Giving Compass' Take:

• One teacher tells her story of how she uses music in the classroom to help immigrant students learn English in the Indianapolis Public Schools Newcomer Program. 

• How is music a helpful tool for engagement? 

• Read about the strides of arts education in preparing kids for Kindergarten. 

Music is the first language spoken in Kristin Gladish’s classroom.

No translations. No barriers. Just the sound of drums, recorders, and ukuleles fill Gladish’s music class in the Indianapolis Public Schools Newcomer Program.

“The burdens the students carry can be heavy, and many suffer from trauma, so one thing I try to do in music class is to provide a fun, caring environment,” Gladish said. “A place where troubles can be forgotten and even healed.”

The Newcomer Program is designed to help students who are new to the United States acclimate and learn English before transitioning to another school in the district. For Gladish, it’s about introducing students to an unfamiliar place through the power of music.

How do you get to know your students?

I get to know my students through chit-chat in the hallways, at my doorway, and through relationships built in the classroom during lessons. Since Newcomer Program is designed to teach our English as a Second Language students as much English as possible, I will often start class through a question for students to answer in English.

Tell us about a favorite lesson to teach. Where did the idea come from?

My favorite lesson to teach is modern band, hands down, which is funny since I started out my teaching career as a choir director. Last fall, I went to a training hosted by Little Kids Rock, a non-profit organization, to learn how to integrate teaching modern music into my music lessons. This experience changed the way I teach, and we also received instruments for our school.

What’s something happening in the community that affects what goes on inside your class?

The current situation with immigration and changing immigration laws absolutely affects students at the Newcomer Program. We have had students and/or their parents deported, while others are waiting on deportation hearings or going through the process of citizenship.

Read the full article about immigrant students by Shelby Mullis at Chalkbeat