Arts integration promotes teaching and learning strategies which address outcomes in various subjects simultaneously while encouraging learners to demonstrate their understanding of concepts and skills through the arts. Arts Integrated Instruction has become an area of great interest over the past decade as schools across the country are discovering the power of the arts when used as a catalyst for teaching across the curriculum. Arts integration is not focused on teaching the arts for their own sake. We are champions of art specialists in the schools, and recognize the need to add to their forces in cities across the country.

It is important that all educators become aware of the successes that have been demonstrated when students become engaged in their own learning via arts integrated instruction. Arts integration is not about artist residencies, or occasional arts projects that connect to other curricular subjects. It is about a methodology and a philosophical approach to education that creates a level of personal connection and added depth in the classroom through a creative inquiry-based process of teaching and learning.

Play in any form is characterized by creativity. Play is the most intensive and fruitful learning activity encountered in ones life. Play involves attitude, process and structure. Play does not imply chaos. Play may involve a highly evolved song-dance structure with cultural and socially pre-determined entries and coordinated musical construction. Drumming, clapping, singing and movement patterns have  to be learned to reproduce progressively more complex and configurations in culturally appropriate contexts and manners. While all of the above events may not happen in one day (outside this hypothetical classroom), in order to promote and nurture children's play as a learning tool, teachers must be able to recognize it. "Play" can be described as intrinsically motivated activity that is pleasurable to the participant.2 It is an activity in which being engaged in a process, rather than achieving a final product, is the goal. Research has cantered on two aspects of play: social and cognitive. Music is regularly a part of young children’s play. Spontaneous singing, sound exploration, and dance are often evident.

Foundation phase learners find it very fun and interesting when you as teacher include music in others subject contents, for example they will master a multiplication table very fast when you allow them to create songs out of those tables. Music education offers unique opportunities for addressing inclusive goals in education.

A foundation phase must know basic music elements which are

• duration (of tone) – including music concepts of beat, meter, rhythm and tempo
• pitch (of tone)
• intensity (of tone)
• quality (of tone)
• Texture

As a teacher you should know benefits of music which are

• MUSIC PROMOTES A POSITIVE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

        • INFLUENCES BRAINWAVES

         • DEVELOPS COOPORATION

        • DEMOSTRATTES LEARNING ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

       • FACILITATE A MULTISENSORY LEARNING EXPERINCE