Good Afternoon Everyone!
As I write this blog post, I am sitting in the Ashburn library, looking out the window and feeling very happy to be a part of this cohort. The sun is shining, my brain is expanding and my teaching has been inspired.
This week in class, we discussed Vygotsky's book, Mind in Society. One of the many concepts in his book that resonated with me is the idea that learning takes place in a zone of proximal development. Two students who are chronologically age 10 and mentally age 8, may still be at different levels of development because student A can complete a task with help and student B cannot accomplish that particular task yet. " What a child can do with assistance today, the child can do by themselves tomorrow." This makes me think of the power of "yet." Check out Sesame Street's and Janelle Monae and the Power of Yet.
The fourth design principle is the Learning Principle which states the good learning designs engage students in "playful" activities at the edge of their knowledge and understanding using symbolic tools to develop and internalize meaningful thought.
How do I incorporate playful activities ? This is a question that I will give a lot of thought to over the next few weeks , but before I attempt to apply it to my music class, I am remembering two fun activities from my brief stint as a kindergarten teacher.
In order to encourage fine motor skills and correct pencil grip, I instructed students to choose a colored pencil and "race" through a simple race course I had designed on butcher paper. Another activity that was perhaps less playful but possibly in line with an activity on the edge of a students' knowledge, was "write me a story". Students were encouraged to scribble and use whatever markings they wanted. I remember that they were surprised that I told them it was ok to not try to make perfect letters. And they loved to tell me their stories.
Now, as music teacher I'm thinking about ways to incorporate playful activities. Students play their percussion instruments and have to match Steady Beat Pete, (another cool you tube video) but I think that might be too structured for what we're going for here. I also teach piano and try to have students improvise and play anything they can come up with, just to get them playing while still learning proper technique.
So the question remains, how do I incorporate playful activities to help them internalize rhythm, tempo, dynamics, and many other musical concepts? If I don't have the answers now, I hope to remember there is great power in the word "yet".
Taking a tip from Kim N, any and all suggestions are welcomed and appreciated.
I love that this class is giving me so many opportunities to grow, learn and be encouraged by you all! Thanks for reading and happy day to you!
Hey Kim! Even today I still love "racing" through mazes with a pencil ;)
ReplyDeleteThere are endless ways to incorporate play into your music classroom! I think elementary kiddos like going to specials like music and PE so much because they are so different from their classrooms. Unless you're having them write sentences or read a book, almost everything can be seen as "play" to them. You can have them create a story with different characters using different ranges (for the younger ones to internalize pitch relations), dynamics (to make the story more interesting), and tempo (they can act it out, running fast or crawling slow or making different speed sound effects based on the action of the story). Anything that allows them to be creative, let loose a bit, and work in a group will engage them!
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DeleteThese are great suggestions Stacey! I love seeing you two collaborate across the counties.
DeleteLove this ! Thank you Stacey!
ReplyDeleteI love the power of yet video! Thanks for sharing. I'm at a loss for ideas, Stacey's ideas sound great. I had a piano teacher in elementary school who was about as warm and fuzzy as a porcupine. She was strict and stern and surprise, surprise, I didn't learn much in the short time I took lessons from her.
ReplyDeleteJim, I too do not remember much about music class, just doing the holiday programs for parents. I guess I just needed a bigger audience. I do have fond memories of marching band though... They were some of my best memories of my high school experience!
DeleteI'd never seen this Sesame Street video before, but I love it! I love this idea, the power of "yet". What a powerful idea! Young kids are full of potential; we assume that they'll eventually learn all kinds of things - tying their shoes, developing advanced writing skills, learning to play an instrument. It occurs to me that we should all stop labeling skills and knowledge "things I can't learn" and adopt the philosophy of "things I haven't learned yet". Imagine what that could do for adults! There are so many things I can do now that I only recently couldn't do. I'm 31 years old. I learned to drive a stick shift six years ago. I learned to speak German four years ago. There are so many things that I haven't learned "yet". I don't yet know how to play the piano. I don't yet know how to replace worn brake pads. I don't know how to engage in a fluent conversation with a native speaker of Spanish. I will, though. This seems like an idea that could benefit kids and adults. Furthermore, it seems like this could be a really empowering idea for kids and those who mentor them toward things they haven't learned yet!
ReplyDeleteI loved this video too! I watched Sesame Street and even met many of the characters, like Susan, when I was young, but had never seen this song. The power of "yet" is a fabulous one that all educators would benefit from embracing and fostering in our students. I like how Zack stated it, "We should all stop labeling skills and knowledge 'things I can't learn' and adopt the philosophy of 'things I haven't learned yet'." I love reading the book, Leo the Late Bloomer, by RobertKrauss which teaches this very thing. It is about Leo, a young tiger, finally blooms under the anxious eyes of his parents. Leo may not be able to do the things mentioned in the story yet, but he will. Another book that comes to mind that I love sharing with older students is Someday by Eileen Spinelli. It is about a girl who dreams of the things she'll do... Someday like Someday I am going to be a great artist. Today I am off to help my dad paint the shed. It's hard to be content with the present moment when you are little. The future has infinitely more possibilities! And it is our job to meet students where they are and guide them to what they can do and be all by themselves.
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