INTRODUCTION
In a perfect world, music is part of young children’s lives: mothers and fathers sing to babies as they are fed, changed, bathed, and put to sleep; songs, games, and dances are an integral part of playtime; students entering elementary school can sing, chant, move, and improvise in the musical context of their culture. In reality, music is bought, downloaded, and played via electronic devices; children’s songs are performed on Barney and Sesame Street; families are glued to couches and recliners while watching “Dancing with the Stars”; students entering elementary school do not “speak” the language of music, as they lack the very foundation of audiation: listening and speaking vocabulary.
Musical Age vs. Chronological Age
Early Childhood vs. Elementary Setting
In my experience, the biggest difference in the way I apply early childhood music model to the elementary school setting is discipline, while the biggest similarity is enthusiasm, creativity and spontaneity. The rule of thumb is to acculturate children to a vast and varied music vocabulary before expecting them to perform using their voice or an instrument.Discipline
In an elementary classroom setting, teachers must establish clear and consistent rules and consequences that focus on student expectations and feature a process for rewards and consequences. A well thought-out and consistent behavior management system creates a safe environment for the students, and promotes effective teaching and learning.Every year, on the first day of music class, I engage students in various types of activities, and point out desired behaviors as they occur. We practice, recall, and review music and movement rules, and go over rewards and consequences.
I use two sets of guidelines: Music Room Responsibilities, and Movement Guidelines. Music Room Responsibilities are: 1) listen and watch; 2) follow directions; 3) participate; and 4) Respect others. Movement Responsibilities are: 1) quiet lips; 2) quiet feet, 3) self space, and 4) common sense. I explain to my students the difference between responsibilities and guidelines, and we experiment with different sets of movement guidelines. For example, quiet lips and quiet feet would not apply if we were stomping and singing, while self space would not apply during a shared space activity. We also discuss that the only person who has the power to change the guidelines is “Mrs. Sigmund”.
Enthusiasm, Creativity, and Spontaneity
For me, one of the biggest similarities between teaching early childhood music and general music is the ability to “go with the flow” while “playing” with songs and chants. Regardless of chronological age, I am constantly on a look-out for students’ tonal, rhythm, and movement responses, ready to incorporate it into songs, chants, and games. I am ready to modify or change my activity in an instant. This makes for an interesting “lesson log” addendum to the lesson plans, but it is worth every second of my time. The energy in the room is charged with excitement when one of my students becomes a leader, or when someone’s silly movement becomes part of our activity.Acculturation
The most important takeaway from studying the way children learn music is the importance of acculturation: singing, chanting, and moving for the children in a variety of tonalities, meters, and styles. That means being very creative in structuring music classes while avoiding performance-based activities. In my professional career, regardless of the grade level, I always began my music program with singing to my students while crafting engaging movement activities and active listening lessons. (I'll have to dedicate an entire blog post to that later this summer.) In September, I will begin my lessons by singing and chanting to the students (I know they will need to be re-introduced to language of music after most of them will miss live music interaction).
ENRICHMENT TOOLBOX
USING PROPS
Resting Tone Ostinato
Toss the ball up in the air, model audiation breath while the ball is in air, and sing the resting tone at the precise moment you catch the ball. Briefly explain to students that when you catch the ball, everyone sings the resting tone, whereas when you throw it to one person, that person sings the resting tone. If your students are not familiar with the term “resting tone”, call it “this tone” and sing it. As soon as students are familiar with terminology, use correct terminology.
Find a rote song that features an opportunity for resting tone ostinato. Sing the song several times so that it becomes familiar to students. Model resting tone ostinato while catching the ball on every tone you sing. Make sure that the tempo of the resting tone ostinato is exactly the same as the tempo of the original song. By this point, your students should be ready to sing the resting tone each time you catch the ball without additional prompting. As soon as students demonstrate accuracy as a class, sing the melody while students sing the resting tone ostinato. If students “lose” their part, stop and explain that they are singing the ostinato and you are singing the melody.
Bean Bags: Flow and Beat
To experience flow, give rides to beanbags in creative ways. Model moving the beanbag on the top of your hand, palm, shoulder, elbow, and back. Invite students to create a different way to show flow with the beanbag, and choose student leaders to teach their ideas to the class.
To experience beat functions, pat the beanbags to macrobeats or microbeats in various ways: pat the floor, lap, top of hand, shoulder, back, knee, or foot; toss the beanbag between hands using various levels of space—low, medium, high; throw and catch the beanbag with a partner.
To combine flow and beat, try the “Bouncing Ball” song. Move the beanbag with flow in front of your body during measures 1-8; move the beanbag with flow above your body during measures 9-16. Toss the beanbag between hands during measures 17-24. Pass out the beanbags to students who are moving like you: toss the beanbag to a students and sing the resting tone when that student catches the beanbag, or ask your students to sing the resting tone at the moment they catch the beanbag (older students like the challenge of catching an object across the room).
First, warm up the students by engaging them in rhythm pattern imitation, individually and as a class. Then, review and demonstrate rhythm improvisation while students keep macrobeats in their heels. (I use my hands as “puppets” to aid visual learners: right hand begins the conversation, left hand improvises an answer.) Direct students attention to the fact that each pattern you chanted was exactly four macrobeats long, and that you always used syllable “bah”. Chant patterns that are longer than four macrobeats, and ask students how many macrobeats they audiated. Chant two patterns that that have the same rhythm, but use different sounds to perform it. Ask students what was the same, and what was different about the two patterns. Use several examples to solidify students’ understanding. Invite students to have a rhythm conversation with you.
Once students are able to improvise rythm patterns while maintaining the pulse and the length of each pattern, they are ready for the relay race. The objective of the game is to have the longest rhythm conversation among the classmates without losing the pulse and the four-macrobeat structure of each pattern. The teacher starts the race by chanting one rhythm pattern. Students who are ready to improvise in response, raise their hands, and the teacher cues individuals to breathe and improvise for the next turn on the fourth macrobeat of the preceeding pattern. Each class is allowed to have two “rescue patterns” from the teacher in the event students need more time to audiate a new pattern. To keep track of every homeroom’s progress, and to add self-assessment to the process, I record each "race", and play it for the students at the end of the game. Homerooms in each grade level compete against one another for the longest rhythm relay. The winner gets recognized on my bulletin board, and earns points toward a reward.
In this game, the teacher is “the batter”, and students are “the pitcher”. Teacher sings tonal patterns, students sing appropriate response as decided by the teacher in the beginning of the game (the whole pattern, resting tone, first pitch). If students “throw a perfect pitch”, it’s a “strike”. If students “throw high, low, or outside”, it’s a “ball”. “Perfect pitch” verses “high, low, or outside” refers to singing accuracy, as well as singing the correct response. For example, if the task is singing the first tone, and someone in the class sings the entire pattern, it’s considered a “ball”. Students can work as a team, or individually. Laughing or giving teammates a hard time for “bad pitches” is not permitted, and is considered poor sportsmanship. If students “strike the batter out”, they receive points toward a reward.
I hope you found these ideas useful. Please feel free to share your ideas or ask questions in the comments below.
Find a rote song that features an opportunity for resting tone ostinato. Sing the song several times so that it becomes familiar to students. Model resting tone ostinato while catching the ball on every tone you sing. Make sure that the tempo of the resting tone ostinato is exactly the same as the tempo of the original song. By this point, your students should be ready to sing the resting tone each time you catch the ball without additional prompting. As soon as students demonstrate accuracy as a class, sing the melody while students sing the resting tone ostinato. If students “lose” their part, stop and explain that they are singing the ostinato and you are singing the melody.
Bean Bags: Flow and Beat
To experience flow, give rides to beanbags in creative ways. Model moving the beanbag on the top of your hand, palm, shoulder, elbow, and back. Invite students to create a different way to show flow with the beanbag, and choose student leaders to teach their ideas to the class.
To experience beat functions, pat the beanbags to macrobeats or microbeats in various ways: pat the floor, lap, top of hand, shoulder, back, knee, or foot; toss the beanbag between hands using various levels of space—low, medium, high; throw and catch the beanbag with a partner.
To combine flow and beat, try the “Bouncing Ball” song. Move the beanbag with flow in front of your body during measures 1-8; move the beanbag with flow above your body during measures 9-16. Toss the beanbag between hands during measures 17-24. Pass out the beanbags to students who are moving like you: toss the beanbag to a students and sing the resting tone when that student catches the beanbag, or ask your students to sing the resting tone at the moment they catch the beanbag (older students like the challenge of catching an object across the room).
Competitive Sports With an Audiation Twist
Rhythm Relay
This game is designed to promote rhythm improvisation. Students should have experienced improvising rhythm patterns in previous lessons.First, warm up the students by engaging them in rhythm pattern imitation, individually and as a class. Then, review and demonstrate rhythm improvisation while students keep macrobeats in their heels. (I use my hands as “puppets” to aid visual learners: right hand begins the conversation, left hand improvises an answer.) Direct students attention to the fact that each pattern you chanted was exactly four macrobeats long, and that you always used syllable “bah”. Chant patterns that are longer than four macrobeats, and ask students how many macrobeats they audiated. Chant two patterns that that have the same rhythm, but use different sounds to perform it. Ask students what was the same, and what was different about the two patterns. Use several examples to solidify students’ understanding. Invite students to have a rhythm conversation with you.
Once students are able to improvise rythm patterns while maintaining the pulse and the length of each pattern, they are ready for the relay race. The objective of the game is to have the longest rhythm conversation among the classmates without losing the pulse and the four-macrobeat structure of each pattern. The teacher starts the race by chanting one rhythm pattern. Students who are ready to improvise in response, raise their hands, and the teacher cues individuals to breathe and improvise for the next turn on the fourth macrobeat of the preceeding pattern. Each class is allowed to have two “rescue patterns” from the teacher in the event students need more time to audiate a new pattern. To keep track of every homeroom’s progress, and to add self-assessment to the process, I record each "race", and play it for the students at the end of the game. Homerooms in each grade level compete against one another for the longest rhythm relay. The winner gets recognized on my bulletin board, and earns points toward a reward.
Musical Baseball
“Musical Baseball” is another way to play with tonal patterns. I created this game two years after Philadelphia Phillies won the World Series. It was September of 2010. The Phillies were in the National League Championship, playing against the San Francisco Giants. Phillies offense was sputtering again, frustrating Phillies fans everywhere. It was the only thing my students could think or talk about for a week. That week in music class, we re-enacted our team’s unfortunate loss, playing “Musical Baseball”. To this day, this game remains my students’ favorite activity, the one they look forward to every time they come to music.In this game, the teacher is “the batter”, and students are “the pitcher”. Teacher sings tonal patterns, students sing appropriate response as decided by the teacher in the beginning of the game (the whole pattern, resting tone, first pitch). If students “throw a perfect pitch”, it’s a “strike”. If students “throw high, low, or outside”, it’s a “ball”. “Perfect pitch” verses “high, low, or outside” refers to singing accuracy, as well as singing the correct response. For example, if the task is singing the first tone, and someone in the class sings the entire pattern, it’s considered a “ball”. Students can work as a team, or individually. Laughing or giving teammates a hard time for “bad pitches” is not permitted, and is considered poor sportsmanship. If students “strike the batter out”, they receive points toward a reward.
I hope you found these ideas useful. Please feel free to share your ideas or ask questions in the comments below.
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