Journal Week #6

During class this week, I presented my first lesson plan. I ended up teaching the class how to sing "Hey, Betty Martin" and used the piano as my accompaniment. I enjoyed participating in my classmates lesson plans and found them all to be very creative.
Criteria Sheet:
Name: Stephanie LaMantia
Lesson: Teaching the song "Hey, Betty Martin"

Musicianship (5 pts): 5 Delivery of Instruction (20 pts): 17
In tune, accurate pitch: Also used the piano Motivation, capturing attention
Accurate rhythm Sequencing of steps
Appropriate tempo Verbal instructions
Phrasing Questioning: Provide more questions
Expression Pace of lesson, flow, transition
Flexibility
Leadership (10 pts): 10 Feedback to learners
Body language Continuity/focus of lesson
Facial expression Closure
Voice tone and volume
Eye contact
Intensity

Preparation (15 pts): 13
Knowledge of music
Knowledge of plan: Really relied on lesson plan
Written plan: Completed on time
Instruments/equipment ready: Used rhythmic sticks and tambourines
Recordings/charts/materials ready: Made drawing charts

Total Points: 45

A. What I found to be the most difficult thing about presenting a song to the class was trying to make the material simple enough for children to follow. I kept wanting to use sentences and words that young children would have a hard time following. I also found it difficult to keep track of which students were getting the words to the song and which were not. When your teaching it's hard to watch every student individually to make sure that they are understanding the material being taught.
B. I thought that I relied way too much on my lesson plan. Throughout my presentation, I could see myself constantly flipping through it. I had practiced my presentation numerous times and knew my music by heart, so I should have been more confident in myself and not relied so much on my written lesson plan. Although I had everyone in the class involved at all times, I could have asked them more questions to have made sure that they understood the material. I just kept going with my lesson and not double checking to see if my students understood what they were learning.
C. I thought that my presentation was creative and had the children doing something at all times. I felt that I had a good knowledge of the music and the musical concepts that I was teaching. I also used a good voice tone and volume, used accurate pitch while singing, and captured every one's attention.
D. For my next presentation, I am going to try and not use my lesson plan sheet at all. I want to interact more with the students and question their knowledge throughout the lesson. I would of also not used the piano as much because I had a hard time hearing my voice. The children would have had a much easier time following my voice than the piano.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9lHidGtCu0&eurl=http://musicingdream.blogspot.com/2009/02/stephanie.html&feature=player_embedded

Reflection Week #5

This week our class received the evaluation form in-class teaching assignment and went over the four parts that we will be graded on: musicianship, leadership, preparation, and delivery of instruction. On Wednesday, we got back our lesson plans and got into groups of three to get ideas from our fellow classmates. We went over tonic solfa ( do ri mi fa so la ti do) and the song phrase method, which is when you hear a song and learn it one phrase at a time. We received a handout on Zolton Kodaly who was a Hungarian musician that believed music should be the core curriculum, used as a basis for education. He also believed that singing is the best foundation for musicianship. We learned that each note on the C major scale has its own hand sign. The teacher would make hand signs and we would have to sing what note corresponded with each hand sign. Hand signs are a good way for children to practice singing the tonic solfa. We learned about rhythmic duration syllables and practiced using syllables to a rhythm that the teacher wrote down on the chalkboard. We also learned the note D on the recorder and played Barcarolle and the Polka. Sharp notes are higher by a half-step and are apart of the G major scale. Children need to be able to understand and learn all the notes on the scale.
I am really nervous about presenting my lesson plan next week. I really don't like to sing in front of people and I'm scared of messing up. This is the first lesson plan that I've ever had to teach so it will defiantly be a new experience. I am going to prepare for my presentation by practicing my song numerous times and going over the steps of my lesson plan. I will probably make my roommates watch my presentation a couple of times to get feedback. I'll just make sure that I am totally prepared so I feel confident while presenting. I know that creating and presenting a lesson plan is important because this is what I will be doing everyday at work. If I can't write and present a lesson plan, then I won't be a very good teacher.

Reflection

This week we learned all about creating a lesson plan. Our first task is to learn a new song and teach it to the class. Throughout the week, we went over the lesson plan format sheet. You're only supposed to teach one musical concept per lesson for children. We went over what activities are appropriate for each age group and how we should visualize every step of our procedure. On February 2nd, we learned the song "Tideo" and went over time signature, how many beats there were per measure (4), and the treble clef. On February 4th, we formed groups of five and discussed the procedure of the song "Tideo." On February 6th, we warmed up to the song "Bow Wow Wow" and clapped the rhythm and played a dance movement game. We learned all about note value and how many counts a whole rest, half rest, quarter rest, eighth rest, and sixteenth rest receive. On the recorder, we learned the note C and as a class played a duet in "Hot Cross Buns." We also played the songs "Cobbler, Cobbler"and "Barcarolle." We learned that tie notes are when two notes are put together. We learned everything this week from our teacher and by actually doing the activities asked of us.
I feel that it's important to learn these concepts and skills because as teachers we are going to have to write a lesson plan every single day. By practicing how to write a lesson plan, we are preparing for our future careers and coming up with ideas that we could use later on. Children need to be taught lesson plans created by their teacher and musical concepts, such as note value. Children need to understand the basic concepts of music and how they can apply these concepts later on in life.

Reflection #3

This week I learned that a skill is something that you do and a concept is what you learned. A particular note played on the recorder is an example of a concept. We can learn concepts through cognitive learning. We learned note value and how many beats are is a whole note, half note, quarter note, eighth note, and sixteenth note. I learned that young children sing at a higher pitch. A musical concept is melody and keeping a steady beat. Melody is the combination of various pitches. These pitches can be either high, low, or the same. We learned the notes to the C major scale (C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C) and about the history of the treble clef (G clef).
We learned all of these concepts through observation and actually performing the task asked of us. On January 26, 2009, we had to get with a partner and clap to the song Double Double Ice Cream. We recognized that there are four beats per line and we used steady beat. On January 28, 2009, we warmed-up to the song Bee Bee Bumble Bee and then transferred the note notation into pictures. We practiced recognizing notes on the scale and drawing the treble clef sign with the Treble Clef Sign Worksheet. We also played the recorder and created our own song using the notes A, B, and G to the song Think of a Fly.
I think that it's important to learn these concepts because these are basic musical concepts that every teacher should know to help their students. For example, by singing Bee Bee Bumble Bee children can understand the length of each note sung. I know that in the future I could use the songs learned this week to help my students with learning musical concepts and become acquainted with each other. We are forced to be creative in this class, which I think is crucial for becoming a good teacher. For example, we had to be creative when making up a song to play on our recorders.
Children should learn the basic concepts of music to become a more well-rounded person. By teaching children music at a young age, they will benefit academically and socially. Everything learned this week gives children the opportunity to work with others and be creative.

Reflection #2

This week we learned about rhythm and steady beat. Rhythm is the combination of long, short, and silent sounds. Steady beat if the constant repetition of the same beat. We went over both of these concepts by using rhythmic sticks and the hand drum to keep a simple beat. Each student also had to perform a rhyme of their name, while first keeping a steady beat and then a more rhythmic beat. We also went over rhythmic notation by using the greeting song that we learned during the first week of class. As a class, everyone had to mark either a small or large X to represent how many sounds/beats were in each word. On Friday, we began to learn how to play the recorder. We learned the notes G, A, and B and played each of these notes as a class. We played Hot Crust Buns all together and were also split up into three different sections. Each section was assigned to one note and could only play that note during the song. Everything this week was taught to us by our teacher. Like I stated earlier, we were given hand drums and rhythmic sticks to help us learn the difference between a steady beat and a rhythmic beat. I also learned a lot this week from my fellow classmates by listening to their rhythmic poems. The students also helped each other with learning how to play notes on the recorder. I feel that it was important to learn these concepts because steady beat and rhythm are two of the most important concepts in music. It you can't keep a steady beat or be able to feel the rhythm to a song, then you aren't going to be able to understand music. As a teacher, how would I help my students with music if I couldn't even keep a steady beat myself? I feel that it's always good to go over even the basics to completely understand all concepts. Plus, our teacher gave us some great ideas on how to incorporate music into our classrooms. Using the rhythmic sticks and hand drums are two things that can simply be obtained to teach children the basic concepts of rhythm and beat. The rhythmic name poem was also a good idea because it teaches students to be creative and practice the basic skills that they learned in class. I like how in this class, we're doing the activities that our students will be doing. This class is a lot of fun and the time seems to blow by. I don't like to sing, but this class is already making me feel more open to singing in front of my peers. I hope that when I become a teacher, my students will be able to feel completely comfortable with playing and singing music in front of their peers.
List 10 children's songs that you are familiar with:
1. Mary Had a Little Lamb
2. ABC's (The Alphabet Song)
3. Ants Go Marching
4. Hokey Pokey
5. London Bridge
6. Old MacDonald Had a Farm
7. My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean
8. Polly Wolly Doodle
9. Row Row Row Your Boat
10. If You're Happy and You Know It
11. Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
12. Yankee Doodle

Phone Number

1-847-494-6030

My Name Rhyme

My name is Stephanie.
I enjoy excersizing.
Come and join me running.
It will be exciting.