Elementary Music/Music Technology Blog

As I continue to work through Spring Break, I thought that I would pull out this post about iPods. In June of 2008, I wrote this blog post after the introduction of the Apple’s newest iPhone. I receive the question a lot (Which iPod is right for my classroom?) and I have to say after 9 months, my thoughts have changed a bit on this subject (so have the prices, since they have mostly gone down). Therefore, I have updated this post. I hope that you find it helpful.

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While I was reading about the newest 3G iPhone on the apple website, I then went and visited the iPod portion of their website to see if the iPods have been updated. While reading about the iPods, it reminded me that I have been asked by numerous music teachers about the iPod and which would be the right iPod for his/her music classroom.

How does the iPod benefit the music classroom?
First, any mp3 player can benefit the music classroom. It does not need to be an iPod. I tend to lean towards the iPod because it is user-friendly, it can be used on a MAC or PC, and it works easily with iTunes, which is a free digital media player application for MAC or PC provided by Apple.

Second, an mp3 player or iPod benefits your classroom in many ways:

1. You no longer have a stack of CDs cluttering your space because you can import your CDs to iTunes, make a playlist for each class or grade that you teach, and then click and drag that playlist to your iPod.
2. You no longer have to change CDs during class because the songs will be contained on the iPod.
3. You can plug your iPod into a stereo system, or any speakers that you purchase from Staples, Best Buys, etc., or you can play it through a boom box by purchasing the FM transmitter adapter. Therefore, the iPod is easily adaptable to any teaching situation, whether you teach in music classroom or on a cart.

Stats:
If you do decide to purchase an iPod for your classroom, which iPod is right one? There are four basic iPods: The iPod Shuffle, the iPod Nano, the iPod Classic, and the iPod Touch.

• The newest iPod Shuffle comes with 4GB (1000 songs) for $79 and can now speak to you with its voice over function. It can tell you what song is playing, the artist of the song, and the playlist.
• The iPod Nano comes with 4GB (1000 songs) for $149 ad 8GB (2000 songs) for $199.
• The iPod Classic comes with 120 GB (30,000 songs) for $249. This is the only iPod which had a price increase. Last June, Apple used to offer two version of this iPod (80 GB and 160GB). Now, they only offer one iPod with 120 GB for the price they used to offer the 160 GB.
• The iPod Touch comes with 8G for $299 (1750 songs), 16 GB for $399 (3500 songs), and 32 GB (7000 songs) for $499.

What do the differences in these iPods mean for music teachers?
The iPod Shuffle is the smallest of the iPods and has no screen. It is not helpful for a music teacher because you cannot read the title of the musical piece that is being played. This makes it difficult for the music teacher to select a song during class.

The iPod Nano is a great iPod for a small music budget. The 8GB Nano holds 2000 songs, which is more than enough for one year of elementary general music classes. It also can play videos, games, and store photos, but they will cut down on the amount of songs it can hold. It has a screen so it makes it easy for the music teacher to read and select a musical piece for class. You can also quickly set the repeat function by the press of a button (new feature–the older iPods did not have this feature so assessable). This is nice if you have your students practicing a recorder piece that you would like them to repeat over and over again. If you want your Nano to shuffle the songs, let’s say for playing a movement game like Dancing Freeze or Statue in the Park, just give your Nano a shake and it will shuffle the songs automatically.

The iPod Classic is a good iPod for a larger music budget. Similar to the Nano with its ease of use, its differences comes in size and storage space. If you want to put your entire school’s music library on your iPod, including your Silver Burdett or McGraw-Hill CDs, then the iPod Classic is the right fit for your music classroom. Since it can hold up to 30,000 songs (120 GB), you will enjoy the fact that your music library can be contained on one iPod. Finally, it also can play videos, games, and store photos, but they will cut down on the amount of songs it can hold. As I stated above, this is the only iPod that increased in price since last June. In addition, Apple only makes one of these iPods (120 GB) instead of two (80 GB and 160GB). This could be a sign that the Classic is on its way out to be permanently replaced with the iPod Touch.

The iPod Touch has functions that are similar to the iPhone. You can hold up to 7000 songs (32 GB). You can also play videos, connect to the internet through WiFi, store your photos, and check your email. Though these functions are wonderful for personal use, they do not lend themselves to a music classroom. However, last summer, Apple did something that was brilliant. It opened up a Applications portion to its iTunes store. Before this, many users were offering various applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch that you could easily download and use on your devices. Apple got smart and decided to offer these applications for an inexpensive price (as low as .99 cents for some applications). This was a brilliant move on Apple’s part. Have you seen how many applications there are for the iPhone and iPod Touch?!? The music applications alone are amazing.

• You need an extra instrument in your classroom?
  • All you have to do is download an application and you can turn your iPod Touch into a piano, a guitar, or an entire orchestra.
• Need to assess your students vocal abilities or want to record them quickly and do not have time to set up the computer to record? 
  • Try Griffin’s iTalk Pro  for free (with ads) or for $4.99 (without ads).

The possibilities are endless. Look at this one application titled StudioApp that turns your iPod Touch into a voice recorder and four-track mixer! Browse the full list of all AppStore apps filed under the AppStore category.

The iPod Nano and the iPod Classic can also be turned into voice recorders by connecting a $50-$60 external microphone.  These microphones are made my Xtreme Mac MicroMemo (now only found on Amazon), the original Griffin iTalk attachable microphone for iPod Nano or iPod Classic (now only found on Amazon), or Belkin.

For more information about all of the iPods, here is a great comparison chart provided by Apple.

Recommendation (updated since I first wrote this post in June of 2008):
Therefore, I would recommend the following depending on the needs and budget of your general music classroom:

Small budget? iPod Nano.

Larger budget and need to store all of your classroom music library on one iPod? iPod Classic.

Medium to larger budget and storage is not a concern? iPod Touch.

Want to be able to use the iPod as an assessment device? iPod Nano or Classic (with external microphones that now can mostly be found on Amazon) or iPod Touch (with numerous voice recorder applications that can be downloaded and purchased through the iTunes App Store). My personal opinion on this topic? Go for the iPod Touch if you have unlimited funds and would like to turn your iPod into a voice recorder for assessment purposes. With the external microphones only being found on Amazon and the applications now being found and offered conveniently through the App Store for the iPod Touch, the iPod Touch would be beneficial for this use.

Want to be able to turn our iPod into another instrument? iPod Touch (with numerous music applications that can be downloaded and purchased through the iTunes App Store).

Do you use an iPod in your music classroom? If so, which one?