it has been a long fun journey what a module. LSKM has been amazing i have learnt a lot, before i started with this module i did not know half of the things i know now. Music was just music before i started this module, i thought it was not as important but after all the study units i know how important music is to the learners and how we can link it to the curriculum to ensure that the learners enjoy learning and teaching.

from my individual reflection i have learnt that music can be used in so many things and it is important to know how to use music to teach curriculum.

the module itself was very challenging and i had a lot on my plate. it was very hard to complete but i managed to go through it .

it was meaningful because i got a chance to work on me and see what i can do to better the lives of my learners and make them love and enjoy learning through music with music and  about music. 

i would change how learners learn , the traditional way of teaching is boring and learners struggle a lot because its teacher centered learners are unable to be free and learn their own way.

LSKM is so full of information and it was well put together i would not change anything. i struggled with making music activities i did not know how to tackle it i was not used to such activities but i managed to get a hang on it i am fine now.

i can never say there was anything that was not valuable there would be something wrong with me. the researchers and theorists have done enough and there is a lot to learn i will be continuing with the teachings from this module and use it in my class one day, i am very  thankful.

Oh manI can not begin to say how happy I feel to almost be done with this semester, it has been nothing but hard. 

Study unit 5 is a good way of ending the units. Now coming back to the unit and the question.

1. When planning a foundation phase lesson you should include as many music activities as possible because children learn better through music, creative arts and improvisation and interpretation. There should always be music at the beginning and the end of the lesson. As a teacher you should include elements of play to encourage creativity, discovery and collaboration and to apply art integration strategies as often as possible in teaching and learning. Guide learners in music listening, give them specific criteria, specify which music elements they should focus on, movement activities to perform or questions that they need to answer through the music listening activity.

Other important aspects is that you should consider the types and methods of assessment that you would use for each learning activity in the lesson. Before you want to explain something think about whether you could rather facilitate the activity to enable learners to discover the skills or knowledge themselves or whether you could rather ask an open question which will guide the learners discovery. encourage learners to continuously reflect on their learning and engage in critical conversation about and assessment activities. as a teacher you should also provide as many opportunities as possible for learners to engage in experiential PBL and play , based TL and assessment activities. Think about the role of assessment in your lesson. Think about how the lesson content links to real life as well as current social and political issues and consider the importance of peer scaffolding.

2. Utilizing arts in the foundation phase is one of the most significant things a teacher need to do. Art is a great form of education and I am willing to integrate arts and music in my lessons. I have witnessed children becoming better students due to art and music, most learners are not really good in sit and listen kind of teaching but when you integrate music in your lesson the learner becomes energetic and start to be part of the lesson. Music needs to be the forefront of teaching and learning, art needs to be something that is used on daily lesson plans, every lesson need to start and end with art and music.

3. Before this module I always thought that teaching is all about mathematics science and technology but now that I have learnt about the importance of art and music in the foundation phase I know that music is a big part of learning and teaching. Music makes learning enjoyable and fun, music has an important role to play in the foundation phase. Researchers has found out that when learners learn within fun, safe and relaxing environment learners get to learn optimally. Most learners are more energetic when its time for music and arts. I have learnt so much about music and art in the foundation phase and I cant wait to do all the things I have learnt in this modules with my learners.

I cant begin to say what this past 2 days have been like, network is a problem I am struggling to log in but hey we move.

Now back to study unit 4

I cant say this many times, music is life guys.

In the foundation phase we use music for everything and anything. In the home language I would use music  to start the lesson, I always start with singing. I teach learners weather  through singing, the learners would start singing all the possible weather for the day and then when they finish I would I ask them what does the weather look like today and then they answer.

In life skills I would play a song that is relevant to the topic of the day and then they clap the beat of the song while listening to the words of the song, that alone is an explanation of the topic of the day. I will then switch off the song and ask them what was the song about then just like that we are on the topic and the lesson has begun.

In mathematics I would sing with them the addition or subtraction song depending on the on the topic of the day. We start by standing up and singing while using our fingers to add or subtract.

Visual arts and Life skills can be utilized to support musical  goals, we can use dramatization that learners sing in it using music and drama to support musical goals. Learners are more active and willing where music is concerned. During the lesson of life skills there are topics that we can use music to support the musical goals, the learners can start by singing the lyrics of the song, and clap to the beat as well.

till we meet again !Later

What a week. it took all of me to complete this past week, it has been mad hectic but hey we move. i must say i'm learning a lot from all these study units so far so good. There is a lot of work for this module i cant keep up but i work very hard to pace up.

Now back to study unit 3.

1. Play has 7 elements.

• Play involves a state of mind: for one to be able to play he/she must be playful and allow themselves to use their imagination. As teachers we could allow learners to use the classroom as a place to explore, pal and imagine.
• Play contains elements of surprise and challenge: play is driven by a form of curiosity and surprise, for learners its fascinating and exciting when it comes to play, learners are always looking forward to finding new things and discovering things, they wait with great excitement to see what kind of play they will be part of.
• Play involves a process, attitude and structure : play is not a chaotic process, there are rules and regulations that needs to be followed so that it is not chaotic. everyone must know when is their turn to take part therefore in that way it is orderly and there is some form of structure that goes in playing.
• Play is voluntary and unifying, forming part of the socializing process : no one is forced to play or to participate when they do not want to. its up to a person to want to take part in play.
• Play involves aesthetic quality judgement by participants : play is beautiful we do not just play but play teaches you discipline, how to behave around other people and what to do when you are not chosen to participate or eliminated.
• Play create informal space for socio-historical comment : play is one thing that unites people it does not matter you are young or old, rich or poor.
• Play reinforces societal roles: in play social roles and responsibilities are important and taken very serious. they do not just do things they consider other aspects that contributes to play.

2. Play is so valuable, where learners are concerned play is there. play support cognitive growth and development both physically and emotionally within the foundation phase context. play helps with fine motor  and gross motor skills. through play learners has the opportunity to master various intellectual, physical and concepts. play gives learners the opportunity to be themselves and discover things on their own and learn while doing it, learners are also able to away a skill or two through play. through play learners develop cognitively by developing their problem-solving skills and learn about cause and effect while they are also experiencing cognitive growth.

3. It is very important to include the elements of play in as many teaching and learning activities as possible in the foundation phase, as Vygosky believes that play is very important in child's development in three ways which are as follows. play creates a child's zone of proximal development in a play  setting a child can control behavior such as attending to a task before she is able to control that behavior in another setting. secondly play facilitates the separation of thought from actions an objects, in play a child can pretend that a block is a boat, this separation of objects from meaning is critical to the development of abstract thinking. lastly play facilitates the development of self regulation, in developing a self regulation learners in play are required to make their behavior match the role they have accepted. learners learn best through play and because play for them is not just a play it is easy for you as a teacher to teach them through play. it has been found that imaginative play is a significant casual force in the development of multitude of abilities such as creativity, sequential memory , group cooperation. socio dramatic play is especially important in a development of creativity, intellectual growth and social skills.

4. There are many ways to include play in the foundation phase in the morning when they get  in the classroom for example in grade R learners should be given free play first thing in the morning before any lesson start. free play is a form of self-discovery for learners as well. music is also a form of play. as a teacher you can include play in one of your subjects so that you can get through your learners, they would think that they are playing but you know that its a form of teaching for you and learning for them.

What a week it has been i have been all over the place with other assignments and personal life being part of it. but then we move and we work extra hard to get our degrees. 

with regards to this unit i have learnt a lot throughout this week and i have gained knowledge and skills to be a better music teacher in future.

1. as a foundation teacher the music that i would choose to use in my classroom would be contemporary commercial music. contemporary commercial music is a new term for what was used to be called nonclassical music, it is created to cover every -thing including pop , rock , country, folk. as a teacher i have different learners in my class therefore i need to cater for all of their needs as they come from different background socially, economically and culturally, so they all need to feel welcomed and accepted just as they are.

2. yes they are inclusive as they recognize all learners rights to feel welcomed into a supportive educational environment in their own community, the community being the school in this case. when i look at this study unit i can see that all learners needs are met , movement is included touch is included sight is included and smell is also included. learners who enjoy teaching and learning through touch and movement are catered for. when coming to songs that will be sang in our classroom it will cater for my diverse learners, we will not be singing traditional songs only as we do not follow the same tradition.  Carl Orff believed that all learners have an innate musical ability which should be nurtured, so the activities that are presented on this study unit are inclusive and nurturing to the foundation phase learners.

3. the study unit has covered a lot  about inclusive content. however it could have been more informative to have spoke more about traditional music and not just folk or contemporary music for those that would like to know more about the genre. the activities were inclusive enough yes and i can not add or subtract anything from them. they can only be more detailed but otherwise they are very good.

1. My understanding of Vygosky's ZPD is that the learners has the potential to master new skills or solve problems successfully with the help of the teacher or peer scaffolding. learners are capable to think on their own and face challenges with the help of their teachers and other learner's scaffolding. 

2. Vygosky emphasizes the important of reciprocal teaching, these teaching strategies are interactions between teachers and learners , which learners will be empowered to be responsible for their own learning. Erickson's developmental theory for the stages of psychological development focuses on the influence of social interactions and relationship on learning. Erickson says meaningful relationships are crucial, if our learners are to feel safe, valued, supported and cared for in he classroom he say learners are at the fourth stage of industry vs inferiority. Piaget's cognitive development theory focuses on the notion that children learn by interacting with the world and they build new knowledge based on prior knowledge.

3.I have realised that there is more to teaching in the foundation phase than just teaching learners how to read and write. there is a lot of underlining issues and children in the foundation phase need more attention and guidance than we think. there are developments that need to be taught and learners need to go through different stages to grow into great learners. The most important aspects of holistic development in the foundation phase are the following: 

• physical development
• cognitive development
• social development
• personal development
• emotional development

4. Music promotes interpersonal growth, personal and brain growth and creativity of learners. It is important to have basic knowledge about the musical development of foundation phase learners because music improve vocabulary, reading skills, language development ,  learn rhythm, music helps with  body awareness, music can also help with confidence.

5. Three types of music activities that could support and promote each developmental area are:

• musical stories
• playing instruments
• song composition

6. The way the theorists implicate knowledge about learning theories is very useful and it helps when coming to teaching and planning activities because you know what to target and what you can do to help your learners reach their full potential.

My name is Mmathapelo Rabeng i live in North West in Rustenburg. im so excited to be doing this module as it is all about music. Music is something that im passionate about and i enjoy doing it. I sing at church and at a community choir. i love music and i would love to share my passion and love for music with the learners.

im looking forward to teaching english  in the foundation phase.