My Heart Sings Out - Teacher's Edition

Book excerpt: This is the companion volume to My Heart Sings Out, a collection of hymns, songs, and service music chosen for their particular usefulness in liturgy that is designed intentionally to include children. Intergenerational participation in the liturgy is essential for growing churches. In addition to all of the music from the singer's edition, the Teacher's Guide includes: Brief essays on choosing music and texts appropriate for children; teaching music to children; the importance of a cantor as music leader; and planning worship using the "multiple intelligences" theory to better engage both children and adults. Suggestions for performance, including additional rhythmic and instrumental parts, ideas for use of multiple voice parts, and ways to make performance simpler or more complex depending on resources. Scriptural and lectionary material, including teaching ideas about understanding the story or theme of the day. Guidelines for planning children's chapel services, and for organizing musical content in church school classes and other special learning events. Musical concerns when teaching, including a breakdown of teaching methods for each piece: points of difficulty, patterns of rhythm or melody, etc. to make the music readily accessible to children and adults. Extensive indexes that list the types of accompanying instrumentation, that categorize selections by age level, that list which selections have harmony parts, that match scripture to texts, plus a liturgical index and a topical index.