Synopsis
This Too is Music guides and motivates teachers to foster playful and motivating classroom conditions that enable elementary students to thrive as musicians in every way-as singers, improvisers, critical listeners, storytellers, dancers, performers, and composers. Told through anecdotes and illustrated with musical examples, the book explores how all of these aspects of music making are intertwined, quelling any doubts teachers may have regarding their abilities to create an environment where children can improvise, dance, compose, and notate their musical offerings. While the book acknowledges the importance of traditional approaches to teaching notation and performance, the emphasis is on the student's point of view, illustrating how young musicians can learn when their musical ideas are honored and celebrated. Various teaching ideas are presented-some exploratory in nature, others involving direct instruction. Regardless of their nature, all of the activities arise from research on children's musical development in general and their development of notational systems in particular. The ideas and activities have been tested in multiple elementary-classroom environments and pre-service settings. The activities center on music through movement, song, various types of performances, improvisation, and composition and notational development. These activities, which encompass both small-scale classroom lessons and large-scale productions, engage children across subjects, including language, drama, and mathematics. Activities encompass both small-scale classroom lessons and large-scale productions. The book underscores the timeless quality of this pedagogy; even in our digital age, this musical environment appeals to children. The work invites readers to adapt the ideas to their own teaching settings, showing both pre-service and established teachers that they can teach music creatively to build community and to inspire all who enter there.
About the Author
Rena Upitis is Professor of Education at Queen's University. She has advanced diplomas in piano and vocal performance and has taught elementary school music in both Canada and the United States. Her research and curriculum projects have explored teacher, artist, and student transformation through the arts. Author of six books, she has secured over $8 million dollars in research funding, and currently serves as Principal Investigator for the project called Transforming Music Education with Digital Tools.
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