Over the last 25 years, research on children and childhood has undergone a significant shift. Rather than solely a functionalist perspective, which puts children in a passive role that relies on adults’ assumptions and interpretations, scholars have expanded music education research with children to utilize more active, constructivist approaches to explore children’s perspectives (Barrett, 2003; Campbell, 2010; Ilari & Young, 2016; Marsh, 2008). While passive approaches often position children as data sources to be measured or observed, the more active approaches seek to engage them as collaborators whose perspectives and agency can shape the research itself. Understanding the current landscape of research with children in music education can highlight how research procedures shape what we know about children, teaching, and learning. Music education research often overlooks children between the ages of six and twelve, also known as middle childhood, as they are situated between the crucial developmental periods of early childhood and adolescence. Examining how research involves those in middle childhood not only fills a gap in the literature but also highlights the degree to which it incorporates children’s own voices in studies in which they participate. Thus, this content analysis examined research in music education involving participants aged six through twelve, or in grades kindergarten through seven, to provide insight into how and why existing music education research integrates children in middle childhood into its purposes and processes. Three highly acclaimed music education journals were chosen for international representation: Journal of Research in Music Education (United States), Research Studies in Music Education (Australia), and Music Education Research (United Kingdom). Using articles published from 2010 to 2025, I classified and coded studies based on their aims, research methods, participants, locations, settings, musical domains, and participants’ research tasks. Studies involving participants younger or older than the target category (ages 6-12, Grades K-7) were included if they also included participants in middle childhood. Results and implications for research involving young participants will be discussed.