What I liked most about this book was its comprehensiveness when speaking of early childhood education and the role that music plays in those early years. Harris brings creativity and knowledge together in a format that is easily utilized by early childhood educators in their own classrooms. Wonderful and imaginative musical ideas.
Bernadette Berthelotte, Department of Music, University of Windsor, Ontario A gem of a book. Harris draws upon a wealth of experience to provide readers with a useful combination of scholarly research, professional insight, and nuts-and-bolts classroom strategies.
Sandi Curtis, professor of music therapy, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada Harris gives school administrators and classroom teachers a heads-up that music is far from simply trivial fun and games with preschoolers; rather, it's essential for their emotional and intellectual development. She also provides resources and practical techniques for teachers to enjoy music making with their students.
Nancy W. Carle, performer, music educator, music teacher educator, and pastor, Broadway Presbyterian Church, Sedalia, Missouri I highly recommend this exciting new resource! Music and the Young Mind is an excellent, well-researched, and clearly presented guide for educators and students wishing to become music teachers. This is an excellent title for an elementary music education text, where the focus is on cognitive engagement and the intellectual development of the child. I read with pleasure every page, which encouraged me to reflect on my own practice as a postsecondary music educator. Music and the Young Mindis a must-read for all teachers (generalists and specialists) and music students wishing to become music teachers. This resource connects research to practice in a logical and meaningful way. It will also be a wonderful, comprehensive resource for collegemusic education classes where the focus is on early childhood..
Jonathan G. Bayley, Associate Dean, University of Windsor, Ontario Harris provides a summary of the latest research in child development, music development, brain research and the biology of music making.... It is a truly fascinating and thought provoking book which is also very practical in terms of addressing how the teacher can meet a child's needs at developmentally appropriate levels.
Special Educatonal Needs Magazine, June 2010
This welcome resource combines a thorough review of research with practical and wide-ranging strategies for bringing music to young children. Maureen Harris provides a healthy attention to the European musical canon together with the rich array of global musics as a means of helping children and their teachers discover joy and aesthetic engagement through authentic experiences of the processes of music making.
David Buley, professor of music education, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario I highly recommend this exciting new resource! Music and the Young Mind is an excellent, well-researched, and clearly presented guide for educators and students wishing to become music teachers. This is an excellent title for an elementary music education text, where the focus is on cognitive engagement and the intellectual development of the child. I read with pleasure every page, which encouraged me to reflect on my own practice as a postsecondary music educator. Music and the Young Mind is a must-read for all teachers (generalists and specialists) and music students wishing to become music teachers. This resource connects research to practice in a logical and meaningful way. It will also be a wonderful, comprehensive resource for college music education classes where the focus is on early childhood.
Jonathan G. Bayley, Associate Dean, University of Windsor, Ontario