M.A.S.T.E.R.ING THE ART OF MUSIC INTEGRATION IN THE LANGUAGE ARTS CLASSROOM Dr. Tim Duggan Northeastern Illinois University

SONNET 18 WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm'd; And every fair from fair sometime declines, By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd; But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest; Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade, When in eternal lines to time thou growest: So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this and this gives life to thee.

OPENING THOUGHTS  Music in learning spans centuries and cultures worldwide.  Majority of music integration casts students as listeners rather than as performers and composers (Duggan, 2003).  Music is part of a “larger picture” of artistic responses to life and literature.  Music integration teaches language arts and music.  As students progress through school, fewer participate in music.  Students can do the creative work of music integration.

M.A.S.T.E.R.  Strategies for incorporating music actively: Mnemonics: songs for remembering A daptations: new versions of stories S ettings: text set to music T hemes: musical signatures for characters or events E xtensions/Explorations: original songs R ecital: performance of work

GROUP TASKS:  Using “My Name” by Sandra Cisneros Group 1: Make a mnenonic song for keywords in the text. Group 2: Write a musical adaptation of the story of the grandmother. Group 3: Pick one section of the text and set it to music. Group 4: Compose musical themes for the characters. Group 5: Pick a moment or sentiment in the vignette and write an original song extending from it.

METHODS  Cooperate with group members.  Use voices, instruments, bodies, and/or computer instruments. (such as GarageBand keyboards or Mini-moogs for iPad.  Generate text/music/etc. without too much concern for editing.  Think in terms of verses and choruses  Edit as time allows.

RECITAL!  Please share the work of your groups!

DEBRIEF  Talk about your process.  What have you learned by engaging in musical responses to the story?  How might you use this in your classroom?

PARTING THOUGHTS ON M.A.S.T.E.R. MUSIC INTEGRATION  Brings more students into classroom thought production.  Creates space for advanced students to develop talent.  Opens new possibilities for technology integration.  Provides complementary writing opportunities (artist statements, essays, etc.).  Expands perspective leading to integration of other arts in process (Duggan, 2007).  Helps students develop artistic identity.

REFERENCES Duggan, T. J. (2003). Uses of music in the high school English/language arts class in South Dakota: Teacher perceptions and practices. Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation. Duggan, T. J. (2007). Ways of knowing: Exploring artistic representations of concepts. Gifted Child Today 30 (4),