Imagine:
Just before walking out of the building on the last day of school, eager to greet your well deserved summer, you’re informed by your principal that you will be teaching a different grade next year, in addition to what you already teach (cue the distressed music chime).
Your mind begins to race. You may have to rethink your repertoire all while making sure that you hit the chosen standards. You’re realizing the work ahead of you in designing visual presentations and making fun new manipulatives is going to take a LONG time. You like to include movement as a first step in your lessons, but how will you do that with the new level you’ll be teaching?
Whether or not you’ve been met with a situation like this, the Purposeful Pathways series could just be the answer you’re looking for!
Written by Roger Sams and Beth Ann Hepburn, this 4-book series could easily be used for grades K-8. It’s an extensive collection of developmentally sequenced lessons that incorporate Orff, Kodaly, and eurhythmics approaches while promoting learning about music by making music.
These lessons offer TONS of possibilities or purposeful pathways to reach your students through:
Singing
Literacy
Movement
Improvisation
Composition
Lessons promote age-appropriate creativity, choice and voice, and encourage student independence while addressing essential skill sets.
Each book bundle has between 30-50 lessons as well as:
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- Interactive SMART Notebook, Promethean, Activinspire, and PowerPoint visuals
- Printed manipulatives for some lessons
- Folk songs, song games, and play parties from diverse cultures
AND! AND! AND! If your district purchases 40 books through MIE, included is a workshop with Roger and Beth Ann! Be sure to indicate it on the purchase order. Certainly, smaller districts can reach out too.
Simply put, Purposeful Pathways guides one to foster engaged, aesthetically pleasing musical experiences where students and teachers feel successful in every step of the way.
Yep, I studied with both Roger and Beth Ann and have used Purposeful Pathways since its first introduction. I learned from Roger to offer students music literacy in that layered approach: stick notation followed by solfege, text or melody comes together to create the song or piece for instruments. WAY back when I met Roger, before smart boards, I learned from him the ol’ lamination slides in which we would literally layer one piece of clear plastic paper onto the overhead projector, on top of another. I’m sure some of you have never seen an overhead projector! HA! I thought the approach was brilliant, and now in the 21st century, the authors are doing the same thing, just digitally. Kids really respond and simply put, they get it!
Next chat? I’d like to show you how much “juice” you can get from just one little rhyme/activity in Purposeful Pathways!