This book contains a wealth of invaluable resources on a very scarce topic, but one which is crucial for special learners…music education. Tapping into areas of the brain unaffected by the ravages of various developmental disabilities, Elise Sobol has compiled a unique and impressive approach to reaching the most impaired students. We have seen this firsthand in our self-contained special education school, where we just successfully mounted a spring musical, based on her research and recommendations. Non-verbal students are singing word approximations into the microphone and more developed speakers are learning to follow directions, stay on pitch and keep rhythms to the music. The key to her approach is taking each child where they are and giving them a musical task that they are comfortable with, while challenging them to take that task to the next level. She is a brilliant and talented musician and educator!
Rating: 5 / 5
I’m sorry that the previous reviewer had a negative experience with this book. The author is working with MENC: The National Association for Music Education to produce a rewritten, expanded 2nd edition that will offer a CD with downloadable images from the book for classroom use. MENC expects it copublisher, Rowman & Littlefield Education, to release it soon.
There are some good ideas, but they are so difficult to find underneath the poor writing and self-congratulatory nonsense. Please. No legitimate publisher who cared about quality work would let this get through the first round of edits. It is too bad that the quality teaching suggestions are so difficult to decipher.
Rating: 1 / 5
From Kenneth Babb, project manager for http://specialneedsinmusic.com, posting this review for
Kaila Rochelle, special education music teacher (24 years) in District 75 New York City.
For me, Elise Sobol’s book is a valuable special learners music ed teaching reference.
It inspired two important lessons at my ‘Special Needs In Music’ website
[...].
One involves the use of rhythm charts to teach note values to developmentally disabled students.
The other teaches concepts of low and high notes in a fun, interactive way. I use these lessons regularly
in my classroom with my special needs music students.
Professor Sobol presents logical and well researched assertions for music education from
practical, real world classroom experience. Her discussion includes the influence of cultural,
emotional, mathematical and neurological factors in a students educational development.
Her approach to curriculum is broad and enriching.
Rating: 5 / 5
This book contains a wealth of invaluable resources on a very scarce topic, but one which is crucial for special learners…music education. Tapping into areas of the brain unaffected by the ravages of various developmental disabilities, Elise Sobol has compiled a unique and impressive approach to reaching the most impaired students. We have seen this firsthand in our self-contained special education school, where we just successfully mounted a spring musical, based on her research and recommendations. Non-verbal students are singing word approximations into the microphone and more developed speakers are learning to follow directions, stay on pitch and keep rhythms to the music. The key to her approach is taking each child where they are and giving them a musical task that they are comfortable with, while challenging them to take that task to the next level. She is a brilliant and talented musician and educator!
Rating: 5 / 5
I’m sorry that the previous reviewer had a negative experience with this book. The author is working with MENC: The National Association for Music Education to produce a rewritten, expanded 2nd edition that will offer a CD with downloadable images from the book for classroom use. MENC expects it copublisher, Rowman & Littlefield Education, to release it soon.
Frances S. Ponick
Director of Publications
MENC
Rating: 4 / 5
There are some good ideas, but they are so difficult to find underneath the poor writing and self-congratulatory nonsense. Please. No legitimate publisher who cared about quality work would let this get through the first round of edits. It is too bad that the quality teaching suggestions are so difficult to decipher.
Rating: 1 / 5