22/11/16

In this music session we learned how to look after our voices and the importance of warming up our voices. As teachers we use our voice constantly throughout the day and so it is important to take care of it. Instead of just shouting in order to discipline pupils it is useful to use other methods that are non verbal. It is also useful to use attention grabbers in order to gain the pupils focus, this can include clapping a rhythm which they repeat or lowering your voice so that the pupils have to strain to listen. Warm up activities at the start of the day can also contribute to the preventing of straining ones voice  an example could be sliding scales. Warm up activities are also important to do with the pupils for example at the start of a music lesson. On placement the teacher sings a phrase and the children repeat this phrase.

Singing can also be used to combine areas across the curriculum. Literacy and music (singing) can be lined by pupils creating their own lyrics or even rhymes can be made up in order to remember facts for example in primary school we had a song which listed all the presidents of the United States and to this day i can still remember it. In my placement the pupils are learning to sing a song in Spanish and it has actions as well. It also introduces them to different music styles from different cultures which is within the curriculum. ”I can sing and play music from a range of styles.”(Expressive arts – curriculum areas – learning and teaching, 2016).

References:

Expressive arts – curriculum areas – learning and teaching. (2016) [Online]. Education Scotland. Available: http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/learningandteaching/curriculumareas/expressivearts/ [Accessed 05 Jan 2017].