Music, Drama and Movement

Beauvoir students progress in a thoughtfully designed music and performing arts curriculum. Our program includes a sequential organization of musical concepts and skills learned through interactive lessons and activities. Students sing, read, create and write music of their own. Our performance philosophy honors childhood and we strive to build courageous musicians and performers who develop confidence in themselves over time and in a nurturing environment. 
Pre-Kindergarten
Music, drama and movement promote an appreciation of performance. In Pre-Kindergarten, puppet shows, playlets and creative storytelling are used to develop children’s imagination. Children also learn to celebrate their physical abilities through creative movements, dance and personal-space exploration. Pre-Kindergarten children learn games that further their development of movement and language skills. Research has proven a physiological change in the brains of young children engaged in musical activities and music plays a key role in developing literacy and numeracy skills as well. Music has a powerful impact on the academic, social and physical development of children, and our music program at Beauvoir is designed with this in mind.

 

Kindergarten
In Kindergarten, children express personal ideas and feelings while learning to enjoy song, dance, moving creatively and exploring personal space. Kindergartners continue to tell stories and perform puppet shows. Folk tales and playlets also allow children to participate actively in creative experiences.

First Grade
The study of music for First Graders involves structure, freedom, theory and creativity. Children make music and perform drama by speaking, singing, playing, moving and listening. Beauvoir children learn about rhythm, melody, harmony, form and tone through a wide variety of games and activities. Movement is an important aspect of music. Singing and percussion instruments are components of the music program. Drama experiences include the performance of stories.

Second Grade
Music, movement and drama continue to develop children’s expressive and aesthetic skills. Self-awareness grows through a wide range of musical and dramatic activities as Second Grade children speak, sing, move and listen. In Second Grade, children learn more about rhythm, pitch, melody and beat through listening, singing and playing instruments. Folk songs are part of the curriculum, particularly as they relate to Social Studies and the school-wide Global Study. Choral experiences occur regularly and are shared during select chapel services. Drama is incorporated through classroom plays and listening and responding to opera.

Third Grade
Third Grade students continue to develop musical skills as well as deepen their understanding of musical form and notation through a variety of musical activities. The process-based curriculum includes instruction in singing, recorders, handbells, and both pitched and unpitched percussion. The music curriculum is consciously designed to teach developmentally appropriate performing arts skills and to allow for the full participation of all students. The curriculum also makes a number of interdisciplinary connections, including strong support of the Global Studies program and a unique, in-depth focus on specific composers' lives and compositions. Third Grade students have many performance opportunities and great care is taken to keep these performances child-centered and structured to ensure the success of each individual. Third Grade performances include choral performances at Christmas, handbell choir in the fall, a recorder performance in the spring and a grade-wide dramatic performance.