Author: Janine

Easy assessment of music concepts—even for a sub!

The chaos of pandemic-year teaching sure compelled me to streamline my assessments! When working with early childhood classes, a lot of the learning is focused around contrasts in four main concepts: duration (long and short), tempo (fast and slow), dynamics

Using picture books to develop musical thinking

Welcome! Picture books are a fantastic way to develop creative thinking and musical thinking in the elementary school music classroom. If you are looking for ideas to connect music learning to a picture book, you have come to the right

“High” doesn’t mean loud: Clearing up the confusion

Pitch and rhythm are a great pair in early childhood music. Students often use the words “high” and “low” to talk about “loud” and “quiet”, which we want to sort out as early as possible. Teaching in an international school,

Soundscapes with Listen to the Rain

This is my second book recommendation this month! With no singing allowed under strict covid-19 restrictions, I’ve been diving into more books. Bill Martin, Jr.’s Listen to the Rain provided a great backdrop for my Pre-Kindergarten classes to explore all

Vocal Exploration Through the Town

I always take time for vocal exploration in my early years classes. It’s so important to get them comfortable with their voices, and work on their flexibility. We focus just on echoes for a while, and then we think about

Playful Rhythm Practice

I’ve always taught “ta” (quarter note) and “ti-ti” (two eighth notes) in Kindergarten, but in the past few years I’ve ended up doing it earlier and earlier, allowing myself to jump to it when the students’ thinking and questioning naturally

Recorders—at school or at home

Despite many jokes about children playing the recorder, music teachers know that the recorder is an accessible first step towards playing other instruments. It can be difficult for a small child to play a melodic instrument. String instruments require left