An Analysis of Tonal Patterns Used for Sight- Singing Instruction in Second-Grade General Music Class

This research examined characteristics of a select group of tonal patterns to identify features that may affect the initial acquisition of skill in sight-singing pitch. Second graders (N = 193) individually read and sang 25 tonal patterns on a sight-singing pretest, posttest, and retention test. Between the pre- and posttest, the students practiced 15 of the patterns during general music classes, with one new pattern introduced and all previously presented patterns reviewed each session. Ten patterns not included in the instruction were read and sung only during tests. No pattern practice occurred for 8 weeks between the posttest and retention test. Sight-singing performance was assessed for pitch accuracy and contour accuracy. Pattern difficulty indices and difficulty rankings were determined on the basis of the results. Specific pattern features are considered in relation to these data, with some characteristics affecting accuracy with pitch and contour differently. Keywords pitch accuracy, tonal patterns, sight-singing, literacy, elementary children As expressed in the national standards for music education, school music instruction should enable students to sing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music and should enable them to read and notate music. Findings in the NAEP 1997 Arts Report Card (Persky, Sandene, & Askew, 1998), however, reported that only 35 % of eighth graders could sing America with pitch and intonation that were assessed a