F. Soysal RHESL - Volume 5, Issue 14 (2012), pp.

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TEACHING MUSIC THEORY IN AN EFFECTIVE AND AMUSING WAY:
AN APPROACH TO TEACH MUSIC THEORY BY PAINTING

Fikri Soysal
Dicle University State Conservatory, Turkey

ABSTRACT
ven though learning music can seem rather easy thanks to the popular methods in use today,
such as those of Dalcroze, Kodaly and Orff, new technologies and well-qualified teachers,
music theory lessons in elementary schools remain boring, dull and unattractive to students;
they are difficult to understand and easy to forget. This also means that conducting the lesson can be
boring for the teacher too. Here a new proposal is made for the solution to these problems, employing
new approaches and methods; and an activity is devised in order to make the lesson an enjoyable
experience. The idea of Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way is to use the activity
of drawing pictures with hand-written musical notations. The present research aims to determine, in
scientific terms, how the method functions and what kind of learning outcomes and skills children may
acquire by reviewing the research conducted in the fields of child development and educational
psychology. The results of practices in the 1
st
, 2
nd
, 3
rd
and 4
th
grades of elementary schools are here
analyzed. It is known that the development of childrens visual and auditory cortexes is at its maximum
level at the age of 2 and 3(Nathan et al., 1999, p.15-17). A student ideally should be prepared for
elementary school by learning to draw, attending concerts and experiencing some education in musical
instruments in the preschool period. These students, and even students who have never had any
preschool education, may vastly gain from a method of teaching music theory that is effective and
enjoyable, by drawing pictures with hand-written musical notes. For instance, imagine that while starting
a music theory lesson with a group of students aged 6-7 years old, a treble clef is drawn on the first
page. Two eyes, two hands and a smiling face are drawn on the treble clef.


Figure 1

This example excites students. The method of Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing
Way aims to make students apprehend written musical symbols before teaching them their meanings.
Drawing is a pleasure for children. The game of drawing symbolic pictures can be considered as the
reflection of intellectual images on paper. In symbolic games, children can represent important

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REVIEW OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND SELF-LEARNING

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F. Soysal RHESL - Volume 5, Issue 14 (2012), pp. 36-47

37
experiences that they have never before assimilated and they can properly assess the experience. The
pleasure taken in the game results from the fact that the player can have the same experiences but
change it according to his/her delight(Piaget and Inhalder 1971). From this perspective, it is possible to
provide an effective and enjoyable way of learning if we can convey the correct image to children via
drawing.

Keywords: Musical Education, Method, Approach, Child, Painting, Early Learning, Elementary
Education.

INTRODUCTION
One of the most important problems encountered from elementary school 1st grade on, is the failure to
save the music theory lesson from generally accepted ways of lecturing, that is, to save it from being a
boring lesson. In addition, quarter notes, half notes and whole notes, lines, staves, time signatures and
many other words in the terminology not only make the lesson unbearable, but also make learning
difficult. What more can be done when there are well-qualified teachers and music laboratories
employing many popular methods such as those of Dalcroze, Kodaly or Orff, adequate materials and
technical and technological equipment for learning music? But these factors can mean the experience
of a boring lesson for educators and students alike. An idea is required to overcome these problems,
one that uses new approaches and methods, and an activity factor is required for the lesson to be
enjoyable. The idea of Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way refers to an
entertaining activity for both students and teachers through drawing pictures out of musical symbols.
Nine is an important age in a childs life. Until the age of nine a student learns whatever you teach
him/her without questioning. What is meant by without questioning is that students directly take
candies given to them until they reach the age of nine, but they consider whether or not they should
after the age of nine. Then, can we say that judgment is an obstacle to education? Everyone perceives
information and knowledge according to their intellectual richness and background, but we can even
teach something to a person with no background or richness. Among students over nine, there is a
prevailing idea that activities such as singing a song or playing an instrument can be performed without
the need for theories. It is not enough to simply change this idea by expressing they are wrong. It is
necessary to lay the foundations for music education when students are in the age group of 0-9 by
applying the idea of teaching music theory by drawing pictures out of music symbols, so that music
theory lessons are turned into a game, one that takes advantage of the fact that art lessons are favored
by children. What is more, there are certain theories which suggest that drawing practices performed in
the form of a game provide children with opportunities to acquire and improve skills which will be useful
for them in late adolescence (Yavuzer, 2000).

Relation of the Method to Preschool Music Education [0-05 AGE]
As far as the development of children is concerned, the visual cortex is at its maximum at the age of
two and the auditory cortex is at its maximum at the of three (Huttenlocher, 2002, p.27). Synapses that
establish a connection as a result of stimulation remain, while those synapses not stimulated are lost
(Nathan et al., 1999, p.15-17). Based on this idea, it is clear that music education received in the pre-
school period as from prenatal period has a great importance. Research shows that activities planned
for introducing mental and motor skills in this period are beneficial (Shaw and Greenstein, 2006). The
fact that students only scrawl around the age 2, draw particular figures at the age of 2-3, and draw
meaningful figures and circular lines at the age of 3-4, shows that the form perception of the child
develops (Kellogg, 1970). That is to say, after the age 4, a child may draw a human being, an animal



Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way: An Approach to Teach Music Theory by Painting

38
and a building; accordingly, it can be concluded that children may draw pictures from musical symbols.
It is certain that skills acquired by painting, or by listening to or performing music, will lay an effective
foundation for the Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way method to be applied in
the elementary school period. Children must be made listen to music when performing activities such
as playing a game, eating a meal, painting or drawing or listening to a story or fairytale. It is seen that
environments enriched with music contribute to learning and become useful for children in their future
lives (Rauscher et al., 1998, Vol. 20, p.427-432). It has been shown that playing music along with the
activity of listening to music has various results and leads to stunning mobilizations in various cortical
areas (Delige and Wiggins, 2006). Additionally, it should be pointed out that even touching an
instrument would enable synapses connected to highly important mental and motor skills to connect
and develop during infancy. Babies will sense sounds by noticing musical sound and rhythmic
variations.

Relation of the Method to Painting
Painting is an enjoyable activity for children. Drawing is considered as a symbolic game and as a
reflection of mental images on paper. During symbolic games, children may relive events and important
experiences which they failed to assimilate previously, accordingly they may make sense out of these
experiences. Pleasure gained from the game stems from the possibility of reliving experiences by
changing them in accordance with desires of the player (Piaget and Inhalder, 1971). Based on this idea,
if we can transfer correct images to children through paints, we can provide an effective and enjoyable
learning experience. Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way aims to help students
comprehend musical symbols before teaching the meaning of the musical symbols.

Relation of the Method to Technology
Technology is used as an educational instrument by educators in various countries. The use of
technology in Music Education begins in the pre-school period and provides a wide range of
opportunities (Kersten, 2006, p.15-28). Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way may
have a relation with technology in the sense that note writing programs such as Sibelius are adapted so
as to be used in compliance with smart boards and tablet computers used in the classrooms.
Furthermore, a computer program that is compatible with the programs of the technological devices in
the classroom environment may be written. It seems that such a computer program would be useful
especially for teachers.

Relation of the Method to Musical Literacy
Signs which enable us to learn the necessary rules for putting music into note form, to comprehend
works which we do not know and to perform music are called musical symbols. A person must be
literate in order to read and write literary works. It is of great importance in music that students grow up
as literate individuals. In the process of teaching how to read and write, students are taught firstly how
to draw a line, then to obtain a letter by combining these lines. However, this path is not followed for
providing students with music literacy skills, which leads to many problems. One of the elements of the
Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way method is the work on acquiring musical
literacy skills. Through this practice, students will learn the language of music just as they learn letters
from the elementary school 1st grade on.




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Firstly, the student must work on a line until half of a whole note is properly drawn. If there are more
than 3 mistakes according to the results of this practice, the teacher must correct the mistakes of the
student and ask him/her to practice again. See figure 1.


Figure 2

Secondly, the student must work on the other half of the whole note. In this practice as in the first
practice, the number of mistakes is examined according to the results obtained, mistakes are corrected,
and if necessary, the student must be asked to practice again. See figure 2.


Figure 3

Finally, the student is provided with practice requiring him/her to combine parts of the whole note, which
he learnt previously. See figure 3.


Figure 4

In the practice on drawing the whole note, students with 3 mistakes at most must be asked to repeat
the practice.

The points to be taken into consideration during this practice are as follows: The teacher should use a
different eye-catching crayon color to distinguish the teachers work from that of the students and to
attract the attention of the students. The first bars should be drawn by the teacher as an example (see
figure 3, the first bar is red). Negative expressions such as, this is not what you are supposed to do,
mistake, you failed to do it, you could not achieve it, again you failed, again this is not what you
are supposed to do should not be used when evaluating the drawings of students. Instead of negative
expressions, positive expressions such as, it would be better if you did that in this way should be
preferred. If students work on an assignment more than twice and fail to do it, the teacher should draw
examples of the first, middle and last bar himself/herself (see figure 3, red, green and blue). By this
means, the teacher should help students achieve their own auto-control.

If music literacy practice is not conducted, students will form their own tastes and judgments under the
influence of mass media and their circle of friends in the later grades. Whether music theory lessons for
listening to music and performing music are necessary may be debated. As a result, music theory
lessons are easily dismissed as uninteresting and boring as well as unnecessary. It goes without
saying, that what is covered during music theory lessons is immediately forgotten.








Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way: An Approach to Teach Music Theory by Painting

40
Musical Notation and Symbols (Materials)

Figure 5
1


Musical notation is materials employed with the idea of teaching music theory through drawing picture.
The main purpose is to convert music theory lessons into a game, to make them more enjoyable and
engaging. Any symbol used in music theory is associated with something: it may be used as a part of
an explanation of a greater theme, but it may also be the theme in itself. The teacher must select the
symbols of music theory he/she wants to teach and draw an example on the notebooks of the students.
The rest is about the creativity of the student. If he/she desires, the teacher may create his/her own
materials. The subject can be covered in an order, by prioritizing certain symbols.

Classroom Implementation
Theme: Traffic
Age Group: 6-11
Materials:
Duration: 40 minutes
Participants: 10-15

Figure 6

Directions: A well-known memory technique, to keep something in the mind, is through associating
one thing with another. Traffic is a component of life that people see and experience every day. The
picture was completed by drawing wheels using 4-beat whole note, hats brim using a 2-beat rest sign
out of the bar-line, and drawing roads that connect two cities with each other out of ligatures, drawing
traffic lines out of points meaning continuing, and drawing traffic lights out of chords written as block
harmonies. Firstly, the teacher may set an example by using the ligature. For example, he may draw a
two-lane road, then he may visualize a pattern consisting of five-chords as traffic lights through giving
the example of a half note. Having completed these explanations and exemplifications, the teacher may

1
These signs were taken from the Sibelius Notation program



F. Soysal RHESL - Volume 5, Issue 14 (2012), pp. 36-47

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ask his students to visualize something with the theme of traffic in their imagination by using musical
symbols.


Figure 7

Evaluation and Recommendations
Prior to the lesson the teacher should definitely have prepared for the lesson by drawing up a plan to
cover the theme and made the necessary provisions. The teacher should evaluate the pictures of each
of the students according to the procedures suggested above, and make recommendations
accordingly. He should ask questions about the pictures drawn by the students and he should plant the
ideas he wants to convey to the students through positive feedback and encouragement. The secret of
this theory is that, thanks to making suggestions to the students one by one and turning the lesson into
a game, students are enabled to relive experiences that they had failed to assimilate in the past by
using the characters and signs from their inner worlds. Thus, students are here provided with an
opportunity to make sense out these experiences.

Classroom Implementation
Theme: Bicycle
Age Group: 6-11
Materials:
Duration: 40 minutes
Participation: 10-15

Figure 8

Directions: Having drawn notes, rest symbols, repetition symbols, alteration symbols and various basic
musical alphabet symbols on the board in the materials section above, the teacher asks students to
draw pictures in their imagination by using musical alphabet symbols on the board. For example, the
teacher might suggest lets draw a bicycle picture on the board by using a 4-beat whole note, a 2-beat



Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way: An Approach to Teach Music Theory by Painting

42
half note, a bar-line and ligatures. Lets make wheels out of 4-beat whole note, lets make a seat out of
2-beat half note, lets make a steering wheel out of a bar-line, and lets make the bridge combining
wheels with one another out of ligature.


Figure 9

Evaluation and Recommendations
What did you want to express here and which symbols did you use? It is highly meaningful that you
used the 4-beat whole note and ligature. While making suggestions, it is necessary to enable symbols
to be properly understood through an appropriate use of explanations that will support music theory
education, as well as teaching symbols by use of direction sentences. In particular, the names of the
musical symbols should be fully and clearly pronounced in different sentences at every opportunity.

Classroom Implementation
Theme: Smiley Face
Age Group: 6-11
Materials:
Duration: 40 minutes
Participation: 10-15

Figure 10

Direction: The picture was completed by making a headphone to listen to music out of 2-beat half
notes, making a smiley face and glasses out of 4-beat whole note, making a mouth out of a ligature,
and making a tongue out of a 4-beat rest symbol. Eyes can be made out of dotted notes.


Figure 11





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Evaluation and Recommendations
What is important in the process of drawing pictures by using musical symbols is that children make
sense out of these pictures through something in their inner worlds. Accordingly, it is necessary to keep
in mind that a wide range of different ideas might be encountered. A students visualizing an element in
his/her inner world allows us to enter into the inner world of this child by taking this element as a basis,
and to be able to communicate through the language of this world.

METHODOLOGY
Prior to coming into the classroom, the teacher should have made preliminary preparations, selected a
theme and fixed a representation of musical symbols on a place clearly visible to students in the
classroom. The duration of the lesson should be 40 minutes, and the classroom should be comprised of
10-15 students. For the first five minutes, the theme of this days lesson should be conveyed and
examples provided. Then, students should be given the opportunity to draw pictures within the
framework of the determined theme by using musical symbols. With crayon in hand, the teacher should
check each of the students work, completing their pictures one by one. The stage of surveillance is the
most important part of this idea. As a matter of fact, the seed of the idea of the project is planted at this
stage. For example, lets assume that the theme of the lesson is vehicles, and a teacher has drawn a
picture of a bicycle. The following conversation should take place between teacher and student.
Teacher, What a nice bicycle you created out of the music symbols. Its wheels are made of 4-beat
whole notes, and its steering is made out of a ligature. In addition, you made seats out of crotchets in
order for it to carry you. Well done. If there is a point that is not understood in the picture, the teacher
may ask the student what he wants to explain in the picture. However, negative expressions such as
what the hell is that picture must not be used. There may be a student failing to draw pictures from the
music symbols. The teacher should deal with this student and open up the horizons of this student by
drawing a sample picture on his notebook. Every contact made between a student and the teacher
should be regarded as an opportunity, and what is required of the students should be presented to the
student through a naturally formulated path.

RESEARCH RESULTS
One part of every picture chosen from among the pictures drawn by children in the music theory
lessons was selected (that is, just one part of one picture was cut out and removed from the picture).
The names of the students drawing the pictures were written under the pictures together with their
related age groups. It was not possible to put all of these pictures in the present article due to space
considerations. Statistical data concerning these pictures are presented.




Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way: An Approach to Teach Music Theory by Painting

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evval Ate
Age 7
Fatih Emin Yank
Age 7
Emirhan Karakelle
Age 11
Rumeysa Akblbl
Age 11
Figure 12


smail Yiit Naar
Age 7
Sena Hocaolu
Age 7
Sena Hocaolu
Age 7
Asude Esra Ay
Age 11
Figure 13


ura Eskiky
Age 11
Sevdenur Gr
Age 7
Selmani Reis
Age 7
Selmani Reis
Age 7
Figure 14




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Nurettin ztrk
Age 10
Nurettin ztrk
Age 10
Nurettin ztrk
Age 10
Salih Kara
Age 10
Figure 15


Esma Bken
Age 10
Sevde Nur Girgin
Age 10
Sinan ?
Age 10
Sinan ?
Age 10
Figure 16

Using Different Music Written Language
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Difference
Age 7
Age 10
Age 11

Figure 17

How many different music symbols are used in the picture drawn by a student should be regarded. It
also reveals how many different music theory symbols a teacher can find the opportunity to teach



Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way: An Approach to Teach Music Theory by Painting

46
through just one activity. Taking into consideration that the lesson lasts for 40 minutes, the
teaching/learning outcomes within this time period revealed by means of the chart are as follows: The
formation of an enriched teaching environment through converting a lesson into a game. The pleasure
taken by students in drawing pictures will enable them to assimilate subjects which they either could not
master or understand, or that they found boring in the past. Considering the difficulty of fi tting the
teaching of 12-16 musical symbols into this time period, the study reveals unexpectedly successful
results.

ANALYSIS & DISCUSSION
This practice aims to make music theory lessons effective and enjoyable. This approach is only a
simple idea, rather than a comprehensive music education system. This is an activity that makes the
lesson enjoyable for both teacher and students. This is not a study intended to replace approaches
such as those of Orff, Kodaly and Dalcroze. This is only an in-class practice that can supplement those
approaches. Every idea that can be useful for music education is valuable. That is because musical
education eases and enriches peoples lives, and it enables them to take more pleasure in life. It
increases their energy for life. Teaching Music Theory in an Effective and Amusing Way intends to
make theory lessons more effective and amusing by using musical symbols in the course of 40-minute
music lessons. It plants the knowledge obtained from a music theory lesson, enriched by pictures and
games, in the subconscious. Firstly, it helps to endear musical symbols to students through its use of
pictures and games, and then it conveys their meanings to the subconscious through mutual directions
this is a practice open to interpretation and other teachers may develop, adapt and apply its methods
differently. Education should be regarded as a whole. The period before formal education should be
taken into account as should the period which follows its end. The relation of this idea with music
education, painting and technology in early childhood is explained briefly in another section.

LIMITATIONS
In this study, 0-5 age category was examined only briefly in order to create the basis for the idea of
teaching music theory by drawing pictures and this section included only suggestions. The main
working group of this study is comprised of 6-11 age group students. The research practice was
conducted in elementary schools1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th grades. No distinction was made
between female and male students. Course hours were not specifically determined. After the teacher
had demonstrated how to perform the activity using one example, students were free to act
independently on condition that they would act within the framework of the theme. However, the teacher
never departed from the theme of the days lesson. No restrictions were imposed concerning musical
symbols. On condition that they would remain within the framework of the theme, students were
allowed to use one or more musical symbols if they desired. Since no special preparation was made for
color pictures, students made drawings in black and white. Concerning paper preference, what was
available to the course was made use of. No special choice was made for a music notebook or for line
or unlined papers. The musical symbols were displayed at a position clearly visible to the students. The
duration of the lesson was determined as 40 minutes. Within the scope of this practice, the classroom
size was set to accommodate 10-15 people. In applications, the theme to be covered in the lesson
might be chosen by the teacher, and the teachers might create models. The first practice regarding
learning music theory by drawing pictures out of music symbols was carried out in 2008. In the following
years, this practice was employed in the music lesson curricula.




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CONCLUSION & SUGGESTION
In music theory education practices carried out at elementary schools, problems such as a lack of
understanding, students easily forgetting a lesson or finding it unlikeable and boring, and the failure to
acquire music literacy skills are encountered. The fact that students attribute meanings to musical
symbols by using objects from their own worlds for this lesson helps makes lessons more
understandable and memorable. Thus a difficult lesson can be converted into an enjoyable and likeable
one. It is possible to multiply these examples, but the main aim here is to explain that a child can be
enabled to draw the pictures in his/her own imagination, using musical symbols that relate to the
subject of the class and be able to attribute meanings to these symbols. The pictures drawn by each
student should be evaluated within the duration of the class, and the theoretical knowledge that the
course intends to introduce to students should be planted into the subconscious of the students via the
method of suggestion. Some examples of suggestion sentences are as follows: What a nice harmony
you created by using different colors and shapes together. What did you want to express in this picture,
and which signs did you use? Connecting bicycle wheels made out of 4-beats to one another via
ligatures is a highly meaningful idea. It is possible to augment these suggestion sentences. It would be
appropriate for every teacher to form sentences according to the creation, knowledge level,
comprehension ability and imagination of his students.

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Irne Delige, Geraint A. Wiggins. (2006). Musical Creativity: Multidisiplinary Research in Theory and
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J. Piaget, B. Inhalder. (1971). Mental Imagery in the Child. Basic Books, New York.
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