Dr. Alison Reynolds
Departments: Music Education

Music Play at Project P.L.A.Y. School
Children are innately musical; their world of play is full of music already. Children have many ways of expressing their music ideas: the music in their voices and in their movements and in their interactions with each other and the materials in the environment.

In the co-constructed, relationship- and play-based environment at Project P.L.A.Y. School, we honor children’s innate music capacities and expressions. We strive to do that by entering the children’s world of play—of their music play. During our visits, we weave our way through the spaces of Project P.L.A.Y. with and amongst the children. We freely use music to greet and interact with children. Rather than interrupt children’s play to provide structured group musicing focused on music objectives to be met in the same way, on the same day, we watch, listen, and accept their invitations to join in their play. We notice when children initiate musicing, and offer our music ideas alongside their music ideas, keeping them embedded in or alongside their play. We notice ways children’s play offers provocation for us to initiate music ideas and invite possibilities for extending their interests and instincts.

Children at Project P.L.A.Y. School are curious and genuinely interested in each other, and respectful of each others’ ideas—including those involving music play! At Project P.L.A.Y. School, children’s music curiosities, ideas, and engagements are contagious! We frequently hear and see threads of music ideas woven amongst all the children. Whether with one or a group of children, we follow their leads or offer provocations via many ways of musicing, such as listening, singing, chanting rhythms, movement, creating songs or chants, playing instruments, improvising, talking about music or musicing in various way, or reading or writing music notation.

Together with the children, we document their many ways of musicing, and enjoy revisiting it together. We strive to share what we notice with parents and, through an organized research study and our work as Temple University faculty and graduate students, with early childhood and music education students and practicing teachers at conferences and through publications.

-Dr. Alison Reynolds