MUSIC FOR CHILDREN

2011

Lindeman
ISBN10: 0136043844

The pages of this Sample Chapter may have

slight variations in final published form.

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CHAPTER

Curricular Integration
and Approaches

he curriculum in the primary grades includes a myriad of subjects. How to integrate and relate these subjects one to another to make learning more meaningful
for children is a huge challenge for teachers. What follows are some ideas for
integrating music with other subject areas. In addition, since technology can also play a
role in curricular integration, not to mention the enhancement of music learning, ideas
are offered in this area as well. Finally, numerous approaches for teaching music are
currently in use in our music classrooms. Since each group of children is different,
teachers must select appropriate methods and approaches for their particular teaching
situation and teaching style. A description of some of the most prevalent approaches is
offered.

CURRICULAR INTEGRATION
Integrating the various subject areas in the school curriculum comes naturally in the
early grades. The classroom teacher has the unique opportunity to work with the same
children every day and the responsibility for instruction in most subjects, thus connections can easily be made between subjects. Childrens learning is much more meaningful
and comprehensive when curricular integration is a priority. An integrated curriculum
helps children understand the relationships between subjectsto make sense out of
fragmented skills and knowledge so they can see the big picture.
Integrating Music with Other Subjects
Music can be infused and integrated with other subjects in the curriculum throughout
the school day just as other subjects can be integrated with music. Musical experiences
can be an exciting stimulus for other academic areas because they are often creative and
hands-on. When music is integrated with other subjects, instructional goals need to
be established for both music and the other subjects. A valid integrative experience
should deepen the understanding of music as well as that of the other subject(s). Because classroom teachers know their students and the curriculum, they can choose the
best time to connect music to other school subjects such as social studies, math, visual
arts, language arts, and science.
Every single music lesson in this text makes connections with other subjects in the
school curriculum. The Curricular Connections category in each includes suggestions
of how to relate the song, listening selection, and/or concept to language arts, social
studies, science, and other subjects. In addition, most every song included in the Collection of Songs suggests a way to relate that song to one or more subject areas in the curriculum. Recognizing the importance of making connections between subject areas,
both National Music Education Standards 8 and 9 (Appendix A) specify the knowledge
and skills children should develop as they understand relationships between music,
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the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts as well as understand music in relation
to history and culture.
Themes such as transportation, animals, and holidays or celebrations are often
used in the primary classroom as the unifying thread to integrate learning. For example,
lessons 7, 8, and 9 in Section Two are focused on transportation and several lessons are
presented for use during African American History Month. By using the Monthly Planners in Section Two, teachers can readily see what materials are available to integrate
music with the various holidays and celebrations. By making use of the classified
indexes and exploring the many songs and listening selections offered in this text,
teachers can create their own curricular connections that will best suit their curriculum
and their students.
An integrated curriculum contributes to excellence in all subjects. Perhaps, most
important of all is that children can explore their feelings, their creativity, and their
cultural heritage in an integrated curriculum.
Integrating Technology

Courtesy of Avid

Every sort of music technology is finding its way into the school classroom, the music
classroom, and into the lives of children. There is a plethora of music products for
young childreneverything from technology-based musical toys to digital music players to interactive multimedia. For example, the Wii Music video game by Nintendo
is especially aimed at younger children and teachers are exploring ways to integrate
this technology into their classroom programs. Several interactive Web sites engage
children in learning about instruments of the orchestra, creating pieces of their own,
and exploring all sorts of other music-making adventures. (See listing in Appendix C.)
A wide variety of music software (CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs) is available to provide
individualized instruction, creative music activities, and collaborative learning opportunities. A listing is included in Appendix C. Because there is so much information contained in a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM program, it is important that teachers provide

Screen shot from Sibelius's Groovy Music: Jungle, a music program that can be integrated with a
science unit on the rain forest

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Section 1 Music Learning and Young Children

guidance on how to use the program so that children will not become frustrated or
overwhelmed. For example, teachers can introduce and demonstrate a new music software program to an entire class using an interactive white board or other projector, or
even a movable music workstation. Then children can later work individually or in
small groups with the program.
No matter what the platform (or playform), the technology integrated into the curriculum should enhance learning, increase childrens fascination with music, and reflect
the best educational practice. Technology offers extraordinary opportunities for individualized instruction in music and creative music-learning activities. However, it should
not replace the valuable active music-making experiences so vital to young children.

CURRICULAR APPROACHES FOR TEACHING MUSIC

Approaches abound for teaching music to children. Three teaching approaches have
been imported from Europe and adapted for American classroom music programs: Orff
Schulwerk, the Kodly Approach, and Dalcroze Eurhythmics. An approach based on
American Edwin E. Gordons Music Learning Theory has also influenced the music
curriculum at the elementary level. Some teachers incorporate and integrate ideas and
techniques from many different sources in their teaching, which may be referred to as
an eclectic approach. A brief description of each approach follows.
The Orff Schulwerk Approach
Orff Schulwerk (schulwerk is German for schoolwork) is a child-centered approach to
music education, developed by German composer Carl Orff (18951982). It encourages

Courtesy of Sonor Instruments

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children to explore and experience music through movement, singing, playing instruments, and improvisation (creating music extemporaneously). They explore and experience first by imitation, then by creation; they proceed from the part to the whole, from
the simple to the complex, and from individual to ensemble experiences.
The Orff approach often begins with children rhythmically speaking chants and
rhymes, accompanied by body rhythms: clapping, patting thighs (patsching), finger
snapping, and foot tapping. The body rhythms are first transferred to nonpitched percussion instruments and later to pitched mallet instruments: xylophones, metallophones, and glockenspiels that come in various sizes. Playing instruments is a vital part
of every Schulwerk experience. Improvisation is also an important part of all experiences, whether through playing instruments, speech, movement, or singing.
Orff Schulwerk is very appealing to teachers and students, for it involves active
music making and many creative activities. It is incorporated in some elementary
schools in the United States and is used with many adaptations, including those for
special learners.
The Kodly Approach

Photo by P. Burgess

Based on Hungarian folk music, the Kodly Approach began under the guidance of
composer and musicologist Zoltn Kodly (18821967). Music literacy is its goal, with
singing and music reading central to its success. Children learn to read, hear, and think
music following a sequential program. The melodic sequence starts with so-mi and progresses through the pentatonic scale (do-re-mi-so-la), accompanied by specific hand
signs for each. The hand signs, originally developed by John Curwen and Sarah Glover
in England, are an important teaching tool in the Kodly Approach. See Appendix D for
an illustration of the hand signs.
The Curwen/Glover hand signs are performed by positioning ones hands to
show high and low. For example, if so is performed at the upper chest level, then mi
should be at the lower chest level.
Rhythm syllables are used from the beginning to teach rhythm. The rhythmic
sequence uses specific rhythmic syllables for chanting and begins with ta for quarter

Hand signs for so and mi

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Section 1 Music Learning and Young Children

notes and ti-ti for eighth notes. Shorter durations are presented before longer durations. Initially notation is presented without noteheads. The rhythm syllables are shown
in Appendix D.
Kodly practice in the United States varies. The approach ideally requires a relatively stable school population and time in the curriculum for several lessons per week
over the course of several years. When children are taught music according to the
Kodly principles, they will read music fluently and be able to transfer their music
reading from voice to instruments.
Dalcroze Eurhythmics
The Swiss musician and educator Emile Jaques-Dalcroze (18651950) was a pioneer of
music and movement education. The Dalcroze approach incorporates ear training,
singing with sol-fa syllables, improvisation, and eurhythmics. The eurhythmics component is the one that receives more attention in current application and is often incorporated in elementary general music.
The approach encourages eurhythmics beginning at an early agefour or five is
considered ideal. It focuses on free body movement in response to music. In eurhythmics experiences, children use their bodies as musical instruments; they show their musical understanding through movement. For example, walking movements may be the
natural response to music in a moderate tempo, whereas running movements would be
more appropriate for faster tempos. These beginning experiences (ages four to five)
lead to more complex responses involving dual coordination, such as walking to the
musics steady beat while clapping the rhythm of the melody (ages nine to ten).
Dalcroze teachers often improvise at the piano to stimulate musical responses
through movement. However, recorded music and other instruments can also be used
to stimulate movement.
Gordon Music Learning Theory
American Edwin E. Gordons Music Learning Theory is a systematic study of how we
learn music. It is based on the theory of audiation (inner hearing). To audiate is to
hear and to comprehend music for which the sound may (or may not) be present.
Audiation is to music what thought is to language. Gordons theory explains what a
student must know to be ready to be able to audiate, and it provides techniques for
teaching audiation.
Gordons learning sequence is divided into eight steps based on discrimination
and inference learning. Discrimination learning, or learning by rote, precedes inference
learning. Inference learning refers to being able to think for oneself or to perform tasks
that have not been learned by rote. By combining the two in a sequential learning
process, students will develop musical skills sequentially and logically using the
Gordon theory.
Teachers will find sequenced lesson plans in the available materials listed in References at the end of this chapter. These materials incorporate sol-fa syllables for learning tonal patterns and a set of mnemonic syllables for rhythm. The Gordon rhythm
syllables are presented in Appendix D.
Eclectic Approach
Many teachers draw from the ideas offered in these approaches as they develop their
own special approach to teaching music to children. A teacher who selects what he or
she believes to be best from a variety of teaching approaches and methods and fuses
them into a coherent whole is using an eclectic approach to teaching music. This requires careful planning to achieve a balance of the different methods, but offers unlimited opportunities to choose from a plethora of music materials and to use those
materials in multiple ways in the music classroom. Based on his or her own experience
and training, a teacher creates an eclectic approach unique to him or herself.
Many different teaching approaches are used in primary-grade music programs.
No matter what approach a teacher chooses or creates, his or her curriculum should be

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Chapter 5 Curricular Integration and Approaches

standards-based and focused on engaging children in conceptual music learning. The

ultimate goal is to help children deepen their understanding of music through conceptual experiences, to bring them in touch with a variety of ways to experience music,
and, as a result, to increase their enjoyment of and sensitivity to music as an art.
Whether a teacher adopts the Kodly Approach or Orff Schulwerk or any other approach, the common thread should be that his or her curriculum is based on state or
national standards.

Summary of Curricular Integration and Approaches

An integrated curriculum for children in the primary grades is a must. When connections and relationships are made between subjects, learning becomes much more meaningful. Music can be a vibrant stimulus for the study of other subjects and infusing
other subjects in the study of music adds immensely to the depth and richness of its
offerings. All kinds of technology are available to enrich the study of music and all the
other subjects in the school curriculum.
Music programs in the primary grades incorporate many different curricular
approaches. Some teachers use the Orff Schulwerk approach or Dalcroze Eurhythmics,
others use the Kodly method, and still others incorporate the Gordon Music Learning
Theory. Many teachers draw from the ideas offered in all of these approaches as they
develop their own special eclectic approach to teaching music to children.

References: Curricular Integration (Music)

BARRETT, J. R., C. W. MCCOY, and K. K. VEBLEN.
(1997). Sound Ways of Knowing: Music in the
Interdisciplinary Curriculum. New York:
Schirmer Books.
CORNETT, C. E. (1999). The Arts as Meaning Makers: Integrating Literature and the Arts
Throughout the Curriculum. Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
GOLDBERG, M. (2001). Arts and Learning: An Integrated Approach to Teaching and Learning in
Multicultural and Multilingual Settings. 2nd
ed. New York: Longman/Addison Wesley.
HAMIK, R. E., and C. M. WILSON. (2009). Singin,
Sweatin, and Storytime: Literature-Based Movement and Music for the Young Child. Lanham,
MD: Rowman & Littlefield Education.
HANSEN, D., and E. BERNSTORF. (2002). Linking
Music Learning to Reading Instruction.
Music Educators Journal 88(5):1721, 52.
HANSEN, D., E. BERNSTORF, and G. M. STUBER.
(2004). The Music and Literacy Connection.
Reston, VA: MENC: The National Association for Music Education.
Interdisciplinary Curriculum. (March 2001).
Special focus issue of Music Educators Journal 87(4).

MCCOY, C. W. (Spring 1994). Music and Childrens Literature: Natural Partners. General
Music Today 7(3):1519.
MILLER, B. A. (Fall 1994). Whole Language?
Whole Music! General Music Today 8(1):38.
MOORE, P. (February 2010). Music and Physical Education: A Moving Combination.
Teaching Music 17(5):57.
MORIN, F. (March 2003). Learning across Disciplines: An Approach to West African
Music. Music Educators Journal 89(4):2734.
Music and Literacy. (Winter 2008). Special
focus issue of General Music Today 21(7).
National Standards for Arts Education. (1994).
Reston, VA: Music Educators National
Conference.
NOLAN, K. K. (2009). MUSI-MATICS! Lanham,
MD: Rowman & Littlefield Education.
OLSON, C. A. (January 2009). Music and Classroom Teachers Learn to Integrate Teaching
Music 16(4): 20.
PAUL, P. M. (Winter 2004). Enhancing Musical
Response with Childrens Literature.
General Music Today 17(2):617.

References: Curricular Integration (Music Technology)

BURNS, A. M. (2008). Technology Integration in
the Elementary Music Classroom. Milwaukee,
WI: Hal Leonard.
KASSNER, K. (May 2000). One Computer Can
Deliver Whole-Class Instruction. Music
Educators Journal 86(6):3440.

KASSNER, K. (Winter 2001). Technology for

Teaching: Using the Internet for Music Instruction. General Music Today 14(2):3032.
MCCORD, K. (January 2001). Music Software
for Special Needs. Music Educators Journal
87(4):3035, 6.

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NARDO, R. (October 2008). Music Technology
in the Preschool? Absolutely! General
Music Today 22(1):3839.
OLSON, C. A. (February 2010). Making the Tech
Connection. Teaching Music 17(5):3035.
Opportunity-to-Learn Standards for Music Technology. (1999). Reston, VA: MENC: The
National Association for Music Education
(www.menc.org).
REESE, S., K. MCCORD, and K. WALLS, eds. (2001).
Strategies for Teaching Technology. Reston,

VA: MENC: The National Association for

Music Education.
RUDOLPH, T. E. (2004). Teaching Music with
Technology. 2nd ed. Chicago: GIA Publications, Inc.
SIEGEL, S. J. (April 2004). How One Class with
One Computer Composed Music. Teaching
Music 11(5):4448.
VENNEMEYER, J. (June 1999). Orff Technology Composition for Kids. General Music
Today 6(6):3638.

References: Curricular Approaches for Teaching Music

Orff Schulwerk Approach
American Orff-Schulwerk Association (AOSA),
www.aosa.org
This professional organization offers a national
conference annually, has state chapters nationwide, and local chapters that often offer
weekend workshops. There are three levels
of teacher certification and master classes in
Orff Schulwerk.
GOODKIN, D. (November 2001). Orff Schulwerk
in the New Millennium. Music Educators
Journal 88(5):2330.
GOODKIN, D. (2002). Play, Sing and Dance: An Introduction to Orff-Schulwerk. London: Schott.
LANDIS, B., and P. CARDER. (1990). The Eclectic
Curriculum in American Music Education:

Contributions of Dalcroze, Kodly, and Orff.

2nd ed., Polly Carder, ed. Reston, VA: Music
Educators National Conference.
SALIBA, C. (1994). One World, Many Voices: Folk
Songs of Planet Earth. Memphis, TN: Musicraft
Publications. Songs (60) with Orff-Schulwerk
arrangements; movement, games and poems;
PreK through grade 2.
STEEN, A. (1992). Exploring Orff. New York:
Schott. Grades K5 curriculum.
WARNER, B. (1991). Orff Schulwerk: Applications
for the Classroom. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice-Hall.

Kodly Approach
Organization of American Kodly Educators
(OAKE), www.oake.org
This professional organization offers both regional and national conferences, has state
chapters nationwide, and local chapters
that often offer weekend workshops. There
are four levels of teacher certification in
Kodly training.
BOSHKOFF, R. (October 1991). Lesson Planning
the Kodly Way. Music Educators Journal
79(2):3034.

CHOKSY, L. (1998). The Kodly Method I: Comprehensive Music Education. 3rd ed. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
DEVRIES, P. (November 2001). Reevaluating
Common Kodly Practices. Music Educators Journal 88(5):2330.
LANDIS, B., and P. CARDER. (1990). The Eclectic
Curriculum in American Music Education:
Contributions of Dalcroze, Kodly, and Orff.
2nd ed., Polly Carder, ed. Reston, VA: Music
Educators National Conference.

Dalcroze Eurhythmics
Dalcroze Society of America, www.dalcrozeusa
.org
This professional organization has chapters nationwide and offers national conferences as
well as local workshops. There are certification and licensure courses for Dalcroze
teachers.
ABRAMSON, R. M. (1998). Feel It: Rhythm Games
for All. Miami: Warner Bros. Publications.
Book and CD.

ABRAMSON, R. M., and G. GEISE, ed. (1997).

Rhythm Games for Perception and Cognition.
Miami: Warner Brothers Publications. Book
and 2 CDs.
CALDWELL, J. T. (March 1993). A Dalcroze
Perspective on Skills for Learning. Music
Educators Journal 79(7):2728.
Dalcroze Eurhythmics with Robert M. Abramson
(produced by J. T. Caldwell). DVD. Available from www.giamusic.com.

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FINDLAY, E. (1999). Rhythm and Movement: Applications of Dalcroze Eurhythmics. Miami:
Summy-Birchard.
JOHNSON, M. D. (April 1993). Dalcroze Skills
for All Teachers. Music Educators Journal
79(8):4245.
LANDIS, B., and P. CARDER. (1990). The Eclectic
Curriculum in American Music Education:

Contributions of Dalcroze, Kodly, and Orff.

2nd ed., Polly Carder, ed. Reston, VA: Music
Educators National Conference.
MEAD, V. H. (January 1996). More Than Movement: Dalcroze Eurhythmics. Music Educators Journal 82(4):3841.

Gordon Music Learning Theory

Gordon Music Learning Theory, www.giamusic
.com
GIA Publications offers a general music textbook series, materials for preschool, and
curriculum guides based on the Gordon
Theory of Music Learning.
GORDON, E. E. (September 1999). All About
Audiation and Music Aptitudes. Music
Educators Journal 86(2):4144.
GORDON, E. E. (2007 edition). Learning Sequences
in Music: A Contemporary Music Learning
Theory. Chicago: GIA Publications, Inc.
GORDON, E. E. (2003). A Music Learning Theory
for Newborn and Young Children. Chicago:
GIA Publications, Inc.

GORDON, E. E. (1979). Primary Measures of

Audiation. Chicago: GIA Publications, Inc.
GORDON, E. E. (1997). Study Guide for Learning
Sequences in Music. Chicago: GIA Publications, Inc.
JORDAN-DECARBO, J. (September 1997). A
Sound-to-Symbol Approach to Music
Learning. Music Educators Journal 84(2):
3437, 54.
The Music Learning Theory of Edwin E.
Gordon. (Winter 1995). Special issue of
General Music Today 8(2).

Eclectic Approach
CHOKSY, L., and R. M. ABRAMSON, A. E. GILLESPIE,
D. WOODS, and F. YORK. (2001). Teaching
Music in the Twenty-First Century. 2nd ed.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
MARK, M. L. (1996). Teaching Methods. In
Contemporary Music Education. 3rd ed.
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

SCHNEBLEY-BLACK, J., and S. MOORE. (2003). The

Rhythm Inside: Connecting Body, Mind and
Spirit Through Music. Van Nuys, CA: Alfred
Publishing Co.

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