Music Programs : Sing For Success!

The program does not require an audition or placement interview and is only available in Hagerstown at Rockland Woods Elementary School.

Does music really make you smarter? Well, yes and no. Current research shows that if you play an instrument, you tend to get better grades in school, but if you sing in a choir you may not.

But before you go rushing out to take your child out of choir as a waste of time, stop to consider the big difference between singing in a choir and playing a musical instrument. Traditionally, you have to read music to play an instrument. You don’t have to read music to sing in a choir. And that may be the big difference.

The fact is, if you treat the voice as a musical instrument and teach the singers to read music, the members of the choir start improving their grades, too.

The thing that makes us smarter may not be so much in music itself, but in learning to read music or becoming musically literate. Being musically literate means using the brain to process musical sounds in complex ways. It’s like doing mental push-ups. Brain scans show that the whole brain is active when reading music or when listening as a musically literate person. Reading music exercises the brain and keeps it strong and active. It even seems to condition the brain to learn better, especially in the areas of reading, math, and analytical thinking.

The Sing for Success! program is proving that daily music literacy training for young children helps them get better scores on their standardized tests and better grades on their report cards. What is the musical instrument? The least expensive of all: the voice.

It will be rewarding to follow these kindergarten children through the fifth grade and get the whole picture. Once the results are in, the next step will be to show every school in the nation why they would want to build daily music lessons in vocal music literacy into their curriculum.

All children, regardless of music talent or I.Q., can achieve more academically when they “sing for success!”

Dr. Dana Rothlisberger, Professor - University of Maryland’s Towson University
Ph.D. University of Maryland; M.M. East Texas State University (now Texas A&M-Commerce)
B.M. East Texas State University (now Texas A&M-Commerce); Member: MBDA, MMEA, CBDNA, NBA

Rob Hovermale, Supervisor of Fine Arts - Washington County Board of Education

Kathy Stiles, Principal - Rockland Woods Elementary School; Hagerstown, MD

Lisa Terch, Teacher of Vocal Music Literacy - Rockland Woods Elementary School; Hagerstown, MD

Dear Reader:

I am the teacher for a grant funded research program called "Sing For Success." under the direction of Dr. Betty Bertaux; composer, arranger, and founder of the Children's Chorus of Maryland (CCM) in Towson, MD.

I teach vocal music literacy to all K-3 students in a Hagerstown public school, 30 minutes, every other day, for the full school year. This program is set to run from 3-5 years depending on continued donor funding.

This idea was conceived from a "Wouldn't it be great if...." suggestion by a parent whose children receive formal training from CCM. The main goal in the "Sing For Success" program is to develop music literacy in every student. This teaching method develops the students ability to read music from a page, hear it in their head, and sing it immediately without any instruments. Research shows a strong association between formal music training and cognitive development. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford formal music training and instrumental lessons. However, most everyone has a voice to sing, a hand to clap, feet to march, and a body to move.

Our program is funded solely on donations and therefore, because of the current economic strain that many have found themselves affected by, we currently lack a portion of the pledged funding that makes this program possible. A very large portion of our funding has been provided by The J.S. Plank and D.M. DiCarlo Family Foundation. They have committed to continue their giving for the duration of our project. However additional funds are needed to keep the program as it stands; all students; K-3, 30 minutes of instruction, every other day. The parent support that we have received from Rockland Woods is amazing! They love the program they are doing what they can to fundraise for the operating costs. However, this is an average school in an average neighborhood. They need help!

If you are interested in donating or learning more about the program, please contact CCM directly. Our director, Betty Bertaux would also be happy to meet with anyone who may be interested in donating but would like to learn more about the program first. If that is the case, please let me know and I will be happy to arrange a meeting.

Thank you for your willingness to take a look at this project. I am sure that you see the value of music education in our schools. I hope that I have given you enough information to explain the importance of this program to our students and the future of arts education in the public school. Please contact me or Dr. Bertaux if we can answer any questions for you.

Sincerely,

Lisa Terch

We enthusiastically support Sing for Success! and the goal of ensuring music “literacy” (the ability to read and write music) and academic achievement for children through vocal music education.

We congratulate the Washington County Board of Education’s visionary efforts to guarantee an academically strong and holistic education for the county’s children. As parents and as donors to Children’s Chorus of Maryland & School of Music (CCM) and to Sing for Success!, we recognize the fundamental value of this research project. We passionately support CCM’s efforts of as they seek to establish a strong and viable public/private initiative in Washington County, Maryland.

Our family participates with CCM on many levels – all three of our children are choral students, we volunteer our time, we love to attend recitals and — indicative of our love — we donate substantially. CCM and Sing for Success! are the largest donations from our family foundation. In fact, we are so excited that Sing for Success! is our first multiyear pledge. We have defined our foundation’s mission as protecting the health and welfare of women and children. We felt that the importance of this research for the betterment of education of all children was too important for us to pass up.

Research shows a strong association between formal music training and cognitive development. We are excited to broaden that association to include formal vocal training, to provide the framework for our children to tackle complexity in their studies and in their lives. Sing for Success! is an opportunity to research this theory guided by some of the most committed and skilled educators. We hope that the documentation of this project will become a powerful foundation for combining music literacy with vocal education in our schools. It is as exciting as it is important for us to help meet their goals and to be a part of this educational shift.

Please accept our challenge to you to join us in supporting the landmark Sing for Success! project.

Scott Plank and Dana DiCarlo
J.S. Plank and D.M. DiCarlo Family Foundation