Active Listening-- What is it?
Babies
come into the world with brains hard-wired for listening. A fetus in the third
trimester can already hear its mother’s heartbeat and other environmental
sounds, including music. During the first year of life, infants develop their
listening skills further, responding increasingly to music, language, and tone.
Listening is a major avenue for learning: hearing and recognizing the voices of different familiar
people; recognizing the connection of certain sounds (e.g., lullabies vs.
active songs) to certain activities (sleep vs. play); or simply knowing that a
parent’s voice or footsteps signal that food, a dry diaper, or comfort is
coming.
Listening seems like such a simple
thing, hardly something that takes training—but how many times have you thought
I know he can hear me, but he’s just not listening! In cases like these, the word listening (in contrast to hearing) is really being used to mean paying attention, focusing, understanding,
or “getting it”. This kind of
listening, called active listening, is a
skill that does, in fact, take practice and even instruction.
But here’s the rub—it’s also a skill
that is essential to school success. The way most schools are set up, up to 75%
of the time your child will spend in a classroom will be spent learning through
listening!
Here’s where music comes in.
Researchers believe that music instruction helps children build active
listening skills. By “tuning in” to music and other specific sounds carefully,
one at a time, and with full attention, children hone their listening skills.
Through songs and chants, children develop an ear for the patterns of sounds in
words, phrases, and sentences. And as children listen to and sing words set to
music, they become familiar with other sounds, rhymes, rhythms, and patterns in
language.
Listening
By the age of three, many children
can:
_ Point to
the source of a sound,such as a telephone ringing.
_ Understand
and respond when you say “Let’s put the blocks in the box.”
_ Respond to
a question like “Where are your shoes?” by showing you his or her shoes.
_ Point to
his or her head when you sing “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes.”
NOTE: Every child is unique, and
different children may reach milestones at different
times. If you’re concerned about your
child’s development, talk to your pediatrician.
How It Works in a Kindermusik Class
_Listen. You and your child stop, focus, and listen to the sound, for
example, of a frog.
_Connect. Your child hears the teacher’s directions, hears your voice
repeating the words, and learns to focus on the sounds entering his or her ears
and then connect them to the concepts you describe: Listen to the sounds of a frog.
_Imitate. You and your child use vocal play to playfully repeat the sounds
you hear. You use a variety of of frog
sounds: croak; ribbit;
kouack-ack-ack. You also experienced
first-hand, the wooden rasper instrument to also use as a ways of imitating a
frog.
_Discuss. Together, the class may discuss what they heard, what it sounded
like, and how it was different from other sounds they’ve listened to. We add movement to the discussion and leap
like frogs. We add a frog puppet as a
visual and continue to imitate the various frog sounds.
What Your Can Do at Home
_Sounds
Around the Home. Listen actively to the sounds
around your home: a clock ticking, the
creaks of floorboards, a garbage truck outside . . .. Imitate and discuss the
sounds.
_Be
a Good Listener. Model active listening by
being very attentive to what your child says, whether words, short sentences,
or just sounds.
_Stop
the Music. Use the songs on your
Kindermusik CDs for a simple version of musical chairs that teaches careful
listening. Listen for the music to stop,
then freeze!
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