Read the submission guidelines
May 2012. When one thinks of the term “new literacies,” the plurality of the term literacy immediately suggests that there are multiple forms of literacy. The use of new signals a realization of expanded epistemologies, methods, contexts, and meaning-makers who are engaged with computer literacy, visual literacy, performative literacy, Internet literacies, digital literacies, information literacy, new media literacies, multiliteracies, and information & communication literacies. For this issue, we invite articles that illustrate how these new literacies can be remixed with the best instructional practice for adolescent learners. In preparation of these articles, it is important to illustrate that new literacies are additions to, rather than replacements for, the literacies that have traditionally enabled students to communicate and collaborate within both their school and out-of-school communities. The focus of these articles should address questions such as: Where is an active teacher in this new remix of learning? How are these new literacies accommodating guided instruction, grouping practices, and collaborative and independent work? How are teachers broadening their knowledge base through the outside-of-school literacies they are inviting their students to incorporate into school tasks? Remember to offer readers myriad classroom examples of how teachers have engaged and motivated literacy development among their students by incorporating new literacies into the instructional mix. Deadline: May 2, 2011
Background Knowledge and Vocabulary
September 2012. Students differ in a number of ways, including their background knowledge. They have different experiences, have read different books, and have had different teachers. Yet we know that background knowledge is critical to understanding. Is there anything that teachers can do to build and activate their background knowledge so that relevant information is available for reading and learning? What ways, direct and indirect, have teachers ensured that student knowledge is valued and used? How do you determine what their background knowledge is, and what do you do to address these differences? Background knowledge is expressed through the words students know and use, so what might be the instructional relationship between vocabulary and background knowledge? We hope to highlight the importance of background knowledge, despite its current lack of popularity. We also hope to provide teachers with useful classroom ideas that will ensure students’ funds of knowledge are validated and extended. Deadline: September 1, 2011
Grouping in Middle School: Why? How?
December 2012. When middle school teachers are asked why they hesitate to incorporate productive group work into the instructional plan, they often mention problems with assessment, tasks, and questions about grouping practices. They wonder if the benefits are worth the effort. We invite papers that view group work as an essential part of the classroom community. Articles should address teachers’ concerns about grouping by providing examples that will offer an understanding of the purposes for grouping, how to form groups, and the multiple roles that students can play in a group as problem solvers and idea generators. Authors should also address how to manage, monitor, and assess productive group work in ways that scaffold and support learning for each student. Deadline: December 1, 2011
March 2013. Acceptance and respect are importance concepts students learn in middle school. They do so through their interactions with adults and peers in school as well as through the literature they read and discuss. How has tolerance education changed in the 21st century? What possibilities do Web 2.0 applications provide educators interested in social justice and multicultural education? How have you addressed cyberbullying? What professional experiences do teachers need to engage students in discussions about individual differences? Deadline: March 1, 2012


Estyn report: Basic skills development failings in schools
- 15 May 2012
- From the section Wales
Many schools in Wales are failing to plan well enough on how to develop basic skills among 11-14 year-olds, schools' inspectorate Estyn has warned.
It found that many schools do develop literacy and numeracy skills in English, Welsh, maths and IT lessons, but not in other subjects.
And 40% of pupils cannot read as well as they should as they start secondary school and some never catch up.
The Welsh government says it is working to address the issues.
The Skills Framework was introduced, on a non statutory basis, in 2008.
It aims to help children develop across all subjects their basic skills, such as thinking, questioning and communicating, which can be used later in life in work and further education.
Estyn's chief inspector Ann Keane acknowledges that it has raised awareness of the need to develop transferable skills she describes as "vital for the education and future careers of young people".
But she admits it has not been influential enough at Key Stage 3.
"We found that although nearly all schools have someone with overall responsibility for the development and implementation of skills, only a few schools successfully plan the progressive development of pupils' skills across the curriculum," she said.
Instead, Estyn found that schools are placing the highest priority on schemes of work matching the national curriculum subjects they teach.
Anna Brychan, director of the National Association of Headteachers Cymru said Estyn's assessment was "spot on".
"I don't think we should be particularly surprised that we've got here," she said. "There are two problems really.
"Schools, perfectly reasonably, plan and deliver the curriculum that policy-makers say they must deliver.
"In that context the non-statutory Skills Framework has not been very highly valued or closely measured. There is also a lack of precision in the framework itself.
"Schools can't make everything a priority so increasing the profile the framework, for example, would inevitably start a conversation about reducing the pressure elsewhere.
"A clear steer on what is most valued would be very helpful at this point."
Phil McTague, head teacher of Eirias High School in Conwy, said his school had completely restructured its curriculum into eight "projects" to provide the relevant skills.
"For example, we have a project called 'celebrations' and that integrates English, religious studies, art, music and our delivery of Chinese Mandarin," he said.
"The aim there is for the children to use their skills in a multi-disciplined way as you would in the world of work, and ultimately that's what they're going to inherit."
In January this year, Estyn's annual report found that 20% percent of pupils arrived at secondary school with a reading age below nine years and six months - generally considered the level of functional literacy.
This week, Leighton Andrews is due to publish his National Literacy Programme.
Its aim is to achieve a step change in literacy standards in the next five years.
Central to the programme is the National Literacy and Numeracy Framework, which he says will ensure that the teaching of those skills is embedded in all subjects across the curriculum.
The Welsh government welcomed the report.
"Through the minister's 20-point action plan to improve standards and performance in education in Wales and our new literacy and numeracy framework, we are working hard to address these issues," said a spokesperson.
Estyn's report outlines a number of recommendations for secondary schools, local authorities and the Welsh government, including ensuring that skills development is assessed and tracked effectively.


Non-Member Price: $37.95
NCTE Member Price: $27.95
Author(s): Charlene Klassen-Endrizzi
Describes a three-phase plan for elementary-level teachers to develop literacy partnerships with children's families.
Stock No.: 02732
Becoming Teammates: Teachers and Families as Literacy Partners offers a bold new look at how teachers and families can work together to build family-school relationships that value and respect each other’s perspectives on literacy.
Featuring the voices of parents, teachers, graduate students, and preservice teachers, Charlene Klassen Endrizzi’s book explores how families and educators can combine their resources to become essential teammates and partners in children’s literacy development.
Endrizzi recognizes that family-school partnerships are a complex undertaking and offers suggestions for three phases of implementation.
- In Phase 1, teachers begin by extending to family members a variety of invitations to communicate—via surveys, ceremonies, and celebrations—thus building an awareness and understanding of the literacy learning that occurs both in school and at home.
- Phase 2 explores how teachers can initiate a two-way literacy conversation with families through dialogue journals, curricular newsletters, and literacy backpacks.
- The final stage has teachers forging partnerships with parents at Family Literacy Gatherings, during which they explain and demonstrate literacy beliefs and practices, discover and appreciate the families’ funds of knowledge, and acknowledge and nurture the emerging parent advocates.
Endrizzi challenges teachers to take an active role in developing partnerships by considering a myriad of ways to build bridges of understanding with their students’ first learning partners.
245 pp. 2008. Grades K–6. ISBN 978-0-8141-0273-2.
* Sample files are typically provided in PDF format and can be opened using the free Adobe®
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Click here to download and install the most recent version of Adobe Reader.


Jim Cummins - Second Language Acquisition / Literacy Development
SDSU Graduate Program in Reading - School of Teacher Education . San Diego State University
Specially designed academic instruction in English From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
National Center on Response to Intervention (NCRTI) - The RTI Center is housed at the American Institutes for Research.
Just Read Now! - Every teacher is a reading teacher
IRA - International Reading Association
University of Virginia Content Literacy Information Consortium
Literacy Matters - Content Literacy
SIM: Strategic Instruction Model® - SIM is about promoting effective teaching and learning of critical content in schools
The Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) - Literacy Professional Learning Resource - Overview of Literacy Learning
Word Generation - a middle school academic language program developed under the direction of Harvard University Professor Catherine Snow
E.L. Achieve - E.L. Achieve aim is to create effective systems for English Learners.
Language and Literacy: Resources - Jeff Zwiers
Doing What Works - English Language Learners
READ 180 - America's Premier Reading Interevention Program
AdLit.org - Adolescent Literacy
Using English for Academic Purposes: A Guide for Students in Higher Education - Andy Gillett
School of Combined Studies - University of Hertfordshire - Hatfield, UK.
Academic Vocabulary - Word List
Get VOCAL - This online site was developed to share research-based best practices for teaching and learning academic language and vocabulary.
Florida Online Reading Professional Development - Literacy Course Lesson Summary
AWL Using the Academic Vocabulary Word List
WordSift . Visualize Text
Massey University - The Academic Word List
VSM Rohac Educational Solutions for SDAIE, ELL and Sheltered English - SDAIE.com The Teachers New Solution!
NCELA: Resources about English Language Literacy, Academic Language, and Content Area Literacy
Teacher Workshhops - Session Materials - Literacy
Content Based ESL Curriculum and Academic Language Proficiency - Clara Lee Brown - The University of Tennessee (Knoxville, Tennessee, USA)
The weekly column - Article 11, May 2000 - S.D.A.I.E. - Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English By Ron Rohac, educational consultant, S.D.A.I.E. Specialist
S.D.A.I.E. - Specially Designed Academic Instruction In English
Teaching Content Using SDAIE Methodology
Vocabulary Demands of Challenging Curricula - Kate Kinsella, Ed.D., Teacher Educator and School Consultant - San Francisco State University, Department of Secondary Education
Blogs about: Academic Language
CALLA homepage - A webpage for the Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach
Characteristics of Academic English in the ESL Classroom - Diego Uribe
Teaching the Academic Language Of Textbooks: A Preliminary Framework For Performing A Textual Analysis by Alex Ragan
Language & Literacy - Jeff Zwiers
Resources About English Language Literacy, Academic Language, and Content Area Literacy- A Resource Guide from the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition (NCELA)
Structure of the Four by Four Unit - Integrated Thematic Planning for ELD/SDAIE Jill Kerper Mora, San Diego State University
Collaboration and Professional Development - Deborah J. Short & Jana Echevarria


Department for Education
In 1870 the Elementary Education (Forster) Act was passed, giving a free public education for all children aged 5-13 in the UK. Further Acts in 1880 and 1891 strengthened the right and opportunity for all children to obtain an elementary education. Over time some "higher education" schools also opened, with entry based on the passing of exams rather than the ability of the family to pay.
Meanwhile, from around 1862 onwards the older universities and colleges were expanding their curricula.
But it took until 2014 for the eUK to have its own University - the eBrit University.
Anyone can enroll, although it is mostly aimed at those who are under level 25 - in fact, when one enrolls in the NHS, one will normally be invited to become an eBrit University student as well (if I've missed you, I apologise - real life got busy).
The curriculum is simple - complete tasks set out in order, and be rewarded. Rewards are normally GBP, food or weapons. At present there is no time limit to complete the course, although some sort of limit is under consideration to help spur completion. All the tasks are designed to help our students become familiar with most of the aspects of eUK citizenship.
Want to know more? Contact Madelina de Melrose, Chancellor of eBrit University and current Minister of Education.
What is this?You are reading an article written by a citizen of eRepublik, an immersive multiplayer strategy game based on real life countries. Create your own character and help your country achieve its glory while establishing yourself as a war hero, renowned publisher or finance guru.


Blues People: Race, History and Music in the U.S.
This FYP approaches the issue of U.S. race relations through the prism of African/American music and history. We will explore the ways in which music has tended to draw African-Americans and whites together and how it has, at other times, been manipulated to reinforce separation between the races. Specific musical genres and musicians will help us to tell the story of how African-American history, black/white race relations, and music intersect, particularly with the rise of spirituals during slavery, the rise of blues during the Great Migration, the rise of rock ‘n’ roll during the 1950s, the rise of soul music during the Civil Rights era, concluding with the post-Civil Rights rise of hip-hop and rap. This FYP will not cover all genres, nor is it a history of American music. Rather this course will use music to discuss U.S. history and race relations. Students do not need any music education or performance background for this course.


Robert and Mary Meeker developed Structure of Intellect from Dr. Guilford’s theories about intelligence being a set of skills. Intelligence can be trained and specific abilities can be trained to affect achievement performance and intellectual functioning. Structure of Intellect (SOI) identifies both strong and weak areas that underlie academic learning. If your child is bright but struggling in one or more areas SOI will identify those foundational weaknesses and design a personal workbook with exercises needed to bring your child's learning ability up to the norm for their age or grade level. At MES we use SOI to further pinpoint missing foundational skills, we also offer this test for year-end testing for homeschooled children.
Learning Ability: Form L (Group) K-3rd OR Primary Learning Abilities Test (Individual Computer Test)
Advanced Learning Ability: Form CR (GROUP) 4th-College OR Advanced Learning Abilities Test (Individual Computer Test)


Motriz: Revista de Educação Física
On-line version ISSN 1980-6574
SOUSA, Arilson Fernandes Mendonça de; NOGUEIRA, Júlia Aparecida Devidé and REZENDE, Alexandre Luiz Gonçalves de. Training strategies for elementary education teachers in physical activity and health eating. Motriz: rev. educ. fis. [online]. 2012, vol.18, n.3, pp. 581-589. ISSN 1980-6574. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1980-65742012000300018.
The study evaluated the learning effects generated by long (IL) and short (IC) educational interventions in health eating and physical activity knowledge. 42 teachers from two public elementary schools completed knowledge questionnaires with a 0-10 grade, pre and post-intervention. IL offered a 40 hours course and IC offered a 30 minutes lecture, and both groups received the same printed educational material. The intervention produced a statistically significant (p<0.05) increased in averaged health eating knowledge [IL: +1.19 (SE=0.31) and CI: +1.18 (SE 0.34) points]. In physical activity, change in average knowledge was only statically significant in IL [IL + 1.69 (SE=0.52) and IC -0.36; (SE=0.45) points]. There were significant differences between groups in final notes for physical activity knowledge. Simple educational activities produced positive effects on health eating knowledge however, for physical activity may be necessary longer intervention.
Keywords : Physical activity; Health eating; Education; School.


How to Engage Students Through Music Education
Students of all ages benefit from musical training and lessons. Whether the student is an adult picking up an instrument for the first time, or a child or teen, music engages parts of the brain not touched by other activities. Recent studies show that music education in early years of development can help foster better reading skills, concentration, and coordination.1
Gone are the days where students just play sheet music over and over again to learn to play a musical instrument. Today, the advent of advanced technologies has provided additional learning tools for music teachers to employ. For example, in Billings, Montana, students are filmed and recorded while they practice. Utilizing these recording methods has provided the students immediate feedback on what they are doing, and allows the teacher to quickly illustrate how to improve.
Children of today are surrounded by technology whether in the form of computers, smartphones, or video games. Technology has captured their minds and as a result, some schools are utilizing tablet computers such as the iPad to help engage students in the process of learning music and producing music.
State-of-the-art technology, such as the GarageBand program can be applied directly to music education and have proven to be effective tools for music instructors for its ability to record performances, and for students, it is an easy interface to learn editing and mixing, and variety of sounds to create music. The iPad app Notion, produced by Notion Music allows users to easily create musical scores by having students directly write music onto a music sheet and immediately hear what they have written.
Technology for Music Education, “TI:ME”, is a non-profit educational organization that helps school systems and teachers employ technology into the classrooms to help inspire imagination and engage students in learning music.2 The organization believes that “Music technology has the advantage of providing instant feedback and allowing students with varying levels of ability to succeed.” While the organization does emphatically state that musical concepts are the foundation for a good music education program, technology does assist in keeping students interested and motivated.
Teaching in today’s high-tech world can present challenges for instructors. The age old practice of reading and writing alone, does not engage the brains of young students. Our world is filled with an abundance of stimuli and immediate gratification. Harnessing the powers of technology in the classroom, especially for musical education can assist in keeping students excited and anxious for learning about music.
Humanitarian, musician and vocalist of U2, Bono is quoted as saying “music can change the world because it can change people.” In the same way, a teacher has the opportunity to change the world with every student they teach.
1Moreno S., Bialystok E., Barac R., Schellenberg G., Cepeda N. & Chau T. 2011. Short-Term Music Training Enhances Verbal Intelligence and Executive Function. Psychological Science


National Standards in Education
A little history . . . Bear with me, now! It's helpful to know how we get ourselves into the pickle in the first place.
On August 26, 1981, the U.S. Secretary of Education, T. H. Bell, created the National Commission on Excellence in Education, directed to research and report on American education. In 1983, the resulting report was entitled, A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform. This report revealed many deficiencies in the American system of education. The Goals 2000 Act, initiated in 1989, was enacted to address these challenges, calling for national standards in English, history, civics and government, foreign languages, geography, economics, and the arts. The objective was to coordinate state and federal resources in order to improve academic standards. In other words, individual states were given some flexibility with which to implement established National Education Goals.
In 1994, the National Standards for the Arts, as recommended by the Consortium of National Arts Education Associations, were signed into federal law by President Bill Clinton. The National Standards for Arts Education outline "what every student should know and be able to do in the arts" (MENC). Included in this document, published by the National Association for Music Education, were nine voluntary content standards for music education.
The standards specified results or outcomes, but not curriculum, method, or philosophy, in an attempt to allow flexibility for a wide-range of local circumstances and resources. Ultimately, some states instituted these standards as law and some retained voluntary status. Most states have their own version of the Standards, based upon the national document. The Content Standards for the National Standards for the Arts in Music are as follows:
1. Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
2. Performing on instruments, along and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
3. Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments.
4. Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.
5. Reading and notating music.
6. Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.
7. Evaluating music and musical performances.
8. Understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.
9. Understanding music in relation to history and culture.
Each of the standards is assigned Achievement Standards that specify the prescribed outcomes for the content standard. These are listed for each of three tiers: grades K-4, 5-8, and 9-12, and include basic, proficient, and advanced proficiency levels. These prescribed achievement standards are the goals associated with students in grades 4, 8, and 12, and strategies for assessment of these levels are also provided by MENC.
Here are a few more assumptions (are you guilty of any of these?)
"I can't possibly cover all of these standards. I teach elementary music and there is barely enough time to learn a few songs."
"I'm not expected to cover them all. This is band. # 2, #5, and maybe #7. That's what they hired me for."
"When I introduced the piece, I told them who wrote it, when, and where he was from. That's enough of that."
"I don't even know how to improvise and compose. It would be ridiculous to spend time on that."
question all assumptions
If you learn nothing else in this course, I hope you learn that.


LAWRENCE — A collaborative project between the University of Kansas School of Music and the School of Education will help Kansas students become more skillful thinkers and help meet the benchmarks for achievement standards in the arts.
Project STArts (Skillful Thinking in the Arts), a collaboration among the Kansas City, KS Public Schools, the Music Research Institute of the KU School of Music and The Institute for Educational Research and Public Service, has received funding of $777,187 over the next three years, shared across the three partners.
The grant was written by Christopher M. Johnson, professor of music education and music therapy at KU, and Becky Eason, associate director of the Institute, in close collaboration with Jean Ney, coordinator of Fine Arts & Physical Education with the Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools Integrated Arts Resource Center. It is funded through the U.S. Department of Education Office of Innovation and Improvement.
The initiative was created to enhance and strengthen the standards-based arts education programs delivered in music, visual arts and drama.
“It is simply not enough to teach using state or national standards of performance as a foundation; we need to teach students to think within the arts,” Johnson said. “Skillful Thinking is a method that will enable these students to take their knowledge in the arts one step further, encouraging them to find artistic solutions to problems outside of the narrow definition of what is traditionally thought of as ‘the arts.’”
Eason added, “This project will allow us to build upon the higher-thinking skills inherent in arts education and make those skills relevant throughout the curriculum.”
The School of Music will provide professional development to all 121 arts educators/50 schools in the Kansas City, Kan., district through a series of summer workshops and academic-year follow-up sessions. The Institute will serve as the external evaluator of the project, assessing the project’s success in using the arts as a way to teach critical thinking skills. The Institute will also provide grants administration support.
The project stresses four objectives to achieve its overall goal:
• KCK Teachers will gain skills and knowledge that will enable them to integrate Skillful Thinking techniques into the benchmarks and behavioral indicators for the National Arts Standards.
• Teachers will incorporate Skillful Thinking techniques into their classrooms so that higher-order thinking is being taught along with material that addresses the National Arts Standards. Teachers will model these skills through transformed teaching techniques, which will result in an improved classroom environment.
• Students’ acquisition of Skillful Thinking will lead to academic gains, including improvements on the national arts standards.
• An innovative train-the-trainers model will allow the Skillful Thinking benchmarks and behavioral indicators to be maintained after the life of the grant.
“Our overall goal for this new project is to strengthen the structure of arts instruction by infusing Skillful Thinking into all aspects of learning and assessment in the arts, which will further advance the education of the whole student,” Johnson said.


A child's ability to read and write begins to develop long before entering Kindergarten. Infancy through age eight is the most important time in a child's literacy development as they learn and develop the skills needed to be successful in school and later in life.
Most children learn to read at around age six or seven, some children learn to read at age five, and a few at age four. In order for children to develop healthy dispositions toward reading and literacy, experiences in the early years must engage children actively in the process of learning.
Early Literacy is what children know about reading and writing before they actually read and write.
Research shows that children arriving at school with the following early literacy skills are more likely to be successful in learning to read and write.
Vocabulary Development -- Knowing the names of things
Narrative Skills -- Being able to describe things, events, and tell stories
Letter Knowledge -- Understanding that each letter is unique and has a name and sound
Print Awareness -- Experience with different forms of print; knowledge of how to handle books and how to follow words across a page
Print Motivation -- Interest in and enjoyment from books
Phonological Awareness -- Ability to hear and play with the small sounds that make up words
What You Can Do at Home
Family members play a fundamental role in helping their children develop early literacy skills. You are your child's first teacher. Every time you interact with your child, he or she learns about communicating, listening, and working with others. Make the most of everyday moments by talking to your child about what is happening (narrate the experience) and asking open-ended questions.
Families do things together and children learn best by doing things.
Show your child that reading is a year-round activity by making reading fun and interesting. Let your child see you read. If your child views reading as a pleasant and relaxed activity, chances are he or she will be eager to read on his or her own.
See our suggestions for what you can do at home with your child:
Children at age 2-4 are in an exciting stage of language development. They repeat and imitate what others say, understand more when spoken to, and begin to put words together into short phrases. Vocabulary development and comprehension are most important at this stage.
Help your child learn language in a meaningful context by talking to her about what she is doing.
Acknowledge your child's use of language by repeating the words and phrases he says.
Help your child learn how to build on language she knows by expanding her words into phrases and sentences.
Help your child learn the names of things by labeling objects in his environment.
Help develop your child's vocabulary by reading a wide variety of books together.
Encourage your child to talk and express ideas by engaging him in conversations.
Model good communication skills by listening attentively and responding purposefully to your child.
Expand your child's vocabulary by demonstrating how to add new words to familiar ones to make phrases and short sentences.
Select books that contain movements and sounds your child can imitate or that introduce concepts such as colors, counting, and shapes.
Use speech that is clear and simple for your child to model.


Fine Arts courses are a part of the Enrichment Curriculum, a component of the Required Curriculum. By definition, enrich means "to make richer, to add greater value or significance." It does not mean "extra," "not necessary," "elective," or "optional." These courses are an integral part of the educational process and in many cases are the courses that give meaning and substance to a child's education and to his or her life.
This report identifies how involvement with the arts provides unparalleled opportunities for learning that enables young people to reach for and attain higher levels of achievement. The research provides examples of and evidence why the arts should be more widely recognized for their current and potential contributions to the improvement of U.S. education.
The report (by President Obama's Committee of the Arts and Humanities) is the first federal analysis of arts education data in more than a decade and was 18 months in the making.
Students in high-quality school music education programs score higher on standardized tests compared to students in schools with deficient music education programs, according to a study published in last week’s issue of the Journal for Research in Music Education.
Numerous studies have demonstrated a correlation between drama involvement and academic achievement. In addition to having higher standardized test scores than their peers who do not experience the arts, student who participate in drama often experience improved reading comprehension, maintain better attendance records, and stay generally more engaged in school than their non-arts counterparts.


|by Linda McConnell
Teaching with technology is not a new concept, beginning in the early 1800's with our nation's first foray into correspondence schools, which used postal mail to deliver education or "correspond" with students at a distance. As new technologies arose, such as TV, computers, the Internet, and the World Wide Web, innovative educators began to see ways to apply these new resources to help meet expanding educational needs. Computers and the use of the Internet are still relatively new instructional tools, yet they are becoming an integral resource to distributed learning enabling many students to gain better access to education that might otherwise not be easily available. An increasing number of college departments are now attempting to go fully online with their courses and program, providing opportunities for students to attain a degree without ever having to step on campus. The UH Music Department is one example of this new and exciting trend.
Universities across the nation are now offering some form of online education, be it as an enhancement for a face-to-face class in which presentations, class notes or a syllabus is readily available or total web-based where communication, interaction and instruction takes place fully online. Many schools have adopted software that enables faculty to upload materials and manage students. These applications range from simple discussion boards and email tools to complex, full course management systems.
At the University of Hawaii, WebCT (Web Course Tools) is the licensed course management software used for distributing learning system wide. WebCT is comprised of a variety of tools and features that can promote interaction, facilitate communication, assess performance, engage and manage students. UH currently hosts an estimated 2000 courses in WebCT for a variety of disciplines and sections each semester.
Dr. Barbara McLain, Associate Professor of Music, program founder and current director began an innovative, online program a few years ago and has graduated the first student from California in August who received an “online” M.A. degree in Music Education. The online M.A. degree is offered via a partnership between the UH Graduate School, Outreach College, and College of Arts and Humanities. Development of their online courses was funded by $50,000 in combined grants. The program targets inservice band, choir, orchestra as well as general music teachers worldwide.
The online degree program is taught by five faculty, teaching 30 credits of graduate courses in WebCT. Instructors incorporate a variety of WebCT tools in combination with other technologies to provide asynchronous (anytime, anywhere) access to videos, mp3 libraries, voice over presentations, learning objects, printed materials, assessment tools and additional resources. Students, using collaborative tools such as Discussions, Student Presentations, Course Modules, etc., communicate, interact and present scholarly work throughout the semester.
According to Dr. McLain, twenty-four students from Hawaii and around the U.S. have been admitted to the program to date with the department receiving an ever increasing number of applications as the word of this unique, accredited online program spreads.
DLUS (Distributed Learning & User Services) a section of ITS (Information Technology Services) offers a summer institute and free semester based workshops focusing on integrating technology in teaching, incorporating WebCT and exploring a variety of distributed educational issues. To view course topics, dates and times of an upcoming WebCT or software application workshop visit our web site: http://www.dmc.hawaii.edu


In elementary school, your child will develop the literacy and numeracy skills they need to succeed throughout their time in school and beyond. Building this foundation in key areas during the elementary school years allows students to unlock their full potential and discover their passions.
While the learning that takes place in the classroom is very important, elementary school is truly an exciting time in a child’s life because of all the new experiences available beyond the classroom. Whether it’s taking part in after-school programs or participating in sports, there are countless ways for students to get involved in school life and make the most of their experience.
Parents play a very important role during these years and we want to make sure that you have all the information you need to ensure your child achieves success. The staff at your local school are always here to help and answer any questions you may have. Want to know how you can get involved? We have developed a series of resources to guide you through the process.


Adult Diploma Program (ADP)
The ADP is an alternative way of earning a high school diploma. Students must first demonstrate acceptable reading, math, and writing skills as measured by the ADP entrance exams. After completing the 3 diagnostic tests, students are given a set of 6 tasks. A task is a project related to the skills needed to function and progress in daily living situations. Reading a map, understanding a lease, writing a resume, and measuring the area of a room are examples of task requirements. Each completed task is evaluated by the teacher/assessor and students must demonstrate a working understanding of the finished task. Sixty-four generalized life skill competencies are grouped into the following task areas: Community Awareness, Personal and Family Health, Occupational Preparation, Personal and Social Awareness, Consumer Awareness, and an Individual Skill Area.
In addition, students are required to pass the grade 10 Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) English Language Arts and Mathematics exams. This program collaborates with the Somerville Center for Adult Learning Experiences (SCALE) and Somerville Public Schools for testing services.
General Education Development (GED)
This program develops critical thinking skills, increases reading comprehension, improves written communication and numeracy skills, develops research and study skills, and prepares students for the GED test and for higher education. Many colleges and employers accept a passing score on the GED as an alternative to a high school diploma. The GED consists of five timed subject area examinations: writing, social studies, science, interpreting literature and the arts, and mathematics. An important feature of the GED test is the essay, which documents a student's ability to communicate effectively through writing.


1954 - 1921
Engelbert Humperdinck, best known for his opera, Hänsel und Gretel was a noted German composer and teacher. Humperdinck started composing at the age of seven. Humperdinck ‘s music education began at the Cologne Conservatory in 1872. Humperdinck later studied with Franz Lachner and Josef Rheinberger in Munich. In 1879 Humperdinck won the prestigious Mendelssohn Award. A favorite of Richard Wagner, Humperdinck was a music teacher of Wagner’s son, Siegfried. In 1890 Humperdinck became professor at the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt. Hansel und Gretel was premiered 1893 in Weimar. The conductor was Richard Strauss who called the opera "a masterpiece of the highest quality”. Hansel und Gretel received was an enormous success, and has been a favorite of opera houses worldwide.


Your child can repurpose any used and cleaned can into a colorful container to hold pens and pencils, a must have for any desk! All your child need are bits of string and some glue!
What You Do:
- Have your child to make sure his tin can is clean and dry before beginning his project.
- Now, give your child the bits and pieces of string to use for wrapping his can. Not only is he recycling a can, he’s using all those leftover pieces of string! He can think about color arrangement or patterning before beginning. To make the gift really special, he can even use his favorite colors!
- Have your child to pour some glue in a small container and use a paintbrush to coat the outside of the can.
- Now he can begin wrapping the can with the pieces of string, pressing them gently to the can as he goes – this will help him hone his fine motor skills!
- Encourage your child to continue coating with glue, wrapping and pressing the string until the entire can is covered.
- Now he can fill the can with new pencils and pens.
This pencil holder also makes a great gift that will help keep any desk organized.
Sarah Lipoff has a K-12 Art Education degree and enjoys working with kids of all ages.


The Boston Globe:
True or false? Music makes you smarter.
Contrary to popular belief, a study—led by a Harvard graduate student who plays the saxophone, flute, bassoon, oboe, and clarinet—found no cognitive benefits to music lessons.
The finding, published Wednesday in the journal PLOS ONE, is bound to make arts advocates cringe, as it challenges an argument that is often used to bolster the case for music education: it’ll make kids better at math.
“We don’t teach our children Shakespeare and Dante and Tolstoy because it makes them do better in American history class or at learning the periodic table of the elements,” said Samuel Mehr, a graduate student at the Harvard School of Education who led the work. “We teach them those great authors because those great authors are important. There’s really no reason to justify music education on any other basis than its intrinsic merits. We have our Dante, Tolstoy, and Shakespeare, and they are Bach, Duke Ellington, and Benjamin Britten.”
Ellen Winner, a professor of psychology at Boston College who studies arts education, said the results did not surprise her at all and she applauded the journal for publishing a negative result—one that challenges a popular and well-accepted idea.
Read the whole story: The Boston Globe
Leave a comment below and continue the conversation.


It has become such a cliché that arts programs are the first to be nixed in schools with tight budgets that music-oriented giving groups do not question how a community prioritizes its class lists. They simply try to supplement in areas where the government money has run out.
On Monday, VH1 aired a Divas of Soul special to raise funds for the music channel’s affiliated nonprofit, the VH1 Save the Music Foundation. The group provides musical instruments to schools that agree to hire a certified music teacher and incorporate music as a core part of their curriculum.
“It’s a strictly philanthropic perspective,” said Paul Cothran, executive director of the foundation. “One of the great things about No Child Left Behind is it does say that music and art are core subjects. But testing isn’t done on those subjects.” Without a test to fall back on, music education can fall by the wayside as schools try to keep up with the requirements of the 2001 standards-setting law.
Most schools offer some type of music education, and No Child Left Behind has not altered that significantly. (Cothran says the decrease has occurred over decades, not in the last several years.) Ninety percent of elementary-school teachers reported no change in their music curriculum since the law was implemented, according to the Government Accountability Office. Perhaps not surprisingly, decreases in music training occurred in schools with higher percentages of minority students and those that were identified as needing improvement academically.
Educators generally see the value of music training, but Cothran says he constantly must convince school administrators that music is integral to a well-rounded student’s education. “We’re not looking to create the next great pop star,” he said. Music training has been shown to raise SAT scores in other subjects and help students think more analytically.
Outside funding plays a role in keeping music in schools, but not all schools use it and most don’t rely on it completely. About 20 percent of public elementary schools rely on non-district funding for their music programs, according to the National Center for Educational Statistics, but that figure jumps to 47 percent in secondary schools. About half of the secondary schools with access to non-district funding reported that 10 percent or less of their music budget came from such sources.
The VH1 Save the Music Foundation donates up to $30,000 of musical equipment to schools that are willing to integrate music into their core curriculum. That initial financial investment often turns out to be the biggest barrier to music teaching in public schools, one that Cothran’s group is happy to remove. The foundation’s assistants, all music teachers, then are on hand to help the schools figure out how to work music into the day with math and science and reading.
It makes sense that a well-known TV channel dedicated to entertainment and the arts would play a role in getting music into schools. VH1 Save the Music is helped greatly by the VH1 name to lure businesses and foundations to donate. “It brings a lot of cache,” Cothran said.
With every step into the world of public schooling, VH1 Save the Music becomes embedded in sometimes-arcane education policy. Cothran finds himself urging Congress to reauthorize the No Child Left Behind Act and convincing states to maintain arts education as “core” subjects—an education term of art. “We’re an education group,” he said.


Earth - The Water Planet
This interdisciplinary course is the first of two science content courses specifically designed for elementary education majors (K-5). It is team-taught by two science faculty from Geoscience, Physics, Chemistry, and/or Biology. The course is structured similar to how the students' future elementary classrooms will be structured: all course activities that help students learn content are inquiry based and constructed with commonly available materials that they will have access to in their future classrooms. The science content is taught around the common theme of water, another material that the students' will have access to in their future classrooms. The course is assessed primarily through metacognitive reflective essays, concept maps, and larger projects.
For Dr. Anderson's reflections on the course and its design, see Earth - The Water Planet: Role in the Program.
- Make connections between the macroscopic and microscopic worlds.
- Construct a model illustrating how water impacts the Earth (what and where is water; how does water affect the Earth; how do things affect water).
- Design and construct a simple experiment that can be completed in an elementary classroom.
- Synthesize diverse information to draw reasonable scientific conclusions and to support those conclusions with evidence and scientific reasoning.
- Solve simple mathematical problems.
- Read, interpret, and make graphs and diagrams.
- Design, implement, and assess the effectiveness of science activities for elementary school children.
In addition, students will recognize that they are able "to do" science, will become more enthusiastic about science, and will start to see science all around them.
Syllabus (Acrobat (PDF) 144kB May7 07)
There are no exams or homework sets in this class. Rather, students are required to complete metacognitive reflective essays for each activity (or small group of activities) that they complete in class. These essays include the lesson plan for the activity they performed as well as a more personal response to the activity that includes what they learned, when they learned it, any changes they would make for future classroom use, and connections they identify from this activity to their world, to other activities, etc. Activities include large group projects like creating a concept map about water that links all of their course experiences and smaller activities.
Rubric for assessing metacognitive reflections (Acrobat (PDF) 146kB May7 07)
Assessment Rubric for Earth: The Water Planet (Acrobat (PDF) 23kB May11 07)


Engineering isn't just problem-solving -- it's about being creative! Join us as we combine art with science, technology, engineering and math to investigate and interpret the world around us. Students will design and create artworks -- including some with moving parts -- using computers and electronics, along with more traditional artistic tools.
Camp Director: Sherry Molde, email@example.com
Sherri Molde is a Gateway to Technology instructor at Hadley Middle School in Wichita, Kansas and a Project Lead the Way, Gateway to Technology Core Trainer for Wichita State University. She has worked in the Wichita Public Schools for the past 20 years where she has taught both elementary and middle school students. Sherri has been in her current position in the technology education department teaching technology for the past 13 years and has been in the PLTW program since 2009.
Sherri enjoys providing hands on activities that aid in making the connections between science, technology, engineering and math with her students. These connections open the door for students to explore a variety of engineering fields.
Sherri earned a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Kansas Newman University and her Master of Arts in Teaching from Friend’s University, both in Wichita, Kansas.
Fee: $175 ($25 discount for paid registration before May 1, 2014)


Sociocultural Contexts of Language and Literacy
Teresa L. McCarty, Lucille J. Watahomigie, To thi Dien, Bertha Perez, Mar¡a E. Torres-Guzman
Taylor & Francis, May 26, 2004 - Education - 424 pages
Sociocultural Contexts of Language and Literacy, Second Edition engages prospective and in-service teachers in learning about linguistically and culturally diverse students, and in using this knowledge to enrich literacy learning in classrooms and communities. The text is grounded in current research and theory that integrate sociocultural and constructivist concepts and perspectives and provide a framework teachers can use to develop strategies for teaching reading, writing, and thinking to diverse students.
The focus on English literacy development does not imply advocacy for "English only" or ESL as the primary mode of literacy instruction. Rather, the authors take the position that learners need to develop literacy in their native language and that the concepts and skills learned in developing the native language create a foundation of strength from which students can develop English literacy.
Part I introduces relevant research and language learning theories. Part II provides research reviews and information about literacy learning within specific culturally and linguistically diverse communities. The chapters in Part III challenge the reader to view the multiple social, intellectual, cultural, and language differences children bring to the classroom as an opportunity for learning and building on the diversity among students. Activities and suggested readings at the end of each chapter involve readers in reflection, observation, meaning making, and the construction of application processes for their new understandings.
New in the Second Edition:
*updated research and theory on multilingual and second language literacy;
*a focus on the interpretation of these research findings to make them useful for teachers and teacher educators in understanding and articulating the research bases for literacy practices;
*attention to current intensely debated issues, such as standards, the phonics movement, and high-stakes testing; and
*new activities and suggested readings.
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New English Speakers Need Phonics, Syntax
After teaching Spanish for many years, I was asked by my school district to teach English as a Second Language. Teaching Spanish, I was told, meant teaching a second language, so the process should be similar. It wasn’t.
I didn’t realize the demographics of the learners would present such a profound teaching challenge. My new challenge was a middle school with students who were born here, students arriving from Spanish-speaking countries, plus some from Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The biggest surprise was the 10 percent, or more, of new arrivals, mostly from Mexico and Central America, who had never been in a classroom. They were placed in regular ESL classes that presumed some literacy in their own language, which they did not have.
It was soon evident my students faced a variety of inhibitors to learning English. The curriculum materials on hand did not address the deficiencies of students with low primary literacy, which most of my students were. I began to investigate the problems on my own. It resulted in years of classroom research, a return to graduate school, and a degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages/Applied Linguistics.
New Language vs. Second Language
My field research took me into how people acquire language. This included phonics, phonetics, and various aspects of vocabulary and syntax.
Syntax was an especially interesting area. To the grammarian it refers to proper word forms and word sequence. It also means internalizing syntax, or “thinking in the language.” Current instructional materials do not offer specific instruction in this area, yet the research generally makes it clear the ESL teacher would benefit from understanding basic linguistics regarding language acquisition.
English presents different problems for native speakers of Spanish, Chinese, Arabic, and so forth. Teachers with an understanding of language acquisition and a methodical rationale for instruction quickly discover these inhibitors and can then work to remove them. My classroom research became the basis for my thesis, (see accompanying figure) which can guide lesson plans, units of instruction, and curriculum for a semester.
As I moved on from K-12 public schools, this visual structure also provided a basis for instruction in graduate-level teacher training courses I have taught at four southern California universities.
The graph represents how students learn basic elements of languages. It targets syntax for second language learners. Standard textbooks do not directly address this area, but it is the key to “thinking in English,” which is the gateway to literacy.
Phonics Instruction Essential
Phonics skills are sometimes referred to as “alphabetics.” These skills create the cognitive link between the sounds a person hears and their written counterparts on a page. Converting words on a page to speech is the skill of “decoding” that is so familiar to teachers.
Decoding, however, is often mistaken for reading. It does not ensure comprehension; it just means a person knows how the letters in words sound together. As the figure indicates, people then need to learn what words mean, or vocabulary, a controversial topic among researchers.
One point of agreement is the need to learn vocabulary in context. Even the simplest words change meanings and connotations in different contexts. Linking a single meaning to a word will cause comprehension problems later. Lists of random vocabulary hardly help students.
This is where the challenge of syntax comes in. The order in which a listener receives cues that convey meaning in a sentence is different from language to language.
For example, sentences in English use subject nouns or pronouns in all sentences: The “he” in “He walked to the store.” Spanish omits subject nouns and pronouns most of the time: The “he” is implied, but not stated, in “Camina para la tienda.” Also, the pronoun “it” is very common in English, but doesn’t exist in Spanish. There are many such differences between English and other languages. To digest these requires understanding the syntax of the new language, rather than learning rules and applying them individually.
Two other elements in the figure show speaking follows listening. Listening is the basis for reading, and speaking is the foundation for writing. But none of these works well when new English learners have not received explicit instruction in the largely missing ingredient: Syntax.
Image by Robert Simpson.


Music and Movies / Philosophy Of Competition
Philosophy Of CompetitionThis essay Philosophy Of Competition is available for you on Essays24.com! Search Term Papers, College Essay Examples and Free Essays on Essays24.com - full papers database.
Autor: anton 28 October 2010
Words: 541 | Pages: 3
The views of competition are very wide spread. It seems that everyone has something to say on the subject. Those people who are in favor of competition often point out that it is a strong motivator, it offers more public exposure and can gain community support as their reasoning. Those who have the opposite view often point out that the self esteem is often damaged in those who do not receive top ratings, the pressure to win is always present, and it encourages non musical goals which will be mentioned in more detail later.
The struggle has been long and is still continuing on placing music education as a curricular subject. The intrinsic values of the arts and especially those in music are often pointed out in making this justification. Despite this, the extrinsic motivation of competition is still used in many schools today. These examples can be seen in chair placement and contests. Extrinsic values of the area of music have been used to gain the necessary support for a group and that will probably not change. The problem arises when these values become the primary reason for existing. When it reaches this point the art of music is dead.
In the indoor setting, competition has changed throughout its history. Sight reading was implemented to insure that fundamentals were being taught and that bands were not just practicing concert pieces all year. When it comes to competition in marching bands or other extracurricular bands, the achievements seem to be a little more extrinsically based.
Children are naturally competitive and this allows for the world that we live in to become more and more dependent on that ever present competition. The use of competition can aid in building a program and maintaining one once it is built up. The constant exposure is a good recruitment tool to younger children in the area who may not be aware of this type of thing. The remarks from judges can be very beneficial to both students and directors. While at these competitions it allows students to see both good and bad playing among their peers. Often this too can be a good motivator for students to strive to succeed.
I feel that while competition can be a strong motivator but in the long run it is not necessary for musical learning to take place. It is my hope that fifty years down the road students will look back and remember the joys that music brought to them and the fun that they experienced while participating in music not who won grand champion at state their sophomore year. In the end is the stress and struggle really worth a piece of plastic that is going sit on a shelf and collect dust? To me, it is not. My value is on the learning and experiences of music not who is the subjective winner in a contest. I feel that the choice of competition should be partly the studentâ€™s decision. If they choose to want to go and compete then they should be prepared for any type of remarks.
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What’s the best way to practice piano pieces? When you start learning more complicated songs, it’s easy for frustration to creep in. Get back on track with these helpful tips from Brooklyn, NY music teacher Elizabeth A...
When I was a young girl first taking piano lessons, I was determined to learn each piece perfectly. I sat down at the piano to practice, and played through my assignment from start to finish.
“I can do better than that,” I thought to myself.
And so I played the piece again. And again, and again. Yet I was never able to truly perfect a song until I learned the best way to practice piano.
You don’t have to make the same mistakes I did. Follow these four steps to learn that tune in record time.
1. Find the Hardest Part
Play through the entire piece once and make note of where the most challenging sections are. I use a pencil to draw brackets around the hard parts. Many times these spots are easy to see; they’re the places with all the fast notes! Other challenges like to hide. Look for transitions between sections or phrases.
2. Break it Down
Once you’ve brought your attention to the places in the music that trip you up, focus on just these sections. Break down the hard part so much that you make it easy. You may have to find the hardest measure, or even just two notes, and play those over and over until you don’t have to think about it. Then add a few notes before and after and play that a bunch of times until you’re an expert, and so on until you have mastered the entire section. I find it helpful to sit with a timer. Play that one or two measures on repeat for one full minute. When the timer goes off you can take a 30-second brain break before moving on to the next measure or two.
3. Put it Back Together
This works just like a puzzle. Now that you have each section polished, you have to learn how to do it in order, without stopping in between. Start by combining just two sections. Play them slowly, and keep looking ahead. Do this a few times so it can become muscle memory. Add another section, then another, until you can play the entire piece straight through without stopping. Don’t forget to start slow.
The first three steps can be done in one day, but then what happens when you go to practice the next day, and you feel like you’re back to square one? Do it all over again! This is the hardest step of all. It helps to change your routine and look at the song from a new perspective. Here are a few tips to keep it fresh:
- Mark the sections and play them in reverse order, starting from the end of the piece. This helps you to be able to play the end of the tune just as well as the beginning.
- Change the tempo of the song – super slow at first, then much faster just for fun.
- Record yourself and listen back to the recording.
The most important thing to remember is that playing piano is fun! Once you have gone through these steps, relax and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Play through the whole song, mistakes and all, and savor the experience.
Elizabeth A. teaches piano, violin, viola, and more in Brooklyn, NY, as well as through online lessons. She received her Bachelor’s of Music in Music Education at Bowling Green State University, and her Master’s of Fine Arts in Music Education from the University of Akron. Learn more about Elizabeth here!
Photo by aussiegall


I should have seen this coming.
Last week as I was preparing to talk about teaching composition to pre-college students to an audience of well-respected composers from across the country at the Bowling Green New Music Festival, I decided to write my weekly NMBx column on an important aspect of beginning composition pedagogy: amateurism. By the discussions and reactions that this topic has generated, I thought it best to come back to both make sure that my intentions were clear and solidify in my own mind what the ramifications of a call for amateurism in music composition might be.
It was my contention that because composition education has created a feedback loop; there is an overriding perception by most musicians and non-musicians that composition is something that only a very few extremely talented individuals can and should pursue, and that perception creates a self-fulfilling prophecy through a lack of composition education at the pre-college level. Music educators by-and-large are given little if any instruction in composition or opportunity to compose during their collegiate studies. The National Association for Music Educators (formerly MENC) has included composition as one of their primary national standards for music educationsince 1994, and yet it is a rare occurrence to find a music teacher with any amount of composition experience or instruction. The reasons for this are many, including an already immense music education curriculum and lack of resources due to many composition instructors being required to teach theory courses, reducing their ability to create opportunities for anyone outside of their own studios.
What does this have to do with amateur composition and what does that have to do with the music community as a whole? Plenty. First, we have seen plenty of examples over the past 25 years from Congress down to the local PTA of the arts being decried as auxiliary, elitist, and unnecessary. This conception results in arts funding being reduced or cut altogether (see: Kansas). Second, the national standards I linked to gives us many good reasons to encourage composition not only as a career for the talented but as a healthy and vibrant tool for building decision-making and collaborative skills, self-confidence, and creativity, to which I would add the abilities to think conceptually and abstractly as well. Finally, and most importantly, people are already composing without that instruction. The tools with which composers could create music have multiplied greatly since the influx of digital technology, and as Fredrick Rzewski just commented this week, there are an increasing number of people who are using the technology with little understanding of the basic concepts of composition.
As I discovered with the discussions that occurred after last week’s column, the very word “amateur” has a lot of baggage on it, and to be honest I regret using it; most equate the term with being unskilled or incompetent. I was using the term to denote someone who actively enjoys doing something as a pastime, and it is in that line that my hope is directed. By increasing the opportunities for anyone to experience the multiple joys of composing music, we can forge a much more solid public foundation upon which our own artistic endeavors may rest.


Music Education in Ontario, Snapshots on a Long and Winding Road
Presented at the "State of the Art of Music Education in Canada" Symposium, May 25-26, 2005,
Lee WIllingham with Jane Cutler
published: 2005 | Published paper abstract | Music Education in Ontario
Since Egerton Ryerson’s Education Act of 1871, politics and education in Ontario have been inextricably connected. This paper examines the origins of public education and how the major reforms and political winds have affected the teaching and learning of music today in Ontario’s public schools. The glance backwards into our past gives context for the current challenges and future goals for music in our school systems. This exploration of the present educational trends, policies, teacher training, and curriculum, is animated by the responses of teachers from all regions of the province. Finally, the question is posed that can be applied to music teachers in Ontario and beyond, “do music teachers learn from the arts about the practice of their own teaching and learning?” The conclusions explore some ways that the arts themselves can inform our decisions about how we learn in the music classroom.
revised Oct 17/05
View all Lee Willingham documents


KinderCare Early Foundations® Prekindergarten Program
Prekindergarten is a time when children are making connections between what they know and what they are learning. As they leave the world of preschool and head towards kindergarten, children are learning to participate in routines, demonstrate ability to make decisions, and plan ahead.
The prekindergarten curriculum at KinderCare is designed to help children continue to make decisions on their own and in the classroom. We prepare four- to- five-year-old children for the next stage of their education while giving them a place to feel comfortable and safe to explore their interests.
According to a statewide kindergarten readiness assessment, more students that attended prekindergarten at KinderCare tested fully ready for kindergarten than their non-KinderCare classmates.* A higher percentage of KinderCare children ranked as top performers in Language/Literacy (14% more), Mathematical Thinking (18% more), and Scientific Thinking (11% more).
KinderCare creates its prekindergarten curriculum and programs to align to approximately 140 learning standards that progress sequentially across six developmental domains. These include:
- Cognitive Development
- Creative Expression
- Executive Function
- Language and Literacy Development
- Physical Development and Wellness
- Social and Emotional Development
K-12 standards and early learning standards from several states helped inform the scope and sequence of our learning standards, and they’re backed by experts in each domain/content area.**
Our holistic approach in the prek classroom engages young minds with the early learning fundamentals they’ll need as they continue on to kindergarten, with a rich blend of skills, interests and a love of learning.
Our Prekindergarten Program Features
- Activities and lessons that help prepare your child for kindergarten and school success
- Small-group lessons focused on mathematics, Spanish and literacy
- Whole-group activities that help your child build an awareness of others and a sense of community
- Hands-on experiences that encourage independent, creative learning
- Classroom activities and design features that help your child build literacy and numeracy skills
- Regular teacher-family communication, including ways to connect your child’s learning at home
KinderCare Early Foundations Prekindergarten Curriculum
A guide to your child’s early education
Discover how our six areas of focus give your child endless opportunities to learn and grow.
Communicating with Others
KinderCare helps your child improve important language skills.
We use daily journal activities to practice writing skills; help your child's early reading skills by connecting sounds to letters through picture and word collages; teach basic sight words in fun and engaging ways; and develop phonemic awareness through literacy-based games, books, and puzzles.
Building Brain Power
We prepare your child to reason and analyze.
We encourage the use of the senses to explore different materials; create opportunities to ask and answer open-ended questions; experiment with spatial relationships; and promote an understanding of sequencing such as first, next, and last.
Making New Friends
We provide opportunities for your child to practice social and emotional skills.
We use character-building activities to help identify emotions; have group discussions to practice sharing ideas, thoughts, and feelings; and provide opportunities to cooperate, negotiate, problem-solve, and make independent choices.
Growing a Healthy Body
We help your child refine motor skills.
We use lacing cards, stencils, and writing activities to enhance fine-motor skills; strengthen coordination and gross-motor skills through running, jumping, and throwing activities; improve balancing skills using hula hoops and balance beams; and offer healthful food choices for snacks and meals.
We encourage your child to think and create.
We provide numerous opportunities for your child to represent ideas through drawing and writing stories; invent unique dance moves; use props to dramatize stories; and express independent thinking and expression through art and music.
Developing Lasting Life Skills
We help them find the answers for themselves.
We encourage your children to think through and solve problems by investigating, estimating, and testing solutions; build daily outdoor activities into the schedule designed to get your child thinking and moving; and give your child many choices to participate in activities that interest and challenge them.


Library Open Repository
Inventing songs, inventing worlds: the 'genesis' of creative thought and activity in young children's lives
Barrett, MS (2006) Inventing songs, inventing worlds: the 'genesis' of creative thought and activity in young children's lives. International Journal of Early Years Education, 14 (3). pp. 201-220. ISSN 0966-9760
CIEY_A_187919_O...pdf | Request a copy
Full text restricted
Available under University of Tasmania Standard License.
This article draws on systems views of creativity and their application in music education, to argue that young children's independent invented song making evolves from their early musico-communicative interaction with others, is evidential of their capacity for elaboration, and is foundational in the development of creative thought and activity in music. The argument is explored through the analysis of data generated in a longitudinal study of young children's (aged four to six years) early music making as composers, song makers, and notators. Focusing specifically on children's invented song, the article provides case study analysis of the song making of a four-year-old girl that explores the musical and lyric content, and the environmental features (context) that support and shape her song making (process) and invented songs (product). The implications of such a view for early childhood theory and practice are discussed.
|Journal or Publication Title:||International Journal of Early Years Education|
|Page Range:||pp. 201-220|
|Identification Number - DOI:||10.1080/09669760600879920|
|Date Deposited:||27 Sep 2007|
|Last Modified:||18 Nov 2014 03:22|
|Item Statistics:||View statistics for this item|
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Saturday, October 9th, 2010 | technology | 4 Comments
A small school on the West Coast of South Africa did exceptionally well in the CAMI Speed Challenge, which was held in George yesterday and today. This school is Riverlands Primary, serving a rural community in the farmlands between Atlantis and Malmesbury.
The principal, Jonathan Saunders, accompanied 23 finalists to the event. The school has 242 learners, which means that nearly 10% of the school qualified as finalists for this challenge. In the semi-finals 46 learners participated – 20% of the school population.
Jonathan explained that the main reason for the school’s participation is to improve numeracy results. All learners, from Grade 1 through to Grade 8, are exposed to technology with a view to honing their mathematics skills. The top learners are then enrolled for the Speed Challenge. Overall, learners are helped to improve their ability to perform mental maths, including multiplication tables.
The principal is committed to improving education in a disadvantaged community. He said that one of the secondary benefits of participating in competitions of this nature is that it builds self-confidence in learners. They sit side by side with learners of the top schools of the country – and often beat them. This year Riverlands scored 1 first place in a grade, 2 second places and 2 third places – this equates to 5 medals!
The school received 20 computers from the Khanya Project, and won an interactive whiteboard in another competition a while ago. One Grade 8 boy, Lucien Titus (left on the picture above), is a keen computer user. He switches the computer, whiteboard and data projector on in the morning, and loads the required software for the day’s lessons before teaching starts. “He knows far more about technology than most of us,” one of his teachers said. “When we get stuck, he solves the problem for us.”
Aside from using technology to build mathematical proficiency, it is also used in other learning areas. For example, Grade 8 learners use presentation software to prepare and present oral work.
Many lessons can be learned from this school:
Wise use of technology can indeed lead to improved learner performance.
The lead of the principal is important.
When they get stuck teachers must not be scared to allow learners to help them.
Technology can serve as an equalizer in a system riddled with inequalities.
Well done Riverlands! I applaud Jonathan Saunders, his team of dedicated teachers and the bold learners of the school for demonstrating how technology can make a difference in a school.
For the Afrikaans version of this posting, click here.
Friday, October 8th, 2010 | Computer Usage | 4 Comments
The CAMI Speed Challenge has become a part of the annual education calendar of the Western Cape. The finals of Grades 1 to 7 of this mental mathematics speed challenge took place in a shopping mall in George today.
Learners in all parts of the province went through rounds of elimination over the past weeks and the finalists, with their teachers and supporters, arrived in throngs today to see who the champions are. Super prizes were sponsored for winners of first, second and third places in each grade.
This competion generates a great deal of enthusiasm every year. For months prior to the competition learners are allowed into computer facilities at all hours to practise for the event. The benefits are:
- increased use of computer facilities
- improvement of numeracy skills of individual learners
- improvement of overall numeracy performance of participating schools.
This event is not driven or sponsored by the education department – it is a purely private initiative. The Khanya Project applauds this type of private involvement, which underscores our motto: Together we can make it happen.
The finals of Grades 8 to 11 take place tomorrow.
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In this album we present a set of nautical songs and activities featuring sailors, fishing and sea travel. From the Musical Child Curriculum for 1-3 year-old children, Part 4 Bounce and Sing 1: Bouncing All Day Long.
Review: “I really enjoyed listening to the music – able to sing along and do actions – children enjoyed it too.” Child Care Professional, South Australia April 2011.
Musical Child is a publisher of music education resources to stimulate early learning through music. We provide all you need to teach music to toddlers and preschoolers. Why? Because researchers have proven that 'every child is a musical child' and if you don’t engage them after they turn one they might lose their natural musicality.
Bounce and Sing with 200 songs is a complete curriculum for children aged 1-3. Sing and Play with 170 songs is a complete curriculum for children aged 3-5 or even older.
We know that the best way to teach music to young children is through activities such as playing small instruments, finger plays, bounces, tickles and hand games, mimicry and movement, dance, drama and games. Resources available from our website include full descriptions of proven activities. In addition we provide a rationale and learning outcomes in language development. We also provide short scores and lyric charts for screen or wall.
Our songs and activities are used by teachers, childcare professionals and parents who understand that they are their child's first and most important teacher.


Henry the Heron couldn't stand still! He was always moving, and it drove everyone crazy! His brother and sister yelled at him for stepping on their heads, and Mom and Dad could barely get food into his little baby mouth. But herons have to stand still to catch their food, so how would Henry ever be able to eat on his own? In Henry, the Impatient Heron, Donna Love takes readers along with Henry as he learns a valuable lesson from the King of Camouflage! Hilarious and lighthearted illustrations by Christina Wald complement the important lesson in the text. It is a meaningful lesson for both herons and kids alike, which teaches the importance of just being still!
Written by Donna Love Illustrated by Christina Wald
32 pg, 10 x 8.5, Ages 4-8, Grades PK-3 Lexile: AD 760, AR: 4.4, RC: 4.3, F&P: N
Hardcover ISBN: 9781934359907, $16.95 Paperback ISBN: 9781607180357, $8.95
Educator Keywords: behavioral adaptation, heron, patience, predator, adaptations, life cycle
“Thanks to Donna Love’s attention to accuracy and details, Henry the Impatient Heron is not only a clever book that provides copious information about herons while simultaneously teaching a life-skills lesson - it is also a beautiful book. Illustrator Christina Wald carefully depicts the wetlands with attention to fish, amphibians, insects, and vegetation on every page.” - Epinions
“Young readers are going to enjoy this story because they are likely to understand firsthand the difficulty of staying still. Love's story does a great job of portraying both the negatives and positives of patience. Those lacking the finer patience skills will benefit from seeing how with a little effort we can all learn to be patient and therein tackle even our greatest challenges.” – Ready Set Read Reviews
“Small children are wiggle worms as well! They are always on the move, and the word ‘patience’ has yet to be added to their vocabulary. So they will be able to identify with and be delighted by this wonderful tale. Parents and teachers will also appreciate all the great educational information that is seamlessly interwoven into the captivating story—a trademark of all Sylvan Dell titles.” - The National Writing for Children Center
Donna Love is an award-winning author who lives in Montana, where her husband is a district ranger in the Lolo National Forest. Two of their three children are now in college. Donna's first books include Loons, Diving Birds of the North, and Awesome Ospreys, Fishing Birds of the World. Awesome Ospreys became a Skipping Stones Press Honor Award Winner in 2006, for promoting ecological understanding and cooperation around the world. With a background in art education, Donna substitute teaches at the elementary and high school level. Throughout her years as a substitute and while raising her own children, she found she had a gift for explaining nature to children. With the help of Henry the Impatient Heron and The Glaciers are Melting, she hopes to share that gift with others. Visit her Website.
In addition to illustrating A Cool Summer Tail, A Warm Winter Tail, Habitat Spy, Little Red Bat, and Henry the Impatient Heron for Arbordale, Christina Wald has illustrated for a wide variety of toys, games, books, and magazines. From a book that featured hundreds of animals on each page (Look, Find, and Learn: Animals of the World) to games including the Star Wars role playing game series, every assignment covers something new and exciting. In recent years, she has illustrated tons of different animals for books and other publications. Christina enjoys the research aspect of such projects, saying that each new book is a fascinating new learning experience. She often integrates travel to research for her illustrations. She lives in Ohio with her husband and three cats. Visit Christina's website.
Mom's Choice Awards Gold
Gelett Burgess Center Award 2011
2010, 2009 Florida Recommended Summer Reading List


What is Phonics Instruction?
The Importance of Teaching Phonics Lessons In Reading Programs
Phonics is connecting the letters (graphemes) of written language to the individual sounds (phonemes) of spoken language. It is learning the patterns of these letters and sounds to create words.
Research has shown that teaching phonics systematically and explicitly, helps students decode and read unknown words. It is the most effective instruction for teaching students to read at the word level. With the right type of phonics instruction this process becomes automatic and frees up a student’s mental energy from word analysis to meaning. This is essential for a student to become an efficient reader.
On this page you will find more information about why phonics is important and what type of phonics instruction is best. You will also find a framework for systematic phonics instruction and free online training in how to teach phonics explicitly and systematically to your students.
More Phonics Information:
Myth Buster: Phonics Instruction Isn't Important
The importance of phonics instruction is often debated although research has produced convincing results of its value. View article >
Implicit vs. Explicit Phonics
There is both an implicit and explicit approach to teaching phonics. This article explores the pro’s and con’s of both methods. View Article >
Systematic Phonics Sequence
The scope and sequence of the systematic Reading Horizons program. Learn more >
Learn How to Teach Phonics Systematically and Explicitly
Our FREE interactive, online workshop shows you how to teach phonics and trains you in the methods and tools that will ensure reading success in your classroom. Learn more >
Effectiveness of Phonics for an Intensive Remedial Program
Research results of Discover Intensive Phonics used as an intensive reading remediation for a six week summer program. Learn more >
How is Reading Horizons Different from Other Phonics Programs?
A list of key points showing how Reading Horizons is different than most other phonics programs on the market. Learn more >
Phonics and Fluency
Find out why systematic, explicit phonics instruction is necessary for true fluency to be achieved. View article >
Why Phonics for ELL/ESOL Students
Experts advocate teaching phonics to non-native English speakers. Learn more >


One Child, Two Languages: A Guide for Early Childhood Educators of Children Learning English as a Second Language, Volume 1
Today's early childhood educators are serving more children learning English as a second language than ever--in Head Start alone, nearly 30% of the children speak a language other than English at home.* To support second language learners and put them on the path to academic success, every teacher needs this popular, practical, and highly readable guidebook.
Reflecting 10 years of dramatic change in early education--especially in critical areas like assessment and cultural diversity--the second edition of this bestseller gives teachers up-to-date research, usable information, and essential tools to meet the needs of second language learners in today's learning environments. Leading researcher Patton Tabors equips teachers with the foundation of knowledge they need to
Teachers will also get updates on all the key topics covered in the first edition, including working with parents, understanding the process of second-language acquisition, and using the curriculum and classroom organization to facilitate English language and literacy learning. Ideal for professional development, this book is the best tool a teacher can have to support the language and literacy development and school success of second language learners while honoring their home languages and cultures.*English Language Learners Focus Group Report, 2002
Get practical strategies on the accompanying DVD, One Child, Two Languages in Action.A featured book in our Launching Literacy Kit!
See which domain of school readiness in the Head Start Child Development and Early Learning Framework this book addresses.
84 pages matching English-language classroom in this book
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What people are saying - Write a review
Review: One Child, Two Languages: A Guide for Early Childhood Educators of Children Learning English as a Second Language, Second EditionUser Review - Lauri - Goodreads
Amazing book filled with ideas and approaches for any early-childhood teacher who has English language learners in the classroom. Strong research-based guidelines are described in a highly readable way. I highly recommend this book! Read full review
Review: One Child, Two Languages: A Guide for Early Childhood Educators of Children Learning English as a Second Language, Second EditionUser Review - Amie Jordan - Goodreads
An excellent resource for the early years classroom with ESL learners. I refer back to this book frequently. Read full review
Juliana and Byongsun
Chapter Three Getting Started in a Second Language
Chapter Six Using Information Communication
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Education Through Music (ETM) partners with inner-city schools to provide music as a core subject for all children, and utilizes music education as a catalyst to improve academic achievement, motivation for school, and self-confidence.
Education Through Music believes:
- Every child deserves access to high-quality music education, taught by qualified and well-trained music teachers
- Music should support learning in other key areas, including math, science and language arts
- Engaged parents and school communities are key to the success of students
ABOUT EDUCATION THROUGH MUSIC
Education Through Music was founded to promote the integration of music into the curricula of disadvantaged schools in order to enhance students' academic performance and general development.
At ETM, we believe that every child deserves a well-rounded education: one that includes music. Unfortunately, many schools, especially those serving children in low-income communities, provide no music instruction or rely solely on short-term programs that do not serve every student. ETM created a comprehensive program that incorporates music into the education of every child, including those with special needs.
ETM forms long-term partnerships with inner-city elementary and middle schools that lack the resources to develop school-wide music programs. We ensure high-quality instruction by hiring qualified music teachers, providing ongoing training, and performing regular program assessments. We encourage classroom teachers and music teachers to collaborate so that music can reinforce learning and development in all areas. And we help schools embrace music as a core subject by involving all members of the school community.
Our program has succeeded from the start: ETM's first partner school won a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence Award from the U.S. Department of Education. ETM has since gone on to receive numerous awards and recognitions.
A further measure of our success is our growing national presence. In addition to maintaining partnerships with New York City schools, ETM provides advisory services to organizations and schools around the United States and has licensed one affiliate organization to replicate our model in Los Angeles.
Education Through Music Fact Sheets


Art and music programs in public schools provide much more than a break from academics or a fun extracurricular activity. According to the advocacy organization Americans for the Arts, arts education can help kids to stay in and succeed in school. While there is little debate that students who consistently take art and music classes during high school have better academic and personal outcomes, budget cuts often win out and eliminate these programs. From finding other sources of money to private fund-raising, there are ways teachers and families can save the arts in school.
If you think that your child or your school is entitled to have arts education programs, you may need to think again. Although, according to Americans for the Arts, the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act includes the arts as "core academic subjects," schools may push painting, orchestra, band and other similar programs aside in favor of reading, writing and math classes. In a Common Core survey of 1,001 third- through 12th-grade educators, 66 percent of teachers believe that subjects such as the arts are being downsized due to an overwhelming emphasis on language arts and mathematics. Between the increasingly higher importance on the more "academic" subjects and less money to spend on education, it isn't surprising that schools are seeing major cuts to art and music programs.
Before jumping to the conclusion that arts funding equals money for supplies or equipment, keep in mind that professional development opportunities provide a valuable tool for teachers to learn about new methods and best instructional practices, Cuts in art and music programs often mean that teacher training is eliminated due to a lack of funding. Instead of throwing in the towel, schools, administrators and individual educators can apply for grants that go directly toward professional development funding. If your school won't pay for a workshop at the local art museum or to have a professional musician come to in-service training, the U.S. Department of Education's Arts in Education program for Professional Development for Arts Educators provides thousands of dollars -- the individual amounts vary depending on the school, program and availability of funds -- for teacher training. Additionally, smaller grants and awards, such as the National Art Education Association's $2,500 Ruth Halvorsen Professional Development Grant, can help out when budget cuts come into play.
When schools threaten to cut art and music from the curriculum, it often means there simply isn't enough money to pay teachers and buy supplies. One solution to arts program cuts is to find alternative sources of funding. Similar to finding funding for professional development, government and private grant money can help to keep a fragile arts program afloat. For example, the National Endowment for the Arts provides funding for art education programs that are standards-based and reach children ages 5 through 18. Likewise, other organizations -- for instance, the National Art Education Association -- offer funding, such as the Teacher Incentive Grant, for educators to use for implementing and assessing school art programs.
Private Sources and Fundraising
What happens if your school cuts its arts funding and you can't find a grant that fits your needs? Don't discount your own fundraising efforts or your ability to find funds from private sources. Start small with a student-led community effort. For example, if the school cuts the funding for your art club -- leaving you no money to take an annual trip to the museum -- stage a community art show and auction off the student's work to solve your problem. Take a look at how the PTA, sports associations and other school-related groups get together and raise funds, and learn through their efforts. Sell candy bars, have a car wash or throw a fundraising event to contribute to your school's art and music programs. While these methods most likely won't pay a teacher's salary or buy the band all new instruments, they can help to supplement a dwindling budget or allow the students to participate in arts-related activities such as competitions, recitals and field trips.
- Americans for the Arts: Arts Education Navigator: Facts & Figures
- Common Core: Learning Less: Public School Teaches Describe a Narrowing Curriculum
- U.S. Department of Education: Arts in Education -- Professional Development for Arts Educators
- National Art Education Association: NAEF Investing
- National Endowment for the Arts: Arts Education
- Brand X Pictures/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images


Baby Music: Will Mozart Make Your Baby Smarter?
Filed under: Babies
You've got the car seat installed, the diaper bag packed and the nursery is finally painted and decorated. But have you been busy introducing your baby to classical music?
Studies have found playing your baby music composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart may help elevate spatial reasoning during fetal development and in children up to 3 years old. But can showering the womb and your newborn with "Symphony No. 40 in G minor" and "The Magic Flute" really help start your child on a path to genius?
And what about The Beatles? Many consider the Fab Four to be musical geniuses in their own right. Could a serenade of "Blackbird," which incorporates elements of Bach's "Bourree in E minor," have a similar effect?
The so-called Mozart Effect was first conceived at the University of California, Irvine, in 1993 during research on Mozart's effect on college students taking the Stanford-Binet IQ test. Those results showed a temporary improvement in spatial-temporal reasoning by students who listened to Mozart compositions for 10 minutes prior to taking the test. The results sparked a phenomenon of Mozart baby music and government programs designed to expose newborns and infants to classical music.
However, other research, such as a recent University of Vienna study, has concluded that playing your baby music by Mozart, Bach or even Pearl Jam to increase intelligence simply may be a myth.
Yes, some studies have shown increased performance by rats in mazes after listening to a few Mozart sonatas, and plants have behaved differently when exposed to classical and rock music. But babies are neither rats, nor plants.
Parents should be cautious of over-stimulating fetuses and newborns when exposing them to music, some experts warn. Baby development studies have stated that over-stimulation can have a negative effect by interfering with sleep and causing an overabundance of stress hormones in the brain. And, as in most things in life, moderation is recommended.
And, if you like your Beatles and Bach and hope your baby will too, although there is no definitive agreement on the positive aspects of playing your baby music during fetal development, scientists have yet to prove that slipping some headphones on your tummy for some soft in-utero lullabies is damaging.
Experts suggest the best approach may be to just relax and enjoy music as you normally would and let your relaxed state carry over to the baby naturally. Avoiding loud volumes and long listening situations is advised, though.
What seems to be more definitive is an accepted agreement by researchers on the positive effects of music exposure, as it relates to overall brain development. Long-term studies have shown that music education and participation over time have resulted in higher verbal, math, reading and science scores on tests, better overall emotional development and an increased ability in dealing with anxiety issues. Music exposure may even help contribute to your child having a better chance at being accepted into medical school.
Cue "The Marriage of Fiagro." It couldn't hurt.
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