Hi everyone!

This week has been a particularly hectic week as the year nears the end. There is more work to be done and a lot of assessments to be completed within a short space of time, which means time is not a commodity at the moment. I look forward to the holidays at the end of it all. This is my reflection on this module, from beginning until now.

1. Learning about music education in LSKM has been an interesting journey. I have learned a lot of things that I did not know before about the importance of teaching music. What I learned not only convinced me that it is important to teach music in the classroom, but I felt it would be a good thing to practice it with my kids as well. I realised how important it is for the holistic development of children. I have also learned the activities that I can use in the classroom to teach children music. The examples that were used I take as a guideline for creating music activities for my classroom. I’ve always had a love for music, and from the lessons I have learned from this module, I have come to love it more and respect its role in our lives and in the development of children.

2. The individual reflections helped me solidify what I was learning from reading the Study Unit materials. They helped me to process the material I was reading and drew my attention to what I believe is important. The challenge I had with this was that there was a lot of material to get through and I had a lot of reading to do. There was too much information that one had to familiarise with. Either than that, I wouldn’t make any changes.

3. The thing that I found interesting in this lesson is that music can help learners improve their academic performance and it also helps them build their social skills. The other thing that I found interesting was that learning instruments helped learners improve in Mathematics. It was also interesting to learn that there are relevant songs to teach children according to the age they are in, and that there are also music lessons to give learners according to their grade. So as a teacher, I would have to learn what is relevant for the learners I am teaching. There is nothing I would say was invaluable from the information I received in this module.

Good Afternoon. This week has been a busy and exciting week for me. I got to do some traveling, saw some beautiful places, went to a spa treatment and went on a long and interesting drive. I also attended a very informative training. I also got to meet new people and learned a few things form the people I interacted with. With all this, I was forced to do some of my work and studies in between. Overall it has been a great week.

Looking at assessment in line with Performing Arts and Music in the Foundation Phase, I believe that it is sometimes neglected due to teachers not realizing the importance of it. Teachers may not realize that as much as it is important to assess learning in other Subjects, it is important to assess learning in music and performing arts. I believe that another reason could be that teachers may not have sufficient knowledge on how to go about assessing music and performing arts. They may not have the skills and strategies to do this and probably do not know what to even assess. Assessment in music and performing arts in the Foundation Phase may be shied away from because it is often considered intimidating and judgemental. It is not seen for the empowering instrument it can be.

I would advocate for the use of assessments to my HOD by indicating that if assessments are not conducted, there is no way to properly measure whether the learners are truly learning. Assessment helps the teacher to identify what the learners know and what they still struggle with. This in turn is beneficial because the teacher can recognize the areas of improvement and strategize on how to assist learners in this regard. Learners will also be able to reflect on their own learning through the use of assessments. They will also be able to realize where they need help with and what they have learned. The learner’s progress can be monitored through assessment.

Hi Everyone!!

This week has thus far been hectic, as is the norm for me. I work and also have to catch up with my studies. The week is just beginning and it has been good thus far. I trust that it will end with the same good note it started on.

What I have found interesting in this Study Unit is that Art has a way of reaching young people in a way that they would have otherwise not been reached. It helps them to connect with themselves and others. This answered some questions for me as, growing up in the church I have often wondered why when it comes to youth, more emphasis is placed on activities such as music, drama, dancing and poetry. I guess the leaders know this secret. I have observed this not just with church, but with youth programs in general.

This Study Unit has taught me the importance of Arts Integration, in terms of keeping my learners engaged, interested and motivated. The videos linked in the Study Unit document have also sparked my imagination of how I can integrate art into my lessons. Not to just copy what is in the videos, but how to think creatively about incorporating art.

In my opinion, utilising music games in the Foundation Phase classroom is an effective way to teach children music concepts. We already know that one of the best ways for children to learn is through play. Music games will cause them to be interested in learning about music and this will result in getting them to be engaged. It is important for the teacher to determine what kind of music the children are interested in, what they listen to at home or during break time. This will get the children to be more engaged. This is a better route for teaching children music as opposed to the rigid way of merely using words to explain music terms and concepts.

Music games also create a culture of inclusivity in the classroom. Firstly in a sense that all children get to be involved and they get to enjoy themselves, however this will depend on how the teacher facilitates the activities. Secondly with the diversity of songs presented in the classroom, children will realise that not only one type of music is important and therefore not one type of culture is more superior to the other. I say this because different kinds of music represent different types of cultures. The teacher can also introduce this concept to children by giving children the opportunity to introduce songs that they grew up listening to. In this way, all the learners will learn that their cultures and interests are important, and they will also learn to respect and accommodate cultures that are different to theirs.

My name is Refilwe Nechipal. I stay in Mafikeng. I am currently studying to be a foundation phase teacher because I am passionate about teaching and I look forward to being a teacher. I decided to teach small children because I would like to contribute in the Educational foundation of children. I know that I can make a good impact and difference when it comes to this.What I have learnt thus far in the LSKM 221 Module is interesting, learning the impact of music on children.

Before moving on to writing about my individual reflection on Study Unit 1, I just want to share that this week has been a good and productive week for me. I am busy most of the time as I work full time and also have to ensure that I stay up to date with my studies. Today I created a study plan based on the module plans we have received for each module and looking at the work ahead of me for the semester, it does make me feel a little overwhelmed because there are a lot of assignments and their due dates are close together, with some assessments being due on the same date. It is a lot, but I know that I can make it work with proper organization.

Moving on to the individual reflection, I would like to start by saying that I have a musical background, I have been involved with music for many years. I am a Music Team leader at church and I also play an instrument (the keyboard). I also danced professionally when I was in high school, but I did not pursue this long term. This I would say gives me the right amount of confidence when I think about integrating music into my lessons, be it in terms of movement or singing. I am of course open to learning more, especially regards integrating music in the classroom as I imagine doing it myself will be a bit different from doing it with children.

If I had to choose between Physical Education and Music Education, I would choose to incorporate Music Education because it can be used for the holistic development of the child. It can also be used to add to the Physical Education of the child. Music Education has been proven to aid the cognitive growth of children such that they do better in their tests than those who have not been involved with Music Education. It helps children develop emotionally as they learn different kinds of emotions and how to express them appropriately, it also helps them understand the emotions of others. It sharpens their motor skills, helps them build social relationships and helps them gain self confidence as they continually complete music tasks successfully. Looking at these reasons, I would say Music Education is a better option to incorporate in educating children than Physical Education, as the development of Physical Education itself can be helped by Music Education.