I was paid a wee bit to write this review, but just like with all things from The WOLFe Pack, what you will find here is an honest opinion from a seasoned homeschool mom with a Master’s Degree in Education and a decade of experience in the classroom…who also happens to be a mom with way too little sleep, too many dishes to do and only 9 months left on her homeschool clock.
Please read our Disclosure Policy for details.
Why Should Homeschoolers Teach Music Appreciation?
Let’s start by looking at what “they” say about the importance of Music Appreciation.
1. Cultural Enrichment: Music appreciation provides children with a deeper understanding of cultural history and heritage, enhancing their global perspective.
2. Intellectual Development: Studying music enhances critical thinking, memory, and cognitive skills, fostering a well-rounded intellectual development.
3. Emotional Growth: Music helps children express and understand emotions, contributing to their emotional intelligence and mental well-being.
4. Creative Skills: Learning about different genres and styles of music stimulates creativity and encourages innovative thinking.
5. Historical Insight: Music appreciation offers a unique way to explore history, understand the social, political, and cultural contexts of different eras.
6. Improved Concentration: Engaging with music can improve focus and concentration and is beneficial for other academic pursuits.
7. Lifelong Enjoyment: Developing a love for music at an early age encourages lifelong appreciation and enjoyment, enriching their lives.
8. Skill Development: Learning about music theory, composition, and performance can develop a range of skills, including discipline, patience, and perseverance.
Music Appreciation might not be at the top of your list of things to teach. It was certainly never at the top of mine. I’ve never been musical and, until recently, I did not even really enjoy listening to music. But, I married into a musical family so I was determined to not rob our son of music in our homeschool.
Sidenote on the musical family I married into…my Mother-in-Law was Sara Evans’ first guitar teacher…a fact which meant absolutely nothing to this San Diego-raised 80’s girl until I married a Missouri boy and moved to the middle of the country.
But, including music in our homeschool seemed daunting and often took a backseat to other “more important” subjects like reading, math and science. We did get somewhat lucky one year when a former homeschool student/current music major offered to teach our co-op kids a Music Appreciation class. Turns out, just because you can play music and even understand music theory and whatnot, does not mean you can teach about music.
Clearly, this should not have come as a shock to any of us, but I think we were so happy to pass the buck that we did not overly care too much about the process. But, this sweet homeschool girl chose some super annoying, very boring lapbook to teach our kids about the orchestra. Then she taught them all how to play a silly song on the recorder and read a book or two about Bach.
So, while it was not a whole lot of nothing, it was also not a whole of anything.
No worries, though, my son ended up taking an online course with Gena Mayo from Music in Our Homeschool which filled the Music Appreciation perfectly.
I do wish, however, that this new option from Beautiful Feet Books had been available. It would have been a perfect option to sprinkle into our days at home but also would have made for a wonderful co-op class.
Read on for a full review.
Who/What is Beautiful Feet Books?
Before getting into the specifics of what Beautiful Feet Books has to offer for Music Appreciation, I wanted to do a short intro explaining what/who Beautiful Feet Books is.
Beautiful Feet Books was started in 1984 by Rea Berg, a homeschool mom who wanted to teach her children history without using a dry and lifeless textbook. Inspired in this pursuit by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay’s For the Children’s Sake and the writings of Charlotte Mason, she created a living books approach to the subject of history.
Today, Beautiful Feet Books‘ vision is “To help homeschooling parents ignite wonder and connect with their kids through the best stories and guided lessons.”
To accomplish this vision, they create, develop, and publish history and literature-based homeschool curriculum, unit studies, and teacher’s guides.
You can read my {general} Curriculum Review of Beautiful Feet Books here.
What Is Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books?
This brand-new offering allows the entire family to dive into the fascinating world of music and discover the men and women who shaped the greatest music of the Western tradition.
Ideal for 2nd-12th grades, this introductory course is an excellent option for the entire family. It offers a comprehensive overview of the best in music by introducing learners to:
- the music and biographies of 80 different composers
- the history and instruments of the orchestra
- hundreds of songs via convenient QR codes
What Does Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books Include?
The curriculum includes:
- Book of Composers
- Music Appreciation: Teacher Guide
- Music Appreciation: Resource Pack (available as a digital download)
What Does Book of Composers Cover?
The Book of Composers by Rebecca Manor is a 150+ page hard-bound book filled with thick pages, quality images and topics starting with ancient instruments and ending with Hamilton on Broadway.
In more detail, the book covers:
- Ancient Times
- Medieval and Renaissance Music
- Choral Music
- Classical Music
- The Baroque Period
- Instrument Classification
- The Classical Period
- The Orchestra
- The Romantic Period
- Nationalism
- Opera
- Ballet
- Early Twentieth-Century Composers
- Women Composers
- Twentieth-Century Musical Movements with Classical Roots
- Ragtime
- The Blues
- Jazz
- Rock and Roll
- Musical Theater
- Contemporary Classical Music
How Is Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books Structured?
The beautiful Book of Composers serves as the spine of the course.
The handy downloadable Music Appreciation: Resource Pack includes the hands-on components.
And, the clearly outlined and organized Music Appreciation: Teacher Guide ties it all together.
The lessons contain color-coded categories, which not only makes this organized mama want to sing with joy, it also makes it easy to incorporate as many or as few elements as you want.
The categories are:
- Read and Listen
- Discuss
- Record
- Do
- Explore
- Rabbit Trails
How Long Will Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books Take to Complete?
The curriculum includes 54 Music Appreciation Lessons and was designed to complete one lesson each week (of the school year). Each lesson lasts 30-60 minutes. At that rate, the entire course should last two years! Of course, it also allows homeschool families to tailor it to their own needs!
Does Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books Count for High School Credit?
Yes, according to the publisher completing this entire course is worth two credits for High School.
Who Should Use Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books?
Nearly everybody including:
- Kids who already have an appreciation for music.
- Kids who have never shown an interest in music.
- Kids who like to read.
- Kids who learn through hands-on projects.
- Kids who do well through listening.
- Kids who benefit from notebooking.
- Families who love to learn together.
- Homeschool moms who value music but do not know where to start or what to do on their own.
Who Should NOT Use Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books?
Families who do not want to learn about the history of music from a religious point of view might do better with a different Music Appreciation option.
Where Can I Learn More About Music Appreciation from Beautiful Feet Books?
Just click on the image below to learn more from the Beautiful Feet Books website.
What Else Does Beautiful Feet Books Offer?
Beautiful Feet Books offers a wide variety of studies for all ages, K-12th including:
- Early American History
- K-3
- 4-6
- 7-9
- Teaching Around the World
- K-3
- U.S. Geography
- K-3
- 4-6
- Seasons Afield (Science)
- K-3
- Teaching Character
- K-6
- Around California
- 4-6
- History of Science
- 4-7
- Medieval History
- 5-8
- 9-12
- Ancient History
- 5-8
- 9-12
- Modern American and World History
- 5-8
- 9-12
- Government and Economics
- 9-12
- History of Classical Music
- 4-8
- History of the Horse
- 3-6
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