While they sing the happy tune “Up So High,” the students in Linda Frye’s preschool
music class at Dayton Christian Preschool lift their hands and their brightly colored egg shakers as the notes of the song hit a high point. The tune dips low and they crouch down, still shaking their humble instruments, and the process repeats itself as the song winds up and down the scale. The music stops and they each try to balance the egg shaker on the part of the body Frye has called out. This time it’s “neck” and all twelve students attempt the trick, which has been made more difficult by the giggling going on in the classroom.
This is not an unusual sight in Frye’s music classroom. Her students are only preschoolers, but at Dayton Christian Preschool, music education, along with specials
such as art, cooking, physical education, and Spanish, are an integral part of the program.
“I think there are many people who would think of music, art, and physical education as classes we can live without when money is tight or levies fail,” said Wendy Tesmer,
program director. “However, I believe our enrichment classes are just as important as math, science, or English.”
Tesmer understands that during these early years, enrichment classes play an
important role in a child’s social, emotional, and academic development. It’s not just her
opinion, but a scientific fact. There is a significant impact on learning across all
curriculums at schools where a trained music teacher is leading early childhood music
classes, according to the National Association of Independent Schools.
“Music education can improve language skills, enhance memory and attention, develop
fine and gross motor skills, promote coordination, and encourage collaboration and cooperation,” Tesmer said. “We want to take advantage of these opportunities.” And that is why Frye has her students singing, dancing, moving, and playing with egg shakers several times a week. She recently took some time to share with us more about the music program at Dayton Christian Preschool.
What can preschoolers learn about music?
For many of them, this is their first opportunity to make music themselves. They may think that only grownups make music or that music only comes from a cell phone, but I want them to realize that they are musical beings who can sing, move, dance, play instruments, and respond to music. We explore our voices (make them go high and low) to help them find their singing voice, we move expressively to the music, we keep the steady beat on our bodies, and play classroom instruments to give them many different activities to express themselves and introduce them to the world of music.
How do you teach music in your classroom? I try to coordinate what we’re doing in music with what the students are learning about in their classrooms. For instance, if they are learning about the letter H, we might sing and move to our Hula Hippo song, do the Hokey Pokey, discuss how music can be high-pitched, low-pitched, or in the middle, and then listen to some examples of high and low sounds.
How do you keep such young students engaged? I keep it fun, joyful, and interesting. They need to be physically involved with the music, so we do a lot of movement. I also vary activities and do them in short segments to engage their short attention spans.
How often do you meet with each class? Each class meets for 30 minutes or more per week. Five-day students have music twice a week and the kids that are only here a couple of days a week have class once a week.
How often do the students participate in a public performance? One of the benefits of our preschool is that we are connected to a K-12 school. This provides opportunities for our students to participate in a quality of programming you wouldn’t normally have access to at a stand-alone preschool program. At Dayton Christian School, we perform twice a year – at Christmas and in the spring for Grandparents’ Day.
What is it that you love most about teaching preschoolers music? I love seeing and hearing them grow musically. Many of our preschoolers are in our program for two years, so I enjoy seeing them grow from being a child who is not very confident into one who is joyfully participating and making her own music!
Dayton Christian Preschool is a kindergarten-prep program that accepts students beginning at age 30 months. They partner with families through full and half-day programs that range from two to five days a week. To learn more about their program or to schedule a tour, visit their website or call 937-291-7218.
