My music students love learning new things and are up for any challenge. Each year I find new musical ideas to capture their interest. Along with teaching them the basics of music reading and writing, proper singing and instrument playing, I also enjoy adding multicultural music when I can.
This past spring, I introduced a Japanese song to my fourth graders and they LOVED it.
We learned the song in English and Japanese (which we found really isn't that hard to pronounce!), and played student-composed xylophone accompaniments. We also read a Japanese folk story and added instruments to represent each character. We all had so much fun and were disappointed when the classroom teacher came to pick them up. One of them even asked if we could act out the story during the next class! I also realized that many of the students did not know very much about Japan, Pearl Harbor or World War II. I decided next year I will spend more time on the historical aspects to enrich the musical side. In our city, there is a very large cherry blossom festival each March, and the majority of our cherry trees come from Japan. It will be delightful to tie the music and history of Japan into this festival that the children enjoy so much. I am so excited to see this project take shape!
My Project
Through the making of origami puppets, writing and sharing haiku, singing and dancing to authentic Japanese music, and dancing with silk scarves, I hope my students will begin to have a better understanding of the Japanese way of life, and to appreciate the similarities and differences we share with this beautiful country.
I am happily looking forward to expanding my own horizons by learning more about Japan as I prepare for this unit. I welcome the challenge and am thrilled to open new doors to my students through music!
As our world gets smaller, children need to become more aware of other cultures, music, folklore and customs.
I am hoping that this unit I intend to share next spring will bring the country of Japan to life for my students.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Meyer and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.