Final Blog

Individual reflection

1. LSKM 221 turned out to be a very interesting and fruitful subject that I benefitted from so much. I knew very little knowledge in the beginning of the semester but thanks to my energetic and passionate music lecturer and very useful power point presentations and videos I increased my knowledge.

2. * Noted down what I learned from this module is just validation of actually how much I actually enjoyed it.

*The explanations of what is expected in an assignment I found challenging. Sometimes less is more.

*I found the individual reflections meaningful. We all are different in our ways of thinking and explaining or understanding a task but at the end all of us is unique is his or her way. When coming to the group assignment it was like an eye opener.

*I would make contact to the lecturer asap if I do not know or understand something. Even after a zoom meeting when I still do not understand I should reach out. No reason to be ashamed.

3. -The teaching of art and music in the classroom will benefit me as an educator in the Foundation Phase classroom. Music teaching improves concentration levels of learners. Music teaching has also been proven to be effective in classroom management.

-Choosing the correct song for a specific grade to teach.

-I found everything valuable in this module.

Collaborative reflection

*Groups one learn more and you share ideas and get help asap if you do not understand.

*No challenges experienced. Or maybe just to get everyone together and responding in time.

* I think challenged and corrected.

*I had fun with my group. I learned a lot from my fellow teachers.

Thank you

Sadiyah

SU 5-Lesson planning of arts and music in the Foundation Phase

1. In your opinion, reflecting on and synthesising all that you learnt in LSKM 221, what are the most important aspects to keep in mind when planning foundation phase lessons?

There should be music at the beginning and at the end of the lesson. Learners should be actively engaged throughout the lesson. Planning a lesson is very important and helps you to focus on an introduction phase, teaching and learning outcome, conclusion phase and an assessment phase.

2. What is your opinion about the value of utilising arts integration in foundation phase lessons?

By utilising art integration in the foundation phase classrooms brings creativity to the classroom and it keeps learners engaged to a lesson. It aids in the development of creative problem solving and helps to increase the understanding of other subjects like Mathematics, Life Skills and literary. Kids really enjoy art lessons and they cannot wait to participate in it.

3. Has your perception and priorities with regards to lesson planning and the inclusion of music (and the arts) throughout your teaching and learning in the foundation phase changed? Please motivate your answer.

Yes it did. Studying the LSKM module in my second year helped me a lot to understand music and art in-depth. One cannot just decide to do an art or music lesson without proper lesson planning, resources and a teaching and learning method. Planning of lessons up front also reflects good back to you as an educator because, God forbid but if one gets sick, your lesson planning will be available for a substitute teacher to continue with your teaching and learning while you are absent.

I learned a lot with this module and will definitely keep this file and study material close by in my classroom someday!

Thanks

SU 3

Music plays a huge role in children’s lives and their culture in the school I am teaching. They sing and dance in church, functions and get exposed to music on the television by watching cartoons and movies at home. When they get exposed to music in the classroom by learning a song, or literacy exercise they enjoy it to the fullest. They express themselves much better during a music lesson and the discipline

I found that most learners actually picked up most of the work being taught to them when they learn it with music than without. The weak learners that learned a new instrument to play were started to perform well in their Mathematics.

When an educator teaches music in class just be careful not to use religious, cultural or music that discriminates. There are lots of nursery songs and poems one can choose from that are CAPS aligned.

Have a great day.

Dear blog,

The end of 2nd semester  is almost here. Time fly hey!!

Nevertheless, I am great full for still standing regardless of setbacks!

Wishing everyone  good luck  with what lies ahead, let's do this!!!

BYE,,,bye!!

Study Unit 4 Arts integration in the foundation phase

Part 1

This semester had been less stressful and COVID did not take another relative of mine. I think with time everything heals and get better. I have learned a lot during these tough times.

Part 2

I totally agree with ( Silverstein & Layne,2010) that arts integration is an approach to teaching that  promotes an active engagement in teaching and learning activities, experiential learning, authentic learning activities, collaborative learning, problem-solving skills and reflection. Learners performed well in literacy, mathematics and life skills and because teaching and learning was done in a fun way, they were well behaved and eager to participate.

Part 3

For me art integration is definitely important in the foundation phase because this helps learners to learn through practical play and they discover and learn new concepts. I personally experienced more disciplined learners and they tent to achieve great academic results especially in Mathematics. They look forward to attend class and even parents will communicate with me how eager learners will do their homework and how they cannot wait for the next art class. I have found not just them but even me as a student educator is enjoying it. I recommended that my colleagues should try more art integrated lessons in their classrooms and they reported back only positive results.

Part 4

What did I find interesting in SU4 and why?

I found the art integration teaching and learning as a big plus because I started using it practically in my current classroom. Most of the learners performed very well in their exams. The class was more disciplined and they tend to listen more and talk less. The was very surprising for me because most of the foundation teachers told me it is just time wasting and learners will make a mess but I went full in with arts teaching and I will continue to do so in my future classroom.

Part 5

What I found challenging and why?

I found playing and instrument challenging. I used to play the piano and other musical instruments a very long time ago so I forgot how to play. I will definitely look into getting training.

Changing aspects in study unit 4 as a group?

All my group members come from the old model C schools so they are used to this kind of teaching and obvious they will not change a thing. As for me I come from a middle class school where we had limited but sufficient resources for arts integrated teaching. We all would want to incorporate study unit 4 in our classrooms one day and we would not change a thing.

Thanks

Rawat SBU

Part 1:

It has been a hectic week both at work and at home. My kids got  a lot of assignments apparently they are not going to be formally assessed for this semester anymore, rather only going to submit assignments. Nevertheless I am thankfull for each day!

Part 2:

Once again I realise not just how calm and relaxing  listening to music can be yet so many things get developed especially benefitting the little ones.Music literacy develop a leaner not just in reading skills that is so limited but both speech and language development rapidly and they can start to read and notate music during the Foundation Phase (Hackett & Lindeman, 2004:111). 

Part 3:

One of the benefites of teaching music in the foundation phase is it promotes group work, motivate and improves the memory. I will definitely play more nursery rhymes to my kids.

The aim of teaching music in  life skills in foundation phase are the exposure of learners to a range of knowledge, skills and values that strengthen and balance their physical, social, personal, emotional and cognitive development. Integrating music into the Foundation Phase supports, motivates and promotes learning and the development of social skills, thinking skills, rhythmic (physical) skills and emotional skills of the learner (Campbell, 2010:4).

Learning through music is fun something that I still remember when I was in primary school. I use to look forward when it was the music period and we  could just play the piano, triangle/other musical instruments and the drums. Till today I can play "Old McDonald  had a farm" that my mam taught me and other short nursery songs.

I really enjoyed this SU2 it brought back so many memories.

Thank you

Bye..Bye!!!

Good morning all,

We all need a little sunshine in our lives.

With winter being over and spring on our doorstep, I wish everyone a happy and joyful season ahead!

Have a awesome one!!

Hello,...Thobela,.!

Hope everyone is ok and healthy.

I choose today!

So many family and friends passed away this couple of months and I am thinking, "What the hell?"

It made me realize that I need to live one day at a time and cherish the time one have with their family!

Tell your mum, kids, hubby and friends that you love and appreciate them. Pray more and thank God for what you have.

Enjoy life, take up a new hobby like running, ride your bicycle before you go to work  and just appreciate the small things in life.

Have a blessed week ahead!!

Bye..Bye!

Hi guy

You are must have a wonderful and fruitful week. 

Take care and be safe!

See ya

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Part 1:

My week has been great. With it being so cold this week it has been hard to study till after 24:00 because the room where I am studying is freezing cold but nevertheless things need to get done. I had several meetings that took place this week and ended really late (I did not expect it to end so late) but not even that could hold me back.

Part 2:

I did not know that music and physical education has such an  impact on children's lives. I am very excited and eager to learn more.

Part 3:

Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal stood  out for me because, as opposed to Piaget, Vygotsky emphasised the role of adults and able peers in a child’s learning. This consequently motivates the importance of utilising collaborative learning and peer scaffolding in the classroom and to not only rely on yourself as teacher to act as a facilitator of knowledge. As a teacher, you facilitate learning during the early stages of acquiring new knowledge and skills, but in such a way as to enable learners to gain the necessary understanding to solve problems on their own later on (Woolfolk, 2016).

I really like LSKM 221 as a student teacher I created my material to use in my future classroom example puppet shows, I learned intensely about art and the different colours and I bet it can only get better.