Teaching music smarter
By Michael Johnson, Editor
Zach Cottingham, a sixth-grade student at Underwood School, made a big decision when he switched from playing saxophone to playing the drums this year. He said the switch was made easier by a program used in the classroom called Smart Music. "He’s new so he likes that because he can follow along," said fellow drummer Marshall LeRoy. The Smart Music program is used on the classroom’s Smart Board and provides a more interactive way to learn music. The only similarity to the student’s music book is that each shows the notes to the song. What Smart Music allows the students to do is have an accompaniment of a piano or a band to play along with even if they are all by themselves. With the push of a button the student can hear how the song should be played before they try, if they want.
