Contemporary educational systems are called upon to respond to the needs of a highly diverse student population (Doikou - Avlidou, 2020). In seeking ways to foster the holistic development of children within the school context, the approach of social and emotional learning (SEL) has emerged, aiming to cultivate skills that will “shield” students psychologically and improve their interpersonal relationships (Edgar & Morrison, 2021; Zieher et al., 2024). The purpose of this research is to examine the function of music as a means of enhancing emotional awareness at both individual and classroom level through interdisciplinary activities. A total of 12 weekly lessons were conducted in a third-grade class of a public primary school to investigate the factors contributing to the design of activities and how these activities affect students, as well as students’ perceptions of interdisciplinary music teaching. A qualitative methodology was employed using an educational action research design, with a sample of 17 students (7 girls and 10 boys). Data collection tools included a sociogram of the class, a questionnaire investigating children’s social and emotional skills based on the Educardia program's “EmoSociograms” tool, informal discussions with students, a focus group at the end of the intervention, and the researcher’s diary as a verification tool. Inductive analysis revealed themes related to students’ social and emotional skills both individually and collectively, as well as factors related to music itself and its diverse uses in the classroom. Subjective reports of emotions from the students themselves highlighted a preference for the social-emotional learning process through music. Gradually, through the lessons, students became more specific in understanding emotions and more precise in their perception, both individually and collectively. Moreover, the interdisciplinary activities appeared to support the enhancement of children’s emotional self-regulation, while music, as a communication channel, empowered them to collectively manage issues that arose during the lessons. Finally, based on the feedback provided by the students —which aligns with the literature (Váradi, 2022)— the benefits of using music to unify the group were confirmed through the satisfaction the students felt about their collective work. 

• Interdisciplinary approaches in music education

Despoina Aristeidou is an honours graduate of the Pedagogical Department of Special Education of the University of Thessaly, student of the MSc "Music Pedagogy in School and Community" of the Ionian University. In 2020, she received a piano degree with the grade "Excellent Unanimous" and a commendation for virtuosity. Since 2018 she works as a special education teacher in public education and since 2020 she works as a piano teacher in a conservatory in Volos. Furthermore, as an active member of the Music Ensembles of the University of Thessaly from 2014 until today, she has participated in numerous concerts, music-theatre performances, recordings as well as music education projects in collaboration with organizations that support vulnerable social groups. Since 2015 he has been involved in the preparation and implementation of the music festival "Pau Festival" of the University of Thessaly. Her research and professional interests focus on contemporary pedagogical approaches, music education programs for school-age and adolescent children and community music projects.