Educational Psychologist, Keith Golay, tells us that in order to maximize student achievement, we are to examine "teaching style as influenced by personality type...and then look in more detail at instructional strategies, both in terms of general learning theory and in dealing with specific problems."
NEW LINK: To the right, you'll find the link for Keith Golay's Learning Pattern and Temperament Styles Assessment.
I recommend having a parent fill out this questionnaire about the child. In the meantime, you (the teacher) should fill one out based upon your observations of the student. When you get the questionnaire back from the parent, compare the results of the two completed questionnaires.
Correlating the Learning Patterns to the information in our MTNA presentation:
An Actual Spontaneous Learner is the Ape Artisan
An Actual Routine Learner is the Guardian Bear
A Conceptual Specific Learner is the Rational Owl
A Conceptual Global Learner is the Idealist Dolphin.
Have Fun and Share your results with us!
To reference the above quote, see: Keith Golay, Practical Piano Pedagogy, "Staying in Tune with Learning Styles: Matching Your Teaching with Learners," chapter 12. Alfred Publishing Co, 2003.
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Thursday, March 23, 2006
MTNA 2006 National Conference
I will be a co-presenter at the MTNA national conference, Sunday, March 26th. In our presentation, "Connecting with the Kid on the Bench," we will discuss how a teacher in a private setting can adapt his or her teaching style to match an individual student's learning style.
Did you see the presentation? Was it helpful for you in evaluating your own teacher-student relationships?
Do you plan to investigate your students' learning styles?
Please comment and share your thoughts or questions.
Did you see the presentation? Was it helpful for you in evaluating your own teacher-student relationships?
Do you plan to investigate your students' learning styles?
Please comment and share your thoughts or questions.
What about Auditory Learners?
Do you have a student who prefers to process information through the auditory channel?
An auditory learner listens attentively to both the outer world and inner voices. S/he expresses what is heard through speaking, chanting, singing, making music, etc.
Your student may have an auditory learning preference if he or she:
-Learns and remembers things that are heard easily
-is naturally comfortable speaking in front of people
-uses detailed and organized vocabulary
-is more alert when speaking?
How do you connect with your auditory learner?
Comment and share your creative ideas!
An auditory learner listens attentively to both the outer world and inner voices. S/he expresses what is heard through speaking, chanting, singing, making music, etc.
Your student may have an auditory learning preference if he or she:
-Learns and remembers things that are heard easily
-is naturally comfortable speaking in front of people
-uses detailed and organized vocabulary
-is more alert when speaking?
How do you connect with your auditory learner?
Comment and share your creative ideas!
What do you do with a Visual Learner?
How do we get creative in our lessons with Visual Learners?
A student who favors a visual learning style is one who sees the outer world along with inner visual images while processing information. He likes to create what can be seen in his mind (reading, writing, drawing, etc.)
You may have a student who prefers visual learning if he or she:
-learns and remembers things that are seen easily
-is naturally comfortable being seen, writing, showing ideas
-organizes visually by making lists, writing things down, making things look neat
-is very aware of visual details
-is more alert when showing or writing something
How do you interact with your students who prefer to gather information visually?
A student who favors a visual learning style is one who sees the outer world along with inner visual images while processing information. He likes to create what can be seen in his mind (reading, writing, drawing, etc.)
You may have a student who prefers visual learning if he or she:
-learns and remembers things that are seen easily
-is naturally comfortable being seen, writing, showing ideas
-organizes visually by making lists, writing things down, making things look neat
-is very aware of visual details
-is more alert when showing or writing something
How do you interact with your students who prefer to gather information visually?
Help! I have a Kinesthetic Student...
What do we do with our kinesthetic learners?
A student with a kinesthetic learning preference is one who processes information through physical sensations such as moving, touching, any type of action, and experience, etc.
You may have a kinesthetic student if he or she:
-learns and remembers things physical easily
-enjoys athletic competition
-does things in an organized way
-describes body sensations and feeling without hesitation
-is more alert when moving or using hands
How do we get these students moving?
Please comment and share your experience, thoughts or questions!
The above information on Visual, Auditory and Kinesthetic Learning Styles is credited to Dawna Markova. You'll find more in her book, How Your Child is Smart: A Life Changing Approach to Learning.
A student with a kinesthetic learning preference is one who processes information through physical sensations such as moving, touching, any type of action, and experience, etc.
You may have a kinesthetic student if he or she:
-learns and remembers things physical easily
-enjoys athletic competition
-does things in an organized way
-describes body sensations and feeling without hesitation
-is more alert when moving or using hands
How do we get these students moving?
Please comment and share your experience, thoughts or questions!
The above information on Visual, Auditory and Kinesthetic Learning Styles is credited to Dawna Markova. You'll find more in her book, How Your Child is Smart: A Life Changing Approach to Learning.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Case Study Jessica #7 Music is Relevant to Life!
Today Jessica jumped right into her Festival pieces and played them beautifully. She is ready for the Festival! I am pleasantly surprised to see the progress Jessica has made over the last seven weeks. She has gone from being unwilling to perform to being eager and ready to perform. She now plays “Medieval Sand Castle” with accuracy and musical expression. She plays “Arabesque” with confidence and precision.
Capitalizing on her desire to audition for musical theater, we spent 10 minutes of her lesson going over her audition song, “Oklahoma.” I helped her add choreography to it, and instructed her to “own” the song as she sings. She’s not from Oklahoma, but as she sings, she has to convince the judges she is an Oklahoma native. I told her that she ought to tell the story with her eyes, voice, choreography, and overall expression. She responded extremely well to my instruction, and we had fun with the choreography!
As opposed to the previous weeks when Jessica was not willing to make her own decisions for guiding the lesson, this week, she asked to play “Clowns” for me. Last week, we noted that her transitions needed the most work. I didn’t have enough time at the end of last week’s lesson to give her detailed guidance on how to fix her transitions. As a result, she practiced them, but she was not able to fix them. In order to help her move with confidence to the new hand positions, we played the “Count Down” game this week. I started by counting to 5 while she found her new position. At first, she couldn’t make it. I counted to five again, and she successfully made the transition. I then decreased to four, then to three, then to two, and once she understood the game, I instructed her on how to use the game in her practice at home. Her laughter filled the room as she found the game exciting.
“Snoopy” was next on the agenda. We worked on playing with energy by incorporating correct fingering and staccato. For one particularly difficult measure, I instructed her to play the measure before and “land” on the first note of the difficult measure. Once she was comfortable with that, she was to play and “land” on the second note of the measure, etc. I instructed her to use this practice technique during the week.
Jessica did not re-write her “Circus Riders” composition, so I helped her start to re-write it during the lesson. I also suggested that she could make her “B” section a little longer. She seemed to like the suggestion.
It was obvious she had at least looked at “Canon in D.” I demonstrated the fingering in the Bass line, and had her try Left Hand alone. She then tried RH alone. We put hands together, and she noted that it was not as hard as she thought it would be.
It was a productive lesson. Jessica is beginning to understand that music is relevant to many areas of her life, especially Dance and Musical Theater.
Capitalizing on her desire to audition for musical theater, we spent 10 minutes of her lesson going over her audition song, “Oklahoma.” I helped her add choreography to it, and instructed her to “own” the song as she sings. She’s not from Oklahoma, but as she sings, she has to convince the judges she is an Oklahoma native. I told her that she ought to tell the story with her eyes, voice, choreography, and overall expression. She responded extremely well to my instruction, and we had fun with the choreography!
As opposed to the previous weeks when Jessica was not willing to make her own decisions for guiding the lesson, this week, she asked to play “Clowns” for me. Last week, we noted that her transitions needed the most work. I didn’t have enough time at the end of last week’s lesson to give her detailed guidance on how to fix her transitions. As a result, she practiced them, but she was not able to fix them. In order to help her move with confidence to the new hand positions, we played the “Count Down” game this week. I started by counting to 5 while she found her new position. At first, she couldn’t make it. I counted to five again, and she successfully made the transition. I then decreased to four, then to three, then to two, and once she understood the game, I instructed her on how to use the game in her practice at home. Her laughter filled the room as she found the game exciting.
“Snoopy” was next on the agenda. We worked on playing with energy by incorporating correct fingering and staccato. For one particularly difficult measure, I instructed her to play the measure before and “land” on the first note of the difficult measure. Once she was comfortable with that, she was to play and “land” on the second note of the measure, etc. I instructed her to use this practice technique during the week.
Jessica did not re-write her “Circus Riders” composition, so I helped her start to re-write it during the lesson. I also suggested that she could make her “B” section a little longer. She seemed to like the suggestion.
It was obvious she had at least looked at “Canon in D.” I demonstrated the fingering in the Bass line, and had her try Left Hand alone. She then tried RH alone. We put hands together, and she noted that it was not as hard as she thought it would be.
It was a productive lesson. Jessica is beginning to understand that music is relevant to many areas of her life, especially Dance and Musical Theater.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Case Study Jessica #6 A Performer at Heart!
Uniqueness focus: What does she want to do when she grows up? She said that last year, she wanted to be a Rockette and be on Broadway. This year, she has decided that she would like to have her own CD, and go to Hollywood to be in movies so she’ll be famous.
I thought this was rather revealing! Jessica actually wants to be a performer. If I let her back out of performance opportunities, I will not be acting in her own best interest.
Listening together:
We evaluated her performance together by watching the digital video her performance from the group lesson. I tried to reinforce positive comments, letting her know that I am confident in her ability to perform these pieces well. She noticed that she paid little attention to dynamic contrast. Consequently, we went to the piano and worked on her musical expression in “Medieval Sand Castle” and “Arabesque.”
Her own Compostion:
“Circus Rider:” She was excited to work on this today. She played it for me, and I was enthusiastic about the sound she created. Her song truly sounded like the circus. I helped her think through her time signature and note values. She will rewrite the song on a full sheet of staff paper for next week.
Repertoire:
After taking time to evaluate her performance on the video, there was little time to address the concerns in the following pieces, but we touched very briefly on them.
“Clowns:” She seems to enjoy playing this piece. She needs to work on a few transitions, which we noted.
“Snoopy:” This piece has fallen out of her fingers. She said she will pick it back up this week.
“Canon in D:” She hasn’t touched it.
Scales: we worked on C minor and D major scales in three octaves, chords, and arpeggios.
Learning Style Observations from the digital video of this lesson:
Behavior: Jessica moves constantly, fixing her clothes. It’s as if she feels she is always on stage.
Eye Contact: She is not able to connect with her eyes unless she knows she is being valued by the person speaking to her.
Listening: She does not seem to remember words. I asked her to repeat the practice technique we talked about while viewing her performance only moments before, and she could not remember it. I had her do it, and then she could remember it.
She is most likely a Kinesthetic, Visual, Auditory learner.
I thought this was rather revealing! Jessica actually wants to be a performer. If I let her back out of performance opportunities, I will not be acting in her own best interest.
Listening together:
We evaluated her performance together by watching the digital video her performance from the group lesson. I tried to reinforce positive comments, letting her know that I am confident in her ability to perform these pieces well. She noticed that she paid little attention to dynamic contrast. Consequently, we went to the piano and worked on her musical expression in “Medieval Sand Castle” and “Arabesque.”
Her own Compostion:
“Circus Rider:” She was excited to work on this today. She played it for me, and I was enthusiastic about the sound she created. Her song truly sounded like the circus. I helped her think through her time signature and note values. She will rewrite the song on a full sheet of staff paper for next week.
Repertoire:
After taking time to evaluate her performance on the video, there was little time to address the concerns in the following pieces, but we touched very briefly on them.
“Clowns:” She seems to enjoy playing this piece. She needs to work on a few transitions, which we noted.
“Snoopy:” This piece has fallen out of her fingers. She said she will pick it back up this week.
“Canon in D:” She hasn’t touched it.
Scales: we worked on C minor and D major scales in three octaves, chords, and arpeggios.
Learning Style Observations from the digital video of this lesson:
Behavior: Jessica moves constantly, fixing her clothes. It’s as if she feels she is always on stage.
Eye Contact: She is not able to connect with her eyes unless she knows she is being valued by the person speaking to her.
Listening: She does not seem to remember words. I asked her to repeat the practice technique we talked about while viewing her performance only moments before, and she could not remember it. I had her do it, and then she could remember it.
She is most likely a Kinesthetic, Visual, Auditory learner.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Case Study Jessica #5 - Performance Class
Jessica’s demeanor in the performance class revealed her aspiration right from the start. Her eyes were bright and hopeful. Her body language demonstrated that she wanted to achieve something great, but was unsure if she would gain the approval of those around her.
She approached the bench somewhat tentatively and began to play. She did not take time to think about her entrance into “Arabesque”, and was caught off guard at the first melodic change in the right hand. At that point, she made the decision to start again. On her second approach, she played “Arabesque” with a brilliant singing tone. The melody captured the attention of her listeners, but her dynamic level was not as strong as it could have been. Jessica was also tentative as she played “Medieval Sand Castle.” She played the opening section with ease, but was thrown off a little in the middle section. Despite her mistake, she was able to finish beautifully with poise.
Other students in the class made comments about how they liked her fast fingers in “Arabesque,” and how the “Medieval Sand Castle” sounded majestic at the beginning. I don’t know if Jessica was willing to absorb the positive comments because she was only verbalizing negative things about her performance and shaking her head when others said positive things. I encouraged her to try to focus on the positive elements.
She will have to focus on the middle of “Medieval Sand Castle” for the sake of memorization. She also needs to work on her overall musicality. She understands the necessity of note accuracy and rhythmic fluency, but I would like to see grow in her understanding of musical expression. Nonetheless, I was thrilled to hear her get through both pieces in a performance setting.
Indeed, her non verbal cues at the beginning of the class were consistent with her performance and her reaction to her performance. She is unsure of herself. She wants to perform well. She wants approval. She has been given every tool to be able to do so, but the many weeks of resistance to my teaching and to her own practicing add up to not being able to meet her own expectations at performance time. As she processes her performance, and desires to be a better performer, hopefully it’s not too late for her to pull off an excellent performance at the festival in three weeks. We will work hard toward this end in her next two lessons!
Is she concentrating on the music during her performance? How much of her self worth is wrapped up in her performance? How can I help her become a better performer?
She approached the bench somewhat tentatively and began to play. She did not take time to think about her entrance into “Arabesque”, and was caught off guard at the first melodic change in the right hand. At that point, she made the decision to start again. On her second approach, she played “Arabesque” with a brilliant singing tone. The melody captured the attention of her listeners, but her dynamic level was not as strong as it could have been. Jessica was also tentative as she played “Medieval Sand Castle.” She played the opening section with ease, but was thrown off a little in the middle section. Despite her mistake, she was able to finish beautifully with poise.
Other students in the class made comments about how they liked her fast fingers in “Arabesque,” and how the “Medieval Sand Castle” sounded majestic at the beginning. I don’t know if Jessica was willing to absorb the positive comments because she was only verbalizing negative things about her performance and shaking her head when others said positive things. I encouraged her to try to focus on the positive elements.
She will have to focus on the middle of “Medieval Sand Castle” for the sake of memorization. She also needs to work on her overall musicality. She understands the necessity of note accuracy and rhythmic fluency, but I would like to see grow in her understanding of musical expression. Nonetheless, I was thrilled to hear her get through both pieces in a performance setting.
Indeed, her non verbal cues at the beginning of the class were consistent with her performance and her reaction to her performance. She is unsure of herself. She wants to perform well. She wants approval. She has been given every tool to be able to do so, but the many weeks of resistance to my teaching and to her own practicing add up to not being able to meet her own expectations at performance time. As she processes her performance, and desires to be a better performer, hopefully it’s not too late for her to pull off an excellent performance at the festival in three weeks. We will work hard toward this end in her next two lessons!
Is she concentrating on the music during her performance? How much of her self worth is wrapped up in her performance? How can I help her become a better performer?
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