Themes and principles of child development illustrated in music

To encourage students to experience key themes and principles of child development in a popular medium, we played musical selections ranging from contemporary rock to children's pieces before each session of a child development class. Simultaneously, visual projection of the lyrics along with text and pictures highlighted the relevance of the music to that day's discussion. Students indicated the audio-visual presentations were interesting and pertinent and should continue in future offerings of the course. The activity provides students with opportunities to become aware of themes and principles of development from a socially and culturally significant resource not routinely considered by instructors.