ABSTRACT
This chapter is about vocal skills in classroom Music teaching, focusing on Key Stage 3 of the National Curriculum. I make the assumption throughout, based on research into the nature of interpersonal vocal communication in the human species, that the skills to be developed are both those of the pupils and those of the teacher; and that this is a shared and continuing process. The majority of activities outlined in the chapter are based on the idea of teaching through rather than teaching about; and make the assumption that everyone, teacher and pupil alike, has a potentially expressive singing voice the development of which can yield pleasure in its own right while also providing a powerful underpinning to other aspects of musical learning. Teachers who are well-informed about the nature of the vocal instrument and how to employ it confidently are the more likely to act as effective vocal leaders in the classroom.
