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Teacher Workshop Proposal

Involved For a printable version of this proposal, click:
Workshop Proposal


Title:

Music: A Powerful Tool for Transforming the Classroom Atmosphere

Date:
Open
Name:
Timmy Abell
379 Beaverdam Road
Asheville, NC 28804
(828) 253-7225
Art Form:
Music
Target
Audience:
Classroom school teachers, grades K-5
(Music teachers also welcome.)
Topic:
This workshop is designed to examine the effective use of music in any primary/elementary school classroom, with an emphasis on the potential positive outcomes which can be achieved both in the children's learning process, and in their attitudes and behavior, when the right music is used with care at appropriate times.
Approach:
The workshop presenter will:
  1. Provide an overview of ways that teachers (even those not musically inclined) can effectively introduce music into the classroom on a regular basis.
  2. Discuss "The Mozart Effect", and its implications for enhancing both students' performance and the general classroom atmosphere.
  3. Lead teachers in several learning activities involving folk songs, which can be taken directly back to the classroom. Intended outcomes for each activity will be discussed. These activities may involve the development of reading & language skills, motor skills, co-operative social skills, etc.
  4. Demonstrate seven specific ways that recorded music can be used as a tool to create various desired effects in the classroom.
  5. Share materials and resources which will ensure success of the workshop over the long term.
  6. Discuss the usefulness of music related activities in the context of developing the whole child, with reference to Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences.
Results
for
Teachers:
At the end of this workshop, teachers will:
  • Have the tools and knowledge to maintain a clear strategy for using music in unusual and creative ways throughout the school year.
  • Have an understanding of "the mozart effect", and it's potential implications for enhancing students' performance and the classroom atmosphere.
  • Be prepared to present some specific activities in their classes which will be fun and effective for reaching specific teaching goals.
  • Be familiar with Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences and how this theory can be implemented using folk music in the classroom.
  • Be able to recognize and utilize materials and resources which are appropriate for similar activities and outcomes.

Rationale:
Why is this worth doing?
  1. "Music programs in our schools have been decimated," says John Mahlman, executive director of the National Music Educators Conference.
  2. "The lack of education about just great American folk music and songs in schools today amounts to a kind of cultural disenfranchisement," says Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor of Miami's New World Symphony.
  3. "Indeed, I think the very idea that you can educate young people in a balanced and meaningful way, and treat music as 'optional' is simply absurd," says Michael Greene, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS).
  4. "Music long has been recognized as a powerful communicative force that affects attitude, mood, emotions and behavior." from JAMA (Journal of American Medical Association)
  5. Classroom teachers can fulfill the need of the time.

Descriptive
Summary:

This workshop will focus on developing the skills and a strategy for increasing the use of recorded instrumental and vocal folk music as a powerful tool in any learning environment. Teachers do not need to be musicians or singers to take full advantage of this workshop, but it will be assumed that your classroom is now or can eventually be equipped with a CD player.

Teachers will learn about "the mozart effect", and how to use this knowledge and research with purpose and creativity to reach desired outcomes every day. The workshop will be centered around a presentation of seven specific ways to utilize various types of music for the enhancement of the learning environment.

Participants will work interactively with the presenter and within small groups as several examples of classroom activities (and their intended outcomes) are illustrated with the use of simple folk songs. Teachers will learn specific techniques which they can use immediately with their students; and they will develop a specific strategy for implementing similar activities and techniques over the long term.

Part of this workshop will be devoted to an understanding of the multi-dimensional uses of music as it relates to Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences. Teachers will learn not only how to use music effectively in the classroom, but also why it can have such a transforming influence.

Used creatively, instrumental and vocal music can uplift the atmosphere of your classroom to a level you may never have imagined possible, making your teaching easier, more enjoyable and more effective. Teachers will leave this workshop with renewed knowledge, skills and inspiration for creating music-filled classrooms of happy, caring and intelligent children.

Logistics:

Maximum 40 participants

2 hours of instruction with one break

Large space with movable chairs for participants if possible

Table (6'-8') for workshop leader

Copy of workshop materials for each participant

Attachments:
  1. Artist's vita
  2. Artist's brochure (call 888-253-7225)

Here is a list of some of the organizations
which have sponsored Timmy's Teacher Workshop:
  • Wake County Schools, Raleigh, NC
  • The Peace Center, Greenville, SC
  • Fort Worth Independent School District, Fort Worth, TX
  • Baldwin County Schools, Bay Minette, AL
  • Vance County Schools, Henderson, NC
  • Dallas County Schools, Selma, AL
  • Ashe County Schools, West Jefferson, NC
  • Chowan County Schools, Edenton, NC
  • Bugg Elementary School, Raleigh, NC
  • Caldwell County Schools, Lenoir, NC
  • Technical Assistance Center, Winston-Salem, NC
  • North Carolina Day Care Association Annual Conference, High Point, NC
  • Caldwell County Smart Start, Lenoir, NC
  • Ashe County Resource and Referral, West Jefferson, NC
  • Robeson County Smart Start, Lumberton, NC

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