Montessori–Orff Music Education
The Premise
Having taught exclusively in Montessori settings, I’ve learned that the best qualities of Montessori students—the ones that make them Montessori—often make them incompatible with the extended group lessons that characterize a traditional music curriculum. They are independent learners, which leads to restlessness if not given time to work on their own. They also learn in mixed-age groups, so group lessons either overwhelm the youngest students or bore the oldest. Over the last few years, I’ve been working hard to create a music curriculum that is Montessori at its core. My own training in music education comes from the Orff Schulwerk approach, created by Gunild Keetman and Carl Orff to make music accessible through its most basic elements. While my Montessori–Orff approach is tailor-made for Montessori kids, I am confident that it has much to offer any music program with squirrelly, independent, deeply passionate students.
The Work Cycle
Montessori students typically spend their mornings in work cycle, an uninterrupted period in which to explore their environment and the works prepared within, and to receive lessons from a teacher or peer. Lessons are straightforward, using just the words and materials absolutely necessary for the student to grasp their goal. The rest is in the student’s hands; the teacher is there as a guide, but it is understood that the child has the capacity to educate themself.
I see my elementary students in two big groups—Lower Elementary (1st–3rd grade) and Upper Elementary (4th–6th grade)—each for one hour, twice a week. Both of these age groups spend about a third of their total Performing Arts class time working independently, just as they do for their core academics. In Performing Arts work cycle, my students can spend their time as they please. Maybe they’ll learn a new note on recorder, or play a rhythm game with a friend, or draft the second act of their original play, or move their body in a way they’ve never moved it before. Bookended by group warmups and folk dances, Performing Arts work cycle allows my students the freedom to be creative on their own terms.
The Works
I’ve designed a set of original musical works intended to be used individually and without time limits. A Montessori work is a set of high-quality manipulatives designed to assist students in strengthening a particular skill. Most of my musical works focus on one element of music, such as rhythm or pitch, while also building towards stronger general musicianship. These works find their roots in the Schulwerk’s concept of elemental music, and the simplicity mirrors Montessori’s pursuit of isolation of stimulus, or the belief that by presenting near-identical materials with one sensory (or other) difference, the child might more effectively grasp the significance of that difference. Additionally, the Schulwerk recognizes creation (both composition and improvisation) as the ideal form of mastery, which is the end goal of all Montessori lessons. Consequently, many of the works I have crafted are oriented towards student creation.
Click on any photo to read more about the work. If you have any questions about how to fit these works into your routine, please contact me!
