Article Topics
Poetry Connection, Andrea Stark

Poetry and Teens, Penelope Torribio

Writing is Not Writing, Penelope Torribio

Spelling Word Stories, Penelope Torribio

Puppets in the Classroom, Carol Green
Using Puppets in Middle School, Judy

Why Should Teachers Become Puppeteers

You Don't Have to Be a Professional Puppeteer

Ventriloquism and Literacy

Art in the Classroom, Sharon Edwards

Music and Education

Children and Adolescents: the Poetry Connection

BRINGING WORDS TO LIFE / AND LIFE TO WORDS
Andrea Stark, poetry teacher at The Sycamores, a residence for troubled youths.
She encourages her students to write poetry and helps them get published.
She has made an impact on many students' lives in the Classroom

An article for Teachers and Parents it's about expression. It's about control. It's about personal freedom. It's about language. Poetry. Poetry in the classroom. What can it do for your students? Is it just another day of abab rhyme scheme full of cliches? Is it just another writing exercise? How on earth do you get those students interested in poetry in the first place? Are the styles of Dr. Suess or Jack Prelutsky the only ones of interest to our younger students?

The first topic to tackle is why have poetry in the classroom? Why write a poem about the Fourth of July in history class, or describe in poetic form what a plant looks like in biology? How could this help with learning and or retention?

Well, first and foremost it is an art form that requires that a student think differently than usual. It requires that the student use a different part of the brain. Remember all the left brain vs. right brain materials that were published not long ago? Remember Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain? Great ideas such as this encourage the use of both sides of the brain for learning. This supports the idea that approaching school work in different ways and gaining a different perspective on the work can help with comprehension and understanding. It may very well help a student having difficulty with a topic with feel that they can relate to and subsequently comprehend that difficult topic. Students who may not excel in other language arts may find a renewed sense of ability when writing in poetic form. They may be able to express themselves better in poetic form than in any other.

I have witnessed that working with poetry helps give new expression to everyday ideas, allows a freedom of expression that is not found in other writing arts, creates a heightened sense of language, and helps develop personal style which can lead to healthy feelings of individuality.

All this from poetry? Yep.

I currently teach poetry and creative writing to a population of level 14 boys in Southern California. Level 14 boys are one step away from incarceration and represent a small but unfortunately growing population of our American youth. These boys do not have traditional homes and suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, Suicidal Ideation, Psychosis, and other issues created through abuse, neglect, and abandonment. Some of these boys have difficulty sitting down in one spot for longer than 60 seconds and frequently cannot do even that. These boys are frequently oppositional and verbally abusive. These boys can be quite violent.

These boys are writing poetry.

In fact these boys have had their pieces published in a student anthology that sponsors a national poetry contest for students. The best successes have been with the most difficult to reach boys. With minimal coaching they are able to express a great depth of feeling and an incredible range of creative thought. They have found great pride in their work and lasting feelings of accomplishment. Many have written about feelings that had gone unexpressed in therapy and have led them to make great self-discoveries or disclosures that were extremely useful in their lives. These boys not always open to the idea of writing poetry but once introduced to it were very willing to try. They are brining life to words.

So now, secondly, how do you do it? How do you get those students interested in writing poetry? My suggestion is first to read poetry. Get the students exposed to more of what they have already seen. It is likely that they have some of Dr. Suess',Shel Silverstein's or Jack Prelutskly's work. Bring in all those books and let the students see how prolific these writers are. These works never seem to fail to get the attention of any audience. Have the students read these poems aloud and bring the words to life! Introduce poetry in the manner that is most easy for your students to digest. Then start to bring in different forms of poetry. Show them Haiku, show them Sonnets, show then Epic, show them modern. Let them know that poetry is a highly valued art form that is as old as any other art they know, possibly older. Show them poems written by students their age and older. Let them know about poetry contests for their age range and get them inspired!

Then, let them write. There are so many exercises that make writing poetry fun and accessible to the younger student. First poetry exercises can be as simple and lovely as writing a description in single word sentences of their favorite toy, or animal. They can create a Name Poem, where each letter of their name is the first letter of a descriptive word about them. They can write about a feeling and describe it with colors and shapes. They can write a poem for a particular holiday. They can write a traditional Haiku and count syllables and sounds. (a good exercise for any age)

Following a set of rules and coming up with a creative product is the challenge of poetry. Just as the creation of a watercolor, or any specific visual art technique requires adherence to a set of rules, so do certain forms of poetry. Using a structure often makes it much easier for a student. Rather than offering "Write about anything you wish", which can be daunting, offering the tight styles of traditional Haiku can give students an alluring challenge--a challenge that can be very fun to tackle.

Writing about a feeling is also a good introductory exercise. The form can be open or you can challenge them with a style. A theme for the day can be an inspiring idea. The students can provide the theme or you can be prepared with one. Examples of themes are: Seasons, Favorite Music, World Peace, Love, Friendship, A Life Experience, etc.

Some students will need coaching and assistance. I have actually been the scribe for some of my students and had them simply speak what they were feeling about a particular theme or emotion. I then show them what they have dictated and they entitle it. I also have them work on editing it into a form if they wish. They have complete control and are never edited. I will also ask them to take a descriptive sentence they have written and pare it down into images and emotions. In this way I can get them to understand the basic notion of this form of poetry in comparison prose.

The greatest element about poetry and its use in the classroom is that poetry is an art form that specifically uses written language. In an age where students are graduating from High School and are unable to write a coherent sentence, poetry can be of great use. If a student can look at a modern poem and understand the minimal use of language that it features, then he or she will likely be able to tackle other language forms with better alacrity.

I emphatically encourage all teachers to include poetry in their curriculum. It can only enhance the learning process and help to create new understandings. It truly does bring words to life and life to words. In addition to all that, it is incredibly fun.

(For information about a wonderful on-line poetry contest created by teachers for students, please take a look at Creative Communication. I have found it to be useful and powerful in the teaching of poetry. (I am not a part of this organization.) There is also on-line information about Teen Poetry Slams, which are amazing!)

Penelope's experience with poetry kids and teens.

Over the four years that I worked at Charter Psychiatric Hospital, in crisis care, I have taught hundreds of children and adolescents.
I was amazed at how many kids write poetry on their own.

If my days stopped,
you would walk past.
Often I wish and dream of the angels.
From a students poetry journal-Charter

If student after student are filling journals with poems,
it must be that they have a need to express their feelings, emotions,
and perspectives in the language of poetry.

Teaching poetry to youths requires trust. Your students need to know that they can share their poetry and not feel criticized for their style or their content.
But without guidance students will grow to recognize their limitations in their ability to express themselves and/or to change their thoughts, emotions, and perspective.
Their poetry will stop and a window will close.

Writing is not Writing
by Penelope Torribio

I think that one of the biggest problems in teaching writing is that we use the same term for the act of forming letters, for the process of spelling and grammar, as we do the creation of the communication. They are not the same thing at all. We know that there are many people who can not write-- due to handicaps or other reasons-- and yet they are great writers, they are great communicators. When students are convinced of this, writing--communication-- greatly improves. I learned about the power of oral group writing, many years ago, when I was substitute teaching in a 2nd grade class. It was February. The students were to write a paragraph at the beginning of the day. I was amazed at the quality of writing, every student was writing complex sentences,filled with delightful adjectives and adverbs. When I went back to that school to substitute for another teacher, I immediately sought out that 2nd grade teacher and asked her why were her students writing so well as 2nd graders. I have seen 8th graders who could write paragraphs as well as her students. She told me that until January she did not ask her student to write sentences or paragraphs. Every day they would write a paragraph on the board, together,as a group. They would make it the most colorful paragraph they could, with as much description as they could pour into it. In January they would get to write their own paragraphs. The group then moved to writing group stories. together, on the black board, making these stories the most exciting and descriptive as they possibly could. I had seen the amazing results of this kind of teaching and began to incorporate it into my own teaching.

At Charter Hospital I taught K-8th in one classroom. Many of the young children were ADDH and were definitely of all different academic levels. I had to find ways of teaching that would cross all of the different grades and abilities. The group story turned out to be one of the most fun and effective techniques. I found out that every student took ownership of the story, that they were individually proud of what had been created, no matter how much or little they had contributed. In addition group story writing built a group identity and often the story included the names of the students in the group.

Spelling Word Stories

Here is an example of a great technique. It is particularly good in a class with kids that have different spelling lists. Since I had relatively small classes I would have each student pick a word from his or her spelling list. We would put all the words on the board and write a group story containing all of these words. Following is a real example.

precaution, resurfaced, pond, test, socks, bewildered, rock, eight, dived, night, bent, assistant, animals, sight, completely, real, mounted

It is a cool night. The trees are swaying gently in the breeze. The moon is bright and yellow and completely full. There, in the moonlight, shines a giant greenish pond. A huge, flat, weathered rock crouches like a tremendous frog at the edge of the water. It casts its black shadow across the pond. A unicorn, white as snow, with its golden horn sparkling in the moonlight drinks from the pond. Nearby eight children are camping. Sal said, "We need water to wash the dishes." The children raced towards the pond. They stopped suddenly, bewildered by the sight of the unicorn drinking. Everyone had told them that these animals were imaginary. A young bull frog dived into the deepest end of the pond. He resurfaced in time to catch a dragon fly.
Sal said, "Let's take precaution so that we don't scare the unicorn away. I need an assistant. Robert stepped up. "Take your shoes and socks off," Sal whispered. "We'll walk through the water." Jason asked, "How can we test if it is real? Maybe we are dreaming or something." Sal bent down and picked some alfalfa grass and gave some to Robert. "If it eats this, its real. Then if the horn's real, it is a unicorn! " exclaimed Sal.

Robert and Sal crept through the water, around the large weathered rock, hiding in its shadow. They approached the unicorn, holding out the long fresh alfalfa stock. The unicorn nibbled at the grass. Sal touched the golden horn. "It's real!" he said. All of the children gathered around the white unicorn. It neighed softly, almost like a laugh. Then seven unicorns, each white as snow, with their golden horns shining in the moonlight, stepped out of the dark woods. Each kid stood by a unicorn, then mounted and rode off into the moonlight.

Elementary Class, Charter

Puppets in the Classroom
"Carol Greene"

I used my puppets from the first day that I taught. If you aren't using your puppets in the classroom, you're missing a great opportunity. The kids will actually listen to your puppet and REMEMBER the info the puppet teaches. You don't have to prepare a dialogue beforehand either. My puppets have taught math, given sentences for spelling tests, etc. Just start talking to the puppet and the puppet will take over. You think I'm kidding? No way.... Kids nowadays are used to being entertained by TV, special effects in the movies, gorgeous illustrations in books, etc. How boring to them for a teacher to stand up there and just teach. The minute the puppets started teaching, interest went way up and so did their grades. Parents were very pleased. I dropped in on Frank Frazee who lives in the state of Washington a few years ago just as school let out for the day. (We were driving up to Seattle do visit my daughter.) He had all kinds of pictures, etc. about vent up in his classroom. He uses his puppets too.

WHY SHOULD TEACHERS BECOME PUPPETEERS?

In South East Asia, for centuries upon centuries puppet shows were the most honored and primary tool for transmitting history, religion, culture, ethics, politics and social behavior. Puppetry was recognized as a grand teaching tool. Puppets are inherently interesting, often humorous, and first-rate story tellers. They bring focus and interest to subject matter, they teach without the students recognizing they are being taught.

But puppetry in the classroom can be more than story telling and fun. Today, teachers are facing the challenge of instructing children with diverse needs and abilities. Students once placed in special classes for physical, mental, psychological and behavioral disabilities, are now being placed in the regular classroom, and this is in addition to students who speak different languages and come from different cultures. Teachers have to communicate and educate children of varying abilities and achievement levels.

How do you correct behavior in a group without bringing direct negative attention to a child? How do you repeat primary concepts without boring those who understand the concept, or making those who don't, feel stupid? How can you talk about delicate subjects in a comfortable, non-threatening manner? How can you introduce difficult concepts in a fun way? How can you bring warmth and humor and unity to a classroom of student who are so diverse? There are many ways to do these. But teaching with puppets is one of the easiest and most fun.

calendar and clayed
Clyde is a mascot puppet.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A PROFESSIONAL PUPPETEER

You don't have be a ventriloquist. I have always moved my lips when using puppets. Children, and adult for that matter, find themselves looking and talking to the puppet, not the puppeteer.

You don't have to have a lot of different voices. For years, my daughters use to say all my puppets had the exact same high-pitched puppet voice. But somehow when the puppet was speaking the kids didn't notice that the voice was the same as that of the last puppet.

You don't have to have a lot of puppets. In Mary Freericks and Joyce Segal's book, Creative Puppetry in the Classroom, they write:

"At first, don't be concerned about having large numbers of puppets. Begin with one puppet. One puppet can serve more than one subject. If you have made or acquired a walrus puppet, for example, how many ways can you think of making use of such a puppet? An obvious use might be literature, to illustrate the Walrus and the Carpenter from Alice in Wonderland. In a science unit he might be used to encourage the study of warm-blooded sea animals. How about mathematics? Would the walrus's weight be interesting to use in converting pounds into metric tons? In music, the walrus might serve as an excellent basso profundo voice, demonstrating deep notes. If you leave the walrus puppet on the shelf, the children will think up uses that you might not even have considered. In a political skit, they may turn the walrus into a pompous official. Once a sturdy, well-made puppet joins your class, his value may surprise you."

Freericks and Segal talk about the mascot puppet.. "The mascot puppet is one that stays in the classroom or library all year. He introduces new activities and people. He takes part in the daily routine of a class." The mascot puppet was how I started using puppets to reach and teach children. Finding a mascot puppet is worth its weight in gold. A mascot puppet can be bought, or it can be made. It can take many forms, animal, monster or human, but it has to be lovable and it helps if it is soft and furry and not too little.

THE POWER OF THE PUPPET

I was asked to teach a class of severely emotionally disturbed, five through eight year olds in a Los County Department of Education program. The students were categorized as " dangerous to themselves and others", kicking, biting, hitting, throwing things, self-mutilation, suicide attempts-bizarre behavior was the norm. Interest in reading, writing, and arithmetic was very low. Love of themselves and trust of adults was also very low. How could I deal with very violent behavior in a soft and caring manner? How could I get them to focus on learning? How could I get them to trust me and to begin to learn that they were lovable? How could I teach them to relate to their peers in a positive manner? These were only some of the questions I asked myself.

It was at this time that I bought my first puppet which the class named Popcorn Bear. He had this name because he gave out popcorn after successful reading lessons. This bear had arms you could put your arms into. He could pat kids on the head, hug them, lead them along in their reading lessons, his furry paws under a sentence.
         Popcorn Bear was not always good. He sometime forgot how to behave and the kids had to remind him, thinking of better decisions. Popcorn Bear was integrated into many subject areas, both academic and social. He could listen to things that children couldn't tell adults. He belonged to this class and because of that was a unifying factor. Popcorn Bear taught me the power of the puppet.

LEARN TO TRUST THE PUPPET

The hardest thing about a mascot puppet is you don't have a script. What is your puppet going to say? Well the first thing I can tell you is that he can say--very little. One of the best tools of the puppet is silence. You say something and he looks at you incredulously like, "Today you are going to learn about division." The mascot just looks at you, looks at the class, looks at his feet, looks at the ceiling. The kids knows how he feels. They are laughing.

Then he might add, "No way Jose!" This give you the chance to explain why he needs to know the concept and that you are going to help him until he understands it.

The second thing I will tell you is that you have to learn to trust the puppet. This is the most difficult thing a teacher will have to learn. Edgar Bergen said that he never knew what Charlie McCarthy was going to say. He said that the puppet seemed to have a mind and a voice of its own. I have found this to be true. When you have on that mascot puppet--he will say things you never thought of before. You don't always have to know what to say, but to use the puppet effectively and to help you say the right things, you must identify the behavioral objectives you are after. When I used puppets to teach, I often jot down in my daily plan book what I want the puppet to accomplish. Now there will be times when the mascot puppet teaches off the cuff, so to speak. But you will gain confidence and will have evidence that your puppetry is more than mere entertainment, if most of the time you know what it is you are trying to teach.

CLASSROOM PUPPETRY

Only on rare occasions do I let students use the mascot. He has a personality that I have given him and he has the purpose or purposes that I have given him. In a sense he is me. I break this rule whenever I want to, but when I do, it is for a good reason and it is very controlled. This policy has the added benefit of extending the life of the puppet. The students, of course, will want to use the puppet, and because of this, they are primed for learning-filled puppet projects.

There are many important lessons to be learned through classroom puppet projects. How much students learn will be in direct relationship to what the teacher knows. Children, in general, do not have an innate ability to bring puppets to life. This is evidenced by the lifeless puppets stuck in the corner of many elementary classrooms, puppets seldom touched by the students. Teachers who are not puppeteers first, who can not lead their students into their projects, greatly reduce the value the students get from such projects.

HOW DOES A TEACHER BECOME A PUPPETEER?

How do teachers develop as puppeteers? The major way is through trial and error, using puppets to teach. But teachers can be greatly helped by puppet organizations like:

Los Angeles Guild of Puppetry
UNIMA, international puppetry organization
Puppeteers of America Children's Resource Center
North American Association of Ventriloquists

Great Ideas from Educators

Judy, using puppets in middle school

Penelope, You reminded me of something that happened when I taught SED boys. These middle schoolers already had criminal records and thought they were too tough. I made some simple moving mouth puppets (ethnically diverse, of course) and put them on a table on the side of the room. The boys started to notice them, and I heard comments like "I ain't playin' with NO dolls." I didn't say anything. I had to leave the room for a few minutes and had another teacher stay with them. When I returned, the boys had the puppets on their arms and were singing "We Are the World." I was so touched I cried. Other teachers came by and stood in silence and awe. It was one of the magical moments that keeps me teaching.

Judy

Thank you Judy for your inspiring story.

Using Ventriloquism to Reach and Teach Challenged Learners

Why Ventriloquism?

1. It requires only 1 figure or puppet and 1 ventriloquist-no props, no other
students, not even a teacher.

2. It allows educators to re-teach phonics in a new and novel way--without
moving your mouth.

3. It teaches students with reading challenges to break words up into syllables.

4. It works on communication skills. Many Challenged learners have problems with communication. Rick Levoie of ldonline.com says that
many learning Challenged students do not know how to ask questions, to
show empathy and must be deliberately taught communication skills. This
is a fun and unique way.

5. It is a great way to introduce social skills or academics.

6. Good ventriloquism is writing. If you teach students to be
good ventriloquists, you must teach writing.

7. There is a need for more ventriloquists in the world, so it is
occupation and hobby training.

8. This automatically brings fun, laughter and joy into the classroom.
There is much research on the benefits of laughter in everyone's life.
(Laughter Research)

Ventriloquism basics:
Did you know that there are only FIVE letters in the alphabet that require your lips to say them? Here they are

:
B, F, M, P, and V!

"Hey," you say, "What about W?" Well, you're right. W takes special practice to learn to say, too. But it's not considered an "explosive," meaning it doesn't require lips or teeth coming together to create the sound, like a B or F.
Anyway, because there are only 5 letters that require lips to say them, this means ANYBODY can say "Hi, how are you?" without moving their lips. Try it. See? If you keep your jaw steady and your lips from moving, you just said your first sentence ventriloquist!
.
. F = th as in thin
. V = th as in there
. M = ng as in thing
. P = t or k or th as in F
. B = d or hard g
. Take a deep breath, then slowly let it out as your puppet speaks. You develop your diaphragm and learn to project your voice when you do ventriloquism. Ask your puppet questions, and have the puppet answer. It's amazing what your puppets will tell you!

You can use either a soft hand puppet or a hard vent figure.

Improving Literacy in children and teens.

The primary focus of this area is to improve students' abilities to think, to communicate and to write.

We have some great ideas by educators and artist in this area and we encourage other writers and artists
to share their ideas 1 World Education.  So this is going to be like a blogg. 

Some thoughts from Penelope, author and creative writing teacher.

I don't have any idea why we use the word write in so many ways. We write our letters-print, cursive. We write our name and we write the alphabet. Writing seems to includes spelling and grammar, fiction, nonfiction, journalism, poetry, songwriting, script writing, novel writing, filling out forms and more. We definitely need to find more distinctive and descriptive words for the various meanings of the word write or writing. Maybe something like composition for the thinking that leads to writing-but this word seems a little sterile for such an exciting process. Do you have any ideas?

When we use the word write so broadly, it is hard to remember that you don't need to physically know how to write and you don't need to know how to spell or punctuate, after all the early literature was based on oral storytellers. Even today there are some writers t who are unable to hold a pencil and yet they write, like Stephen Hawking, the great theoretical physicist and noted author.

To me writing is about learning to see our world in a deep and imaginative way and to communicating our thoughts, ideas, and imaginings to others in a non-spontaneous manner.
By this I mean it is not just talking, but crafting what we say and the way we say it.

I hear a lot of teachers and writers say that reading is the best road to good writing.
Reading, of course, is an important tool of writers, but being a good reader does not
automatically make you a good writer. There are many excellent readers who are not confident writers.

Another belief is that if you write enough, you will become a good writer. But many college graduates who have done tons of writing still do not consider themselves good writers.
It takes more than reading or writing to make a good writer. When I began to study writing I was amazed to find that many great and noted writers continue to study the craft of writing
all of theirs lives. So in order to help our students learn to be good "writers" we have to know how to teach kids to think like writers and we have to become better writers ourselves.
This--as most writers know--is a life long process. Fortunately it can also be very fun, enlightening and maybe it will lead us to having a powerful effect on others.

Art With Children by Shauna Edwards
I have been teaching children for over 14 years and I have never experienced any activity that impacts children more than directed drawing. All children are successful! The best part about teaching directed drawing is that children that are not able to attend in other areas of curriculum are 100% successful in art. The children with special needs in my classroom are all successful and proud of their accomplishments. I am convinced that directed drawing is a pathway into the minds of our children that have learning difficulties in school. I venture to say that I could take any special needs student and use this style of teaching and reach them in ways that have never been discovered. I am so excited about teaching art. Directed drawing envelops every area of curriculum and seems to open parts of the brain that have not been tapped into. I see a permanent transformation in the lives of children that transfers into many areas of their lives. I see their faces light up from the glow of their internal being that has been awakened. The parents of these children are awed at their children's work. From parents, I receive comments like, "My child would not even pick up a pencil, but now he will draw anything with confidence." "My daughter was intimidated by his older brother because he could draw so well, now my daughter draws with confidence." Best of all, my students are empowered and confident in a new way. Shauna Edwards Educator

Do you remember songs from when you were very young?

Do you remember TV advertisement songs from when you were very young?

Children listen to music and make that music a part of them, forever.

For children, music not only entertains, but teaches,

whether it is deliberate or not.

.

I have a number of people emailing questions regarding brain research, music and behavioral transformation. It is difficult to find this kind of research because 1) brain research is still expensive and little research is done outside of the medical field and 2) it is difficult to say for positive what is the cause and effect of improvement in learning.  I think the best think the best way to find out whether music education, in terms of singing, improves learning and positively effect the social emotional atmosphere in the classroom is to try it, to set up your own experiment. Teachers say they don't have time.  Many music and art experiences, especially singing a song together takes minutes, not hours and from my experiences reduces behavior intervention, so it takes no time away from study.

Still there are some efforts to establish the link between music education--and I'm focusing not on instrumental music, but listen to and singing songs in the classroom.  Hope this is inspirational.

http://www.elpcorp.com/content.cfm?page_id=268
Florida Center for Reading Research Report

Songs for Teaching
  2007 Using Music to Promote Learning
6632 Telegraph Rd. #242
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48301

This research is about an award winning software program based on singing.  More research is in the offing.

Based on two years of research, the Tune In to Reading singing software program helps students improve in all five areas of reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Electronic Learning Products (ELP) is a software platform company that uses its real time pitch tracking and speech recognition technology to create products for an increasing wide range of educational purposes.

There's a growing body of research exploring links between music, memory and language, and we're tremendously excited that neuroscientists from MIT and Harvard are embarking on a study with dyslexic students using our software. They will use functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging machines to take "brain maps" showing exactly what happens inside young brains when students use our software.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20050524/ai_n14639418">FindArticles - MIND & BODY: HEALTHY LIVING SINGING: Hitting the high notes

Robert Beck, Irvine's assistant professor of education, who carried out the study with Dr Tom Cesario, dean of the university's college of medicine writes 'The more passionate you feel while singing, the greater the effect,' says Beck. 'Secretory immunoglobulin protein is associated with emotional arousal and mood, relaxation and sense of humor. If singing leads to higher levels of IgA, then it's beneficial to your health, as we know that heightened levels of this protein are effective in the immune system.'

Musical medicine
http://www.heartresearch.org.uk/Singing_is_good_for_you.htm

Professor Graham Welch, Chair of Music Education at the Institute of Education, University of London, who has studied developmental and medical aspects of singing for 30 years says, “The health benefits of singing are both physical and psychological. Singing has physical benefits because it is an aerobic activity that increases oxygenation in the blood stream and exercises major muscle groups in the upper body, even when sitting. Singing has psychological benefits because of its normally positive effect in reducing stress levels through the action of the endocrine system which is linked to our sense of emotional well-being. Psychological benefits are also evident when people sing together as well as alone because of the increased sense of community, belonging and shared endeavor.”

The researchers, who included Hans Guenther Bastian from the Institute of Musical Education at Frankfurt University, concluded singing not only strengthened the immune system but also notably improved the performer's mood.

http://martinmeader.com/a.htm

Benefits of singing
Singing is a gymnasium for the body and soul. Singing works deeply into our physiology: deepening breath and heart rate, altering brain wave patterns and strengthening the immune system. It also releases endorphins, the body's pleasure hormones, into the brain and body. Singing also exercises all the muscles in the head and neck Singing can also help to build a person's confidence and self-esteem, and can increase their capacity for self expression.
Recent research also indicates that a wide range of music experiences have a powerful effect on influencing language development, as well as increasing concentration, memory, visual and listening skills, spatial orientation and physical coordination.

Many children today suffer from a wide variety of ailments and imbalances, from insomnia, to lack of sleep, to diabetes and depression. We now have the second most highly depressed population of teenagers in this country, second only to Japan. We must ask ourselves not only why is this happening, but what can we do to help. Singing is one of the greatest illness preventions!

http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/culdesac/ReadingModule/Munro.html

A research carried out in 1998 by Dr. Lawrence Parsons of the University of Texas-San Antonio and his team showed that music involves both the right and left hemispheres of the brain and is widely distributed all throughout the brain rather than in one specific area. They also found that music is similar to language in many respects, including its structure and the way in which it is perceived by humans.

Excerpts from MuSICA Research Notes",
Dr. Norman M. Weinberger, Director of MuSICA.
For more information, contact http://www.musica.uci.edu

Music and Cognitive Achievement in Children

The music instruction was extensive, five days a week for 40 minutes per day, for seven months. Students were tested on reading ability at the start of the school year and then tested again at the end of the year. After training the music group exhibited significantly higher reading scores than did the control group, scoring in the 88th percentile vs. the 72nd percentile...after an additional year of Kodaly training, the experimental group was still superior to the control group. These findings clearly support the view that music education facilitates the ability to read.

Promoting Literacy Through Music, Songs for Teaching
Music connects the functions of the right and left hemispheres of the brain so that they work together and make learning quick and easy. Brain function is increased when listening to music and studies have shown that music promotes more complex thinking. It can make connections between emotions, thinking and learning (Davies, 2000).

The similarities between literacy acquisition and musical development are many. Therefore, teaching that combines music with language arts instruction can be the most effective (Davies, 2000).

Through music, memory skills can be improved, and aural discrimination increased.(Chong & Gan 1997).

Music and songs help increase these listening skills in a fun, relaxed manner. Listening skills are key in singing, language and expressive movement, and later reading and writing (Wolf, 1992).

Language in music and language in print have many similarities, such as the use of abstract symbols. Both oral language and written language can be obtained in the same manner. That is, by using them in a variety of holistic literacy experiences, and building on what the students already
know about oral and written language(Clay, 1993).

For example, emergent readers will attempt to "read" along in a shared reading of a familiar text, just as they will join in a sing along to a familiar song. (Sometimes making up the words as they go!) Just as emergent reading and writing are acquired to drawing and pretending to write, musical learning is connected to song and movement. Children instinctively listen to music and try to identify familiar melodies and rhythms, just as early readers will look for words that sound alike, have patterns, or rhyme (Jalongo & Ribblett).

The use of music for reading instruction allows children to easily recall new vocabulary, facts, numbers, and conventions of print. For example,try to remember how you learned your ABC's or other memory skills -- many people learn them musically.

Repetition in songs supports and enhances emergent literacy by offering children an opportunity to read higher-leveled text and to read with the music over and over again in a meaningful context.
Print put to music also allows children to build on past experiences, which in turn invites them to participate in reading and singing at the same time(Child,1996).

The therapeutic use of music has long been scientifically supported. Since the mid 1900’s when Dr. Alfred Tomatis began his work with the therapeutic application of sound to treat specific symptoms and disorders including auditory processing disorders, attention deficit disorders, developmental delays, and reading and spelling disorders. The focus of therapeutic listening has been on re-educating the ear and the auditory pathways.

When emergent readers see printed words in the text again and again, they come to identify those words and phrases by their similarities and configurations. (Jalongo & Ribblett, 1997).

The successful acquisition of reading and writing in early childhood depends on a solid background in oral language skills. What better way to gain knowledge and confidence in oral
language than through music? Oral language is an interactive and social process, and music is a natural way for children to experience rich language in a pleasurable way.
he 1800's, lessons in mathematics, history, science, geography, and language arts were regularly reinforced with song.

We all intuitively understand how the "ABC Song" demonstrates the effectiveness of music.
The use of music in the classroom is consistent with theories of multi sensory
learning. Cognitive psychologists have confirmed what educators have long known -- that we have a variety of different, but mutually enhancing, avenues to learning. Music is one such avenue.
Research suggests that the more senses we use, the deeper and broader the degree of learning. Teachers are encouraged to use auditory, visual, kinesthetic and tactile modes supplement the learning experience. While music is obviously an auditory activity, the kinesthetic, visual, and tactile modalities can be activated via clapping, dancing, and instrument playing.

It's easier, and a lot more fun to rehearse song than text! Music and song stimulate creativity and foster a positive attitude towards school(Feldman)

Clay, M. (1993). An Observation Survey of Early Literacy Achievement. NH: Heinemann.
Cunningham, P.M. & Allington, R.L. (1994). Classrooms That Work : They Can All Read
and Write. New York: Harper Collins.
Davies, NL (2000). Learning ... The Beat Goes On. Childhood Education, 148-153.
Feldman, Jean (2000). Sing to Learn With Dr. Jean.
Gardner, H. (1985). Frames of Mind : The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. New York: Basic Books.
Hennings, D. (1989). Communication in Action: Teaching the Language Arts. New Jersey: Houghton Mifflin.
Jalongo, M. & Ribblett, D. (1997). Using Song Picture Books to Support Emergent Literacy.
Childhood Education 15-22.
Wolf, J. (I 992). Let's Sing it Again: Creating Music With Young Children. Young Children,
Laura Woodall and Brenda Ziembroski Promoting Literacy Through Music

Other Resources

Hamachek, Alice L. (1991). Enhancing comprehension through the development of strategies for reading, learning and remembering. ERIC Document Reproduction Service,
ED336723.
Hanshumacher, J. (1980). The effects of arts education on intellectual and social development: A Review of Selected Research. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music
Education, 61, 2: 10-28.
Jensen, Eric (1998). Teaching with the brain in mind. Alexandria, VA: http://songsforteaching.homestead.com/Jensen.html

Listening Centers

Setting up a good literacy center, not only effective for helping to improve reading and writing, but it helps to educators keep students occupied with they need to
work 1 on 1 with a student, or with a small group.

WHY? What are the benefits to students?
http://www.theswaincenter.com/listeningcenter.html
build sight vocabulary

model of phrasing and fluency

exposure to a variety of story structures (genres)

provide access if higher text levels

Listening skills

foster independence

compliment/supplement content curriculum

sources of book talk

opportunity to listen to own taped reading for self ~assessment

 Other Links

Here are some links that may be helpful.  If you would like to add links that would be great, just email 1 World Education.

The Learning Brain, Seminars and Books on the arts and learning. Eric Jensen

Music has Power, Institute for Music and Neurological Functions--the brain and music
Research on music and neurological functions

NAMM, music research and services
Mission: Advancing active participation in music making across the life span by supporting scientific research, philanthropic giving and public service programs from the international music products industry

Music Help People Pay Attention  Science Daily and Stamford Story Bank

Dirty song lyrics can prompt early teen sex-the question is can clean or specific
positive behaviors be effected by song lyrics?  Not as many articles in this direction.

Eight Reasons to Use Music in Education The Learning Revolution Music help people pay attention, Vinod Menon and Evarajan Sridharan led the research team that used functional MRI images to analyze brain activity patterns in response to music.
Music and Cognition

How many music centers are in the brain.

Neuroscience Takes Note of Our Affinity Towards Music

Music and Language Linked in Brain

Nature.com, Music, the food of neuroscience? 

Scientific America, Music and the Brain

This is Your Brain on Music, Daniel Levitin, musical neuroscientist

Science Direct, Music increases frontal EEG coherence during verbal learning

Singing in the brain Neuroscience takes mental note of our affinity for music

Same Old Song But With A Different Meaning
"What music does is reach down into parts of our brain, it opens networks and pathways that you can't get to via language," he added.

Books

The Cognitive Neuroscience of Music
Edited by Isabelle Peretz and Robert J. Zatorre
Music offers a unique opportunity to better understand the organization of the human brain. Like language, music exists in all human societies. Like language, music is a complex, rule-governed activity that seems specific to humans, and associated with a specific brain architecture. Yet unlike most other high-level functions of the human brain--and unlike language--music is a skill at which only a minority of people become proficient. The study of music as a major brain function has for some time been relatively neglected. Just recently, however, we have witnessed an explosion in research activities on music perception and performance that correlates in the human brain. This volume brings together an outstanding collection of international authorities--from the fields of music, neuroscience, psychology, and neurology--to describe the amazing advances being made in understanding the complex relationship between music and the brain.

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