Music and early literacy development go together like peanut butter and jelly, cheese and crackers, or to quote the final song from Grease, “Rama lama lama ka dinga da dinga dong.” When used as part of an early childhood curriculum, music can increase phonemic and phonological awareness, boost vocabulary acquisition and print awareness, and more.
Our school partners benefit from research-proven results in literacy & language
Our early literacy curriculum, ABC Music & Me, uses music and movement to teach young children early language and literacy. A new independent research study proves using this early childhood curriculum just 30 minutes a week delivers a 32 percent literacy gain. SEG Measurement, an independent research firm, conducted the comprehensive study of the effectiveness of ABC Music & Me during the 2012-2013 school year using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The study shows that children participating in ABC Music & Me experienced significantly greater gains in language and literacy skills as compared to students in classes not participating in this early literacy curriculum.
Teacher perceptions on the effectiveness of early childhood curriculum on student skills
Early childhood educators love teaching ABC Music & Me. In fact, both teachers and parents would strongly recommend the early literacy curriculum to others. As part of the study, teachers identified nine specific areas they perceived to be especially effective on their students’ abilities:
- Listening
- Vocabulary development
- Phonemic and phonological awareness
- Pattern recognition
- Coordination
- Cooperation
- Engagement in classroom activities
- Attitudes toward learning
- Following directions
One participating preschool teacher noted: “The most effective aspects of ABC Music & Me are that the children all participate and have fun doing the different activities each week. The lesson plan is easy to follow. The assessment forms from Fall to Spring show growth in many areas….Overall, I feel that ABC Music & Me has now become a daily part of my lesson plan. I look forward to using the program next year!”