This week’s Teaching Tips and Tea episode showcases two of Ruth’s favourite movement resources for teaching early childhood, lower primary and elementary students. This may be a useful tip that you could use in your music classroom! Check out the new video here.
Video Transcription:
Hi music colleagues.
Today, I’d like to share with you some movement ideas that I incorporate in my music classroom. In the primary years, so embedding the joy of movement into your music classroom offers an amazing host of opportunities for student learning.
Firstly, you’ve got the understanding of musical concepts especially beat and form then you’ve got artistic expression and creativity, socialisation and mindfulness I’d like to share with you two of my most favourite resources. The first is Kids Can Listen, Kids Can Move by Lynn Kleiner, and it’s a gem for your younger years. Prep to 2 even some ELC. There are a few pieces in here that you can begin seated and then take them travelling, as the students become more able. A couple of my favourite ones are track one the syncopated clock and track seven, the children’s march. So look these up and explore them with the kids. They are amazing and give beautiful, rich opportunities for exploration of this gorgeous recorded music.
The other two are Move It one and two by John Feierabend, his artistic expression included in these beautifully choreographed pieces allows for stationary movement. So, the students do not have to be able to travel and not touch and manage themselves in a large space. Track three and four, especially for the younger students. Beautiful artistry with Respeghy and Satie, and I’ve got the boys from as young as prep doing these, and I love them so. This one, the in the hall of mountain king, is brilliant for your year five six seven eight sort of age group.
They encourage moving mindfulness I like to call it because the students can come in really ratty from a windy recess, and they start this and off they find their positions and once at the end of it and I see sitting on my mat, and they sit down and go. They’re ready to focus, and it’s its like the taming, going on, somehow it’s really, really special. They love it, it’s a good way of encouraging them to listen more broadly. Write the name of the composer on the board etc. when you’re going to do it. If you see the teaching tips and tea, previous episode to this one, you’ll see some musical cues for the aiding of the transition from sitting to moving etc., which are really helpful to lessen the verbal context in your classroom.
Okay, so I hope you enjoy them. Happy teaching!
