Can
Organize in Complex Ways
Mathematical skills such as combinations and associations become clear to a child in this phase of development.
For example children in this stage can pick out the highest note in a melody once he or she has been able to establish the relationship between high and low. (Schmitt, 1976)
Groupings
During the concrete-operational stage students can begin to group things together in order to understand their relationship with one another. For example, the student can group an electronic keyboard, and organ and a piano into one group of keyboard instruments, or strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion into a group of orchestra.
Wiggins & Bodoin, (1998) researched teaching and learning in a second grade general music classroom.
The teacher encouraged the children to find their own solutions to the problems and found it to be a very successful method.
Mathematical skills such as combinations and associations become clear to a child in this phase of development.
For example children in this stage can pick out the highest note in a melody once he or she has been able to establish the relationship between high and low. (Schmitt, 1976)
Groupings
During the concrete-operational stage students can begin to group things together in order to understand their relationship with one another. For example, the student can group an electronic keyboard, and organ and a piano into one group of keyboard instruments, or strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion into a group of orchestra.
Wiggins & Bodoin, (1998) researched teaching and learning in a second grade general music classroom.
The teacher encouraged the children to find their own solutions to the problems and found it to be a very successful method.
"Mrs.
Bodoin: If you play it like this, it's easier to keep a steady beat
that's slow.
[Everyone tried some claps with large exaggerated motions.] Use a bigger space. We'll
start together. Everybody, try it with me. [ They all clapped the "big beat" as they sang
the song.] We had a few problems. Joan, how do you solve the problem of your
hands hurting? How can you stop that problem?
Joan: Clap soft.
Mrs. Bodoin: Yes. Clap soft. That's a problem you can easily solve. Joshua, how do
we solve the problem of not being together? How can we do that?
Amy: By listening to the other people and clapping with them?
Mrs. Bodoin: Oh. What a wonderful idea! What did she say, Anandi? By listening to
the other people. How do we solve the problem ... Evan ... of bumping into people?
Another student: By doing it in a big, wide circle.
Amy: You mean like an oval. An oval.
Mrs. Bodoin: Instead of wide, go up like an oval. Absolutely. Everyone together
again. Put your book on your lap or on the floor.... Let's try it. Gently. ... Here's
the tempo: 1, 2, ready, go [spoken rather slowly, in the tempo of the song; they all clapped
and sang the song.]
Mrs. Bodoin: Rebecca. That was gorgeous! Everybody, would you say that pattern
while you clap.
By putting the onus on the children to come up with ways to solve the
problems, Karen helped them to succeed in the activity." ( Wiggins & Bodoin, 1998 p.287)
[Everyone tried some claps with large exaggerated motions.] Use a bigger space. We'll
start together. Everybody, try it with me. [ They all clapped the "big beat" as they sang
the song.] We had a few problems. Joan, how do you solve the problem of your
hands hurting? How can you stop that problem?
Joan: Clap soft.
Mrs. Bodoin: Yes. Clap soft. That's a problem you can easily solve. Joshua, how do
we solve the problem of not being together? How can we do that?
Amy: By listening to the other people and clapping with them?
Mrs. Bodoin: Oh. What a wonderful idea! What did she say, Anandi? By listening to
the other people. How do we solve the problem ... Evan ... of bumping into people?
Another student: By doing it in a big, wide circle.
Amy: You mean like an oval. An oval.
Mrs. Bodoin: Instead of wide, go up like an oval. Absolutely. Everyone together
again. Put your book on your lap or on the floor.... Let's try it. Gently. ... Here's
the tempo: 1, 2, ready, go [spoken rather slowly, in the tempo of the song; they all clapped
and sang the song.]
Mrs. Bodoin: Rebecca. That was gorgeous! Everybody, would you say that pattern
while you clap.
By putting the onus on the children to come up with ways to solve the
problems, Karen helped them to succeed in the activity." ( Wiggins & Bodoin, 1998 p.287)