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Steps to do music and movement activities in classroom:

"Animals"

The children simple stand and the teacher asks them to be a certain animal and the children then act out what animal the teacher has called out.

For example :

"Everyone be a monkey" and then the children act like monkeys. For this activity it best to alternate a "loud" animal with a "'quite" one.

For example :

"Everyone be a bear"  and then "Everyone be a snake".

You will probably find some children who do not want to participate right away especially if they have not done any kind of movement or play acting in front of other children.

It's is alright to let a child observe and then join in when he/she is ready.

"Statue"

In this activity the children free dance or make whatever kind of movements they want.

The teacher then calls out "statue" and the children immediately stop what they are doing and hold still. This is a super activity for balance an coordination.

"Free Dance"

Music is put on and children dance any way they wish. This activity should not be overlooked as it helps to build children's confidence and self-esteem.

"Hot Potato"

We do this activity to music  we use "Hot Potato" by the wiggles. We use different stuffed items (made out of fabric and then filled with pillow stuffing) for the potato such as a stuffed apple,pumpkin,  heart

etc.

A nerf ball works well to. For this activity everyone gets in a circle. One child has the"potato" and when the music begins he/she passes the potato to the child next to him/her as fast as she/he can. The teacher stops the music and the children clap for the child who is holding the potato. The music is restarted and children continue play.

This is different from the traditional "hot potato" game where the child who is holding the potato when the music stops is eliminated. Depending on your group size play should continue until each child has held the potato when the music stops.

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Examples of group singing and movement activities in the classroom

"Pumpkin Patch"

This experience is based on the familiar folk tune, "Paw Paw Patch." This experience enhances children’s development in many areas: in collaborating with others in a group, in playing an organized game with "rules," in following a symbolic representation of sounds, in internalizing a sense of-tonality and rhythm through singing, moving, and representing a song through pictures.

Procedures

1. As the children sit in a circle, sing the song. As you sing the first verse, starting "Where, oh where is dear little [name of child]," everyone in the circle looks for the child named.

2. As you sing the second verse, "She’s picking up the pumpkins, putting them in the basket … Way down yonder in the pumpkin patch," that child goes to the part of the room designated the "pumpkin patch" and picks up imaginary pumpkins one by one

3. Have the children follow the song map as they sing.

4. Involve the children in new places that Mary may be visiting, and ask them to draw related pictures constructing their own song maps.

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Social Development

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Singing and music play an important role in our culture. You'll find music present in many aspects of our lives: theater, television, movies, worship, holidays, celebrations, and government and military ceremonies. At home, music can become part of our family culture - a natural part of our everyday experiences.

From birth, parents instinctively use music to calm and soothe children, to express their love and joy, and to engage and interact. Parents can build on these natural instincts by learning how music can impact child development, improve social skills, and benefit kids of all ages.

Music and the Brain: The Benefits of Music

A 2016 study at the University of Southern California's Brain and Creativity Institute found that musical experiences in childhood can actually accelerate brain development, particularly in the areas of language acquisition and reading skills. According to the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation (NAMM Foundation), learning to play an instrument can improve mathematical learning and even increase SAT scores.

But academic achievement isn't the only benefit of music education and exposure. Music ignites all areas of child development and skills for school readiness: intellectual, social and emotional, motor, language, and overall literacy. It helps the body and the mind work together. Exposing children to music during early development helps them learn the sounds and meanings of words. Dancing to music helps children build motor skills while allowing them to practice self-expression. For children and adults, music helps strengthen memory skills.

In addition to the developmental benefits of music, why is music important? Simply put, it provides us with joy. Just think about listening to a good song on the car radio with the window down on a beautiful day. That's joy.

Music Games for Kids of All Ages

Children of all ages express themselves through music. Playing music for infants proves that, even at an early age, children sway, bounce, or move their hands in response to music they hear. Many preschoolers make up songs and, with no self-consciousness, sing to themselves as they play. Children in elementary school learn to sing together as a group and possibly learn to play a musical instrument. Older children dance to the music of their favorite bands and use music to form friendships and share feelings. Try these activities and games with your children to experience the pleasure and learning that music brings.

Infants and Music. Infants recognize the melody of a song long before they understand the words. They often try to mimic sounds and start moving to the music as soon as they are physically able. Quiet, background music can be soothing for infants, especially at sleep time. Loud background music may overstimulate an infant by raising the noise level of the room. Sing simple, short songs to infants in a high, soft voice. Try making up one or two lines about bathing, dressing, or eating to sing to them while you do these activities. Find musical learning activities for infants.

Toddlers and Music. Toddlers love to dance and move to music. The key to toddler music is the repetition of songs, which encourages the use of words and memorization. Silly songs make them laugh. Try singing a familiar song and inserting a silly word in the place of the correct word, like "Mary had a little spider" instead of lamb. Let them reproduce rhythms by clapping or tapping objects.

Preschoolers and Music. Preschoolers enjoy singing just to be singing. They aren't self-conscious about their ability and most are eager to let their voices roar. They like songs that repeat words and melodies, use rhythms with a definite beat, and ask them to do things. Preschool children enjoy nursery rhymes and songs about familiar things like toys, animals, play activities, and people. They also like finger plays and nonsense rhymes with or without musical accompaniment.

School-Age Children and Music. Most young school-age children are intrigued by kids' singalong songs that involve counting, spelling, or remembering a sequence of events. School-age children begin expressing their likes and dislikes of different types of music. They may express an interest in music education, such as music lessons for kids.

Teenagers and Music. Teenagers may use musical experiences to form friendships and to set themselves apart from parents and younger kids. They often want to hang out and listen to music after school with a group of friends. Remember those days of basement and garage bands? They often have a strong interest in taking music lessons or playing in a band.

There is no downside to bringing children and music together through fun activities. We are able to enjoy the benefits of music from the moment we're born, as music can soothe infants and stimulate child development. Although a good dose of Mozart is probably not increasing our brain power, it's enjoyable and beautiful. From the pure pleasure of listening to soothing sounds and rhythmic harmonies, to gaining new language and social skills, whatever the setting - a quiet room at home with family, a large grassy field filled with people, or a busy classroom - music can enliven and enrich the lives of children and the people who care for them.
More on This Topic:

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Children and Music: Benefits of Music in Child Development

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Singing and music play an important role in our culture. You'll find music present in many aspects of our lives: theater, television, movies, worship, holidays, celebrations, and government and military ceremonies. At home, music can become part of our family culture - a natural part of our everyday experiences.

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Cognitive Development

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Department of Fundamental Neurosciences, (CMU), University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland

Swiss Centre of Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland

Musical training has recently gained additional interest in education as increasing neuroscientific research demonstrates its positive effects on brain development. Neuroimaging revealed plastic changes in the brains of adult musicians but it is still unclear to what extent they are the product of intensive music training rather than of other factors, such as preexisting biological markers of musicality. In this review, we synthesize a large body of studies demonstrating that benefits of musical training extend beyond the skills it directly aims to train and last well into adulthood. For example, children who undergo musical training have better verbal memory, second language pronunciation accuracy, reading ability and executive functions. Learning to play an instrument as a child may even predict academic performance and IQ in young adulthood. The degree of observed structural and functional adaptation in the brain correlates with intensity and duration of practice. Importantly, the effects on cognitive development depend on the timing of musical initiation due to sensitive periods during development, as well as on several other modulating variables. Notably, we point to motivation, reward and social context of musical education, which are important yet neglected factors affecting the long-term benefits of musical training. Further, we introduce the notion of rhythmic entrainment and suggest that it may represent a mechanism supporting learning and development of executive functions. It also hones temporal processing and orienting of attention in time that may underlie enhancements observed in reading and verbal memory. We conclude that musical training uniquely engenders near and far transfer effects, preparing a foundation for a range of skills, and thus fostering cognitive development.

Introduction

Psychological and neuroscientific research demonstrates that musical training in children is associated with heightening of sound sensitivity as well as enhancement in verbal abilities and general reasoning skills. Studies in the domain of auditory cognitive neuroscience have begun revealing the functional and structural brain plasticity underlying these effects. However, the extent to which the intensity and duration of instrumental training or other factors such as family background, extracurricular activities, attention, motivation, or instructional methods contribute to the benefits for brain development is still not clear. Music training correlates with plastic changes in auditory, motor, and sensorimotor integration areas. However, the current state of the literature does not lend itself to the conclusion that the observed changes are caused by music training alone ( Merrett et al., 2013).

In this article we briefly review the recent literature on how musical training changes brain structure and function in adult musicians and during development. We next report evidence for near and far transfer effects in various cognitive functions that are unprecedented in comparison to other long-term practice activities in childhood. Finally, we point out the important and overlooked role of other factors that could contribute to the observed cognitive enhancement as well as structural and functional brain differences between musicians and non-musicians. We propose the mechanism of rhythmic entrainment and social synchrony as factors contributing to the plasticity-promoting role of musical training that is unique to music education. The proposed mechanism of rhythmic synchronization by which musical training yields a unique advantage of transferrable skills may provide a promising avenue of research explaining the beneficial effects on a developing brain. In addition, we pinpoint the potentially important role of genetic predispositions and motivation that is rarely controlled for in the existing literature.

The review focuses on studies investigating healthy children's and adults' response to formal musical education (primarily instrumental training) in terms of neuroplasticity observed with neuroimaging techniques, as well as in behavioral effects on cognitive performance in various domains. Although we mention and acknowledge the enormous value of music therapy with the aim of restoring lost function in diseased or disabled individuals, this topic is outside the main focus of this review. Reviewing the progress in musical training research embraced in this article leads us to the promising supposition that the induced changes in brain development and plasticity are not only relevant in music-specific domains but also enhance other cognitive skills.

Cognitive, Emotional and Social Functions in Music Perception and Production

Furthermore, music is also known to have a powerful emotional impact. Neuroimaging studies have shown that musically induced emotions involve very similar brain regions that are also implicated in non-musical basic emotions, such as the reward system, insula, and orbitofrontal cortex, amygdala and hippocampus ( Blood and Zatorre, 2001; Koelsch et al., 2006; Salimpoor et al., 2011; Trost et al., 2012). However, music can have a strong influence on the emotion of the listener as well as the performer: musical engagement can be experienced as highly emotional not only as in the case of stage fright ( Studer et al., 2011) but also as highly rewarding ( de Manzano et al., 2010; Nakahara et al., 2011). Furthermore, in a social context, making music in a group has been suggested to increase communication, coordination, cooperation and even empathy between in-group members ( Koelsch, 2010). Therefore, it could easily be conceived how musical training could have a positive impact on the well-being and social development of children and adults.

Instrumental training is a multisensory motor experience, typically initiated at an early age. Playing an instrument requires a host of skills, including reading a complex symbolic system (musical notation) and translating it into sequential, bimanual motor activity dependent on multisensory feedback; developing fine motor skills coupled with metric precision; memorizing long musical passages; and improvising within given musical parameters. Music performance, unlike most other motor activities, requires precise timing of several hierarchically organized actions and control over pitch interval production ( Zatorre et al., 2007). Music sight-reading calls for the simultaneous and sequential processing of a vast amount of information in a very brief time for immediate use. This task requires, at the very least, interpretation of the pitch and duration of the notes (written on the two staves of a piano score) in the context of the prespecified key signature and meter, detection of familiar patterns, anticipation of what the music should sound like, and generation of a performance plan suited for motor translation. Formal musical instruction, therefore, trains a set of attentional and executive functions, which have both domain-specific and general consequences.

The Musician's Brain: Plasticity and Functional Changes Due to Musical Training

While it may not be surprising that structural and functional differences are found in those brain regions that are closely linked to skills learned during instrumental music training (such as independent fine motor movements in both hands and auditory discrimination), differences outside of these primary regions are particularly interesting (for instance, in the inferior frontal gyrus in Sluming et al., 2002). Such findings indicate that plasticity can occur in brain regions that either have control over primary musical functions or serve as multimodal integration regions for musical skills, possibly mediating the transfer of musical training onto other skills. For example, a recent study investigating resting-state activity measured with fMRI in musicians compared to non-musicians found that musicians have increased functional connectivity in motor and multi-sensory areas ( Luo et al., 2012). This result shows that long-term musical training influences functional brain connectivity even in research designs where no task is given, and points out that for musicians' motor and multi-sensory networks may be better trained to act jointly.

Figure 1. Schematic representation of near and far transfer skills that benefit from musical instrumental training. In the inner rectangle variables modulating the influence of musical training on cognitive development are listed (see main text, in particular section Variables Modulating Brain Plasticity via Musical Training). Near transfer skills are marked in solid rectangles and far transfer skills are marked in dashed rectangles (described in detail in section Effects on Cognitive Functions). Terms in italic indicate results inconclusive in the present state of the literature.

Effects of Musical Training in Childhood

Critical and Sensitive Periods

Effects on Brain Plasticity

Two longitudinal studies tracked the influence of musical training on behavioral and brain activity in children between the ages of five and nine. Schlaug et al. (2005) recruited 50 children who were about to begin their musical education and compared them with a group of 25 age-, socioeconomic status and verbal IQ-matched controls. At baseline, there were no pre-existing cognitive, music, motor, or structural brain differences between the instrumental and control groups as tested by functional MR scans ( Norton et al., 2005). Tests performed after 14 months of musical training revealed significantly greater change scores in the instrumental group compared to the control group in fine motor skills and auditory discrimination. However, no significant changes in gray or white matter volume nor transfer effects in domains such as verbal, visual-spatial, and math were found, but the instrumental group showed a trend in the anticipated direction.

A study by Hyde et al. (2009) compared two groups of 6 years old children, one of which took private keyboard lessons for 15 months and the other spent a similar amount of time per week in a group music lesson that included singing and playing with drums and bells. Applying deformation-based morphometry to assess the differences between groups throughout the whole brain before and after the musical training revealed that children with piano lessons showed areas of greater relative voxel size in motor brain areas, such as the right precentral gyrus (motor hand area), and the midbody of the corpus callosum, as well as in the right primary auditory region, consistent with the plastic changes observed in professional musicians. Furthermore, structural brain differences in various frontal areas were observed which, however, did not correlate with improvement in behavioral performance.

This evidence demonstrates that regular musical training during the sensitive period can induce structural changes in the brain and they are unlikely only due to pre-existing morphological differences. Yet, 14 months may not be long enough to engrave statistically significant growth in white and gray matter volume ( Schlaug et al., 2005), and the differences observed may potentially be confounded by parents' higher level of education ( Hyde et al., 2009).

Effects on Cognitive Functions

A further interesting question we explore in this section is the generalization of musical training-induced learning to other functional domains. According to the "temporal opportunity" conception of environmental stimulation during brain development, experiences in childhood and adolescence are vital to many abilities in adult life, which makes the decision of what education to provide to a child a serious matter. Is musical training a good choice? Although many longitudinal developmental studies of music education include a well-matched control group, such as another arts program, there is only limited research contrasting instrumental training in childhood with dance or sports, which could offer interesting avenues in plasticity research and aid the parents in making an informed decision. Thus, although all arts and sports programs do have beneficial effects on cognitive development ( Green and Bavelier, 2008), instrumental musical training appears unique in the wide array of observed long-term effects, although there may be other factors mediating this effect ( Young et al., 2013).

Listening skills

Taken together, these results suggest that musical training increases listening skills, including sound discrimination, an ability also involved in speech segmentation ( Francois et al., 2013), allowing a more accurate processing of speech and voices. In line with our proposed role of rhythmic entrainment (see section Rhythm and Entrainment below), Besson et al. (2011) suggested that these differences in language processing distinguishing musicians from non-musicians may reflect a learned ability to precisely orient attention in time in order to discriminate sounds more accurately.

Linguistic skills

Musical sounds and all other sounds share most of the processing stages throughout the auditory system and although speech is different from music production in several dimensions ( Hannon and Trainor, 2007), musical training has been shown to transfer to language related skills. For example, auditory brainstem responses to stop consonants in musically trained children as young as 3 years is more distinct, indicating enhanced neural differentiation of similar sounds that characterizes adult musicians and later translates into better ability to distinguish sounds in speech ( Strait et al., 2013). While the cross-links between language and musical training have been reviewed elsewhere (e.g., Chandrasekaran and Kraus, 2010; Besson et al., 2011; Strait and Kraus, 2011, 2013), two examples include neurophysiological mechanisms underlying syntax processing in both music and language that develop earlier in children with musical training ( Jentschke and Koelsch, 2009), and the transfer of musical training to pitch discrimination in speech as well as reading aloud in 8-year old children ( Moreno et al., 2009).

Research in adults clearly showed that musical ability could predict linguistic skills in the second language learning. Slevc and Miyake (2006) tested 50 Japanese adult learners of English, and found a relationship between musical ability and second language skills in receptive and productive phonology, showing that musical expertise can be a benefit for learning a second language. And in young children, a study by Milovanov et al. (2008) showed that second language pronunciation accuracy correlates with musical skills.

Spatial and mathematical skills

Executive function

The notion of executive function refers to the cognitive processes orchestrated by the prefrontal cortex that allow us to stay focused on means and goals, and to willfully (with conscious control) alter our behaviors in response to changes in the environment ( Banich, 2009). They include cognitive control (attention and inhibition), working memory and cognitive flexibility (task switching).

General IQ and academic achievement

For children, music lessons act as additional schooling-requiring focused attention, memorization, and the progressive mastery of a technical skill. It is therefore likely that transfer skills of executive function, self-control and sustained focused attention translate into better results in other subjects, and eventually in higher scores of general IQ. General IQ is typically tested with Raven's Progressive Matrices ( Raven, 1976), although various types of intelligence can also be tested on specific tests. These tests require different kinds of cognitive performance, such as providing definitions of words or visualizing three-dimensional objects from two-dimensional diagrams, and are regarded as a good indicator of mental arithmetic skills and non-verbal reasoning. For example, Forgeard et al. (2008) found that practicing a musical instrument increases the performance in the Raven's Matrices test, which could suggest that non-verbal reasoning skills are better developed in children with musical training.

Intelligence measurements are often used to predict academic achievement. One question in this domain of research is therefore how musical activities influence academic achievement in children and adolescents. Despite initial claims that this effect may be primarily due to differences in socioeconomic status and family background, intervention studies as well as tests of general intelligence seem to show a positive association between music education and academic achievement. For example in a study by Southgate and Roscigno (2009) longitudinal data bases which include information on music participation, academic achievement and family background were analyzed. Their results show that indeed music involvement in- and outside of school can act as a mediator of academic achievement tested as math and reading skills. However, their results show also that there is a systematic relation between music participation and family background. Nonetheless, a recent study found that academic achievement can be predicted independently of socioeconomic status only when the child has access to a musical instrument ( Young et al., 2013). Interestingly, this finding emphasizes that musical activities with an instrument differ from other arts activities in this respect.

Social skills

Plasticity Over the Life-Span

Variables Modulating Brain Plasticity via Musical Training

One challenge in assessing developmental changes in the brain due to long-term learning such as musical training is that many studies demonstrating structural brain differences are retrospective and look at mature musicians, which does not rule out the possibility that people with certain structural atypicalities are more predisposed to become musicians. If this is the case, then the distinction between innate and developed differences is rather difficult. In fact, the biggest goal for most training studies, notwithstanding musical training, is to disentangle the effects of longitudinal training and pre-existing differences or factors other than the intervention, such as gender, genetic predisposition, general IQ, socio-economic background and parents' influence. Another difficulty of interventions in young populations concerns the fact that children's brains are very inhomogeneous, and therefore comparisons, even within similar age groups, may not be very informative.

Genetic Predispositions

Motivation and the Rewarding Power of Music

Other factors that affect music performance ability are emotional support from parents and a nurturing relationship with the teacher characterized by mutual liking ( Sloboda, 1993). Although these are not the focus of this article, they greatly affect a child's motivation to practice and the learning outcome, and should be taken into consideration in future studies investigating effects of musical training compared to other forms of long-term training intervention.

Interestingly, musicians may differ in the level of enjoyment they derive from their artistic activity, with a particular difference between popular, jazz- and folk- vs. classical musicians. Although studies mostly concentrate on musicians trained in playing a particular instrument, the type of education they received may affect the outcome not only due to instructional differences but also through differences in motivation. One large survey conducted in the UK between 2006 and 2008 reported that folk, jazz and popular music students/artists derive more pleasure from their work than classical musicians ( de Bezenac and Swindells, 2009). The non-classical musicians reported more frequent "playing for fun" and generally more enjoyment derived from group performances. One of the study's conclusions was that popular music artists tend to have higher levels of intrinsic motivation (and reportedly learning to play an instrument out of own desire) and later age at training commencement than classical musicians. The latter, who may have been confronted with higher demands for discipline and compliance in the formal educational system, tended to value technical skills higher than pleasure, and presumably had higher levels of extrinsic motivation for awards in adult career, and for teacher's praise during training. Although brain plasticity studies have so far mainly concentrated on classical music education, it may be important to note that students with classical and non-classical music education may actually differ in personality traits (such as conscientiousness, Corrigall et al., 2013), motivational goals, and these could in turn contribute to observed transfer of cognitive advantage and their functional and structural brain correlates.

In the context of musical education, we suggest thus that the aforementioned influence of personality and intrinsic motivation should be taken into account in future studies. For example, in random assignment studies on the impact of musical training, participants should also be asked to declare their personal motivation to adhere to the training at least before and after the intervention. Furthermore, personality questionnaires could be incorporated to test for traits that affect the learning style (e.g., reward sensitivity, openness, perseverance). These factors could then be used as covariates in the analysis of the effect of musical training in both behavioral and neuroimaging studies. Such information would help determine the extent of the influence of personality and motivational disposition on the long-term adherence to the program as well as its outcome in terms of transfer skills. This could be particularly pertinent given the fact, that these factors could not only limit the positive effects of musical activities but even be detrimental to cognitive and emotional development if the activity represents mainly a source of stress and negative affect. In addition, this information might also help to disentangle the real impact of the training from the influence of personality and motivation.

Rhythm and Entrainment

The mentioned aspects of attentional guiding, forming temporal expectations, auditory-motor integration, coordination of movements and social interaction have all in common that they are based on a synchronization and adaptation of internal processes to the external rhythm of the music, or the actions of other musicians ( Trost and Vuilleumier, 2013). We therefore suggest that rhythmic entrainment and ensuing honing of temporal processing play a key role in the beneficial influence of music education on the development of executive functions and far transfer effects.

Rhythmic entrainment has also been suggested as an emotion induction mechanism ( Juslin et al., 2010). According to Juslin and colleagues the process where internal bodily rhythms such as respiration adapt to the external rhythm of the music contributes to the induction of an emotional reaction. Being in synchrony with the music or with the other musicians would therefore represent an emotional and often rewarding experience. As pointed out in the previous section on the influence of motivation, positive emotional experiences that activate the reward system modulate memory formation and favor brain plasticity.

Furthermore, musical activities are often social. Indeed, it has been proposed that the evolutionary function of music has always been to increase cooperation, coordination, communication, co-pathy, contact, social cognition and cohesion between the members of a group ( Koelsch, 2010). It seems that one of these effects is the fact that a certain form of social synchronization is instilled, implying the respect of and adaptation to each other. In fact, in empirical studies it has often been described that acting in synchrony with a partner may increase prosocial commitment ( Kokal et al., 2011), social affiliation ( Hove and Risen, 2009), trust ( Launay et al., 2013), cooperation ( Wiltermuth and Heath, 2009) and feelings of compassion ( Valdesolo et al., 2010; Valdesolo and Desteno, 2011). When playing music in a group one has to automatically synchronize to the other musicians. The state of synchrony is therefore generated naturally and is possible already in pre-school children who synchronize their drumming more easily in a social context ( Kirschner and Tomasello, 2009). Learning to perform an activity in synchrony together with others is supported by the activation of the mirror neuron system ( Tognoli et al., 2007; Overy and Molnar-Szakacs, 2009). We therefore suggest that this social aspect of musical training may add to the role of reward and motivation in shaping a developing brain. Moreover, learning of some skills (singing in a choir, playing in an ensemble) sets musical training apart from other social activities that do not require synchronization of actions with other group members specifically thanks to the engagement of the mirror neuron system.

Neuronal populations in various areas of the brain can be entrained by external stimulation ( Gomez-Ramirez et al., 2011; Nozaradan et al., 2011; Thut et al., 2011), and temporal prediction underlying the capacity for rhythmic sensorimotor synchronization ( Repp, 2005; Repp and Su, 2013) has been suggested to play a general role in efficient behavior ( Schwartze and Kotz, 2013). Specifically, maintenance of rhythmic regularity of neural oscillations within particular frequency bands has been suggested as a mechanism of communication across distant neural areas ( Canolty and Knight, 2010; Grahn, 2012), as well as of sensory perception ( Thut and Miniussi, 2009), and memory consolidation, particularly during sleep ( Fell and Axmacher, 2011). Rhythmic entrainment can be conditioned using e.g., sensorimotor stimulation ( Schabus et al., 2013), or induced in a sleeping brain using electric ( Marshall et al., 2006) or auditory ( Ngo et al., 2013) stimulation, which results in increased amount of slow waves, improved quality of sleep and better declarative memory.

Even in the animal literature interesting effect of rhythmic entrainment can be found ( Rickard et al., 2005). For example, based on a series of experiments on neonate chicks, Rickard and colleagues observed that complex rhythmic auditory stimuli enhance memory by promoting moderate levels of physiological arousal through noradrenergic modulation of the memory systems ( Toukhsati and Rickard, 2001; Rickard et al., 2005; Rickard, 2009). The authors concluded that it is important that the auditory stimulus contains a certain rhythmical complexity as simple metronomic beats of non-metrical rhythms do not have any memory enhancing effect ( Toukhsati and Rickard, 2001). Furthermore, non-metrical (that is, consisting of tones that are not aligned with the dominant beat) music produced learning and memory deficits on a maze task in mice, while rats exposed to non-rhythmic music performed poorly in a spatial learning task ( Schreckenberg and Bird, 1987; Rauscher et al., 1998). This suggests that auditory stimulations with a non-metrical rhythmical structure could compromise memory processes. Furthermore, these studies show that even in a passive listening condition performance could be improved in animals. However, we would like to emphasize that an active involvement in a rhythmic activity could amplify the effects even more, as it is known that active participation in a musical activity compared to passive listening only has a stronger effect on, e.g., executive function in the elderly ( Bugos, 2010).

We propose that active engagement involving a synchronized production of motor responses is necessary for the facilitatory effect on attentional resources, movement control, auditory working memory and other functions that rely on temporal processing, as well as social synchrony. These particular aspects of musical training, absent in visual arts or theater training, contribute to the wide development of cognitive abilities and render it very different from other forms of artistic expression. We therefore suggest that a proper control group comparing music as a form of childhood intervention would be to use a group activity characterized by both rhythmic entrainment and social synchrony, such as for example team sport lessons (e.g., rowing, badminton or volleyball).

Conclusion

In this review of the literature we show that musical training in childhood not only enhances many cognitive functions but is accompanied by neuroplastic changes in brain structure and function. Although this influence appears to be strongly potentiated when musical training takes place during sensitive periods, we have given some examples that music-induced brain plasticity does occur also later in life. In this article we wanted to point to specific factors affecting the relative value of musical education in comparison to other types of longitudinal training in childhood that require similar engagement of cognitive resources and demand a significant overall time investment. These factors include the importance of motivation, affect and social communication in music learning, as well as the potential role of rhythmic entrainment. Consequently, several issues, which have been treated in other recent review papers, remained beyond the scope of this review. Musical training results in better achievement in domains other than mere music performance, such as verbal abilities, second language learning, non-verbal reasoning and general intelligence. The advice for parents and educators is therefore clear: promote instrumental training in early childhood, as it may result in life-long advantages. However, the precise timing of the "windows of opportunity" within which particular environmental stimulation should be provided to a child to have the strongest impact, is probably before the age of seven, although the auditory system could benefit from earlier commencement, by the age of five (or even 2, Skoe and Kraus, 2013), while other structures, such as for example the white matter tracts, remain plastic well into the adulthood.

Notably, the aspect of motivation is underrepresented in the existing literature on musical training. The link between reward system activity and various forms of learning is well known: for instance, hippocampal learning (spatial, semantic, and episodic memory) is enhanced with the simultaneous activity of the reward system (involving the dopaminergic neural pathway from the ventral tegmental area and the ventral striatum Lisman and Grace, 2005), not to mention the simple reward conditioning mechanism underlying many well-documented tasks where learning and memory enhancements have been observed (e.g., Delgado and Dickerson, 2012).

Furthermore, in this review we have proposed rhythmic entrainment as a major underlying mechanism that is responsible for the beneficial effect of musical training on cognitive functions, especially with regard to the executive functions. Musical rhythms help to orient attentional processes in time, which implies a benefit for preparation and control of motor actions, and honing of temporal processing of information. We have reported several studies suggesting that these processes are also linked to cognitive functions such as reading ability and attentional focus. Furthermore, rhythmic entrainment is also regarded as an emotion induction mechanism, which again hints at the pleasurable aspect of musical activities.

In Figure 1 we provide a summary of the near- and far-transfer skills promoted by musical training, according to the literature reviewed in section Effects on Cognitive Functions. We designate skills that are closely linked to the musical training domain, such as fine motor skills and listening as near-transfer skills. In particular, we identify temporal processing and orienting of attention in time as an ability that is perfected in musicians but that has not been explicitly described as a transfer skill. Instead, we point that this particular skill-processing of temporal information-likely underlies farther transfer skills such as reading and verbal memory. Far-transfer skills include abilities unrelated to the context of playing an instrument but that generalize to other domains, such as executive functions and linguistic skills. In the center, we listed the variables modulating the effects of musical training. These include, firstly, genetically determined predispositions (musicality, personality and motivational disposition; section Genetic Predispositions), and age at commencement (section Critical and Sensitive Periods). Secondly, we list the degree of intrinsic motivation and its affective quality (associated with punishment or reward), and the role of parents and teachers (section Motivation and the Rewarding Power of Music). And thirdly, two factors that modulate brain development through musical training itself: rhythmic entrainment and music-induced rewarding emotions (sections Rhythm and Entrainment & Motivation and the Rewarding Power of Music).

Learning to play an instrument offers a child the opportunity for creative self-expression and the development of an identity. Furthermore, musical training can be a leisure activity and a possibility to learn a form of discipline outside of the frame of the school curriculum, which gives the opportunity for rewarding experiences of self-achievement and positive reinforcement. Moreover, music education in preschool children, or first years of instrumental classes, as well as singing in a choir, has an important social component. Learning to make music together requires the respect of others and teaches implicit communicative rules and skills. In fact, it has been suggested that making music in a group might have served an evolutionary purpose of increasing communication, coordination, cooperation and even empathy within a group ( Koelsch, 2010). This notion emphasizes the fact that making music in a group can be a very rewarding activity. Furthermore, social context and well-being also have a decisive influence on brain plasticity ( Davidson and McEwen, 2012), which suggests that well-being induced by musical activities would in turn help shape brain functions via the mediating influence of the reward system. Therefore, we conclude that musical education starting already early in childhood offers the opportunity to tune and train the brain for important cognitive and possibly also social functions. Furthermore, it provides the child with techniques and foundations, which will probably serve as a benefit for the entire lifetime; not to mention that having learned to play an instrument in childhood may be a great source of pleasure later on in life.

Author Contributions

Ewa A. Miendlarzewska and Wiebke J. Trost have both contributed to the writing of the manuscript.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) in Affective Sciences (No. 51NF40-104897) at the University of Geneva for supporting this publication. Ewa A. Miendlarzewska would like to thank Carlo V. Cannistraci for inspiring this review.

References

Paus, T., Zijdenbos, A., Worsley, K., Collins, D. L., Blumenthal, J., Giedd, J. N., et al. (1999). Structural maturation of neural pathways in children and adolescents: in vivo study. Science 283, 1908-1911. doi: 10.1126/science.283.5409.1908

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How musical training affects cognitive development: rhythm, reward and other modulating variables

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Musical training has recently gained additional interest in education as increasing neuroscientific research demonstrates its positive effects on brain development. Neuroimaging revealed plastic changes in the brains of adult musicians but it is still unclear to what extent they are the product of intensive music training rather than of other factors, such as preexisting biological markers of musicality.

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Physical Development

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How to know when children are engage in music and movement in the classroom :

The students will be able to give positive respond to their learning. Students that excited about learning, are motivated to pay attention in class. Many times student misbehavior in the classroom happens because of boredom. When students are excited about their learning, they are motivated to pay attention in class.

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Dr. Wendy Ghiora - Posting #9

How do I teach thee? Let me count the ways. Our specific query today is: How can we best engage our students in learning? First of all, what do we mean by "engaging" students in the learning? Understandably, this in itself is a broad topic. I have culled the following definition from numerous academic resources: Real student engagement involves authentic opportunities, which put academic concepts into action and skills into practice. A student "engaged" in the learning would be one who is energized by the learning and actively participating in it. The student's joy of learning leads to a lifelong passion for solving problems, understanding, and taking the next step in their thinking.

As a contrast, let's briefly examine some methodologies we know don't engage student interest; we can learn what not to do. Worksheets, and similar activities are not engaging. Do they keep students busy? Yes. Are they motivating? No. Reading the textbook aloud and then answering questions at the end of the section is a fairly common classroom practice. Does it take up the whole class period? Yes. Is it motivating and exciting to students? No. While these activities deceptively look like they keep students involved and engaged, in reality they do not. However, you can meet the same goals and objectives with alternative activities that are engaging.
My social studies teachers used a rap when teaching the states and their capitols. The students turned the rap into a performance for their parents. It was a delightful presentation, and the kids were proud of their accomplishment! Here is a link to the video of the State Capitols rap:
What strategies can we use to foster student engagement in learning? There are as many "proven" teaching strategies as there are "experts" in each one. Rather than obfuscating this vital topic, allow me to present a few methods and activities I have personally found that really work to gain student interest and enthusiasm. We will examine one idea each week.

Another example using music as an instrument to get students engaged in the learning, is a teacher in The Bronx who turned a lesson about the scientific process of photosynthesis into a hip-hop song. Enjoy viewing this one here:
Students that are excited about learning, are motivated to pay attention in class, and nothing motivates them more than your excitement. Someone once said, "Enthusiasm is contagious." As a bonus, you will have few, if any behavior problems in your class when the students are truly engaged in the learning. Many times student misbehavior in the classroom happens because of boredom. When students are excited about their learning, they are motivated to pay attention in class. You get excited because your students are actually paying attention. The students sense your excitement and get even more motivated to participate in your class. What is one strategy to elicit student engagement?

One of the best ways to see students become excited and actually have fun learning is through the use of music. We intuitively understand how the "ABC Song" demonstrates the effectiveness of music. The use of music in the classroom is consistent with theories of multi-sensory learning. Research has confirmed what educators have known for years-- that we have a variety of different, but mutually enhancing, avenues to learning. Music is one such avenue. Recent cognitive research also indicates that a wide range of music experiences has a powerful effect on influencing language development, as well as increasing concentration, memory, visual and listening skills, spatial orientation and physical coordination.

What better way to gain knowledge and confidence in oral language than through music? The successful acquisition of reading and writing in early childhood depends on a solid background in oral language skills. Oral language is an interactive and social process, and music is a natural way for children to experience rich language in a pleasurable way. A myriad of similarities exist between literacy acquisition and musical development. Therefore, combining music with language arts instruction is a natural. (Davies, 2000). Virtually every concept in all subject areas can be learned through music. Here are a few examples.

Several of my math teachers were frustrated their students (in middle school) still didn't know the multiplication tables. This was slowing their progress in pre-Algebra immensely. I suggested they try using some of the math rap songs available.
Most children love the rhythm of rap, so this is a great avenue for them to learn multiplication tables. On the DVD my teachers selected, the hip hop beat keeps kids rapping as multiplication gradually becomes easy and accurate. Each fact is repeated twice. The second time through, the answer is delayed, giving the student time to answer before the answer is given. The students could be heard reciting the rap at lunch and in the hallways. They thought it was "cool." They learned their times tables quickly, and the learning process was fun. This is one website offering raps for teaching multiplication as well as other subject areas: . There are many more sites like this available on the Internet.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNUDDaEOvuY
http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/education&id=6795426

Even adults prefer learning to music. A Southwestern Airlines Flight Attendant got fed up with no one paying attention when he read the safety regulations during take-off (must have been the teacher in him). So, he created a rap, and successfully got full audience (the passengers) participation and attention. You can watch this great example of teaching through music here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivjybzdXVmI

How can I take this concept to the next level in my teaching? Good question. Once the students are hooked on learning through music, it's their turn to really shine. They will literally jump at the opportunity to work with a partner or in a small group to compose a rap or song on any skill or concept you would like them to learn. Talk about a dream, like creating your own teaching team! Next time, instead of a dull worksheet, try a song or a rap. No need to invent one, there are plenty of existing resources, not to mention your own very inventive students. Watch your kids light up and learn with exuberance, through the magic of music.

"It occurred to me by intuition, and music was the driving force behind that intuition. My discovery was the result of musical perception." (When asked about his Theory of Relativity)-Albert Einstein

Before giving more examples of strategies to get students fully engaged, next week's posting will discuss: Why teaching for active engagement in learning is so important?

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How to Engage Students in Learning: Using Music

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Dr. Wendy Ghiora - Posting #9 How do I teach thee? Let me count the ways. Our specific query today is: How can we best engage our students in learning? First of all, what do we mean by "engaging" students in the learning? Understandably, this in itself is a broad topic.

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How music and movement promote children's development :

1) SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

The students can develop their social skills by learning how to cooperate, compromise with their friends. We know that to produce a magnificent music, there must be a lot of instruments and for each instrument will be played by a musician. So, from that, they can learn how to have tolerant values with their friends in order to produce a good music.

2) PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Rhythmic accompaniment to physical education enhances the development of physical skills. Learning to play an instrument enhances fine motor co-ordination. There may be particular health benefits for singing in relation to the immune system, breathing, adopting good posture, improved mood, and stress reduction. Foe example, catching, jumping and leaping improved when children participated in a programme involving rhythm

3) COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

Music makes a powerful place in our memory. Although an adult will more remember something when it comes in music form.children who undergo musical training have better verbal memory, second language pronunciation accuracy, reading ability and executive functions. Learning to play an instrument as a child may even predict academic performance and IQ in young adulthood.

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Examples of group singing and movement activities in the classroom.

"The Telephone Rings"

-This song is a playful way for children to sing their names at gathering time.

-This experience also suggests to children that singing is a natural part of their lives as they pass the telephone for individual singing.

Procedures

1. Sing -the song several times for the children. Then, lead them in singing it as a group until they all know it.

2. With the children seated in a circle, pass a toy telephone (which can be simply a u-shaped tube) around.

3. When each child holds the telephone, it is his or her turn to sing the song, adding the name of the next child at the end.

"Ring Around the Rosie"

-This is a singing game that works for toddlers, preschool, and primary age children.

-It is an exercise in sequential recall as well as kinesthetic pattern.

-The children exercise memory and develop a sense of spatial awareness with singing game activities.

Procedures

1. Sing this song with the children either turning in a circle alone or holding hands in small groups that walk in circle formation as they sing "Ring around the rosie / pocketful of posies / Ashes, ashes…we all fall down."

2. As everyone tumbles to the floor, the teacher quickly begins tapping a beat on the floor and chants the following words to get everyone back on their feet again, "The cows are in the meadow / Eating buttercups / A-tishoo, a-tishoo / We all stand up

3.  Use this activity as a circle time activity or in a playground or just as a break in the day, It serves the children well as a spontaneous activity.

* Traditional and chant material from the collections of John Feierabend

"Shoo Fly"

-Singing games are experiences in kinaesthetic art. They also engage the children in activities that develop sequential awareness as well as an understanding of spatial relationships. Singing games are exercises in movement puzzles. Memory and sequential recall play large roles in the thinking of the children. Cooperation and social interaction dominates a singing game activity.

Procedures

1. Sing the song with the following action:

Children pretend to slap the fly off their knees while singing the lines, "Shoo Fly! Don’t bother me / Shoo Fly! Don’t bother me / Shoo Fly! Don’t bother me, for I belong to somebody."

With partners or alone, have the children turn in a small circle while singing new lines to the tune: "I feel like a morning star / I feel like a morning star / I feel like a morning star, for I belong to somebody.

1. Have the children repeat the slapping verse again, then sing and circle to "I feel like a rainbow rain."

2. Repeat the sequence with the words "I feel like a sunshine day" to the verse in which the children circle.

3. Encourage the children to begin alone and then to add a partner.

4. After the children achieve a comfort level with these stages, increase the circle size to four then eight.
"Pumpkin Patch"

This experience is based on the familiar folk tune, "Paw Paw Patch." This experience enhances children’s development in many areas: in collaborating with others in a group, in playing an organized game with "rules," in following a symbolic representation of sounds, in internalizing a sense of tonality and rhythm through singing, moving, and representing a song through pictures.

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Advantages and Disadvantages of using puppets:

Advantages:

i. Audiences will get emotionally involved with them.

ii. Not much rehearsal is needed and it's easy to operate.

iii. It's suitable for all ages and for a wide variety of subjects.

iv. They're useful for exaggerated presentations.

v. They can be depicted of all types of scenes.

Disadvantages:

i. Difficulties of using puppets because of their sizes.

ii. The seating for audiences need to be managed carefully for comfortable.

Source: Go to 7th slide.

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Storytelling using props (puppets):

i. A wonderful technique to teach children that can attract them to like literature more.

ii. Puppets are portable and they can be used in anytime.

iii. Doesn't require any expensive or the quality of the puppet, the way of teaching is valuable.

iv. By using the puppets, it's the fastest way to make audience to understand the story better.

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Steps to be a good storyteller:

i. A storyteller should tell their stories based on what they like.

ii. The storyteller should take time to prepare before they start to tell the story.

iii. Storytellers shouldn't be hesitated to remove unnecessary parts.

iv. Good storytellers know how to use appropriate intonation and be confident in telling the story.

v. Use good pacing.

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Storytelling Tips- 9 Tips for Better Storytelling Today
By: Sean Buvala

If you want to be a better speaker, then develop some good storytelling techniques. There are many ways to express a story, but storytelling is a one-time experience shared between the listener and the storyteller. Storytelling is created anew every time you speak. I've listed nine storytelling tips for you to think about whenever you want to create a storytelling experience.

1. You need to tell stories that you like.

Choose a story you like when telling for kids at the library, for a sacred setting or to leaders of business or nonprofit groups. There will be many stories for any situation you are in. Choose a story that you can understand and enjoy.

2. Take the time to prepare.

Take the time to learn how to tell a story. Don't just dive into telling a story you have heard only once. Break the story into parts. Practice with a recording device and a gentle-yet-truthful friend who can hear your first attempts.

3. Do not hesitate to remove the slow parts of your story.

It's not unusual for first-time storytellers to try to tell every piece of a story. Storytelling occurs in the moment so not every detail has to be included each time. Ask yourself, "Do I need to tell this piece of the story this time? Is it critical?"

4. Use a strong and confident voice.

Being prepared will make you confident. Speak with clarity and confidence. Enunciate and project your voice towards the listeners.

5. Use good pacing.

When you are confident, you will not be in a hurry. You want to speak slow enough so that the story is easily absorbed by the audience but do not speak so slowly that their minds check out of the room.

6. Do not pass on the microphone.

In almost all cases, you will need to use a microphone. This is respectful to your audience. The most seasoned speaker might get away without a microphone for groups under 25 folks. Beginners, use the mic unless you are speaking to a few folks at a luncheon round-table event.

7. Use eye-contact with your listeners.

Your eye contact is a gift to the listener. It always amazes me how a fleeting moment of eye contact can make an audience member come to me and say, "I felt like you were talking to me personally."

8. Make your gestures easy and calm.

"You looked so confident up there. I never know what to do with my hands." When people say this to me, I am thankful that I took the time to prepare which gestures I would use and when I would use them. Your gestures should be natural and relaxed. Take the time to decide these ahead of time.

9. Avoid the "moral of the story" finishes.

Stories teach. Storytelling is a most effective way to teach with story. Let the story speak to the audience in its own way and skip the need to tell them what to think. If you must do the "moral" of a story, ask your audience first to tell you what they think. Their answers might teach you.

I've shared 9 storytelling tips to help you create a story with good storytelling. If you are an experienced speaker, choose one of these tips to help you be a better public speaker. If you are new to speaking, just concentrate on areas that you need some fine-tuning.

****
Sean Buvala is the director of Storyteller.net and has been teaching and presenting oral storytelling since 1986.

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Storytelling Tips- 9 Tips for Better Storytelling Today

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Storytelling Tips- 9 Tips for Better Storytelling Today By: Sean Buvala If you want to be a better speaker, then develop some good storytelling techniques. There are many ways to express a story, but storytelling is a one-time experience shared between the listener and the storyteller. Storytelling is created anew every time you speak.

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NIK ANIS SHARZREENA BT NIK LI / STEPS FOR STORYTELLING

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NIK ANIS SHARZREENA BT NIK LI / STEPS FOR STORYTELLING

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1 ) Read the main story

- Read the passages before and after the story for context .

2 )Visualize the story

- Try to visualize the story rather than memorize it

3 )Adapt the story

- Consider the background , vocabulary level , characteristics and interests of the listener

4 )Practice telling the story

- The more one's practice , the easier the story will flow http://www.creativeyouthideas.com/resources/improving-your-teaching/steps-to-storytelling/

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Try this three step approach to improving your storytelling:

1. Read and learn about storytelling. (see below)

2. Listen to others who are good storytellers.

3. Learn good stories and tell them to others.

Preparing the Story

1. Read the main story out loud. If it is a Bible story, read it in several Bible translations and also read the passages before and after the story for context. Look up an unfamiliar words, places, or people. A good background for the story will make it easier to tell and remember.

2. Visualize the story. Rather than memorize, visualize. The better you are able to picture the story in your mind, the better you can relate that picture to the others. Create story boards in your mind of the sequence of the events. Divide the stories into episodes and learn them episode by episode. Episodes change when the action, scene or speaker changes. Use key, repeated words as your guide in "re-experiencing" the story. If you have to look back at the printed copy, you have not spent enough time preparing to tell the story. The story must become your story. Keep it vivid. Use words that paint mental pictures.

3. Adapt the story. The story length should be about one minute for every year of a child's age. This holds true for youth, but you can stretch it a little more with an interesting story. For adults, the art of story telling applies to your illustrations and testimonies of real life applications. Also consider the background, vocabulary level, and characteristics and interests of your intended listener.

4. Practice. Practice stories in the dead spaces of time-while trying to fall asleep, driving the car, waiting for an appointment, taking a bath or shower. Practice telling the story in front of a mirror. Record the story so you can listen to it. By listening, you are able to learn and refine the story, making it your own. The more you practice, the easier the story will flow.

Telling the Story

1. Use a natural and relaxed manner and an expressive tone of voice. Hold the attention of the listeners with your voice. Speed up, slow down. Lower your voice or raise it. Express delight and surprise. Create suspense.

2. Make eye contact with each person or scan the audience. With children, remember to sit on their level.

3. Open the Bible to the correct reference and hold the Bible in your lap.

4. Grab the listener's attention with the first sentence. Get the action going.

5. Alter the timing or pace of the story. Think about how boring music or life would be if everything existed at the same speed.

6. Portray characters and events with your voice and your gestures, keeping in mind that gestures should be genuine, but not exaggerated.

7. Beware of tangents. tangents tend to confuse. Avoid too many details. Excessive detail also tends to confuse.

8. Don't forget to link the story to your lesson. In a simple sentence or two, tell them why you are going to tell them this story or why you told them the story. Keep it brief. Let the story simmer in your listeners' minds. Let the story speak for itself. Don't make it a sermon. Stories enhance sermons; sermons do not enhance stories.

Tools for Storytelling

1. Voice. Your voice is your most important tool in telling Bible stories. The tone and mood of your voice should interpret the Bible story. The feelings of fear, sadness, anger, frustration, or even sleepiness should be evident in your voice to the same degree that they are evident in the story. The speed and direction of your voice will communicate. Example: "Jeremiah was put into a hole in the ground. He went down, down, deep, deep down in the hole." Your voice can drop with the words "down" and "deep." Also, using action words and sound words ("Slap," "Crash," "Smack") can add interest, movement, and meaning to the Bible story. The pitch and inflection of the voice should be used from time to time to indicate different characters in a story. Be careful. Too much character can distract from the story. Don't panic in the pauses. Pauses actualy can be used to great dramatic effect. In pauses, listeners feel the presence, not the absence of God.

2. Facial Expression. Your face is the movie screen of the story. It can be blank with sound only or filled with the action of the story. A smile or a frown can help project the image of the place and people. As you portray different people in the story, think about what their faces would look like.

3. Gestures and Movements. It's been said that if you tie the hands of a storyteller, he or she will forget the story. Use your hands and body to tell and live the story. The best rule for using gestures is to use only meaningful gestures and to use them on a limited basis. Storytellers who use gestures and movements for every event or person in the story risk losing the preschoolers or making gestures and movement less significant by overuse.

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Steps to Storytelling | Creative Youth Ideas

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Try this three step approach to improving your storytelling: Read and learn about storytelling. (see below) Listen to others who are good storytellers. Learn good stories and tell them to others. Preparing the Story Read the main story out loud. If it is a Bible story, read it in several Bible translations and also read the ...

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NIK ANIS SHARZREENA /  WHY STORYTELLING 

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NIK ANIS SHARZREENA /  WHY STORYTELLING 

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Story telling  has mental, social and educational benefits on children . This activity can transfer emotions and feelings and also can boost thinking capacity of the children . It also a great way to increase knowledge in children because they get to know about various places , and practices in life . Furthermore , story telling can introduces lot of new vocabulary to children . Last but not least , It can enhance the listening skills of the children .

http://www.prokerala.com/kids/activities/storytelling-to-children.php

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Story telling is an art that has mental, social and educational benefits on children. People of all ages love stories. Children are great fans of stories and love to listen to them. Storytelling literally means reading out stories to them or just telling a story from the memory to them. It is becoming a lost art today as many parents find very little time to spend with kids as the hustle and bustle of life demands them to reserve more time for the needs of life.

But any parent can preserve few stories for kids and spend a bit of time for them to tell them stories. Most of the parents ignore the importance of storytelling and are unaware of the advantages of storytelling. Let us see what all ways storytelling helps kids to learn and grow.
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Children are born into a media-soaked environment today. They have numerous television channels and entertainment programs to get them engaged with entertainment. Parents switch on cartoon channels and keep children before them for hours. But, many a times they forget the disadvantages, such fast-paced visual media bring onto kids. Television cartons and other entertainment programs block the mental development of kids to greater extends.

All the television programs are designed for elder people, not for kids. Children may lose thinking capacities and analyzing powers if they are exposed to television, several hours a day. Children are slow to grasp and slow to think; thus they need entertainments specially designed for them. Storytelling is an activity that can transfer emotions and feelings and also can boost thinking capacity.

Storytelling is a great activity of learning. At each phase of the development of the story, kids ask questions. A proper teller can use tricks to make them curios and encourage them to ask questions. Storytelling is the basic training for academic learning. When they see images in the book and listen to the stories, kids learn to associate between images and story and later imagination and visuals.
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You can increase the memory capacity of children by asking them to remember the stories you have already read for them or asking them to remember where you stopped the previous day. Always demand kids to share their contribution in the stories. Ask them to narrate a possible climax or encourage them to create a new story with the same characters in a story. Imagination is the key to creativity and children can be trained in many ways to develop stronger skills of imagination.

The most bulging benefit of storytelling is increased knowledge in children. They get to know about various places, practices in life, relationships etc., through stories. Most of the stories depict good and bad characters. Listening to stories will help children to have an idea of accepted style of behaviors and must to avoid acts. Stories also allow children to know about their own cultural roots.

Differences between cultures and various lifestyles are introduced to kids through stories. All the stories are informative to children, as being new to the world; they may know very little things about the life in the world. Stories help kids to visualize the plot and characters. Television programs block the imagination power of viewers, but stories are great help in boosting creativity.
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Another advantage of listening to stories is that children grow in academic learning. Story telling introduces lot of new vocabulary to children. At homes, people communicate with limited number of words. But stories will have academic level vocabulary and lot of newer words for the kid to learn. It is easy to teach the meanings of the words as kids learn faster from the context of story.

Infancy is the period when children absorb most of the words they use in the future. Story telling also encourages children to participate actively in the learning process. It can enhance the listening skills of children. Kids love to talk instead of listening to anything. But this is not acceptable in the classrooms, thus storytelling gives them with the necessary training to listen and understand instead of talking.

Parents need to take care of certain aspects when reading out stories for children. If you want kids to listen actively and understand the story, you have to read out the stories emotionally. Change the pitch of sound according to the feelings and emotions depicted in the story. Use effective body language to convey ideas in the exact way. Perfect storytelling is acting out a story. Storytelling parents are found to have more emotional bond with the children. It teaches the children to be creative and make them dynamic thoughts and action.

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Story telling is an art that has mental, social and educational benefits on children. People of all ages love stories. Children are great fans of stories and love to listen to them. Storytelling literally means reading out stories to them or just telling a story from the memory to them.

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NIK ANIS SHARZREENA BT NIK LI / DEFINITION OF STORYTELLING

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NIK ANIS SHARZREENA BT NIK LI / DEFINITION OF STORYTELLING

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STORYTELLING is the art in which a teller conveys a message, truths, information, knowledge, or wisdom to an audience . It is conveys in an entertaining way by using skills such as musical , artistic , one’s creativity or props to enhance the audience's enjoyment, retention and understanding of the message conveyed .

http://www.australianstorytelling.org.au/txt/d-what2.php