Melodies Carry Strains Of History,
Government & Character
Artist-in-residence helps students write lyrics for class lessons
By Stephanie Scott, Greenfield Observer, 1/26/06
Ken Lonnquist strums his guitar, creating a dramatic flamenco sound. He tells a tale of determination, loss and the ragin' sea --- the story of Ferdinand Magellan.
While a story about the 16th century navigator who proved the earth is round most likely will not make Billboard’'s Top 100, it is perfect for a fifth-grade class studying world explorers.
Lonnquist, a Madison-based singer and songwriter, worked with students at Glenwood Elementary School as part of an artist-in-residence program Jan. 24 through 26. He spends time with classes from each grade level to compose a unique song based on some part of the curriculum or classroom learning experience.
“"It’'s just great how this combines all the things the students are learning this year,"†Principal Jeff Krumbein said.
The fifth-graders picked the song topic and described the trials and tribulations of Magellan. They fed him the facts and he helped them find a lyrical method of communicating the story as evidenced in the song’s chorus:
Viva Magellan!
On a voyage so compellin’'
Over ocean waters swellin’'
We fell in to tellin’'
The tale of Magellan!
"Coming up with the song topic was easy but creating the lyrics became a challenge," fifth-grader Caleb Krochalk said.
But songwriting "has many similarities to recent class lessons," classmate Hannah Scherkenbach chimed in. "We'’ve been doing poetry in class,"†she said.
After brainstorming six verses and a chorus, Lonnquist congratulated the budding songwriters.
“"This was brutally hard, but you really stuck with it,"†he said.
While the fifth-graders focused on history, the fourth-graders concentrated their creativities on explaining how U.S. government operates.
“"We could write a song about anything, but for me a meaty curriculum topic is fun and challenging,â€" Lonnquist said. “"I like when there’'s a combination of song and lesson.â€"
He keeps all of the songs he writes and records many of them. Lonnquist combines his teaching degree with a background in performance that goes back professionally to college.
He believes the government song with a chorus referring to the “black hole where the money goes†will delight children and their parents.
“"This song has got '“legsâ€'. I’'m thinking of recording this one,"†he said.
Each songwriting session included lessons in descriptive writing, vocabulary and rhyming patterns ---- even if the students do not actually recognize the learning aspects, teachers said.
As the grade levels go down, song topics get broader. The kindergarten classes spent their time creating a tune about friendship. "They talked about their love and relationships with family and schoolmates," teacher Nancy Freitag said.
The songwriting task played well into the curriculum.
“"We had just finished studying rhyming words," “ she said. “"The kids would come up with the rhyming words and sentences would come from that.â€"
They proved so apt at songwriting, they tackled a second ditty --- this one about animals. One student came up with the concept of a giraffe who drank from a carafe, vocabulary that impressed Lonnquist, Freitag said.
At the end of his time at Glenwood, Lonnquist performed the 10 songs he created with students during an evening show for parents.
“"My biggest challenge is tremembering all these new melodies!"†he said.
