PLN Teaching Scales and Such

http://musicmattersblog.com/2009/10/26/monday-mailbag-teaching-scales-and-such/

There are two ways to teach scales. One is from a book, which is the way I was taught, and the other way is to teach from a theoretical approach (using half steps and whole steps). In teaching my students, I find that teaching scales from a theoretical perspective helps the student begin to understand the underlying structure behind all of the scales. This can be extended to all types of scales--pentatonic, minor, etc. I think that this approach has a lot of merit because scales can be broken down to explain all kinds of theory. When you move around the circle of fifths, for example, you always add one sharp or one flat to the key signature. This is a pattern that you can explain to students, and if you write it out, it is easy to see and understand. With beginning students, I think it is best to explain scales in this way (pattern recognition in the circle of fifths and in whole and half steps) so they can start to see patterns in music. I think that memorizing scale patterns is good in itself to get the physical aspects worked out for the sake of facility in difficult passages, but learning the scales in this way is limiting for the student.

reflection on week 9 reading

Dr. Bauer's article on setting up and using a delicious account were extremely informative. I used the article to guide me through the process of setting up my delicious account. I also used the article when I was searching for pertinent articles. The step by step instructions really helped me through the process. The commoncraft video was also really useful for explaining the concept of social collaboration online. As a class, we already have 950 pertinent and useful articles that I can use now for ideas when I teach privately, and for later when I'm teaching in a public school setting. I have already discovered some really cool resources that I look forward to using, like the smithsonian digital archive. Using this technology in conjunction with a music lesson could really bring a lesson to life.

PLN Lesson Games

http://www.google.com/reader/view/?utm_campaign=en&utm_source=en-ha-ww-ww-bk&utm_medium=ha&utm_term=google+reader#stream/feed%2Fhttp%3A%2F%2Fmusicmattersblog.com%2Ffeed%2F

This thread talks about using practice games in private lessons. I use games in my private horn lessons to introduce lots of ideas. Two websites that the thread mentions are HowtoPractice.com and The Penny Practice game. Since I try to integrate as much music theory as I can into my lessons, I play a major, minor, or modal scale and have the student try to guess what mode the scale is in. When they guess, I'll play a song in that mode to get the mode into their ear and incorporate it into the piece that we are working on that week. I'll also notate a few rhythms that the student is having trouble with, and have the student come back to me the next week with a 4 or 8 bar composition. I use noteflight for this, and since noteflight is a lot like a game, the more technologically inclined kids show me a lot about the program. The ones that don't are impressed by the notion that they can use a composition software, and then they tell their friends and parents about it. I have one student in particular that has written an entire etude based on one of the rhythm patterns that he was having trouble with. Now, he can pretty much read and play the rhythm flawlessly.

CAI, SmartBoards, etc.

These articles are very useful for any music teacher in any discipline. The ideas presented in the CAI article touch on a variety of standards that every state probably has. The software that I learned about will be infinitely useful to me when I enter a music teaching situation. Each of the pieces of software mentioned in the article can be used to address a variety of state standards, from technology to history to theory, and beyond. When I was a theory student, I was a passive learner. I copied down information, listened to the teacher, did my assignments, and passed my tests. But I never really got excited about learning the information. I can definitely imagine playing theory games with my students to get them to understand the information in their own way. Since each student is an individual with their own unique learning style, learning has to happen in a variety of ways. This software has different learning styles built in. If you have a visual learner in an auditory environment (like a music classroom might be), it might be frustrating for the student to try to visualize things like phrasing, and legatos. If you can use a piece of software to show your visual learner what those things might look like, the idea can become a part of that student. Making More Music might be a good piece of software for that learner.

I think that SMARTboards are a great asset in any classroom. With the SMARTboards, you can project your computer screen so that everybody can see what you are doing. This is a great idea for a visual learner. Instead of describing an idea, you can show them what you mean with the aid of some of the software mentioned in the CAI article. In a music classroom, it can be used with theory and history. I think that having this technology at your fingertips is great, but it falls on the teacher to present ideas in exciting ways. That's where the other forms of technology help, like the CAI software.

The article about using one computer for an entire classroom has good ideas, especially for budget conscious school districts. (Which ones aren't, right?) The article puts emphasis on the software that you can buy for the one computer in your classroom. This is more economical and realistic than putting a dozen or more computers in each room. For kids that don't have computers at home I think that having only one computer per classroom isn't fair, because they don't get the same learning experience that kids with computers at home do. Since computers are such a great learning tool, the kids that don't have computers should have a priority over kids that do have computers at home. Cycling kids through computer stations is a good idea, but it makes learning technology frustratingly slow for the kids that don't have computers at home. Since computers can be such a great tool for learning music, I think that having only one computer in a music classroom is unfortunate.

PLN blog on a new book

Minds on Music: Composition for Creative and Critical Thinking (MENC/Rowman & Littlefield)

This is a new book that looks to expand composition instruction for all students, pre K-12. This book includes an argument for teaching composition and includes activities for all levels of composers.

The Q&A I read addressed some ideas in the book, including an argument for constructivist learning in the classroom (child led composition as opposed to teacher led composition assignments). This fosters a sense of ownership of the composition by the student. The teacher should be the support structure instead of the "question answerer".

It looks like this book would be helpful to a teacher who is daunted by the prospect of teaching composition. It seems to address some of that anxiety and also addresses some of the decision making processes that are so important to educating independent minds.

readings for the week of 10/5

In the 'Picture This' article, Scott Watson talks about using simple audio editing software to let students visualize their sounds. This helps students realize what they need to work on, or how to sound better through a concrete visual. It helps the students realize and correct mistakes, almost intuitively. In addition to the visual aspect of the audio recording software, the software is also used to play back sounds so that the student can realize aurally what they need to work on. This technology may also help raise student enthusiasm about music making.

In the Capturing your Sound article, the author talks about the benefits of using sound engineering software to help students in a variety of ways. It can help a student realize quality of sound. It can also help a student realize progress. It also serves as a relatively inexpensive way for students to preserve their performances for enjoyment in the years to come.

These inexpensive ways to use recording technology fit into the Technology Strategies for Music Education because they can fill a variety of needs. For example, if a teacher uses the audio editing software, he or she can fulfill all of the grade requirements for the MENC achievement standards.

When schools face budget cuts, creative teachers can use some of these inexpensive technologies to fulfill the standards for music technology. A little bit of ingenuity can go a long way to make learning environments fun and rewarding for the students.