Creating Centers for Musical Play and Exploration

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Kristen M. Kemple,
Jacqueline J. Batey, and
Lynn C. Hartle

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Teachers' roles

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 Teachers do much more to support play than simply allow it to happen. Vygotskian theory describes the role of sociocultural context in child development (Berk & Winsler 1995). From this social-constructivist perspective, children learn through supported interactions with more competent “others”—typically older children or adults. The term scaffolding refers to the continuum of supportive structuring that more competent others provide as a child masters a new strategy or skill. As the child internalizes the role of the other and is increasingly able to perform independently, support is gradually withdrawn. This perspective is in contrast to the image of the lone child testing, trying, assimilating, and accommodating in a social vacuum.

 From a social-constructivist perspective, adults have to do more than set the stage—for music or play—by providing space, time, and materials. There’s much more to supporting children’s musical development than just pushing the play button on a CD player. When young children have a rich musical environment along with appropriate guidance from adults, they can learn, for example, to imitate and, with increasing precision, distinguish among rhythm and tone patterns (Gordon 1997).

 Teachers play multiple roles in supporting children’s play activities (Isenberg & Jalongo 1993). They must

plan—set the stage and decide how to introduce new materials in inviting ways.

observe—watch to see how children interact with the materials and each other. Determine if children need help to solve a problem; look for teachable moments.

participate—share and enjoy music and play with children, rather than direct the play or perform for them.

extend—look for the right time to enhance children’s exploration by asking a well-chosen—and often open-ended— question, adding a new piece of equipment, or interjecting an idea for consideration.

model— join in and demonstrate a new behavior non-intrusively, via parallel play. When adults model movement to music while also describing their actions and offering suggestions, children engage in more differentiated and synchronized movement (Metz 1989).

motivate— encourage children to take part in the play. This role is particularly important to consider when working with children with certain disabling conditions. Young children with mental retardation, for example, may not spontaneously choose to engage with play materials and need to be motivated through social or even tangible reinforcement, to become involved in playful activity (Carta et al. 1991).

Get going

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 These center possibilities are offered as inspiration, a starting point. The “Checklist for Creating a Music Play Center” (below) provides some suggestions of things to consider to enhance the success of your centers. Think about the purposes and possibilities of music in early childhood programs. Think about the musical concepts and attitudes that young children can develop. Think about the purposes and nature of play and the variety of ways adults can serve as scaffolders to accommodate the needs, abilities, and interests of a diversity of children. Then play around and get creative! Readers can invent their own ideas for music play centers and introduce children to the joys of music.

 

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