I chose this lesson plan about saxophones because I find it
important for young students to understand and know which instruments are which
by their timbre, dynamic range, physical look, and to also know their basic
history and their use in different genres of music. Also, it is a really good
lesson plan to use in my future career as a teacher in a general-music setting.
A very important part that was missing/should have been
changed about this lesson plan was the grade-level. I believe that it should be
pushed down to about the 4th or 5th grade, because the
curriculum goals and NJ standardized goals were very out of touch with each
other.
I think this is a good lesson to demonstrate the use of
technology to show the movement of sound and the affects of physicality on the
sound. If an instrument, namely the saxophone and any other wind instrument,
has longer tubing, then it sounds lower. This lesson plan also emphasizes CD
players and the use of computers and preferably smart boards.
This
is where this lesson plan was lacking; I really feel that the use of a
smartboard and the program MAX-MSP would serve as a really good medium of
demonstration in this setting. The students would have been able to see a
physical manifestation of the dynamic ranges on the board as the music would
pass by, and they would be able to make comparisons between the different types
of saxophones. This would be easier than conceptualizing timbre and dynamic
range as an abstract idea. Without the specific technologies listed, we would
not be able to listen to the recordings that use the saxophone. This would
probably defeat the purpose of this lesson entirely, so the technology that is
used in this lesson is integral.
Janet,
ReplyDeleteI love your adaptations in the lesson plan, especially the critical thinking questions (about the instrument, etc.) With the focus on saxophone, how many other cultures are there that have the instrument in the music? I'm trying to think of how to tie it in with a world-cultures type of lesson
Thank you, Scott. I'd have to say I didn't really think about that, but I would probably change the focal point of a specific instrument (in your situation) to the separate instruments of the country itself. Do you remember when I taught the Teaching for Equity and Diversity class Korean (or attempted to) ? I focused on the instruments of Korea and I think maybe you should do a unit for each country.. "Woodwinds of Ireland". "Percussion of Ireland". Let me know if you think I'm over-generalizing it! I would love to try and help you come up with some ideas for lesson plans with world-instruments :)
DeleteI'm so jealous of how easily you can create a wonderful learning environment. Every post you've made so far has been pretty inspiring and constantly making me want to do more and work even harder than I thought I could. Teach me!
ReplyDeleteWow! That's quite a hefty compliment, I hope it's not sarcastic! Thanks a ton, Arielle. I work pretty hard on these posts. There's nothing really to teach, here, but I'm very flattered. :) I think you have some great posts also!
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