Planning Instruction
The teacher plans instruction based on knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, and curriculum goals.
There are several levels of planning which are important to a music teacher. These include long-term planning goals, such as a curriculum a teacher wants to include over time, or her teaching philosophy. These include medium-term planning goals, in which teachers develop specific units of study incorporating several lessons, or map out the logistics of entering festivals with their students. They also include more short-term planning goals, such as specific activities that will be carried out in a single lesson.
An important part of planning for a choral music educator is in selecting repertoire for your ensemble. Several factors must be considered, including current ability levels of the students, student interest, and curricular goals. While student teaching at Avon Lake High School, I was given the opportunity to select repertoire for multiple ensembles. I was pleased when, after the winter concert, the students reported that the piece I had selected was their favorite that they had worked on. Additionally, the piece exposed the singers to mixed and compound meters, something to which they had not yet been exposed in a choral setting.
Music teachers must plan enough to remain organized. They typically have a good deal on their plate other than simply running rehearsals and showing up at concerts. This organizational aspect of planning is one upon which I hope to improve over time. I have begun keeping track of my commitments using the Google Calendar service. This allows me to view and add to my schedule from anywhere with Internet access. I am able to view my commitments by the day, week, or month, so that I am best able to see what lies ahead. I would like to better integrate this valuable tool into my course of study by using it to schedule in more detail - not simply when I am committed to be elsewhere, but how much time a particular task should take and precisely when I will spend working on that task.
Planning Instruction Artifacts
Curricular Unit for "My Shepherd Will Supply My Need" (PDF File)
Created in the fall of 2007, this unit is to be completed by a chorus class in a semester in which they are performing Virgil Thompson’s arrangement of “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need.” Through study of this song, singers will be introduced to the tradition of shape note singing, the American folk music tradition from which the song originated. They will learn about the notational system, solfege system, and performance practices associated with the singing of shape note music. This unit culminates in an event in which the class will transform the choral rehearsal space into an authentic shape note singing event in the style of a Sacred Harp sing. This unit can be implemented while being supplemented by the WebQuest I developed to this same end.
Curricular Unit on Old Churches (PDF File)
This file represents comprehensive guides for both students and teachers on a curricular unit developed in the fall of 2006 for Michael Colgrass' composition Old Churches for beginning band. It includes student assignments, assessments, cultural and historical context, and theoretical analysis of the piece. This unit is an example of my ability to successfully engage in long-term planning for study of a piece over the course of a semester.
First Year Budget (PDF File)
For this project completed in Fall of 2007 for an Elementary General Music class, I was given a scenario which I might encounter in my first teaching job: a short list of supplies the school already owned and $1000 to buy new supplies. I used Excel to tabulate my purchases, and they are detailed here. I tried to diversify my materials so they would be both comprehensive and varied. In making my selections, I kept my curricular goals for the program in mind and purchased items accordingly.
Handout on the Musical Aptitude Profile (PDF File)
The Musical Aptitude Profile is a test developed by Edwin Gordon which seeks to identify the amount of potential a child has to succeed in musical tasks. Having this information about students in a music class can be valuable, since it can help the teacher to tailor her instruction to meet the needs of the students. It should be noted, however, that low scores on this test should never be used to exclude students from music class, only to address possible areas in which they may struggle.
Lesson on Dynamics (PDF File)
This lesson plan, which I delivered to a women's sectional of an eighth-grade chorus class in the Spring of 2007, focuses student learning of dynamics within Vivaldi's "Laudamus Te." I identify that they may have some challenges with keeping the dynamic levels relatively proportional, so I devise an introductory exercise in which they assign a number value to each dynamic level and use warm-up exercises to experiment with these levels. I then ask them to apply this exercise to the piece they are singing. Addressing this issue before beginning the piece allows the girls to transfer their knowledge effectively and problem-solve more efficiently.
Lesson Plan for "The Snake Charmer" (PDF File)
This lesson plan was delivered in the fall of 2006 to a sixth grade percussion class. In the highlighted portion, I identify a section of the piece which has a somewhat tricky sticking pattern. Before the rehearsal of the piece, I bring this section to students' attention so that rehearsal will go more smoothly. This is an example of my ability to plan for potential problem areas in musical rehearsal.
Sample Choral Concert Repertoire (PDF File)
With this repertoire project completed for my Spring 2007 Choral Methods class at Case Western, I devide a complete concert program for a high school chorus. I select five pieces for each ensemble - a beginning Women's Chorus, a Mixed Chorus, and a select Chamber Choir. I also provide a curricular justification for each piece selected and a repertoire source list for future planning.
Sample Concert Program (PDF File)
The following is a sample concert program I assembled in the fall of 2004. It is meant to be performed by an advanced high school mixed chorus. The program includes information about the pieces, rationale for their inclusion in the program as well as their specific placement, and a sample lesson for one of the pieces.
Score Analysis (PDF File)
In this assignment completed in the fall of 2004, I review two pieces for study by an SATB high school choir. Within this study I examined which musical concepts could be addressed in class through study and performance of these pieces, as well as ways to solve potential problems which might arise in the process of learning the pieces.
Assessment Embedded in a Lesson (Quicktime Movie File)