Language learning offers a unique and exciting opportunity to integrate music. Many people have had the experience of learning a world language and singing simple, silly songs in class. The introduction of music provides a light-hearted and fun way to interact with another language and culture.
Sharing music with children has delighted parents and caregivers throughout the ages. Music is one of the first ways we communicate with babies, and its rhythm and rhyme help develop early language skills. This collection of books for children ages 0-9 combines two wonderful ways to spend time with children: sharing music and sharing stories. Teach children about jazz greats, folk song legends and international rhyming games with these lyrical tales.
Music stories are compositions of a narrative or descriptive sort. Students can listen for the story in the music, and this type of music can be integrated with literature, literacy, social studies, science, mathematics, and the other arts.
Dr. Nadine Gaab is an associate professor of pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital Boston and the Harvard Medical School, and a member of the faculty at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Dr. Gaab’s research at Boston Children’s Hospital Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience focuses on children diagnosed with or at risk for developmental disorders, particularly language-based learning disabilities.
