Music-ITE

The three phases could indicate three separate sessions. The final decision belongs to individual group tutors. Repertoire, resources, progression and assessment for singing will be revealed throughout the three phases. Tutors should point out the increasing complexity of the songs and encourage discussion on how these are age appropriate.

Supporting presentation slides have been included ("Let’s start at the very beginning..." PowerPoint) and these are indicated by p numbers in bold (e.g. P2).

Key questions (links to presentation page 2 (p 2):

1. (Pedagogy) What is there to think about in learning how to teach singing in the primary school?
2. (Resources) What types of song shall we sing?
3. (Progression) What does progression in singing look like?
    
4. (Strategy) How do you teach a song?
5. (Repertoire) What songs should I teach?
6. (Assessment) How do you know if the singing is good?
    
7. (Critical awareness) What are the issues to be aware of?

What is there to think about in learning to teach singing in the primary school?

In advance of the session students should be invited to read the following: Young, S. & Glover, J. (1998) Music in the early years London: The Falmer Press pp.110-141

Ask:

• What do you need to know about in order to understand the full complexity of supporting young children’s singing? This could be a whole group ‘thought-showering’ activity and tutors may allow a free-ranging discussion about school singing in general.

Introduce the taxonomy of the ‘The pedagogy of singing’ (Pedagogy of Singing Fig 1 PDF and p5) from Primary Music Today, Issue 38, p2). Invite groups to consider one or two categories each in order to present to the rest of the group in terms of relevance to ITE. They should consider competences and challenges so that they might understand, and have some say in, the design of the course they are involved in. Following this discussion reveal the course outline through the key questions raised on page 1 of this document. All aspects of the taxonomy will be incorporated to some extent.

Singing with very young children

Encourage the students to reflect on their reading (Young & Glover, 1998, pp.110-141), concerning vocal music-making with young children.

Ask:

• What is vocal music-making about in the early years? How does their singing develop? What songs do we sing with young children?

Activities

Making up songs:

• (to Frere Jacques) Baby Daniel, where are you, lying in your bath tub, I can see you etc.
• Ask the students to make up a lullaby to the tune of Twinkle, twinkle little star, for a named baby.
• Explore some of the new words to familiar tunes created by Sue Nicholls in Bobby Shaftoe, clap your hands and Michael Finnigin, tap your chinigin (both published by A & C Black)
• Explore some of the S-M and S-L-M songs in 65 Songs children sing. ‘Hello, how are you’, I, I, me oh my. How I like that apple pie’.Encourage the students to make up their own responses as indicated in the book.
• Explore simple songs from ‘Singing games and rhymes for early years’ – such as Touch your shoulders, Doggie, doggie, Cobbler Cobbler. These are traditional songs which will feel familiar to the students. They are very easy to sing because of their limited pitch range and they can easily be adapted with alternative words. Sing the songs at a range of pitches so as the students explore all aspects of their vocal range.
• Encourage the students to use handheld percussion and body parts to mark the pulse of the song. Some could maintain a specific rhythm from the song as an ostinato (repeated rhythmic figure). Movements are also very useful in helping children remember the words of such songs.
• Record the students’ group singing and encourage them to appraise it (p 6)

Ask:

• What was good about their performance? What could be improved? What does it feel like to sing in a group again and when did they last do it?

• Watch Teacher’s TV - KS1/2 Music - Singing for Teachers: Strategies in the Classroom. Encourage the students (perhaps in groups) to consider the following: warm-ups and preparation for singing; opportunities for singing alone and in groups; progression, potential of resources such as puppets; singing across the curriculum; approaches to teaching a song (which will be good preparation for the next phase). Invite the students to watch the excerpt relating to John K’nacker k’nacker: ask them to assess the children’s performance and consider how the performance could be improved.
• Explore additional resources such as Voiceplay, Young Voiceworks, Singing Sherlock book 1, and Okki Tokki Unga. Allow the students to have fun with these songs and to appreciate the importance of pitch range, repetition, and text. Record the students if possible, and allow them to make copies in order to remember the songs.

Ask:

• How does children’s singing develop from birth?
• What songs are suitable for young singers? Remember that many nursery rhymes have an extensive pitch range and it is not necessary that young children can only manage songs with a narrow pitch range. Repetition and text are significant motivating forces in encouraging young children to sing.
• What have you learnt so far about the complex business of singing? What are you keen to find out about? What could you find out before the next session?

Reading

Mills, J. (1991) Music in the Primary School Cambridge: CUP pp.54-70
Glover, J. and Young, S. (1999) Primary Music: Later Years London: The Falmer Press pp.34-40

How do you teach a song in a formal setting?

Have a discussion based on reading from last phase; this could include vocal development, choosing songs, teaching songs, developing singing in school. Discuss students’ experiences of teaching a song.

Ask:

• How did they go about it?
• What have been the difficulties?
• How have they observed other teachers teaching songs?
• How did they learn songs when they were young?

Watch KS1/2 Music - Singing for Teachers: An INSET Workshop (p7) - Teacher’s TV. Invite the students to focus on warming-up the voice. Make notes on this, indicating ideas they could try themselves. Discuss after.

• Using the same video, ask the students to note how Helen teaches a song, in the extract from 10:00 to 10:40. Ask groups to focus on: use of hand movements to indicate pitch, use of call & response, teaching small chunks, appropriate tempo for teaching, use of body movements, opportunities for the children to be creative.

Modeling good practice (p8)

This is a really important aspect of our work. Indeed, for many, this might be the only opportunity students get to see good practice modeled. The following guide should be of use to tutors and students:

• Know the song yourself. Practise it, and have a strategy for teaching it.
• Decide on appropriate chunks that you can teach by call and response.
• Decide on a starting note and have an instrument ready to give you the pitch.
• Sing the entire song through so the students (or children) know exactly what they are going to learn.
• Model the dynamics and expressive elements of the song. Don’t talk about them, just do them and ask the students (children) to copy what you do.
• Teach the words at the same time as the music, although you may need to isolate these when the words or music are complex.
• Rehearse the song using call & response. Isolate tricky chunks and sing over them repeatedly, like a game, until they are learnt.
• Gradually build the chunk together until the children know the entire song.
• I would use this method for teaching all kinds of songs. It is even appropriate for teaching long songs. Use this method for verse 1, then introduce song sheets once the initial verse has been learnt by rote.
• Don’t expect children to learn the songs by listening to a cd. Teachers need to mediate this resource. The cd is there for the teacher to learn the song so that it can be taught, as described above. The cd can then be used as a backing track, if required.

Invite either all or some brave students to choose a song to teach. Something simple from 65 Songs Children Sing would be ideal. They should consider their strategy and rehearse in a mirror or to a small group. Encourage good pitch matching, appropriate chunking, song building (if it’s a round), and careful listening. Evaluate the work of these students and encourage all to have a go on block placement.

Repertoire

Of course, we have to consider the kinds of songs children would like to sing. Distribute copies of the included resource sheet resource sheet and discuss these with the students. Refer to the web-based resources identified and discuss how these could support their work in schools.

Discussion

• At the end of this phase the students should consider strategies for teaching songs. Most importantly, they will have gained much experience from the songs their tutor has taught them. Discuss the teaching process and what they have learned that can inform their own practice.
• Encourage the students to explore some of these resources and the songs available at Singbook

Reading

Shirley, I (2007) Sing on… Peacock Press: Primary Music Today Issue 38 pp.8-10
Glover J. and Ward. S. (eds) (1993) Teaching Music in the Primary School London: Cassell pp.80-88 & 110-114
Mills, J. (2005) Music in the School Oxford: OUP pp.22-27 (Starting Well)

(Critical awareness) What are the issues to be aware of?

Begin by discussing with the students what they consider to be the greatest difficult in teaching singing. For many this will be confidence in their own voice, others may well indicate strategies, and other, knowledge of suitable materials. Some may have had experience and will be concerned with discipline and classroom organization.

Encourage the students to think about the article by Shirley (2007). Why do they think singing is important in school? And who should teach singing? Should it be left to the visiting specialist or is it better left in the hands of the class teacher who knows individual class members?

Ask the students to consider the following quotation regarding the Anang Ibibo people of Nigeria, from Messenger, 1958 (cited by Lucy Green (2002) after John Sloboda (1994) (p12 & 13):

We were constantly amazed at the musical abilities displayed by these people, especially by the children who, before the age of five, can sing hundreds of songs, both individually and in choral groups and, in addition, are able to play several percussion instruments and have learned dozens of intricate dance movements calling for incredible muscular control. We searched in vain for the ‘non-musical’ person.

Discussion (questions included on p14):

• Is this remarkable?
• What musical skills might be expected for British children?
• What songs would you expect children to know? (if nursery rhymes are included, ask the students how many they know)
• Why are the in the quotation children so capable?
• What does this say about ‘how musical’ people are?
• Are we all musical? Can everybody sing? Does it matter if we don’t make up our mind on this?
• Link this to the nature/nurture debate present across all aspects of education.

Arranging songs

• Encourage the students to understand how children can explore their musical inventiveness using songs.
• Using songs already learnt, such as Tinga Layo, invite the students to identify rhythmic phrases that could be repeated (ostinti). These could include ‘come little donkey, come’ or ‘kick wi’d him two hind feet’. A few students could choose appropriate instruments to add rhythmic accompaniments to the song, using these ostinati passages.
• Use any of the s-m-l songs (such as ‘Row, boys, row’) and try to work them out on pitched instruments. Now select some of the melodic phrases from the song and invite students to create an arrangement, adding melodic ostinati on pitched instruments. They can also make decisions about how the song builds up, adding unpitched percussion, adding voices, singing the song in a round, and finishing the arrangement. Get them to think about dynamics and show them how the texture changes as more parts come in. Build to a quality performance. Record and appraise.
• Use a pentatonic song, such as Starlight, Starbright. First learn the song. Show the students how it works as a round. Get them to identify phrases which could be repeated as ostinati. Encourage groups to produce their own arrangements of the song. Make sure they understand that it is the pentatonic structure that allows affords them the creative opportunity.

Ask:

• What opportunities should children have to conduct and direct their own performances?
• What are the educational advantages of such activity?

Many songbooks include opportunities for adding accompaniments. Encourage the students to think about the way they tap along to favourite records. Really, this is just an extension of that kind of activity and they should be encouraged to create their own arrangements wherever possible.

Note
The emphasis here has to be on the teaching of singing, and while these activities enhance children’s general musical ability, they will not necessarily enhance children’s singing. Indeed, it could be argued that such activities detract from the quality of singing.

Staging a song

There is little doubt that most teachers will eventually be faced with producing a Christmas or end of term play. Many of these are mindless affairs where the majority of children stand frozen to the spot, regurgitating songs that have been rehearsed and over-rehearsed. Here, I would encourage students to consider how songs can be brought to life by adding to the drama, through staging the song. I have found Lin Marsh’s songs particularly useful here, as her lyrics often lend themselves to drama – probably not by accident. Pirates, which is currently freely available on the Singup.org website (Sing Up - Pirates) offers great potential in this respect.

Some guidance for exploring staging songs with trainee teachers:

• First model teaching the song, according to the method indicated above. Provide songsheets and ask the students to sing it through.
• Now ask the students to think about important expressive qualities – which bits could be whispered, which loud and raucous. Try the song again with these in mind.
• Now divide the group into three and allocate one verse to each group. They are to stage the song, ensuring all are involved in business, some cleaning, some climbing the rigging, slapping the back of the captain, walking the plank: whatever comes to mind. They must sing the song, but they can divide the verse up to include solos, dues, trios, quartets and whole group singing. Once the song is rehearsed each group can present their staged song to the group.
• Share, using the CD and group singing for support.
• Following this activity, discuss how the ideas could be adapted for supporting the Christmas play etc. Encourage the students to see how the quality of singing has been maintained.

The important element of this final aspect of the taxonomy is that the students need to consider the highest quality of singing children are capable of. It would be wise to recap on repertoire here, to discuss the range of songs, games and activities children should be involved in. As an introductory task, get the students to listen to No wars will stop us singing. Have copies of the lyrics, which are available from Sing Up - No Wars will stop us singing . Once the students have listened to the audio track, get them to sing along.

• Use the known method for learning the song
• Know the song thoroughly yourself
• Work on tricky parts through call & response
• Work specifically on parts where the pitch is higher. Encourage the students to support their singing using good breath control and posture.
• Encourage the students to use their faces to tell the story. Eyes, and forehead raised to brighten the sound throughout.
• Encourage the students to sing from memory whenever possible, even if it’s just the chorus. This is important in raising the quality of the singing.
• Once the students are confident with this, introduce the second part. Show them how it adds colour to the texture. Teach the second part to the entire group but identify one group to take it on.
• Gradually bring the two parts together. Gradually too, sing more of the song from memory.
• Provide an opportunity for the students to perform the song, either to another group, or as a year group in a professional studies lecture. Let the music take over.
• Allow opportunities for the students to appraise their singing. Encourage them to develop the technical vocabulary necessary to assess quality and to suggest future developments. The achievement of a quality singing experience, together with opportunities for formative development, are more important here than simple quantitative statements.

Web

1. Sing Up
2. Singbook
3. Teachers TV
4. Oxfam Cool Planet

Published materials (p4):

Sing for Pleasure Songbooks
Junior Songscapes – Lin Marsh
Singing Sherlock – Val Whitclock & Shirley Court
Banana Splits – A & C Black
Range of A & C Black songbooks
High Low Dolly Pepper – Veronica Clark
Okki Tokki Unga
65 Songs Children Sing – Michael Stocks
Voiceworks & Junior Voiceworks
Voiceplay – Alison Street & Linda Bance
Young Voiceworks – Jo McNally
How do I keep from singing – British Kodaly Academy
Primary Music Today
Music Education Research - Routledge
British Journal of Music Education – Cambridge Journals

Academic Texts

Abril, C. (2007) I have a voice but I can’t sing: a narrative investigation of singing and social anxiety in Music Education Research Volume 9 Issue 1, pp.1-15.
Glover, J. and Young, S. (1999) Primary Music: Later Years London: The Falmer Press pp.34-40
Glover J. and Ward. S. (eds) (1993) Teaching Music in the Primary School London: Cassell pp.80-88 & 110-114
Mills, J. (1991) Music in the Primary School Cambridge: CUP pp.54-70
Mills, J. (2005) Music in the School Oxford: OUP pp.22-27 (Starting Well)
Shirley, I (2007) Sing on… Peacock Press: Primary Music Today Issue 38 pp.8-10
Young, S. & Glover, J. (1998) Music in the early years London: The Falmer Press pp.110-141