Music and Movement: A Way of Life for the Young Child, 7th edition

• Engage students with Special Needs in Music and Movement Activities. A full chapter on Music and Movement for Children with Special Needs will equip educators to engage all types of students and with varying abilities.

• Align Your Curriculum to the National Standards. The National Standards for Music Education are listed throughout the textbook, linking content to practice and accountability.

• Practical Methods and Strategies for Teaching Music and Movement. The “Talks with Teachers” features, written by teachers of children of different ages, offers more practical application of concepts and theory of music and movement with children of varied ages.

• Increase Awareness of Music Diversity. The Music from Around the World feature highlights music’s potential as a resource to increase children’s awareness of the diversity of music, and reflects the cultures of the children and families in U.S. communities. This unique feature also adds a fresh focus on multicultural music to the curriculum.

• An Interdisciplinary Approach. The author shows how to weave music and movement into other disciplines such as mathematics and science.

• The Latest Information on Current Trends in the Field. The seventh edition addresses the current epidemic of childhood obesity and multiple intelligence theory, and how music and movement in the classroom addresses these key issues.

• Thoughtful Chapter Openers. Famous quotes by musicians and dancers set the stage for the content for each chapter.

• Teacher-Friendly Content. The boxed features, throughout the text, help to illustrate the content in ways that are accessible and applicable, enhancing the learning experience for readers.

• Summaries and Self-Assessments. Key Ideas and Questions to Consider, found at the end of every chapter, brief readers on chapter content and the chance to practice their personal level of knowledge of what they’ve learned. 

• Applicable Concepts and Activities for Preschool through Early Primary Age Children. These musical concepts and activities are presented in such a way that teachers and students can take them and immediately utilize them in a classroom situation.

The seventh edition has been updated to include all of the new standards for music and movement, new guidelines and practices, suggestions for lesson planning and curriculum alignment, strategies for teaching exceptional students, and more songs and activities for students in preschool through early primary grades. 

• NEW Inclusion of the Head Start: I Am Moving, I Am Learning Goals and Guidelines. Featuring this list provides teachers with national guidelines for improving healthy food choices for children, and focuses on increasing the quantity of time spent in vigorous physical activities, improving the quality of structured movement activities, and facilitating parent involvement in making healthy choices overall for children.
• NEW Lists the Guidelines for the National “Let’s Move” Obesity Campaign Program. Provides teachers with a comprehensive approach to giving schools, families, and communities the simple tools necessary to help children become more active, make better food choices, and become healthier overall.
• NEW Involves the Most Recent Developmentally Appropriate Practice Guidelines for Physical Development. These supply teachers with new ideas for instilling healthy habits in children, including better food choices and more exercise, and the basic concepts of body function and physical health. Ideas for healthy and nutritious snacks are also included.
• NEW Revised Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale. Providing important information on physical education, specifically space, and equipment for gross-motor play, features a new focus on music and movement, diversity, gross-motor activities, and children with disabilities.
• NEW More Songs for Infants and Toddlers are Included. Chapter Four in this edition features a wider variety of songs for teachers to use with infants and toddlers.
• NEW Sample Lesson Plan Included. Teachers are given the specifics of writing a descriptive lesson plan in Chapter Five.
• NEW Instructions on How to Use Visual Documentation. Guidelines for teachers on how to thoughtfully and accurately represent children’s work at multiple periods of time over the course of a long-term project are included. These instructions will help teachers promote higher-level thinking, metacognition, and reflection, as children benefit from the ability to revisit earlier stages in their thinking process.
• NEW Information from the National Association for Sport and Physical Education. This edition includes the National Standards and the National Standards for Movement and Dance so that teachers can align their curriculum and lesson plans with these key national standards.