School children, taking notes and making notes in music classes, learn not just to read music, recognize compositions or play instruments. They learn about themselves and the world around them, music teachers say.

"Music permeates every part of life," said Charlene Peyton, music teacher at Clippard Elementary School. "Everything we do has a beat, starting with a heartbeat. Music is important to the quality of life for any person."

Elementary music programs include much more than memorizing ditties. Students learn about musical styles and forms, rhythm, movement and dance.

"We do have fun, but it's controlled fun," said Peyton. "This is not a recess period. Music is a real discipline, like social studies or math. The fun comes as we are exploring and creating and just enjoying music."

"It crosses all the disciplines. We learn about math, social studies, geography, language arts. It's an interdisciplinary course," she said.

The goal of a music program is to introduce children to what they hear. "We teach children to appreciate music. They do not have to love everything they hear, but they can make educated choices."

Along the way, youngsters may discover a talent.

"I have some beautiful singing voices in my classes," Peyton said. "But we also give them a chance to compose their own music and to play instrumental accompaniments on simple instruments."

Mike Dumey, music teacher at L.J. Schultz, said, "Music is such a part of our lives. We are surrounded by it every day with radio, television, movies. It's really a part of our society. If we can teach some fundamentals of music, students will have a deeper appreciation of what they hear."

Beyond that, Dumey said, performance teaches other lessons.

"I have seen so many kids blossom through performance. They develop self-confidence and a certain poise they can apply to almost any part of their lives. Plus, anything that makes you feel better about yourself, that's good."

Ron Nall, Cape Girardeau Central High School band director, said learning music also helps teach self discipline. "You are not accidentally good at a band or orchestra instrument," Nall said. "It takes a lot of hard work, practice and determination."

Performing with an ensemble also teaches group discipline, he said. "With a group like the marching band, you have 100 or more people all doing the same thing at the same time.

"People may think music is not important because it's not on the ACT or tested by the state, but there is a strong correlation between students who do well in music programs and students who do well in academic programs," he said.

Nall believes the discipline music forces a student to develop carries over to other subjects. Studies have shown, he said, that students who are active in music programs score well on ACT or other tests.

Nall said sometimes students quit an instrument after a year or two. "People often say `What a waste.' I don't say that. The student has learned to appreciate music. And if they dropped out because they were not very good, they learned that people are not accidentally good. It takes a lot of work to get good at something. I think that's a valuable lesson."

Those music lessons will be used whether students continue to study music or not, he said.

"People will hear music all their lives. A lot of people will be involved in church choirs or other musical groups. Or their own children may be interested in music. If students read music and understand a little about music they can participate a little easier."