Have you ever
asked yourself why it is kids can remember lyrics to so many songs, but
they can't remember what you told them yesterday? (Ever think of singing your requests?) Generations of teachers have known of the link between music and memory! Many of us still sing, "30 days has September, April, June, and November; When short February comes, all the rest have 31" to determine how many days are in a particular month.
Music is Brain Exercise!
Music is a thinking
activity of the highest level! When it is taught with passion and
enthusiasm, it will spark a student towards high achievement for life! It has been calculated that a student reading a piece of music will make approximately 5,000 decisions per minute!
Each person learns differently. All of us have five senses. Some must learn through a combination of two or more senses.
We now know there are eight (or more) intelligences, not just one! Every one possesses all of them, to varying degrees. Susie's
brain works differently than Robert's brain because their brains are
wired differently. One of these intelligences is not "better" than
another! It just means each child learns in its own way.
An effective teacher must be able to recognize each student's strongest
intelligence (or combination thereof). Each lesson must be taught
several different ways in order to reach all students, no matter how their brain works!
When we allowed music to be taken out of the school budget, we did a great disservice to our students, and to our communities. WHY?
Music
brings order to children's thoughts and behavior. They are less likely
to "act out" when they have the discipline of music and the high self-perception it brings.
Students will go to considerable effort with little immediate reward if they know they will be held accountable, through ultimate performance, for what they have learned. This counter-attacks the "instant gratification" mentality so prevalent in our society.
3.
Students learn team work! Just as in sports, they learn they are
responsible to the entire team for their effort and behavior.
4.
Music enables children to develop strong skills in other disciplines.
It uniquely enhances higher brain functions required for mathematics,
chess, science, and engineering!
Is it a coincidence that the foremost technical designers and engineers in
Silicon Valley are, for the most part, all practicing musicians?
Is it a coincidence that Holland turned their educational system around with the use of "Singing Schools" in 1981?
Is
it a coincidence that Alan Greenspan, Former Head of The Federal
Reserve Bank [and an economic genius!] had early musical training, and
still spends many of his evenings playing the piano?
Is
it a coincidence that schools which produce the highest academic
achievement in the United States today are spending 20 to 30% of the
day on the arts, with special emphasis on music?
Music
brings harmony and integration to the emotions of a child. It rounds
out the education, preparing the child to live life "consciously."
Because music reaches the emotions so profoundly, few teachers of other
subjects have the opportunity to reach their students on such a personal level.
Music
gives a child a non-aggressive outlet for their emotions. Singing,
dancing, and playing an instrument are non-passive ways to spend
restless energy. We believe it to be no coincidence that since music
was taken out of the schools, academic scores have decreased while violence has increased.
Music is a universal language! Music is especially
crucial in the younger bi-lingual classes. Music cuts across all
cultural and language barriers and creates a non-threatening atmosphere
in which to learn.
Music gives children a sense of purpose. Every human being needs to be a part of something larger than him or herself! This very need is what attracts kids to gangs! How many gang members, or kids in detention centers, do you know who are part of a formal, performing music education program?
Countless stories have been told of "ghetto youths" whose lives were
transformed because a committed teacher of the arts created a choir, or
a ballet troupe, or a drama theater, or an art studio!
For more on this, visit Miss April Rocks!
©1998-2008 April Lorier | Related Posts
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