Dr. Anne Savan’s Mozart Experiment: Madeline’s Monthly Blog, Musical Tips, & Radio Show for January 2024.
This month our interview and radio show revisits the work of Dr. Anne Savan, Welsh science teacher, wife, and mother of four children.
Our article of the month is “10 Minutes of Reflection to Kick Off Your New Year to Make it Stronger” by Madeline Frank, Ph.D.
Radio Show feature question for January 2024: How did Dr. Anne Savan , 7th grade Welsh science teacher, change her angry, frustrated students into disciplined and cooperative students ? (This is a re-issue from March 2014)
Our blog features Dr. Anne Savan, Welsh science teacher, wife, and mother of four children, who taught at a the Aberdare Boys’ Comprehensive where her 7th grade students were her “most challenging students ever.” Her students had behavioral, emotional, and special educational difficulties.
She said, “For the first half term I couldn’t teach them at all. They couldn’t even sit on chairs. They lacked coordination. They lacked discipline. They were often frustrated with the tasks set for them and became aggressive. The whole thing was a stressful situation.” Even simple experiments in science were impossible for them.
One evening, she turned on the television and a French doctor was “experimenting with music” for “athetoid spastic children” to improve “their coordination”.
Dr. Savan said, “He talked about their lack of co-ordination leading to aggression and as I sat there, I thought ‘this is like my special needs class.”
She says, “Music is my hobby. If I have a problem or if I need to unwind then my automatic reaction would be to put on some classical music and it works for me. So, I thought if it worked for me then maybe it might work for these children as well.”
Dr. Savan: “On way to school, “I literally went into a garage and picked up a tape of classical music, the only one they had, which happened to be called ‘The Best of Mozart’. So, I picked up this tape and brought it into school, switched the tape on and, obviously, I hit the right composer.”
Dr. Savan: “I came into the classroom and put the tape on before the pupils came in. As usual, I heard them roaring down the corridor. But instead of charging in, they stopped at the door and walked in. Everything was set up for the experiment and I told them quietly what they needed to do. They were silent and went and did it.”
Anne Savan’s Lesson 1 Notes with Mozart Symphonies in the background of her classroom: “No one spoke, quarreled, asked to borrow anything, wanted to go to the toilet for the whole lesson. I have not had such a relaxed lesson with 7D ever. When the head teacher popped in to see how things were going, he was amazed.”
Continuing Results of Mozart Symphonies in the background of Dr. Savan’s Classroom: The next five months continued with the Mozart Symphonies in the background with cooperative students who were calm and relaxed with improved coordination able to complete the work set before them.
What did listening to the Mozart Symphonies do for Dr. Savan’s science students?
“ Dr. Savan believes the music relaxed her pupils enough to improve their physical coordination and lower their frustration levels enough to allow them to perform manual tasks effectively and efficiently.”
Ann Savan’s class experiment results were part of her research for her Ph.D. at Reading University. Dr. Anne Savan’s (1999) “The Effect of Background Music On Learning”
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/226501200_The_Effect_of_Background_Music_on_Learning
BBC News: “Learning with Mozart” by Richard Watson
Mr. Watson interviews Anne Savan:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/387632.stm
10 Minutes of Reflection to Kick Off Your New Year to Make it Stronger
By Madeline Frank, Ph.D.
There is a profound difference between viewing the new year as another flip of the calendar vs. an opportunity for celebrating your past successes and setting yourself up for a strong beginning.
It’s all about the questions you ask.
What about the last year was exciting?
What did you accomplish in the previous year that surprised you?
What lessons did you learn from your failures in the past year?
What are you grateful for?
Who are the top 5 people who lifted you up the most or inspired you in the past year? (not just your family)
Who are 5 people who drained your energy over the past year?
Assuming that you’ll want to create an amazing 2024, you’ll need to weed out some negative people in your life. This can seem tough at times, but if their energy and attitude is draining you, it will be impossible to realize the year you desire.
Have you learned from your failures over the past year? If not, I would encourage you to seek out the advice of a mentor or coach and listen to their perspective.
Finally, make a commitment to surround yourself with positive relationships, growth opportunities, and good choices for your future.
In your schedule for this New Year add in the positive relationships and experiences that helped you grow and make positive choices on your future.
Dave “The Shef” Sheffield, Business Motivational speaker and Coach says that sometimes you need to “Love the negative folks from a distance” so they don’t pollute your mind.
As you look back at the past year, note your responsibilities. These are the things you had to do at work and at home. Look for the “right” things you had to do not the ones you were “guilted into or have done because of fear”.
Living a “successful life” is about being an active participant in the planning, execution, and follow up of the events. It’s all about wanting to learn how you spent your time last year and if you made the right choices for your time, energy, and commitments.
Which goals did you reach last year?
How did you grow over the past 12 months?
Did the choices you made produce the best outcome for you?
Did your choices drain you or help you learn and grow?
By reflecting, thinking about your past, you can make for this New Year a plan that will have positive choices with positive relationships that help you grow, learn, and help you reach your goals.
It’s all about the “returns” for your effort!
If you are already in the New Year it is not too late to do a review of 2023. Ask yourself the following 3 questions:
1) What were your positive growth experiences for last year and who were they with? (Positive relationships that stretch your abilities and help you grow. Surround yourself with these positive relationships in the New Year.)
2) On the left side of your paper list, “what were the wrong choices you made last year?” (This list you will avoid for the New Year.)
3) On the right side of your paper list, “what were the right choices you made last year?”
Your 10 minutes of reflection will kick off your New Year and make it stronger. © 2024 Madeline Frank
To contact Madeline Frank for your next live or virtual speaking engagement at [email protected]
“The Secret of Teaching Science & Math Through Music” by Madeline Frank, Ph.D. is available in book form, and newly updated as an e-book on Kindle, Nook, or iBook:
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“Musical Notes On Math” by Dr. Madeline Frank teaches your child fractions and decimals, the fun easy way, through the rhythm of music, Winner of the Parent To Parent Adding Wisdom Award is available in book form, newly updated as an e-book on Kindle, Nook, or iBook.:
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Dr. Madeline Frank’s book “Leadership on a Shoestring Budget” is available through amazon. To order your copy as an e-book on Kindle click on the following link:
http://www.amazon.com/Leadership-Shoestring-Budget-Timeless-Principles-ebook/dp/B00HTD65V4/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1416332320&sr=1-3
“Madeline’s Midnight Melodies- Music From around the World”. This CD complements her books with a blend of dance music, gigues, tangos, ballet and favorites including “Danny Boy”, Puccini’s “O Mio Babbino Caro”, Debussy’s “Claire De Lune” and others. “Madeline’s Midnight Melodies” CD is now available for purchase by downloading a song, downloading the album click below:
Wishing you and your family a happy, healthy, and successful New Year from your Non-Invasive Medicine…Music Expert, Madeline
For over 30 years, Dr. Madeline Frank has helped children and adults overcome problems through Classical music. Madeline Frank, Ph.D., DTM is an award-winning teacher, an amazon.com best-selling author, researcher, speaker, conductor, concert artist, wife, mother, and grandmother . She has discovered a scientific link between studying a musical instrument and academic and societal success. Madeline Frank earned her Bachelor and Master’s degree from the Juilliard School of Music. Her education has included scholarships at the Juilliard School, Indiana University, and the University of Cincinnati and she has a violin performance diploma from the North Carolina School of the Arts. (C) 2024 Madeline Frank.