Question

Improvises simple rhythmic/melodic accompaniments

Answer 1

Elementary students in the music classroom are inherently free of the inhibitions and timidity for

the creative process that come with age. These early years are a critical time to foster students’

creative development, harnessing their fresh perspective before social and emotional roadblocks

complicate this skill development. There are intrinsic and extrinsic values for teaching

improvisation skills to our students:

Successful research and development has been the backbone of our economy in the United

States. Brain research shows that if we can build the cranial super highways (dendrites) early

in our cognitive development, pathways to these skills are liable to be much stronger (more

creative) in adulthood. Therefore, if we can teach skills for creativity at an early age, those

students should have much more creative potential as adults, thus creating the new inventions

for our future.

Part of what we do as elementary music teachers is guide students to express themselves in a

healthy way. As in learning to play an instrument, improvisation is a skill that is developed

through practice, piecing together the building blocks as skills develop. We can break down

these skills to fundamentals that students can understand and perform well.

Whether it is Orff, recorder, guitar, or voice, the basic fundamentals and building blocks are the

same.