I never force a child to join and they are welcome to observe from the side, or continue to keep playing quietly. I hum “come and make a circle” and we begin to pack away for singing time. In our class, we use a short singing time to end our session together.
#MUSIC SHELF IDEAS KINDERGARTEN FREE#
In a Montessori class, we like the child to have long uninterrupted work periods where the child is free to choose what they work on and can reach deep concentration rather than being disturbed for group activities throughout the session. You could have a variety of instruments in a large basket or a table with a variety of musical instruments. I generally have out instruments that are played in different ways, for example something you can shake, eg, maraccas something you can strike, eg, a drum or triangle etc. In our class, I have a shelf dedicated to music with a basket or tray for each instrument including any beater that may be needed. I’ve seen musical instruments be displayed in various ways. – Judi Orion, Montessori trainer How should I display instruments in my home? Just as the child must have a desire to speak to learn spoken language1, we must foster in the child that music is a way of expressing feelings and thoughts inside us – a way of communicating – and support their musical expressions.” However, my favourite moments are when I copy the child’s movements, we play the same rhythm, we stop at the same time, we start playing again together, we smile.Īfter all, playing music is a creative expression without rules.
Sometimes I sing along as the child plays an instrument.
#MUSIC SHELF IDEAS KINDERGARTEN HOW TO#
However, it can be useful to show them how to make the sound of a guiro, rubbing the stick along the ridges, or how to hold a triangle so that it can vibrate more easily. The instruments I have chosen are intuitive to play, the children learn from watching the others, and I don’t want to be too prescriptive in how a child makes music. I find that I don’t need to give many formal presentations of the musical instruments in our classroom. How should I show my child how to play the instruments? * if you use these links, a small amount of the proceeds goes to Jacaranda Tree Montessori at no cost to you :)
#signsofsummerĪfter all these years of writing blog posts, I don’t think I have ever written about the music area of the classroom. We can at last feel it – summer is just around the corner! I have a suitcase of clothing in the language corner of our classroom and I was finally able to retire the rainboots and rainclothes for this year, and replace them with the swimmers, sunhat, tshirt, flip flops and swimming arm bands.