The outdoor area should be alive with the sound of music, but this is often an activity that is overlooked in nurseries. Many practitioners opt for a regular session with a professional, rather than weave instrument playing, singing and dancing throughout the setting, inside and out.
'Music is an activity that people are self-conscious about,' says Linda Keats, graduate training adviser for Early Years Professional Status, Early Years and Childcare, Essex. 'If practitioners do not have a background in music, they often feel wary, which is a shame because children do not necessarily want Mozart, but to see and hear you being a part of their activity.
'It is important to encourage staff to build their confidence so that they can introduce musical activities to children. And the whole self-esteem problem can also often fade away when outdoors. Children and adults don't seem to feel so self-conscious outside, as if the open space has rid them of their inhibitions.'
Freedom to play
There are many pluses to enjoying music outdoors, ranging from the freedom to make lots of noise and move more exuberantly to appealing to those children who prefer to play and learn outside. Cathryn Kinsey, deputy at Clyde Early Childhood Centre in Deptford, London, explains: 'Having a music area outside fits into our ethos of having outdoor provision. The children are freer to explore, express themselves and investigate. It can be different inside when 30 children are being noisy. We have free flow and some of the children are always outdoors so we want to ensure that they are not cut off from certain parts of provision, such as music.'
Susan Young, senior lecturer, University of Exeter, points out that many percussion instruments were originally intended for use outdoors, such as drums and pipes. She encourages practitioners to set out a range of instruments (see checklist) outside on picnic tables, under a tree or on a rug on the ground for children to access freely. An area can be defined by hanging flowing material, or ribbons and wind chimes, from trees, adding cushions or creating a stage area for children who want to perform.
'It is good to have informality of music outside and perhaps some instruments that can stay outside all the time like drums and guttering, maybe strung up so they make different sounds. Adults could put a tape player outside so children can dance to recorded music,' suggests Marjorie Ouvry, education consultant and author.
Environmental sounds can also inspire children, such as listening to bird song or the wind in the trees. Providing beaters can enable children to try making different noises around the outdoor area, such as playing on the wooden fence or scraping railings and seeing what makes a nice rhythm or sound.
'It has to be remembered that music can weave through every area of learning. There are songs for digging in the garden for worms, and counting songs for building with bricks,' says Ms Ouvry.
'Children have lots of music and rhythm in them, and if not encouraged will think that the outside is not the right place to let those out and show how musical they are.'
Highfield Nursery School, Ipswich
There is a designated area for placing music resources outside on a slightly raised platform. The instruments are kept on a small trolley which the children enjoy helping to wheel into the shed at home time. Ribbons and scarves are kept with the instruments for use when moving to the music.
Several large outdoor wind chimes are fixed under the trees. Children run their fingers or sticks along them to make different sounds, or listen as they react to the weather.
Improvised instruments are also used outdoors, explains nursery leader Lil Benton. 'A giant rope is tied across the corner in the fenced area and we hang saucepans on it and provide wooden spatulas and metal spoons for the children to explore all the sounds.
'We have lengths of pipe loosely fixed to the fence so they can vibrate. The children hit these with spatulas and spoons and sing and play different rhythms and sounds. Pouches nearby include song suggestions and accompanying resources, such as "One potato, two potato" with photos of groups of potatoes picked from the garden.'
A range of instruments is sometimes arranged on a rug outside and, initiated by the staff, the children are encouraged to play together to form an orchestra. First, the adult uses red and green 'stop' and 'go' cards to conduct the children, who then take it in turns to hold the cards and be members of the orchestra.
The instruments are then put out on following days for the children to use independently.
A mini tape recorder is occasionally taken into the garden so the children can sing or play along to a range of songs and music. Staff also use the extra space outside to help children retell and act out popular stories, such as 'Jack and the Beanstalk', and use a range of instruments to make accompanying sound effects.
Clyde Early Childhood Centre, Deptford, London
The centre's outdoor music area is set up each morning and is open all day, regardless of the weather. The resources are alternated but there are always a lot of percussion instruments such as drums, xylophones, glockenspiels, shakers, maracas and rhythm sticks. The children often use the rhythm sticks for drumming various objects around the garden to see what different sounds they can make. They also provide homemade instruments such as old buckets and filled plastic bottles.
Staff and children have a large repertoire of songs, which parents are asked to add to. 'They sing whatever they are doing. It can be quite impromptu and the children or staff will burst into song; it's lovely,' says deputy Cathryn Kinsey.
The music area is near the block area and the children sometimes create a theatre area and stage where they can give impromptu outdoor performances. 'Children can really feel part of the nursery when they sit and drum together,' comments Ms Kinsey. 'They learn a great deal of self-expression through music. It is open and accessible to all, regardless of language, culture or ability.
'Children can work collaboratively in the music area when they may not do so elsewhere because of language constraints.'
RESOURCES CHECKLIST
Susan Young, in her book Music 3-5 (Nursery World/Routledge), suggests
instruments to provide in your music area.
Include instruments that vibrate in different ways, such as:
- whole body of the instrument vibrates, eg woodblock or cymbal
- skin vibrates, eg drum
- string vibrates, eg guitar
- column of air vibrates, eg whistle
Include instruments with different playing actions:
- striking or shaking
- plucking
- scraping or rubbing
- blowing
Review your instrument selection, ensuring there is a range across:
- types of instruments and playing actions
- tuned and untuned instruments
- lower as well as higher pitches.
Add to the hand-played instruments other ways to make music, such as microphones, recording devices, CD players and sound-makers made out of scrapstore and recycled material.
Ms Young recommends getting instruments that are of the best quality possible, and to favour wooden instruments over plastic ones because the sound of the former tends to be better.
BEST BUYS
- Remo Gathering Drums come in a variety of sizes. Drums shown are 46 x 20cm (£53.95) and 50 x 55cm (£129.95) from www.mesdirect.com
- Schlagwerk Balaphone is a tuned and laced xylophone priced at £246. The 12 sound bars are attached by rubber bands, keeping them in place (www.soundtravels.co.uk)
FURTHER INFORMATION
- Music 3-5 by Susan Young (Nursery World/Routledge)
- Sounds Like Playing: Music and the Early Years Curriculum by Marjorie
Ouvry (Early Education)
- Music Education Supplies, www.mesdirect.com
- Hand Made Places, www.handmadeplaces.co.uk
- Bingbangbong, www.bingbangbong.com
