Music in early years classrooms is an important learning area for young children. Young children need access to hear
different genres of music, learn a variety of repertoire, engage in composing and play musical instruments. With the
changing reform agenda in early childhood education however, little is known about the way music is positioned in
the kindergarten classrooms. Little is known if music is still considered an important foundation for children’s learning.
This study provides a snapshot of music activities in two kindergartens in Queensland, Australia. At each of the case
sites, music plays an important role in helping the children learn. Findings reveal that music is seen as a foundation
for many of the daily routines and an important element of inquiry based-learning in the classroom. The kindergarten
teachers are essential in developing the domain-intrinsic knowledge of the children. Findings show the importance of
the teacher in helping children learn music in the early years.
Key words: early childhood, kindergarten, knowledge