Great Music for Gifted Classroom Centers
Mozart and Monopoly Add Magic to Independent Exploration Time
Jun 28, 2009
Some kids love having music on all the time; other kids find music to be a huge distraction during class. The best time to play music is during self-directed center activities that have natural pauses built into the classwork. Gifted kids are able to work through music in the regular classroom because the class has a slower pace. In a gifted classroom, they should have more challenge and faster pacing, so music should be played judiciously.
Types of Centers That Work in a Music-Filled Classroom
The key to creating centers that allow kids a chance to reflect on and enjoy music is to look for activities that allow for broken focus. Think about creating centers that focus on creation, not concentration. Some great centers include:
- Art Attack! – Have collage materials available so kids can listen and create at the same time. Collages require less intense focus than painting or detailed drawing.
- Puzzled? – Students will seek natural breaks from the stress of finding the missing puzzle piece. Working puzzles and listening to music makes time fly.
- Build It! – Have Legos, K'Nex, and other building toys, and let the architects and engineers of tomorrow go at it. If there are specific building instructions, music might become a distraction, but if the students can engage in free building, they will find the music invigorating.
- Board Games – Playing music and playing games will help create a sense of community. Monopoly and Mozart go well together.
Centers to avoid during times when the teacher is offering a lot of stimulating music would be highly focused, strategic activities, such as chess, Sudoku, logic puzzles, and anything with a time-limit of play.
The following CDs are enjoyable by kids and teachers, and they all have a factor that makes them feel school-oriented.
Music from TV Shows
Although it is hard to tell in some cases, all of the songs on these CDs are have television roots.
Arthur and Friends: Almost Live Not Real CD [Label: Rounder/ ASIN: B00000DAH0] has a familiar feel for elementary students; almost all students are familiar with Arthur Read through Marc Brown's Arthur books and the PBS Arthur show. The songs are cute, and many have a classical music base. Students will relate to the songs about suffering through piano lessons, eating strange foods, and enduring a teacher who glorifies in giving homework.
School House Rock! Rocks [Label: Atlantic/ASIN: B000005J80] is available on CD and as an MP3 album. Students will like the contemporary musicians and get into the words of the classic 70s cartoon. Ween covers "Shot Heard 'Round the World", Better Than Ezra brings "Conjunction Junction" closer to the 21st century, and the obligatory "I'm Just a Bill" is done masterfully by Deluxx Folk Implosion. Secondary students will especially appreciate this.
Classical Music with a Twist
Beethoven's Wig: Sing Along Symphonies [Label: Rounder/ ASIN: B000060OLA] is available in CD or MP3 format. After the original CD, three more followed, all following the same delightful format. The classical pieces are played first with cute song lyrics, and then played without words. Teachers should be warned that after listening for several hours in a row, the original music will never seem the same. The lyrics are clever enough to appeal to secondary students and the music is familiar and short, so all students would enjoy the cd.
Bibbidi Bobbidi Bach [Label: Delos Records/ ASIN: B00000070H] is availble on CD and as an MP3 album, and like its predecessor, Heigh Ho Mozart, the album is filled with familiar Disney scores set to a specific classical style. From a teacher's perspective, it is fun to watch as the true identity of the song hits students. "Hey," someone will say, "that's the song Sebastian sings in the Little Mermaid!" The joy is that the song, "Kiss the Girl", is played in the style of Sibelius and played by the English Chamber Orchestra. The true gem of the CD is Mary Poppin's "Chim Chim Chiree", played with the moving elegance of Pachebel.
Avoid the temptation of allowing students to bring music or turning or streaming Pandora music. That makes the class more of a party atmosphere. Although centers are relaxed times for those days when the guest speaker didn't show up, learning and community bonding blossom when the teacher can provide fun activities and a good soundtrack.
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