Article Link: http://stage.exchangepress.com/article/black-asphalt/5018097/
Reprinted from “Visits to the Heart of Education: Remembering What’s Important,”Essays by Tom Hunter. Bellingham, WA: The Song Growing Company, 2006.
One boy didn’t join the group when the others did. He sat back under the window against the wall as the teacher predicted he would. She didn’t tell me why, just that I shouldn’t worry or do anything about it. She’s been teaching kindergarten a long time and her confidence goes well with her gray hair.
I started singing before the children were settled in a clump on the floor in front of me. The teacher went to sit with the boy under the window. I couldn’t hear what she said, but the boy shook his head as she gently touched his arm, left him there against the wall, and returned to join the clump. It looked familiar, like a ritual they both knew well, something they relied on to make interaction easier or maybe even possible. He didn’t look defiant, and as far as I could tell, she offered no threat or reward to get him to come closer to the singing.
The first song grew from repetitive phrases and gaps in the lyrics for children to fill with their suggestions. “Come ...