LMC AT SCHOOL™
Curriculum Content

TEKS guidelines describe specific goals for prekindergarten children within content areas. The intent of this organizational design is to ensure that all three- and four-year-old children have the opportunity to strive towards these goals. For your convenience, and for a seamless application of TEKS, LMC AT SCHOOL™ addresses the same areas below:

Language and Literacy

- Utilize songs and chants to advance listening comprehension: paying attention increases listening skills and enhances concentration - children learn to anticipate what comes next and gain a better ability to follow directions.

- Expand children's vocabulary and language skills as you introduce and act out new words through song.

- Strengthen phonological awareness with rhymes and repetition.

- Utilize books that relate to songs and music to teach an understanding of textual flow.

- Introduce early reading and knowledge of literary forms through rhythmic patterns in Nursery Rhyme Songs and Chants.

- Teach rhythmic patterns with a strong beat and rhyming value - important in reading and conversational skills.

- Increase comprehension skills through dramatic and illustrative body movement.

- Prepare fingers/small motor muscles for writing by participating in small motor movement song/chant activities.

Mathematics

- Enhance number recognition by singing number related songs and chants.

- Introduce the operation of numbers through songs and activities that count upwards and backwards.

- Illustrate number comparison with musical games that add children to existing circle, one by one, increasing the circle size.

- Use fun beanbag sharing /passing songs to teach number movement. Beanbags get closer together and spread further apart as they are passed in a circle during song activity.

- Introduce early math through rhythmic patterns by utilizing particular songs and chants.

- Utilize songs and chants to learn to anticipate and predict what comes next.

- Recognize relationships and patterns through repetitive clapping and rhythm stick activities.

- Present geometrical and spatial concepts through movement (in/out, under/over, up/down, high/low, above/below, etc.).

- Increase understanding of opposing spaces by offering oppositional rhythmic exercises (i.e., scarves go up while knees bend down simultaneously to the beat).

- Demonstrate time measurement and size comparison through rhythmic musical activities such as moving fast/slow, short/long, big/small, etc. Clap and count to three-four beat, and four-four beat patterns (duple and triple meter) during fun rhythmic songs and chants.

Science

- Teach important concepts such as:

- Heat burns and makes objects expand.
- The earth is a living entity we should take care of.
- Weather affects plants/the earth as well as our ability to play outside.
- How to gather info, test observations, draw conclusions and form generalizations

- Gain an understanding of physical science and sound waves by experimenting with rhythm instruments and discussing sound science.

Social Studies

- Sense of Individualism and Community are explored as rhythm and melody help children anticipate and recognize when it's their turn. This timing teaches conversational skills and an understanding of turn taking.

- Impart a shared responsibility in the classroom community through use of clean up songs.

- Share participation in joint activities with built-in sharing opportunities in the music curriculum.

- Convey that mood, attitude and cooperation are a choice through songs and chants.

- Share topical information via songs and chants. Cultural similarities and differences are explored.

- Gain historical trivia from nursery rhymes, songs and chants. Origins of and meaning behind some nursery rhymes may be discussed.

- Address economics through content speaking to human needs such as sleep and good food.

- Enhance bonds of friendship through songs and activities that encourage acceptance of one another and to embrace our differences.

- Introduction of safety concepts such as stopping at the stop sign and looking both ways.

- Coverage of geography through ball rolling games (here to there concepts) and location songs. Explore same through movement songs and activities that promote forward and backward, side to side, near and far movements.

- Represent various peoples through an introduction to music and dance in various cultures, styles and eras.

The Arts

- Introduce fine art by encouraging children to draw, paint, color and move to various musical styles.

- Teach art as self-expression through color, texture, and movement to music and it's many moods.

- Provide heightened sense of self and surroundings by removing sense of sight, having children cover head and eyes with scarf while carefully moving to different forms of music.

- Experience and respond to music of various tempos through movement and by encountering musical instruments.

- Learn to sing simple songs and chants, discovering the difference between high and low, loud and soft.

- Learn to start and stop instruments on demand and at will.

- Explore and understand concepts such as fast/slow, loud, soft, fast/slow, and long/short.

- Learn to distinguish between the sounds of several common instruments.

- Explore different body movements to differing styles and types of music.

- Introduce drama in music by providing manipulative props and interactive stories.

Health and Safety

- Teach routine healthy behaviors such as washing hands and brushing teeth through fun and informative songs and chants.

- Understand the need for exercise and rest through encouragement to be involved in movement activities and songs that emphasize both exercise and rest.

- Encourage proper nutrition through song.

- Recognize danger of fire and learn what to do in case of fire.

- Learn how to cross street safely and learn American Sign Language signs for "stop", "fire" and "hot".

- Learn various staying safe techniques through music and movement.

- Teach importance of proper safety gear in potentially dangerous environments.

Personal and Social Development

- Impart knowledge of and ability to show self-control by learning to respect differences of others.

- Allow music and movement activities where children interact freely and are unconstrained.

- Allow them to develop meaningful friendships with others.

- Learn to express thoughts and feelings through music and movement as "no rules" learning environment encourages positive self-esteem and avoids self-consciousness.

- Encourage children to contribute ideas in the ways songs are sung or by offering suggestions for altering songs (e.g., teacher allows children to choose if they will walk like elephants or monkeys or swim like crabs or fish, etc).

Physical Education

- Explore physical moving in free space and closer quarters.

- Gain awareness and ability to label body parts, clothing and their relationship.

- Develop small and large (gross) motor abilities through music and movement activities.

- Become better able to control movements in place: jump, hop on one foot and both feet, perform contrasting movements simultaneously (scarves go up while knees bend down concurrently), stretch, twist, turn and bend.

- Become better able to control movements while in motion: hopping like frogs or crickets, speed up and slow down, walk backwards, move belly buttons and bottoms from side to side, moving to the beat of the rhythm.

- Control large motor responses by rolling and tossing objects in predetermined direction.

- Learn to coordinate legs and arms. Learn to cross legs and arms simultaneously.

- Develop pincer controls by snapping, clapping, rubbing hands, pounding fists, "spiriting" fingers and small motor movements associated with Finger Plays.

- Learn to point and flex the feet, while discussing left and right and how to apply shoes.

Technology

- Learn how different instruments make sound and how sound travels through airwaves.

- Introduce various vocal manipulations such as operatic singing, yodeling and Peruvian throat singing.

- Illustrate how sounds can be distorted and changed on electronic keyboard and by manipulating other percussive instruments.

- Explain and illustrate how sounds of electric and acoustic guitar are different.

- Explain and illustrate how "toy" drum (made from coffee can) and "proper" musical drum (with real skin head) sound different.

- Teach basic operation of cassette player and CD player (on-off, volume, start and stop, forward, reverse and pause controls).

- Show children how to play and navigate through certain music related CD-ROM computer games.

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