduction to the song and a coda to conclude the arrangement.
Figure 3.17b Melodic ostinato.
At this age level, many creative experiences might be accomplished best in small groups and extended to individual creations. For example, working in small groups, fourth and fifth graders can expand their sound and improvisation experiences by exploring environmental sounds and various instruments to create an accompaniment or arrangement to a poem. (Haiku poems are especially good for this exploration. Find several in Appendix C.) The class can choose ideas from the various group compositions to combine into a class composition and then make a musical video of their creation.
Students will better understand musical form when they create their own compositions in two sections (AB), three sections (ABA), or rondo form (ABACADA). For example, students can clap the rhythm of a familiar melody as the A theme, then, improvise a contrasting B theme of the same length, returning to the A theme to complete a rhythmic ABA composition. Using different barred or mallet instruments (such as xylophones, glockenspiels, and metallophones), they can set up a pentatonic scale, such as G A B D E and compose a pitched ABA piece. They could again use the rhythm of a familiar song for the A section and improvise a contrasting B section. (This composing example is an illustration often used in the Orff Schulwerk Approach; see Chapter 5.) Students at this age should be able to record their composition in either iconic or music notation.
Table 3.8 Guidelines for creating experiences
| 1 | Create an environment that encourages children to explore, improvise, and compose music. |
| 2 | Be positive with their creations remembering that there are no wrong "answers." Strive for many different "answers." |
| 3 | Respect individuality and self-expression. |
| 4 | Encourage and acknowledge their "growing" skills in the creative process. |
| 5 | Discourage students from being too critical of their own work and the works of others. |
Learning to read and notate music enables students to be musically literate and independent music learners. Once students acquire basic music-reading skills, they can explore music more fully while in school and carry this knowledge into adult life. Music notation (a visual representation of pitch and duration) has little meaning for children unless it is associated with sound. The aural and visual connection is crucial for understanding that what you see is what you hear.
Sound should always precede symbol! Children learn to speak a language before they read it. The same process should serve as a guide for the teaching of music notation. Only when children have had many opportunities to experience musical sounds and only when their sensorimotor and perceptual skills are appropriately developed should they be introduced to the visual means for representing those sounds.
Children develop their ability and skill to use music notation gradually. At the prekindergarten level, musical sounds are visualized in pictures. For example, children can pat steady beats to accompany a chant such as "Hickory, Dickory, Dock." After becoming well acquainted with the chant and steady beats, the teacher can display a chart of clocks. As they pat the steady beats, they can follow the teacher touching the pictures associated with their steady beats.
Figure 3.18 “Hickory, Dickory, Dock” picture chart.
Children in the primary grades continue to respond to pictorial or iconic notation. For example, children can first chant and pat steady beats to a favorite chant before being introduced to a chart of lines associated with those beats. In a later follow-up to this experience, they can be shown how the lines in the chart can be transformed into music notation by adding a notehead to the lines. Children at this age also like to be the "reader" and touch the lines/notes as the class chants.
Figure 3.19
Informal notation for pitch levels is often used for introductory experiences in melodic direction. For example, first-grade children can learn a new song such as "Five Angels" (Model 10) and both sing and play on resonator bars the song's upward repeating pattern. They can then visualize that pattern by arranging five felt angels on a flannelboard in the upward direction. That can be followed by adding to the flannelboard display the felt letter names for each pitch in the pattern (see flannelboard cutouts on page 139). These informal reading or notating experiences are naturally followed by more formal staff notation. Again, notation should be presented only when children have an immediate musical need to use it and when it is considered to be developmentally appropriate.
Older students can trace an entire Native American melody's contour "notated" in a continuous line (see drawing in Model 37). As they listen to the "Corn Grinding Song" and trace a line, the ups, downs, and repeats are apparent as are the places where there are jumps and leaps. This is a challenging listening experience and an excellent way to "see what you hear."
Syllables or related mneumonic devices have been found to be very effective for teaching rhythm-reading skills (Shehan, 1987). A number of such systems or approaches exist. In the Kodály Approach, described in more detail in Chapter 5, rhythm syllables are used from the outset. For example, syllables such as "ta" for quarter notes and "ta-a" for half notes are spoken as means to read and perform rhythms accurately. At first, notation is presented without note heads—just beat lines. In the Music Learning Theory (MLT) approach, also described in Chapter 5, rhythm syllables are also used with "du" for quarter notes and "du-u" for half notes. Unique to the MLT approach is that the syllable "du" always falls on a downbeat. This may help to better understand and perform beat and meter.
Similarly, sol-fa syllables (do, re, mi) or numbers are often used as a tool for pitch reading. In the Music Learning Theory approach, when children can sing a variety of tonal patterns, they learn to associate the patterns with the sol-fa syllables. In the Kodály Approach, physical hand signs are associated with the sol-fa syllables. Both the syllables and hand signs help students develop inner hearing—the ability to hear the pitches or melody in one's head. Students are then ready to notate what they hear in staff notation.
Both the Music Learning Theory and Kodály Approach are the music reading programs found most often in elementary general music classes. There are numerous software programs available to help students practice reading and notating music; e.g., Music Ace is an excellent one (see Appendices D and E). As with reading language, reading music is a complex skill that is developmental and that requires a knowledgeable teacher, regular instruction, and continuous reinforcement.
Table 3.9 Guidelines for developing music reading and notating skills
| 1 | Engage children in learning a repertoire of easy songs, singing games, rhymes, and chants. |
| 2 | Encourage physical movements with this repertoire, such as tapping, clapping, moving, and showing pitch levels with hands and body. |
| 3 | Involve them in clapping and speaking rhythms of familiar songs, rhymes, and chants using mnemonic syllables. |
| 4 | Use sol-fa syllables in singing familiar melodies. |
| 5 | Repeat steps 3 and 4 while following the music notation. |
| 6 | Remember the adage that "practice makes perfect." |
Brand, E. (1998). "The process of identifying children's mental model of their own learning as inferred from learning a song." Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 138: 47-61.
Hanna, W. (2016). The Children's Music Studio: A Reggio-inspired Approach. New York: Oxford University Press.
Kaschub, M. and Smith, J. (2017). Experiencing Music Composition in Grades 3-5. New York: Oxford University Press.
Kerchner, J.L. (2014). Music Across the Senses: Listening, Learning, and Making Meaning. New York: Oxford University Press.
Klinger, R., Campbell, P.S., and Goolsby, T. (1998). "Approaches to children's song acquisition: Immersion and phrase-by-phrase." Journal of Research in Music Education, 46: 24-34.
National Core Music Standards. (2014). nafme.org/my-classroom/standards/ core-music-standards.
Rutkowski, J. and Runfola, M. (2010). TIPS: The Child Voice. Reston, VA: National Association for Music Education.
Shehan, P.K. (1987). "Effects of Rote Versus Note Presentations on Rhythm Learning and Retention." Journal of Research in Music Education, 35: 117-126.
See Appendix A for the rhythm syllables used in both the Music Learning Theory and Kodály Approach.
See www.musicmotion.com for viewing "Jumbo Markers" (nonskid rubber circles) to use for special placements in movement (and many other) experiences.
