The most important aspects when planning a lesson plan ?

When planning learning activities you should consider the types of activities learners  will need to engage in, in order to develop the skills and knowledge required to demonstrate effective learning in the course. Learning activities should be directly related to the learning objectives of the course, and provide experiences that will enable students to engage in, practice, and gain feedback on specific progress towards those objectives.

1) Know who your learners are. Know ability levels; backgrounds; interest levels; attention spans; ability to work together in groups; prior knowledge and learning experiences; special needs or accommodations; and learning preferences. This may not happen as quickly as you would like, but it is important for designing instruction that will meet the needs of your students. That's key in successful teaching and learning! Many activities can be used to engage learners. The activity types (i.e. what the student is doing) and their examples provided below are by no means an exhaustive list, but will help you in thinking through how best to design and deliver high impact learning experiences for your students in a typical lesson

What is your opinion about the value of utlilising arts Integration and play in foundation phase ?

arts into lessons builds social and emotional skills. Teaching through the arts encourages active play, which provides many benefits like learning to express and identify emotions, gaining feelings of confidence and control, and forming strong relationships.

Arts Integration, when done correctly, transforms both the art and the subject area into a whole greater than the sum of its parts. In short, Arts Integration can be magical, inspiring learning and setting off a spark in each child. Imagine the difference in a child’s learning experience if classroom teachers incorporated the arts into their lesson. From a teaching perspective, artistic experiences help teachers discover their students’ enthusiasm through a new medium. They also aid in creating positive and interesting lessons that fully engage the student. For the student, music not only strengthens emotional and cognitive development, but also allows a new outlet of expression, and a new means of learning through listening and making sound. The arts provide a platform through which teachers can tap into a child’s creativity and humanity while teaching content material. The arts give students an opportunity to express and explore material in a medium to which they might not otherwise have access.

•  Teaching through the arts allows educators to teach content in more than one way and gives children a range of tools and skills to demonstrate their knowledge.
• Using the arts to engage young children in learning supports equity in education. Children from low-income families, for example, gain vital early literacy and math skills when participating in early childhood programs that are active, engaging, and motivating.

Has your Perception and priorities with regards to lesson planning and the inclusion of music throughout ?

Yes because It is well recognised that music can help to develop the skills, attitudes and attributes that can support learning in other national curriculum subjects. This includes listening skills, the ability to concentrate, creativity, intuitions, aesthetic sensitivity, perseverance, the ability to work in a group, self confidence and sensitivity towards others.