GENERAL MUSIC GEMS...
Music Advocacy’s Secret Weapons Karen Stafford, MMEA General Music Vice-president
By the time you read this, you will have begun your new year. Your new year will probably start with concerns about Common Core piloting, focus on reading and math, and possibly, cutbacks in your district’s music program. It seems like music specialists, along with specialists in other “encore” areas, are continually fighting for respect in the realm of education. We’ve used connections with other areas to justify our positions. We’ve used music and the brain. We’ve used tons of “weapons” and research data at our disposal. Unfortunately, as in the “Mozart Effect”, it sometimes gets twisted, which can make us look desperate and straw- grasping. But, we still need to be advocates. We know the crucial importance music education and arts education in general has on our students and our society in general. What are some secret weapons we can use to be calm advocates for our area without appearing desperate or (if you forgive the colloquialism) appearing to “shove it down people’s throats?”
Secret Weapon Number One: The Kids Our students are going to be our best advocates, because they will report to Secret Weapon Number Two. (Yes, I just gave a spoiler). In the classroom, for the most part (or in secondary “core” classes), teachers are so locked into a huge focus on language arts and math standards and consistent teaching and re-teaching and testing, that the students are stunned. It frustrates the classroom teachers. It frustrates the kids. Music and
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other specials are a release. Yes, that sometimes means we have unique discipline problems, but we must learn to cater to that pent- up energy to our benefit and make music a fun learning environment without letting the children know they’re learning.
One caveat: do NOT rule out cross- curricular activities as a means to water down music or cut back on music’s importance. If you think about it, most areas cannot function without some form of music objective or element (even pattern), and music cannot function without involving some form of other area. Use that to your advantage. Students love making the connections. Let them discover the connections for themselves. For instance, if students are learning about measurement, let them figure out how far apart the lines of an alley dance need to be in order for them to meet in the middle without colliding. Let the students discover the mathematical correlations in meter with body percussion. Use those other areas as a tool for diversified learning.
They will recognize the importance of what they are learning in the classroom without feeling bored. You do not have to think “What music lesson can I develop around teaching fractions?” You already know. Let the students make the discovery. When students get to create, get to discover, get to make connections, they are happy students. You are happy. You’ve just provided an important reason for your area. You are teaching higher level thinking skills.
Diversify your teaching approaches. Yes, if you teach general music, you may have as many as 500 students. Each student is an individual. You will have groups of students who are visual learners, tactile learners, aural learners, kinesthetic learners. That’s the beauty of music. Music can allow for many teaching approaches. When you diversify your teaching, you will reach the hearts of many more students. Even the disgruntled “music haters” usually find something they like about music.
In that diversity, remember the humanness inside each student. As much as possible, get to know your students. Touch base with classroom teachers (and at the secondary level, other teachers) on personalities and if they know what makes students tick. Develop lesson plans that might focus on student interests (body percussion chants on favorite TV shows, drumming rhythm echoes on favorite sports, etc.). When students realize you want to know them on a more personal, individual level, they will feel comfort. When they feel comfort, they will like to come to music. When they like to come to music, many will report back to Secret Weapon Number Two.
Secret Weapon Number Two: The Parents Let me preface this by saying that
MISSOURI SCHOOL MUSIC
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