This whole project has allowed for a lot of self-reflection. Before I write each post, I contemplate why I chose the topic of music education for my project, then grab one of those thoughts and try and build the idea for my next entry on top of it. Most of the time, I spend a significant amount of time dwelling on past memories and experiences I’ve had with music. Music has always had a large presence in my life, and I feel that I’ve been shaped for the better, because of it. That’s why I believe it should be more heavily incorporated into the classroom; music has had incredibly positive effects on my life, and I want that opportunity available for all students!
Looking at all the articles and videos has given me the opportunity to synthesize a lot of information. I’ve read, I’ve listened, I’ve watched, and I’ve experienced. Every piece of evidence I’ve seen gives me the authority to say music education is incredibly beneficial to students, and is worth every extra moment spent incorporating it. It seems that there’s something about music that opens up doors within a student’s mind—music can allow more creative thinking and a deeper understanding of so many topics!
Now, as a final step in my project, I want to make a list of ways I feel I could incorporate music into my own classroom. Hopefully, this list can serve as a small glimpse into the many opportunities created by music integration in the classroom. Most of these ideas will be geared towards early childhood elementary students, as that’s the field I hope to teach in!
- A good morning song! This would be most applicable to young students (K-1). The song would be sung every morning as a class, only lasting a couple of minutes. This song could have some general rules of the classroom and behavior expectations of students, and would also serve to wake students up and get them ready to focus in on their daily activities.
- Songs (for everything, really) – I think songs can be very useful in helping children memorize facts. For example, a song could be used to practice days of the week and months in the year. Songs can also be helpful when learning how to count by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s, and can even make multiplication times tables easier!
- Linking music and physical activity – Play different types of music and have students act out the way each song “sounds.” This allows students to spend some energy moving around, and also lets students explore mood and feelings. This could easily be linked to English concepts found in literature like tone, mood, and plot development.
- Allow students to write their own songs – This idea could be applied to any unit. Having students write songs would require them to remember information and synthesize the important facts into lyrics or motions. This is a fun activity that students would be sure to enjoy.