Here at Minibop, we don’t strictly follow any particular education philosophy. We’re all about using music to enhance learning and development.
With that being said, we frequently incorporate activities and lessons in our classes that are consistent with Montessori philosophy. Our group kids music classes, for example, encourage children to explore at their own pace.
So, whether you are a parent homeschooling your child or a professional educator following the Montessori philosophy, here are a few ways -and reasons- to combine musical play and Montessori.
What is Montessori?
If you’re reading this, you probably know what Montessori is all about. But just in case you don’t here’s a quick breakdown.
Montessori is a philosophy of education that focuses on the individual needs and interests of children. It’s centered on hands-on learning and allowing children to independently explore and discover the world around them at their own pace.
It differs from traditional education philosophy which is usually more structured and uses standardized assessments to gauge student progress.
Why Music with Montessori?
Combined Benefits
Music has been shown to provide many benefits for early childhood education. It’s a great idea to incorporate music into any teaching philosophy, but Montessori is especially well-suited for it. One of the primary benefits of Montessori is that it fosters creativity.
Art is the most creative form of self-expression and music is an art form that combines almost all the senses. With musical play, children can see how different instruments work, hear the sounds they make and feel different vibrations and textures.
It’s even possible your child could taste music if they are one of the 2,000 people annually diagnosed with the harmless sensory disorder synesthesia.
Montessori Music Instruments
In the Montessori approach, toys are seen as tools for learning and development. The emphasis is on providing children with toys that are open-ended and encourage exploration and creative thinking.
Musical instruments are the perfect fit to meed these needs.
Wooden toys are often favored in Montessori education because they have a natural look and feel. Unlike many plastic toys, wooden toys don’t make artificial noises or have flashing lights, which can be overstimulating for children.
Fortunately there is a wide variety of natural wood instruments, like this set on Amazon which is specifically designed to fit with Montessori.
Exploration > Expectations
When incorporating musical play and education into a Montessori program it’s important to remember that encouraging exploration is the goal. Don’t expect children to be expert musicians. Don’t even expect them to make “progress” in how they play with the instruments.
Not every child has an interest in creating sounds with instruments – at least in the beginning. It may take some time before the children learn to enjoy certain toys and instruments. Montessori philosophy says that allowing children to play independently and discover their own interests is what’s most important.
Create an environment that fosters independent exploration and you will be fulfilling your role as a Montessori educator.
Putting it Together
Once you understand the benefits of music education and Montessori philosophy, putting the two together is simple. Get wood instruments like the ones above -ideally enough so every child can be using something at the same time- and set up the classroom environment to encourage independent play.
It might be helpful to briefly demonstrate to the children how each instrument works. Once that’s done, place the different instruments in around the roam and let the children move and play on their own.
With so many instruments playing at the same time you can expect it to get noisy – but that’s all part of the fun and learning.
Minibop Can Help
If you’re an educator who wants to incorporate music into your Montessori education program but can’t do it on your own, Minibop can help. We offer music classes for preschools and currently work with dozens of Montessori-focused programs to provide music enrichment.
Click to learn more about why educators love Minibop and request pricing for your school.
