Doing music just for music!

Doing music just for music!

I’ve been asked and read lots about how music can benefit other areas of learning.  It is great that it is such an enabling subject.  I even wrote my degree dissertation back in 1998 on how music can help with the mathematical concept of pattern.

I think we sometimes miss that we should also be doing music just for the sake of doing music.  It is a great way for children to express themselves vocally; through body movements: hands: shaking, tapping, scraping, banging, and also through whole body movement: stamping, tapping feet…

Not every child or adult can express themselves easily through written or spoken word; I am one of those people.  Whereas music can give them that medium.  In the early years, we need to give children opportunities to explore music in as many forms as we can.  For music sake, this can be through sing, body percussion or playing instruments…or if we want to integrate this with other creative art forms we may use music as a stimulus for movement, acting, painting, drawing, construction…

Music is such a great subject.  What musical activities can you do with your children today?

• Singing
• Playing instruments
• Set up a music area/performing area:
  • where the children can follow up what you have been doing in your music time e.g.play the instruments, sing the songs and also listen to the music
  • do their own thing
• Listen to a wide range of music throughout the day
  • let them respond in a variety of different ways:
    • movement
    • painting
    • acting...

If you would like more help, please take a look at my Early Years Music Ideas membership: https://www.musicintheearlyyears.com/early-years-music-ideas-2-to-5 

Happy music making!