The natural musicality so often present in children’s singing can begin to fade as the focus of a lesson shifts to the process of reading and writing conventional notation symbols. Approaching the study of music from a linguistic perspective preserves the pace and flow that is inherent in spoken language and song. SongWorks teaching practices offer a pedagogical sequence based on the natural groupings of sounds within spoken language. A series of lessons on the American folk song “Rocky Mountain” illustrates examples of linguistic pathways to preserving musicality in conventional notation.
BennettP. D. (2016). Questioning the unmusical ways we teach children music. In AbrilC. R.GaultB. M. (Eds.), Teaching general music: Approaches, issues, and viewpoints (pp. 286–307). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
4.
BennettP. D.BartholomewD. R. (1997). SongWorks 1: Singing in the education of children. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
5.
BennettP. D.BartholomewD. R. (1999). SongWorks 2: Singing from sound to symbol. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
6.
Music EdVentures. (n.d.). Music EdVentures: An association of SongWorks teachers. Retrieved from http://musicedventures.com/
