Repurposing Principles and Successful Pedagogical Techniques from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood for the Early Childhood Music Classroom

Abstract

Fred Rogers’s television program, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, connected with young children and educated them about difficult concepts for more than 30 years. The author analyzes and discusses several principles and pedagogical techniques that were used in Rogers’s television program, including communicating with children, establishing routines, managing expectations and transitions, presenting concepts through multiple formats, and exposing children to our multicultural world. Suggestions for repurposing and implementing the principles and pedagogical techniques for the early childhood music classroom are provided.