Your brain

1. Melodic Learning Presented by: Susan Homan, Ph.D Professor Emeritus, USF College of Education Chief Academic Officer, Electronic Learning Products, Inc. Your brain on music Your brain 1

2. Melodic Learning My 8-year Journey: from literacy… to music… to anthropology… to neuroscience… to melodic learning 2

3. Melodic Learning literacy…1960’s Mississippi 3

4. I got to music because a guy came into my office with a singing program Melodic Learning music…

5. Melodic Learning • Hernando County, • Home of the 2005 Pilot Study • with Tune in to Reading • West Hernando Middle School • 8th grade struggling readers • Surprising results 5

6. Results Were Sustainable Melodic Learning • 2005 Pilot Study Results 8th Graders reading at a 4th grade level Sustained Improvement Over 1 full grade level of improvement 6

7. Melodic Learning Six Years of Funded Research on • Over 1,400 students from 4 Florida school districts • Elementary, middle school, high school students • ESE, ELL • Boys and Girls Clubs 7

8. 6-year Research Overview Melodic Learning Gains >1 yr >1 yr >1 yr >1 yr >1 yr >1 yr 8

9. FCAT Gains DSS Change; 2007 - 2008 Melodic Learning TIR users made 63.4% higher gains n=171 9 n=195,400 n=14,402 n=386

10. Melodic Learning TiR Articles Published in Scholarly Journals “Using an Interactive Singing Software Program: A Comparative Study of Middle School Struggling Readers” “Teaching Reading Fluency to Struggling Readers: Method, Materials, and Evidence” Rasinski, T., Homan, S., & Biggs, M. (2009). Reading & Writing Quarterly. 25:192-204. Biggs, M., Homan, S., Dedrick, R., Rasinski, T., & Minick, V. (2008). Reading Psychology. 29:195-213. Doctoral Dissertation By: Marie C Biggs “Reading Fluency Through Alternative Text: Rereading with an Interactive Sing-to-Read Program Embedded Within a MS Classroom” “Reaching the Hard to Reach: A Comparison of Two Reading Interventions with Incarcerated Youth” Calderone, C., Bennett, S., Homan, S., Dedrick, R., & Chatfield, A. (2009). Middle Grades Research Journal. American Educational Research Association. (in press) Biggs, M., (2007) 10

11. Melodic Learning • Why is Singing Making Such a Positive Difference • for So Many Struggling Readers? • The literacy perspective 11

12. Melodic Learning • Literacy Perspective • National Reading Panel Report (2000) • It left out: • 1. Engagement • 2. Motivation • Big 5: • Phonemic awareness • Phonics • Fluency • Vocabulary • Reading comprehension 12

13. The Literacy Perspective Melodic Learning Multi-modalities Multi-sensory Engagement & Motivation Literacy Big 5 Singing

14. Melodic Learning Literacy Practitioners and Researchers Recognized the Importance of the Use of Modalities and Multi-Sensory Approaches Beyond Early Childhood • Multi-Modalities • Visual • Auditory • Tactile/Kinesthetic • Multi-Sensory • Seeing • Hearing • Touching • Tasting • Smelling 14

15. The literacy perspective provided some pieces to the puzzle, but did not sufficiently answer the question:“Why is singing making such a positive difference for so many struggling readers?” Melodic Learning

16. So…I started looking outside the field of literacyto find areas that already had recognized the importanceof the connections between music and literacy! Melodic Learning anthropology…

17. Anthropology has Long Recognizedthe Importance of Music Melodic Learning Anthropology Singing

18. Timeline Melodic Learning Today 1,500 AD 3,000 BC Jesus Christ Invention of the printing press Invention of writing I-Pod 18

19. Mithen, Steven. (2005). The Singing Neanderthals: The Origins of Music, Language, Mind, and Body. Harvard University Press. Cambridge, Massachusetts. Melodic Learning “…music has a developmental, if not evolutionary, priority over language.” 19

20. Bone Flute: 50,000 years old Melodic Learning

21. Revised Timeline 50,000 BC Bone Flute (first hard evidence of Melodic Learning) Melodic Learning 3,000 BC 1,500 AD Today Jesus Christ Invention of writing I-Pod Invention of the printing press 21

22. Melodic Learning neuroscience… • Anthropology provided more pieces to the puzzle, • and along with current events and some new • best-selling books, led me to the area of neuroscience. • Gabby Giffords • Anthropology study • Daniel Levitin & Oliver Sacks (best selling authors) 22

23. Neuroscience Perspective Melodic Learning Singing Neuroscience

24. Melodic Learning • Beat responses play a role in social bonding. • Armies train by marching to a beat, for instance. • Group dancing is a social activity. There also are studies showing that when people move together to a beat, they're more likely to cooperate with each other in nonmusical tasks than if they're not in synch. Patel, A. (2008). Music, Language and the Brain. Oxford University Press. NY. 24

25. Melodic Learning • “By the age of five, most children can tell when a note is out of sequence or when an instrument is out of tune.” • “Humans and music share an evolutionary history. Music and humans co-evolved over tens of thousands of years, and our brains became adapted to music while our music adapted to our changing brains.” Levitin, Daniel, J. (2006). This is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession. Penguin Group. NY. 25

26. Melodic Learning • “Words and music are the tracks of human evolution.” • ~ John S. Dunne • “Knowing how something originated often is the best clue to how it works.” • ~ Terrence Deacon Wolf, Maryanne. (2007). Proust and the Squid. Harper Collins. NY. 26

27. “Tassie”(5th grade) • Was chronically absent, unmotivated • Was failing most classes, but didn’t care • Never smiled (look at her now!) Melodic Learning Student Success Stories “Andrew” (5th grade – ESE/ADD) “Michael” (4th grade ESE) • Passed from teacher to teacher • Moved from reg. classes to special ed • “Didn’t have to bring his cushion to Tune In to Reading” • Reluctant to read at any level • Was: shy, insecure • Became: confident, outgoing

28. Melodic Learning More Student Success Stories: Tune In to Reading improves oral reading “Tiffany” “Marty” • No longer had to take speech classes; didn’t stutter due to singing • Abused child, 3 foster homes in 2 years! • Totally nonverbal and non-participatory • Singing “Silent Night” broke the silence

29. Melodic Learning • Conceptual View of Melodic Learning Neuroscience Anthropology Singing Melodic Learning Literacy 29

30. Melodic Learning • Working Definition of Melodic Learning • A method of learning whereby the key characteristics of Singing (pitch, rhythm and rhyme) greatly facilitate learning within a multi-modal, multi-sensory framework. • ML encompasses the recent work on the brain and music utilizing the importance of patterns in the learning process. 30

31. Who knew we could invite struggling readersback to the table with a song? Melodic Learning One thing we can do:

32. Melodic Learning • How Does Melodic Learning Produce • Improved Learning Outcomes? • Some of the ways are: • Activation of multiple senses – multiple channels are open for input • Adds essential rhythmic elements to the foundation of multisensory learning • Engagement & motivation 32

33. Melodic Learning • “Music can move us to the heights or depths of emotion.” Sacks, Oliver. (2007). Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain. Alfred Knoph. NY. 33

34. Melodic Learning “Alive Inside” 34

35. For more information contact: Melodic Learning Susan Homan, Ph.D. homan@usf.edu Ann Kay AnnCKay@comcast.net Electronic Learning Products, Inc. info@ELPcorp.com 35

36. One thing we can do… Melodic Learning • Who knew we could invite struggling readers back to the table with a song? 36