Establishing Consistent Practice
Cultivating Confidence Through Singing
Exploring "Living Songtales" and Hymn Study
Additional Ideas for Musical Exploration
- Music Appreciation: Delve into various musical genres and styles through listening sessions and discussions, cultivating an appreciation for diverse forms of artistic expression.
- DIY Instrument Projects: Engage in hands-on learning by constructing homemade instruments using household materials, fostering creativity and resourcefulness.
- Musical Games and Activities: Infuse playfulness into daily life with interactive games and activities designed to reinforce musical concepts and skills. Here's many ideas!
- Family Music Making: Foster a sense of unity and collaboration by organizing family jam sessions or family sing alongs, providing an opportunity for each member to showcase their musical talents in a supportive environment. Even if family members do not feel they have talents in this area, the goal is communal music-making, not the skill level of the music-making itself. We do value excellence! But we value community and shared experience more here (just like we do with corporate worship... more on that later!).
- The Language of Emotion: Literature and music serve as languages of emotion, each possessing the ability to evoke profound feelings and experiences. Just as a well-crafted novel transports readers to different realms of emotion, a beautifully composed piece of music has the power to stir the soul. Take, for instance, Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, whose triumphant finale, featuring Friedrich Schiller's "Ode to Joy," transcends language barriers to convey a universal message of joy and unity.
- Musical Storytelling: Music has a narrative quality that complements the storytelling prowess of literature. Composers often draw inspiration from literary works to create musical narratives that captivate audiences. An exemplary illustration is Sergei Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet," a ballet score that brings Shakespeare's timeless tale to life through emotive melodies and evocative orchestration.
- Inspired Creations: Literary masterpieces have long inspired composers to create enduring works of music. One such example is Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture," which commemorates Russia's victory over Napoleon's army and draws inspiration from Leo Tolstoy's "War and Peace." Conversely, authors have also drawn inspiration from music, as seen in Virginia Woolf's novel "To the Lighthouse," where classical music serves as a central motif, shaping the characters' emotions and experiences.
- Shared Themes and Motifs: Themes such as love, loss, and redemption resonate deeply across both literature and music. Consider Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 5, which navigates themes of love and mortality with poignant intensity, mirroring the emotional depth found in literary classics like Leo Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina." These shared themes serve as a bridge between the two art forms, enriching the human experience through their universal resonance.
- Collaborative Projects: Collaborative ventures between writers and musicians offer innovative ways to explore the intersection of literature and music. One notable example is Philip Glass's opera "Einstein on the Beach," a groundbreaking collaboration with playwright Robert Wilson that pushes the boundaries of traditional opera by incorporating minimalist music and non-linear storytelling.
- Embrace Your Role as a Guide: Your musical journey with your children begins by understanding that you don't need to be a virtuoso. Think of yourself as a guide, introducing your children to the world of music, helping them explore different genres and exposing them to new songs, providing support and encouragement and showing them you are learning along the way with them.
- Start with the Basics: Begin by laying a solid foundation in music theory, covering essential elements such as rhythm, melody, and harmony. Engage your children with interactive games, fun songs, and hands-on activities to make learning enjoyable and effective. Don't know where to begin with that? Check out the Classical Collective Membership for resources.
- Make Use of Resources: Leverage the wealth of resources available online to support music education at home. From interactive tutorials and educational apps to lessons and community music groups, there's something for every age and skill level. These resources can enrich your children's learning experience and provide valuable support for you as a parent-teacher.
- Encourage Creativity: Nurture your children's creative expression through music by encouraging them to compose their own songs, experiment with different instruments, and even craft homemade musical instruments from household items. Emphasize the joy of exploration and self-expression, fostering a love for music that goes beyond rote learning.
- Lead by Example: Set a positive example for your children by actively engaging with music in your daily life, showing them you are also a lifelong learner! Listen to a variety of musical genres together, sing and dance, read them songtales, attend live performances, and demonstrate that music is something to be enjoyed and celebrated as a family together.
- Be Patient and Persistent: Above all, remember that learning music is a journey that requires patience and persistence. Celebrate your children's progress, no matter how small, and encourage them to persevere through challenges. By fostering a supportive and nurturing environment, you can inspire a lifelong passion for music in your children.
Teaching music at home can be a rewarding experience for both you and your children, regardless of your musical background. By embracing your role as a guide, starting with the basics, utilizing resources, encouraging creativity, leading by example, and maintaining patience and persistence, you can instill a lifelong love of music in your children and grow your own skill and confidence along the way. So, don't hesitate to start this musical adventure together and discover the joy of making music at home!
Intrigued by some of the ideas above, but don't know where to begin? Simple systems of how to implement these and much more will be included in the Classical Collective Membership! Sign up here to learn more and for pre-launch sale details.
- Cultivating Intellectual Curiosity: A commonplace book inspires children to actively engage with the material they encounter versus being a passive learner. By transcribing passages and quotes that captivate their interest, they delve deeper into subjects, fostering a profound understanding and sparking a thirst for further exploration while also working on handwriting (if you so desire).
- Enhancing Learning and Retention: Studies have shown that the act of writing by hand enhances memory and comprehension. As our children summarize, paraphrase, and synthesize information in their commonplace books, they reinforce their learning and internalize key insights more effectively, seeing connections between different authors, ideas, and concepts.
- Fostering Creativity and Inspiration: Commonplace books serve as a wellspring of inspiration for young writers, artists, and thinkers. By capturing snippets of prose, poetry, and ideas that resonate with them, our children cultivate a reservoir of creativity to draw upon in their own creative pursuits.
- Promoting Reflection and Growth: Regularly revisiting their commonplace books allows our children to reflect on past experiences, insights, and lessons learned. It provides a space for self-discovery and personal growth as they glean new perspectives and wisdom from their collected entries.
- Building a Personal Legacy: Over time, our children's commonplace books become a reflection of their intellectual journey and worldview as they grow and learn. They can serve as a legacy for future generations, offering glimpses into their thoughts, interests, and values.
- Choosing a Format: Whether it's a physical notebook, a digital document, or an online platform, our children can select a format that resonates with their preferences and learning styles. Here are a few I created, but any notebook or artpad will do: Foliage version, floral version, and music version.
- Gathering Materials: Encourage them to collect pens (I love these), pencils, highlighters, and other tools (even stickers!) to personalize their commonplace books and make the process enjoyable -- encourage that creativity!
- Capturing Ideas: As they read, listen, or engage with new material, prompt them to draw or jot down passages, quotes, and insights that speak to them. Emphasize the importance of including the source (title/author and page number) and any relevant context to facilitate future reference should they want to reference it again later.
- Organizing and Reflecting: Guide them in periodically reviewing and organizing their entries, perhaps categorizing them by theme, subject, or relevance if the type of journal or notebook you chose allows for that. Encourage them to reflect on the connections and patterns that emerge, fostering a deeper understanding of their learning and the world around them.
- Sharing and Connecting: Consider facilitating discussions around excerpts from their commonplace books or encouraging them to share their insights with like-minded peers. Commonplace books provide a rich source of conversation and connection, fostering a sense of community and intellectual exploration.