General Music News

            In P-3 music classes, we will be singing, moving, playing drums, xylophones, and many other instruments, improvising, composing, listening, and learning to read and write music.  Each week we learn a song to sing together at All-School Meeting, and almost every class ends with a folk dance.  Dancing together helps us develop spatial, rhythmic, and social skills, learn about different cultures, and build community in the classroom and the school.  It is also great exercise and lots of fun!   

            My music curriculum and philosophy are based largely on the National Standards for Music Education and on the Orff Schulwerk approach.  Orff is a child-centered, playful and creative approach to music and movement education which aims to awaken the natural musical nature in each child.  Hallmarks of the Orff process include exploration, imitation, improvisation, and composition, and students are given opportunities to create their own music and movement at every step.   For more information, please the website of the American Orff Schulwerk Association, www.aosa.org.