Monday, March 9, 2009
Music bridges to the classroom
Music uses a catchy hook to capture listeners attention and this is very similar to what a classroom teacher must do to capture the imaginations of students. There are many things that students can be thinking about when in class, but the goal is to get them to think about what content you are trying to teach. I teach math, so I would say my job is a little harder than most, but math also lends itself to having students discover the tricks that make it work. They are always there, but they are hard to discover and take effort. In music, when people listen carefully they can hear the reasons why a piece is catchy, but this takes effort as well. Music also compares to teaching in the idea that people and students can enjoy different genres and subjects, but often if they are exposed to new ideas and songs they can be swayed. Many of my students are wary of math, but if I can use a catchy hook I can win them over. Kind of like what Timberlake did to snag a Grammy or two.
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3 comments:
As a math teacher also, I have spent a lot of time this year trying to think of good hooks to get my students interested in a lesson. I think too many math teachers just start in on a lesson that the kids dont care about yet. I have found that sometimes a good hook is just to present a problem they cant do yet. For example, I was doing a lesson on probability (permutations) with my 6th graders today and I asked them first thing to make a list of all the possible ways that the 15 of them could line up to go to lunch. They began making a list and somebody said "this will take forever!" They were quickly interested in how to find out without making a list. By the end of class, they realized they would have been there for a while because the number 1s 15x14x13x12x11...., and the answer I think was in the trillions. So my point is, for many math topics, I think I good hook can just be something they can't do yet, because it will make them curious to learn the "easy" way to do it.
Well, unlike you and Ashley, I am not a math teacher. Sometimes I think it would be easier because math is so straight forward and paced, but then I remember that order, pace and lack of gray area is just not me! Last week when discussing stereotypes, prejudice and conflict resolution, I had my students analyze "Where is the Love" by the Black Eyed Peas and they loved it. Music was literally my hook for the day. They listened, shared, sang, and found meaning to the content of the chapter they read and the lesson I was attempting to convey. Maybe thats just a perk of being a Life Skills teacher. I give you both a lot of credit, Math might be difficult to "hook", and I agree that your job may be a little harder than most, but your passion for it and connections to students probably make you both wonderful teachers. I don't think many people could do what you do and be successful.
Very nice observation. Your comment made believe that compelling experiences have a lot to do with distance, or the disappearance of the distance. In other words, things you love, they just get to you, don't they? The challenge now, is how to get students into match?
Gaoming
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