Music
From the Alveary Team:
“The business of the teacher is to put his class in the right attitude toward their book by a word or two of his own interest in the matter contained, of his own delight in the manner of the author.” - School Education, p.229
While Charlotte Mason cautions educators against the temptation to over-explain, she encourages teachers to share brief comments to rouse students’ interest and prepare them to engage with the lesson.
In Alveary lesson plans, we often give discussion questions, pertinent background information, links to pictures or maps, and other similar activities so you can “put [your] class [and yourself] in the right attitude” toward the lesson, as Mason suggests. For older students working independently, the lesson plans themselves often function as the instrument to help a student rouse their interest in the day’s work.
Our theme for the month is music, so we want to draw your attention to a few features in the music lesson plans that aim to help your students engage – and to some extra resources, as well. We hope this also gives you some inspiration on how to help your students best approach other subjects (and where you might look in the lesson plans for ideas).
- BACKGROUND. We’ll periodically put helpful background information directly in the lessons to give you context. For instance, did you know that Silent Night is one of the most internationally famous Christmas carols? (Music Lesson 22) It can get the creative juices flowing to ask students what they already know about a time period, book, piece of music, or particular idea.
- MAPWORK. It takes extra effort to pull out a map or a globe (or Google Maps), but identifying a key location can bring concreteness and stoke curiosity on a topic. For instance, a musical piece in Term 3 is named “The River Cam.” Students are more likely to develop a relationship with the piece if they have a sense of where the River Cam is located and what it looks like.
- TERMINOLOGY & HISTORY. You’ll find key terms (like “swagman” or “arpeggio”) in the right-hand column of your lesson plans. These can be helpful for reference and discussion before and/or after a lesson. Key dates are also located in the right column to give students easy access to ideas for their century charts and Book of Centuries. They can also provide interesting discussion ideas (for instance, what else do you know about that happened during this time period?).
- EXTRA HELPINGS. Extra helpings are for any curious student, but they’re particularly relevant for students who are either quite interested or quite UN-interested in a subject. If you have a reluctant music appreciator, try looking at the extra helpings (located in the right-hand column of a lesson plan and also listed in the Quick Links) to see if there’s something that might serve as a bridge and pique their interest. For instance, you might want to play a game of Dreidel to connect with the folk song, “I Have a Little Dreidel.” Learning a Romanian dance one afternoon might give you more appreciation for Bartók’s dances. There are also a number of short and delightful picture books in the Music Extra Helpings to help you get to know and appreciate some famous jazz musicians.
We hope you’re encouraged to hear a bit about our aims in the lesson plans and the extra resources available. Remember that one of your key roles as an educator is to learn alongside your students with enthusiasm, looking for ways to rouse your own interest and build relationships for yourself. Let us know what pieces of the music or other lesson plans you particularly loved and what helped your students develop connections by commenting on this Fabulous Friday post.
Notes
1. CMI Conference: Exciting News! Registration is now OPEN for CMI’s 2024 annual gathering in Wilmore, Kentucky! Join us from July 25-27 for a deep dive into Charlotte Mason’s teachings on handwork, life skills, and “The Joy of Making.”
2. Advent Guide: Has December snuck up on you, too? There is still time to download CMI’s free Advent guide. Use as little or as much of these resources as you wish. Please share the link freely with family and friends.
3. Resources: You have access to a wealth of information, including Alveary Foundations, 150+ videos, current research, and other resources–and it is all searchable by topic.
4. Handicrafts: Erin Day guides us in making a fun handicraft for Christmas: Air-Dry Clay Snowman.
5. Office Hours: The Alveary team shared our favorite Christmas books during this week’s Office Hours. Here is the video. See the full list in our Advent Guide.
