Movement as a Musical Response Among Preschool Children

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate preschool children's movement responses to music in a free-choice participation setting. The study's framework was built on theories derived from qualitative data. The investigator observed 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds in a researcher-designed music center where videotapes of sessions were used to analyze data through the constant comparative method. Three theoretical core categories emerged from data analysis: conditions, interactions, and outcomes. The properties of the first core category, which involves preexisting behavioral qualities that influence movement responses, are dispositions, developmental stage, and mode of representation. The properties of the second core category are modeling, describing, and suggesting, which are the overt behaviors of children and teacher that influence movement responses. The properties related to the third core category are music-related movement responses and nonmusic-related movement responses. The primary result of the study was the generation of a substantive theory of children's movement responses to music. The author also derived implications of the seven propositions for early childhood education and movement responses to music.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Brown, J . (1981). Effects of an integrated physical education/music program in changing early childhood perceptual-motor performance. Perceptual & Motor Skills, 53(1), 151–154.

Bruner, J . (1960). The process of education. New York: Vantage.

Dalcroze, E . (1921). Rhythm, music, and education. London: The Dalcroze Society.

Douglas, J . (1976). Investigative social research. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

Flohr, J ., & Brown, J. (1979). The influence of peer imitation on expressive movement to music. Journal of Research in Music Education, 27, 143–148.

Gilbert, J . (1979). An assessment of motor skill development in young children. Journal of Research in Music Education, 28, 167–175.

Glaser, B ., & Strauss, A. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory. New York: Aldine Publishing.

Goetz, J ., & LeCompte, M. (1984). Ethnography and qualitative design in educational research. Orlando, FL: Academic Press.

Groves, W . (1969). Rhythmic training and its relationship to the synchronization of motor-rhythm responses. Journal of Research in Music Education, 17, 408–415.

10.

Jetter, J . (1978). An instructional model for teaching identification and naming of music phenomena to preschool children. Journal of Research in Music Education, 26, 97–110.

11.

Joseph, A . (1982). A Dalcroze approach to music learning in kindergarten through rhythmic movement (Doctoral dissertation, Carnegie-Mellon University, 1982). Dissertation Abstracts International, 44, 420A.

12.

Katz, L . (1985). Dispositions in early childhood. ERIC/EECE Bulletin, 18(2), 2–3.

13.

Klanderman, N . (1979). The development of auditory discrimination and performance of pitch, rhythm, and melody in preschool children (Doctoral dissertation, Northwestern University, 1979). Dissertation Abstracts International, 40, 3177A.

14.

Lenz, S . (1978). A case study of the musical abilities of three-and four-year-old children (Doctoral dissertation, University of Illinois, 1978). Dissertation Abstracts International, 39, 2809A.

15.

Lincoln, Y ., & Guba, E. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

16.

Lott, V . (1978). A study of musical achievement of culturally disadvantaged preschool children based on the Music for Preschool Curriculum of Marvin Greenberg (Doctoral dissertation, Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, 1978). Dissertation Abstracts International, 39, 1183A.

17.

McDowell, R . (1974). The development and implementation of a rhythmic ability test designed for 4-year-old preschool children (Doctoral dissertation, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 1974). Dissertation Abstracts International, 44, 3316A.

18.

Miller, L . (1983). Music in early childhood: Naturalistic observation of young children's musical behavior (Doctoral dissertation, University of Kansas, 1983). Dissertation Abstracts International, 44, 3316A.

19.

Moorhead, G ., & Pond, D. (1941). Music of young children. Santa Barbara, CA: Pillsbury Foundation for the Advancement of Music.

20.

Parten, M . (1932). Social participation among preschool children. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 27, 243–269.

21.

Piaget, J . (1951). Play, dreams, and imitation in childhood. New York: Norton.

22.

Rainbow, E . (1981). A final report on a three-year investigation of the rhythmic abilities of preschool aged children. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 66–67, 69-73.

23.

Reed, K ., & Patterson, J. (1980). The nursery school and kindergarten: Human relationships and learning. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

24.

Serafine, M . (1975). A measure of meter conservation in music, based on Piaget's theory (Doctoral dissertation, University of Florida, 1975). Dissertation Abstracts International, 37, 4245A.

25.

Shelley, S . (1980). Observing the nature of young children's musicality. In M. Tolbert (Ed.), Music of young children (pp. 44–53). Columbus: Ohio State University Press.

26.

Sims, W . (1985a). Television, creative movement, and the preschool child. International Society for Music Education Yearbook, 12, 103–109.

27.

Sims, W . (1985b). Young children's creative movement to music: Categories of movement, rhythmic characteristics, and reactions to changes. Contributions to Music Education, 12, 42–50.