Meet the Teacher
The Visual and Performing Arts Framework for California Public Schools begins ... "Education in the arts is essential for all students". In music class, students develop skills in listening, analyzing, and performing music in a curriculum that is aligned to the California State Visual and Performing Arts standards.
Activities in music classes include playing percussion instruments, dance and movement, guided analytical listening, and plenty of singing. Lessons frequently integrate the curriculum by reinforcing language arts, math, science, and social studies.
Research into music education continues to demonstrate educational/cognitive and social skill benefits for children who make music. After two years of music education, researchers found that participants showed more substantial improvements in how the brain processes speech and reading scores than their less-involved peers and that students who are involved in music are not only more likely to graduate high school but also to attend college as well. In addition, everyday listening skills are stronger in musically trained children than in those without music training. Significantly, listening skills are closely tied to the ability to: perceive speech in a noisy background, pay attention, and keep sounds in memory.
Later in life, individuals who took music lessons as children show stronger neural processing of sound: young adults and even older adults who have not played an instrument for up to 50 years show enhanced neural processing compared to their peers. Not to mention, social benefits include conflict resolution, teamwork skills, and how to give and receive constructive criticism.
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An art education, more than any other kind, develops self-discipline, broadens one's perspective, and helps the student to understand his or her world. It is the kind of education that can enrich a lifetime.
-Kenneth M. Hanlon