The Value of Song and Dance

03/04/2005

"Leadership is less about what we know and more about what we're willing to discover." - Diane Branson

The Value of Song and Dance

In 2002, the Foundation for Music-based Learning contracted with the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina, to study the effects of a music and movement intervention on children's skills in Head Start classrooms. As reported in Early Developments (Fall 2004, www.fpg.unc.edu), the study focused on 27 Head Start classrooms in suburban settings in North Carolina, rural settings in Kentucky, and urban settings in New York. Classrooms in the intervention groups received a music and movement curriculum delivered by an early childhood music teacher twice a week for 30 minutes a day. Researchers assessed children in intervention and control groups at the beginning and end of the year. The study found that children in the intervention group showed more growth in communication skills than those in the control group. Children receiving the music interventions were rated higher on language and listening skills, both important components of school readiness.

To learn more about the value of music and movement in the early childhood classroom, check out the Beginnings Workshop, "Music and Movement" at: http://mail.ccie.com/go/eed/0552

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