Middle School General Music: The Best Part of Your Day Helps Teachers “Navigate the Turbulent Waters” of Music in Middle School
RESTON, VA (January 21, 2010) – Middle School General Music: The Best Part of Your Day, a new book published by MENC: The National Association for Music Education and Rowman & Littlefield Education, Inc., is full of specific teaching strategies and games that are highly appealing, age-appropriate, and musical for today’s middle school students.
Middle School General Music is a guidebook for music teachers trying to navigate the sometimes turbulent waters of teaching middle school general music. Written by middle school general music teacher/choral director Elizabeth Ann McAnally, this publication contains strategies and lessons that have been tested and refined in the “real world” of a public school music classroom.
Organized according to the nine National Standards for Music Education, each chapter presents tips and lessons for helping middle school students meet high standards in their understanding of music. Ideas include a Music Critics Unit, composition projects, rhythm games, and tips for encouraging students to sing with enthusiasm. Also contained in the book is a rationale for the inclusion of general music courses in the middle school program, and tips for working with young adolescents. A list of suggested resources is included.
“I wrote this book to share strategies that really work for middle school general music,” said McAnally, who also writes and speaks on the subject of urban music education. “My suggestions are not the only way, but there is nothing in this book that I have not tested and refined in my own classroom with diverse groups of students.”
For middle school general music teachers looking to create a program that is viable, participatory, and motivating to adolescents, this publication is a useful tool.
“This book is an excellent resource for teaching general/vocal music to students in the middle years. It is based on real-world experiences from a veteran teacher who demonstrates compassion for meeting the challenges of teaching adolescents in an urban environment. Highly recommended!”—Virginia Lam, content specialist for music education, School District of Philadelphia
Middle School General Music: The Best Part of Your Day is available from RLE in paperback for $21.95 and clothbound for $55.00. MENC members receive a discount of 25%. To order or for more information, call 800-462-6420 or visit www.rowmaneducation.com.
MENC: The National Association for Music Education, among the world’s largest arts education organizations, marked its centennial in 2007 as the only association that addresses all aspects of music education. Through membership of more than 75,000 active, retired, and pre-service music teachers, and with 60,000 honor students and supporters, MENC serves millions of students nationwide through activities at all teaching levels, from preschool to graduate school. MENC’s mission is to advance music education by encouraging the study and making of music by all. Since 1907, MENC has worked to ensure that every student has access to a well-balanced, comprehensive, and high-quality program of music instruction taught by qualified teachers. MENC’s activities and resources have been largely responsible for the establishment of music education as a profession, for the promotion and guidance of music study as an integral part of the school curriculum, and for the development of the National Standards for Arts Education. MENC is located at the National Center for Music Education in Reston, VA.
