Elk Ridge Music Curriculum
Becoming Tuneful, Beatful, and Artful
In the White River School District Music Program, we have embraced the music curriculum by John M. Feierabend.
First Steps in Music & Conversational Solfege.
First Steps in Music
For our kindergartners and 1st graders (and sometimes even 2nd grade) we use Feierabend's First Steps in Music. This curriculum is designed to prepare children to become musical in three ways:
1) Tuneful - to have tunes in their heads and learn to coordinate their voices to sing those tunes.
2) Beatful - to feel the pulse of music
3) Artful - to be moved by music in the many ways music can elicit an emotional response.
Within this curriculum, Feierabend has designed a "musical workout" that helps grow tuneful, beatful, and artful individuals. And, like an aerobics class, in the beginning some participants will likely be clumsy in some aspects of the workout, but if they give it their best, they are bound to improve! And, like an aerobics workout, the more one participates, the better the effect.
Conversational Solfege
For our 2nd - 5th graders, we use Feierabend's Conversational Solfege curriculum. This design is based off the same one "which is advocated for the teaching of foreign languages (or even one's own initial language). Once should learn with his/her ears before learning with his/her eyes." We learn to listen and speak before we learn how to read and write. Learning musical skills will be taught with the same method using this curriculum .
More About the Author: John M. Feierabend
(click on the two sites below)
White River School District attending a session taught by John Feierabend at the WMEA state conference.
