Making Music With Children

Making music with children is great fun. One day a father came in to pick up his child amid our enormous noise. He was stunned by the din. Suddenly, a huge smile draped across his face. “I think this is marvelous,” he said and clapped his hands.

Not all adults understand children’s music. Parents want children to sing sweetly, but bashing and smashing instruments somehow gets lost in the translation. Even the mildest child won’t approach music passively or gently. Somehow, the ability to make sound creates a universal desire to do it with gusto.

So we establish s few rules: first rule – music manners. We play only when someone is not talking, and in quiet times we hold our instrument in our lap.

Making music starts small. Only two children are given shakers and it becomes an envy thing. “He has one; I want one too.”

For a child it is not budding vice; it’s just desire. “I want to do it too.” There is no right or wrong to it, the desire to participate is a human condition any teacher should encourage.

By passing all the shakers out at once to a group of very young children, the response will often be chaos. Handing out instruments one or two at a time encourages interest, connection to the group and patience. Not every music maker in the orchestra makes music all the time, you explain to the children. Sometimes we have to wait our turn.

When their turn comes, it’s priceless. A child will eagerly shake, rattle, pound, smash whatever he has quickly learning the balance and the weight of his instrument with curiosity and delight.

Singing or listening to music - to play by - teaches children beat. Sticks do that best because they are direct sound. One two three, one two three, one two three helps children listen and do.

Alternating the beat with sticks and shakers helps children learn how to take turns and about different possibilities of sound.

Answering is another fun process. The little musicians on one side of circle time hit their sticks together twice, and the children on the other side of the carpet answer them. This can go on in splendid games with one side hitting three or four times and the other side answering them correctly.

Old rhymes can be fun to musical instruments:

“This is the house,” whap whap “That Jack built,” whap whap.

“This is the malt” whap whap “That lay in the house” whap whap “That Jack built,” whap whap.

“This the rat,” whap what, “That ate the malt,” whap whap, “That lay in the house,” whap whap, “That Jack built,” whap whap.

And so on. It teaches placement and order. It teaches patterns which is important in math.

Games and songs and just alternating sounds can go on for a long time, but a long time tires children. Choosing two or three activities with very young children is enough for a class. Whenever a teacher stretches out a play session more than 20 minutes, children seem to become restless. Knowing when to stop also encourages interest the next time.

Keeping all but a few instruments up and out of reach of children is not a bad idea. Making music in a group is a teacher led activity.