The Early Reading and Music Partnership
Beveridge, L. (2024). The Early Reading and Music Partnership. Elementary Education in Theory and Practice, 19(3).
DOI: 10.35765/eetp.2024.1974.04
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The paper outlines teachers’ perceptions of the early reading and music link.
Introduction
A current focus on basic skills, has resulted in a narrowing of the school curriculum. This approach has resulted in teachers concentrating on preparing students for national assessment testing, undertaken by all Australian children in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9. The national assessment program, known as NAPLAN, provides comparable data in literacy and numeracy nationally, and over time (NAP, 2024). Whether intended or not, schools (and teachers) are held accountable for their results (Frawley & McLean-Davis, 2005; Luke, 2010; McGaw et al., 2020). An emphasis on literacy and numeracy and national test rankings and results, has resulted in other subjects being relegated a lower priority in schools. Notwithstanding, sources suggest a back to basics focus in education has made a negligible (if any) difference to students’ overall reading scores, as evidenced by NAPLAN and other standardised tests (Thompson, 2013; McGaw et al., 2020; Dwyer & Collins, 2022). This leaves educators questioning how we can nuance the teaching of literacy to improve results. This research investigates whether a link exists between music and early reading acquisition, and what this link may look like in classrooms for schools, teachers and students in order to benefit from a music and early reading partnership.
Reading is widely regarded as the most fundamental academic skill, the cornerstone of academic success. A highly regarded meta-analysis of reading research, Report of the National Reading Panel (NRP) (2000) reviewed the reading research literature and its implications for effective reading instruction. It identifies the essential components of teaching reading, colloquially referred to as the fab five. Konza (2014) added oral language to the fab five, making it the big six. These six evidence-based pillars of effective reading instruction comprise phonemic awareness, phonics, oral reading fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and oral language. The NRP report outlines the most effective ways to teach reading (NRP, 2000, p34), as do significant follow-up studies, including Teaching reading: Report and recommendations (Australian Government DoE, 2005) and a British study, The Independent review of the teaching of early reading (Rose, 2006). Collectively, these studies underpin widespread contemporary literacy policy and practice.
The big six pillars of early reading instruction are regarded as the bedrock skills of learning to read (NRP, 2000; Konza, 2014; Cox et al., 2019). However, other subjects at school also contribute to young learners becoming successful readers. When we read, we seek meaning from text. The knowledge base we need to activate background knowledge, make connections, and make sense of reading is accrued through our life experiences (Wexler, 2020). Music naturally connects to the acquisition of the ‘big six’. The explicit teaching of early reading and music together yields powerful learning for students, which accelerates both reading and music mastery (Hill-Clarke & Robinson, 2004; D’Agrosa, 2008; Bonacini et al., 2019). Teaching early reading and music together draws on principles and conditions that encourage convergent cognition (Rich et al, 2013), a term used to describe one subject increasing the other’s effectiveness, when taught consecutively.
Overview of literature
Learning to read and learning music are highly correlated, complementary cognitive processes (Telesco, 2010; Collins, 2020; Hallam & Himonides, 2022). The inclusion of music in early reading teaching has many cognitive, educational, and social benefits that can scaffold students along the path to becoming successful readers. Cognitive benefits include improved inhibitory control and executive brain function, which assist students to concentrate, stay focused and manage their emotions (Levitin, 2006; Jones, 2010; da Silva et al., 2021). Executive functions and other ‘soft skills’, such as interpersonal and behavioural skills, are acknowledged as increasingly important in today’s workforce (Hansen et al., 2014) for effective communication and collaboration, teamwork, creativity and problem solving.
Identified educational benefits of integrating music in early reading teaching include improved rhythmic abilities, sound to symbol correspondence, phonemic awareness and reading prosody (Wennerstrom, 2001; Collins, 2020; Godde et al., 2020). Socially, music has the propensity to calm and engage reluctant learners, facilitate cooperative group learning, and ensure students feel comfortable and confident in the classroom (Curtis 2007; Saefudin, 2019; Debreceny, 2021).
There are natural connections and considerable overlap between teaching reading and teaching music. Music has a role to play in developing students’ language skills and phonemic awareness. Early reading and music is a wise partnership as teaching the two together can create powerful learning experiences for students.
Research significance
A focus on literacy and numeracy in education at the expense of other subjects, higher accountability and high stakes testing, has resulted in a winnowing of The Arts: Music curriculum, meaning less instructional time is spent teaching music and the arts in schools. It may be that a transdisciplinary pedagogical approach – like an early reading and music partnership– may be a potential solution to challenges we currently face in education relating to declining literacy standards and student disengagement. The evidence suggests that learning music strengthens brain connectivity, benefitting every part of the school curriculum, particularly the big six pillars of effective reading instruction (Frischen et al., 2019; da Silva et al., 2021; Debreceny, 2021). This study builds on prior research investigating the music and early reading partnership, with the aim of moving knowledge forward in relation to how teaching music and early reading together, may mutually benefit both areas of learning.
Research questions
The main research question relates to whether the inclusion of music improves reading acquisition:
In what ways, if any, does the integration of music in the early reading classroom contribute to improvements in students’ reading abilities?
Semi-structured interview questions were emailed to 30 teachers with an interest in music and early reading, with an invitation to participate in the research, identified through a purposive sampling technique. The technique- snowball sampling, involved volunteer teachers recommending those colleagues known to draw on music in their early reading classrooms. In this way, information tendered by interviewees provided deep, relevant information that addresses the research question being studied (Tashakkori and Teddlie, 2003, p279). From the 30 teachers contacted, 12 responses were received, culminating in a 40% overall response rate.
Interview questions, inspired by Curtis (2007), comprised:
· How do you engage students in literacy in the Kinder/Foundation to Year 2 (K/F-2) classroom?
· What instructional methods/ strategies/ techniques do you find most effective in teaching literacy?
· How do you know this (evidence)?
· How do you integrate music into the literacy classroom?
· Do you have any system support in connecting music and literacy in the classroom? If so, please elaborate.
· How do you think K-2 children perceive a music and literacy connection in the classroom?
· How do you view the connection between music and literacy?
· What are your favourite musical activities in the K/F-2 reading classroom?
· Can you see links to literacy learning in the activities that you identified? Please elaborate.
Email responses were transcribed and entered in NVivo 12 plus software. Text was coded, synthesised and analysed to identify main themes and make links between data sources. Key themes, derived from the analysis of email responses, can be seen in figure 1 below:
Key themes identified in the research
Key themes
The importance of a range of engaging musical activities in early reading
Respondents highlighted the importance of fun, joyful musical activities in the early reading classroom. Song enhances engagement, learning and retention of information. Creating songs using the language in texts students, builds vocabulary knowledge and reading fluency. Musical conversations can be created where the teacher sings greetings, instructions, or questions to students. They respond by mirroring the same melody and rhythm patterns. Listening, singing and responding in musical conversations, focus on the early reading skills of phonemic awareness, auditory discrimination, and oral language development. See example morning greeting in figure 2:
Example morning greeting rhythm
Teachers use musical games and rhymes to introduce new content, building on what students already know. Props (like simple toys) help students to recall and recite initial phonemes and digraphs, with accompanying musical rhymes. Students with language backgrounds other than English feel valued when their home language in the form of songs, chants and rhymes, is utilised, drawing on the potential of translanguaging, using students’ entire repertoire of language resources to maximise learning (Beveridge, et al, 2021 p23). Multicultural texts play an important role in music and literacy learning as they help students to understand their own and others’ cultures, building intercultural understanding and cultural pride.
Non-verbal cues are useful attention grabbers to introduce familiar musical lesson breaks and revise initial phonemes in words. For example, for teaching Koala Brown, an action song, the teacher holds up a toy koala, cueing students to form into pairs and face their partners, preparing them for a particular pending musical lesson break (Beveridge, 2023, p37). Puppets, dress-ups, musical instruments, masks and toys are all useful props for scaffolding children in both acting out and internalising stories and songs, improving recall and comprehension (Oczkus, 2009). Participation in a wide range of musical activities encourages students to practise early reading skills through active participation in enjoyable music and language arts activities.
Musical activities are useful data collection tools
Phonics songs, rhymes and chants consolidate alphabetic knowledge. Musical action rhymes like Ants in the Apple (Australian Primary Learning, 2018), drill grapheme phoneme correspondences (GPCs) or letter sound associations, an engaging means of consolidation. The lyrics can be changed to address the GPCs that the class are currently learning in their class phonics program.
Connections between early reading and music can yield powerful learning experiences. Breaking words down into smaller units, identifying and creating oral rhymes, demonstrate students’ growing phonological awareness, all measurable during class musical activities. For example, The Rhyme song (piggyback song), sung to the tune of The William Tell Overture (Rossini, 1829), invites individual students to provide words that rhyme with song lyrics, in an enjoyable game format (Beveridge, 2023 p28), providing data on student knowledge of rhyme identification and production. Participating in songs that focus on rhymes and word play increases students’ understanding of how phonemes can be manipulated to make new words.
Simple phonics checklists, used as a monitoring tool during morning circle time when alphabet songs reinforce student GPCs, are a time-efficient means of checking students’ growing GPC knowledge. Teachers identified that much can be learned through teacher observation during musical lesson breaks and circle time.
With follow up tasks you can identify the children who need more personal one on one instruction and more intense focus on different strategies to help them with their oral language and early reading skills. Maureen
I always use musical circle games, to greet each other in the morning and it allows me to observe and monitor many aspects of a child’s continued development. Through observation, I collect a range of data and work out how to best engage each child. I identify … vocabulary usage, clarity of oral language, listening skills and the ability to follow instructions, all necessary early reading skills.
Maria
Music and early reading links
Students use a range of manipulatives (letter tiles, bottle tops, magnetic letters) to make new words, recording them on mini whiteboards. Singing phonemes to a simple rhythm pattern as they work, help students to blend phonemes to make words; reinforcing the talking, singing, reading and writing link.
Blending phonemes to make words
Action songs and games draw on the benefits of classroom singing and active learning. This includes relaxation, release of tension as well as creating joyfulness and physical wellbeing. Singing and active learning stimulates cognitive capacities, attention, concentration, memory and learning (Iwasaku et al., 2013; Debreceny, 2015b; Keating, 2020). Timeless nursery rhymes like Twinkle twinkle little star, Old Macdonald had a farm, and Baa baa black sheep, enrich literacy learning through developing language, musical concepts and prosocial behaviours. Students add instruments, make choices and judgements about rhyme and rhythm, and reorganise sounds through ‘conscious creativity’ (Bridges, 1999, p.102). In addition to addressing the big six of early reading; learning to sing, read, write, play and perform rhymes like these teaches aspects of musicality. These basic musical concepts include dynamics (loud and soft), tempo (fast and slow), pitch (high or low) and timbre (the tonal quality [or tone colour] of sounds).
Music and young children are a natural combination, as they love to move and their attention is easily grabbed through music, whether it is games, songs, dance, movement or making the music themselves through body percussion or using percussion instruments. Tamara
Emotions and music
Music opens communicative spaces for students to talk about their emotions. Like discussing quality literature, music facilitates oral language development through students sharing what makes them happy (or sad. or the myriad of emotions in between…).
Teachers shared musical games and songs that contribute to a positive class climate, in which students are engaged and feel safe and valued. Cumulative songs like, We’re going on a bear hunt (Rosen & Oxenbury, 1984), That’s what I like, and How do you feel today? (Beveridge, 2023 p13,18), can be sung anytime, scaffolding students in discussing their feelings in a safe, caring space. Students may sing or speak their responses, reinforcing the difference between singing and speaking voices.
The well-known children’s song, If you’re happy and you know it, attributed to Joe Raposo (1971), encourages students to explore and articulate their feelings, drawing on actions and vocabulary to express how they feel. They can embroider their contributions with Orff instruments and perform joyfully together, contributing to wellbeing in a rich musical tapestry.
Music plays a role in conveying emotion – exposure to music at a young age can help children to identify and connect with ideas on an emotional level – this impacts communication and interpersonal skills. Tamara
Integration
Teachers reported that they plan for musical activities that support existing literacy programs. In this way, music is authentically integrated into early reading, ‘but it is never forced’ (Marion).
High frequency words are taught alongside phonics, alongside quality texts. We introduce parallel music and literacy, focusing on rhythm, rhyme and semantics. When integrated, it is part of the literacy program and supports existing learning. Marion
During writing (joint construction), we compose stories and put them to song. It all begins with oral language, a ‘sea of talk’ (Dwyer, 1989). Shirley
Singing is talking and chanting. It underlies reading. All those little rhymes and tunes that are used to teach spelling, handwriting and grammar; or even just the alphabet, make literacy learning fun and easy to remember. Helen
Skills common to both music and early reading include phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, sight word identification, orthographic awareness, and fluency (Del Rey, 2017; Butzlaff, 2000; Darrow et al., 2008). Teachers reported that participation in music activities provided opportunities for students to practise emerging early reading skills.
Professional learning
Three respondents stated they had received professional learning in music, although not specifically in relation to how music can be used to support early reading acquisition. The first mention was new curriculum implementation, and second, a group of teachers from the same school reported that they attended professional learning in their own time, provided by a national professional teaching association. Gavin shared that his school used the expertise of musical staff members to provide professional learning across the school.
When the Creative Arts syllabus was released (2006) we did some school based professional learning on the new syllabus. Maria
We attended in services in our own time, like Primary English Teachers Australia (PETAA) courses. We had visits from literacy consultants. We attended anything that was offered. There was a lot more in-service offered in the 80’s and 90’s. Maureen
I can only remember one in-service where the focus was on music, and that was a long time ago. Specific staff members with music expertise were utilised due to their talents e.g. piano playing and band, and they wrote songs for us. Gavin
Most primary teachers surveyed have not participated in professional learning for teaching music in early reading, or music more broadly. An Australian review of music education in schools (Pascoe et al., 2005) found that many Australian students miss out on effective music education because of the lack of equity of access; lack of teacher expertise, lack of quality of provision and the poor status of music in many schools. Teachers need more professional learning in the form of curriculum support materials, advisory services, networks, mentoring and professional development, as the quality of teaching is related to teacher skills and pedagogic content knowledge (Gore et al., 2021).
Favourite musical activities
Teachers identified their (and their students) favourite musical activities as chants, action songs, and games that reinforce existing classroom learning.
Singing at school… I always loved the Ants on the apple song for Kinder and it was a great way to teach the sounds. I also love songs that reinforce current phonics programs and actions are a big part of that too! Beginning the day with a good morning song is a joyful way of settling and getting the class to focus as a group, ready for literacy. Melissa
We all love creating class big books. They are firm favourites. I see them [students] singing along to the rhyme and rhythm of the text, adding actions as they excitedly read the texts that we composed and illustrated together. Helen
Writing simple percussion scores and creating (and performing) soundscapes help students make sense of challenging vocabulary in literary and informative texts, building fluency. For example, in the text Coming home to Country (Bancroft, 2020), challenging vocabulary is explained by adding related sound effects. ‘A rolling storm drops a majestic downpour’(p15) comes alive by adding rain sticks and thunder tubes, vibraslaps and cabasas, aiding meaning-making. See below:
Untune percussion suitable for creating soundscapes
Students enjoy sharing poetry together, helping them to listen, interact with texts and speak clearly and prosodically. Poetry put to music, provides students with opportunities to use their voices to communicate ideas and feelings.
Favourite musical activities in the early reading classroom specified in email surveys ranged from ‘developing sound and letter correspondences through music’; ‘learning new works and repeated practice of favourite class texts set to music’ to ‘performance of musical activities at school concerts. Overall, activities focused on ‘building rhyme, rhythm, garnering engagement and creating a positive class climate’.
Research model
A qualitative multiple case study was chosen to investigate music teaching in the early reading classroom from multiple perspectives, to provide information-rich cases that contributed to in-depth study of the phenomenon. Selection criteria included:
· Willingness of schools to participate in the research
· Music was a focus in early years classrooms
· Selected schools demonstrated a variety of models of music implementation.
Three case study schools were chosen. I sought variability in the case study schools by selecting a large rural school, medium inner-city school, and small regional primary school. No specialist music teachers are provided in primary schools in the education system in which the research was undertaken, and any related expense was met from general school funds.
Although they implement music in different ways, a shared conviction of the leadership in all three case study schools is that the Arts: Music sets young learners up for success. All case-study schools are government primary schools and all implement music in the early years, in various ways. School names are pseudonyms to comply with ethics requirements and protect the privacy of participating schools.
Case study schools
The first case study is Kinsley Public School, situated in a rural centre, 77 km from a major city. 431 students attend Kinsley Public School. 87% of students are situated in the bottom two quarters for socio educational advantage, Australia-wide. 26% of students identify as Indigenous[1] and 6% have a language background other than English (LBOTE). NAPLAN reading results indicate the school results fall in the band below all Australian students (Year 3) (ACARA, 2023).
Next, Finkley Public School is an inner-city school in a capital city. 280 students attend Finkley Public School. 77% are situated in the top two quarters for socio-economical advantage Australia-wide. No students (0%) identify as Indigenous and 83% have a LBOTE. At Finkley, NAPLAN reading results indicate the school results fall in the band above all Australian students (Year 3) (ACARA, 2023).
The third case study, Carnley Public School, is a small school in a regional city. 134 students attend Carnley Public School. 56% of students are situated in the middle two quarters for socio-economical advantage Australia-wide. 24% of students identify as Indigenous and 6% have a language background other than English. At Carnley, NAPLAN reading results indicate the school’s average percentage result is similar to all Australian students (Year 3) (ACARA, 2023).
Kingsley Public School
Kingsley Public School purchased an on-line music program for early years classrooms, delivered weekly by a teacher with an interest in music, who delivers the web-based program. The online program provides sequential music lessons for teachers and students which are supplemented by the music teacher who addresses emerging student needs.
Comparing case study schools
Kingsley Public School
Kingsley Public School purchased an on-line music program for early years classrooms, delivered weekly by a teacher with an interest in music, who delivers the web-based program. The online program provides sequential music lessons for teachers and students which are supplemented by the music teacher who addresses emerging student needs.
The weekly music lesson was a team-teaching time in which the dedicated music teacher and class teachers worked together to implement the program. Class teachers reported this worked well as they were able to integrate what they learned during the music lessons into their everyday classroom practice. However, a system change resulted in class teachers being provided with an additional hour release from face-to-face teaching each week, and the team-teaching music timeslot disappeared. Although their students still access the online music program, class teachers are no longer able to easily integrate the new learning into existing programs.
The school may consider how to reorganise and reinstate the team-teaching music timeslot in some way, so class teachers can again share the music learning, putting them in a better position to upskill and embed the music learning into their daily English teaching. Integrating music into existing English and literacy activities, deepens the learning of those pillars of effective reading that we know make a difference to students learning to read. In integrating the two, we are providing students with the best, evidence based early reading teaching we can deliver.
Teacher implements an on-line music program
Finkley Public School
Finkley Public School is fortunate to have a specialist music teacher who works across a secondary and a primary school, based on an agreement between the principals. The specialist teacher visits Foundation and Year 1 classrooms weekly and models the implementation of sequential musical activities in-class, for class teachers, building on what the students already know. Activities focus on developing students’ listening skills, rhyme, rhythm, movement and singing. At the same time, students are practising their oral language, supporting their literacy development.
Through a professional learning lens, the specialist teacher shares their expertise with staff, supporting class teachers in growing their musical knowledge and skills. In this teacher professional learning model, the specialist music teacher is potentially a ‘champion of change’ (Sheppard et al., 2009, p.26). The next challenge from a sustainability standpoint is for the specialist teacher to mentor the class teacher, through modelling, rehearsal, enactment, and reflection. Rather than simply observing, the class teacher could work alongside the specialist teacher, to maximise impact. Both teachers would gain new knowledge and skills through teasing out common ideas and ‘weaving authentic teaching tapestries, where content knowledge and understanding are drawn from one subject discipline and used to enrich and apply to others – connecting the curriculum dots’ (Gould Lundy, 2015, p.8).
Collaborative practice provides the best chance of learning being sustained when the specialist teacher moves on to another class (Beveridge, 2014). D’Agrosa (2008) outlines the unlimited possibilities for specialist music and class teachers working together through collaborative practice. Finkley Public School is well-situated to create important meaning-making and multiple literacy experiences through the authentic integration of the music and English curricula.
Specialist music teacher modelling teaching strategies
Carnley Public School
Carnley Public school has no specialist music expertise, or access to online music programs. However, there is a teacher on staff who has been teaching Foundation students for a long time and music flows from their pedagogical practice.
The teacher uses music as a vehicle to drill GPCs, build alphabetical knowledge, settle students to work and facilitate writing – in fact for every facet of literacy learning, as well as classroom activities more broadly. The teacher’s metaphorical teaching toolbox is brimming with musical activities which support classroom learning. They seamlessly infuse music into their literacy instruction. Selected activities support curriculum content currently being taught, and music complements and deepens the instruction rather than detract from it (Fisher, 2001).
A challenge for the school may be succession planning and sharing the teacher’s expertise across the school, to ensure their legacy of considerable musical knowledge and skills remains in the school, should the teacher decide to move on in the future.
Musical scaffolds drill graphemes and phonemes
Conclusion
It was evident throughout this research that there are natural connections and considerable overlaps between teaching reading and teaching music. Music has a role to play in developing students’ language skills and phonemic awareness. Early reading and music is a wise partnership as teaching the two together can create powerful learning experiences for students. Research increasingly supports the reciprocity of learning music and learning to read.
A planned follow-up study of this research is to assess students’ reading results in schools that intentionally teach music in early reading classrooms and compare results with schools who do not, as it has been reported that causality findings have been mixed (Hallam p39). The planned study would be quasi-experimental research, a multiple case study, pre-post-test design.
Notwithstanding, the impact of music training on reading skills seems clear. Phonological awareness is an important precursor to early reading, word decoding is associated with auditory skills and comprehension is a mix of basic decoding and higher-level cognitive processes like memory and attention. All of these skills are important in both music learning and early reading. Students benefit when they learn music and reading together. There is an identified need for more research to further explore how music education enhances early reading acquisition and under what circumstances these benefits may be fully realised in the early reading classroom.
