This week I interviewed a middle school band/music teacher for what technology they use in their classroom.
Technology used:
Apps (with iPad)
Google classroom
Projector
Apps:
There are multiple apps that get used in this class for tuning, recording, intonation games, and metronome.
Google Classroom:
Used for students to submit video playing tests and listening assignments.
Projector:
This is used to show interesting musical videos and performances to the students (usually something available from youtube).
Their wish?
If more money was available, this teacher would love it if their students could use the program called “Smart Music” which would help with practicing. It can also be used for assessment as well with playing tests and sight reading. The students would also have access to music they could play from the method book used in class to different levels of music for their instrument from movie music, pop music, jazz, etc.
For more information on Smart Music, click on the link below:
This week I decided to try the carrot out again. I did a bundle of carrots to be painted in the same style as the carrot I did a few posts ago.
I like the way the greenery turned out on top, with the mix of colours I choose. I am not happy with the shape of my carrots though. My first attempt was much better. I hope to try out the techniques I used to do carrots with other vegetables. I might stay away from sketching other things (like more animals) at the moment, as drawing is something I am working on.
I am entering my final full last week of classes for this semester, which means my course Music in the Elementary Classroom is done for now. It is incredible how much I’ve gained from this course over the last three months. I was lucky enough to visit multiple music classes while out on school observations. Along with seeing music teachers at work, I have also picked up some skills on the ukulele, which has made me more confident with the instrument. Goal setting for both my musical growth and musical pedagogy has helped me to reflect on what I have gained from this course and how I view myself as a future teacher.
During school visits, one was intentional to view a music teacher run classes. I was fortunate to see another two music teachers in action at other schools and the way they manage their classes, from teaching songs, to instruments. The number one thing I noticed from the music teachers I observed was their extreme ability to manage classes. I think this is the most important skill for a music class, as students shuffle in and out each block and have to find their seats and try their best to not touch any of the shiny instruments hanging around the room. One word that comes to my mind when I think back to these observations is ‘quick’. Quickly instruct the children their task, but in a clear and concise way. Quickly have the students ready for their activity, but in a way that they know exactly what is going on. There is no rushing of anything, but because blocks are only 30 – 45 minutes, to allow the children to get the most out of their lesson, these teachers are incredibly efficient.
One thing I improved on during this semester was my ukulele playing. My final goal was to learn a third song and sing with lyrics. I now know how to play three songs total, and feel very proud of myself. The second song I chose to learn was ‘Row, Row, Row Your Boat’ and because of it’s simplicity, I feel confident in teaching this to young students who are just beginning to learn the ukulele.
Along with learning the ukulele for my musical growth, I also gained a wealth of information for my musical pedagogy on incorporating Indigenous music into the classroom. I had to get in touch with people throughout the district with answers to Aboriginal Education and attended a gathering, a conference, and a drum circle. With more information on this topic found in my pedagogy blog, I will just say that everything I learned from this will be applied towards my future in teaching.
Overall, I feel as though I’ve had major growth internally. Confidence from within on my classroom knowledge, ability to learn an instrument, and having a basic understanding of incorporating indigenous music into my future classroom has been learned in these last few months. I’ve had a positive shift in the direction of my future as a teacher.
Learn ways to incorporate Indigenous music in the classroom
Come up with a written plan to demonstrate this in a classroom setting
Drum Circle:
Shortly after midterm, I was able to attend a drum circle at the Victoria Native Friendship Centre. My friend allowed me to borrow the drum that she had which I was extremely grateful for. Drumming at the centre takes place from 6 – 8pm Friday evenings. I was in contact with the centre over Facebook messenger to get the information I needed prior to attending.
There were over 70+ people who attended! I was so blown away by the turn out. All ages were there, from newborns to elderly.
The drum circle continued to grow throughout the night. People would trickle in and grab a chair and begin to play their drum to the beat in the circle.
Everyone was drumming a beat, while others sang solos or took the lead on playing a specific song.
There was dancing that happened in the centre of the circle during a couple of songs.
I noticed many different drum styles. Some were very thin, some were thick. I even saw an octagonal shaped drum. Some of them had beautiful painted designs on them and came in different colours.
At one point, a large group of men gathered in the centre and began to sing and drum, while a group of women surrounded them and danced.
The drumming was loud and powerful. I am going to have some friends join me some time to show them how inviting this experience was for me.
**I was not given any photo/video consent to share any photos.
Incorporating Indigenous Music in the Classroom:
First Nations music is something that can be taught throughout the course of the year in music class, but I know that not all schools are lucky enough to have a music teacher. For me going into teaching, I wanted to learn way I could incorporate indigenous music into my class.
Speaking with an Ab Ed worker in the Greater Victoria School District, I’ve come to learn that once you are hired on by the school board, a world of resources is opened up to you. As a student, I know resources are available but they are much easier to access when you are a teacher and hired on with a district.
Resources: With SD61, there is a resource centre available to teachers in the district office on Boleskin.
Guests to the school: There is a request form on the district site that teachers fill out that lists all the guest options available, whether it be teaching drumming, guiding a class meeting, or speaking to the school on important matters just to name a few examples.
Local bands: Songhees First Nation and Esquimalt Nation and the Coast Salish First Nations
Gifted songs: These are songs that have been gifted to the district. If one was to find a song that is from a local First Nations, it doesn’t mean that it is available for anyone to sing/play. It may be sacred or personal. A song must be gifted in order to be sung or played by someone else. The district has been provided with a few gifted songs that are available to teach and sing with students.
Important to remember: When choosing songs done by First Nations, remember to use the correct nation depending on your location. It would be inappropriate to be singing a song that is originally from Campbell River for example because that would be a different band.
Below and above are photos of the drum I borrowed from my friend when I attended the Victoria Native Friendship Centre drumming circle.
Demonstrating this in a Classroom Setting:
When I am hired on by the district and have a classroom, I will work towards teaching my students gifted songs.
Teaching songs may be done on certain days, after recess or lunch break for example when they have burned some energy.
I believe students learning these songs at a young age is a gift and something they may be able to share with the school during a year end assembly. This gives the students something to work towards throughout the year.
What my possible outline would look like:
Every second Wednesday (two Wednesdays a month), my class would gather in a circle.
We would be gathering either after recess or lunch break.
Our lesson would last approximately 15 minutes.
I would have requested a guest speaker come into our class for our first gathering (set aside approximately 45 minutes for this).
The guest would be local and could teach our class a song that has been gifted to SD61 from a local band.
I believe it is important to bring someone into the class for the students so they learn from someone first hand and begin this with the utmost respect.
I will make it my mission to have my students practice (along with myself) every other Wednesday throughout the year.
I will bring the idea of having my class perform in front of the school during an assembly to my administrator.
During a year end assembly, we will perform in front of the school.
I will contact our guest that joined us on the first gathering that taught us the gifted song for SD61 and ask if they would like to either perform with us, or be a guest in audience during the assembly.
This week I interviewed an E.A. who has been with the district for many years. I asked them what tech devices and tools they found to be most helpful when it comes to assisting different children’s learning needs?
The two main things? Chromebooks and GAFE.
Chromebooks:
The number one reason this E.A. found Chromebooks useful is mainly because of how they keep the students organized. Whether the student needs a scribe (someone to take notes for them), or they can do it on their own, the notes are no longer on pieces of paper that can get lost in the classroom. They are now saved in a google doc. Chromebooks are made accessible for all students in SD61 and some students will be given their own to use for the year if they have an IEP that requires they do so.
GAFE:
The main tool on GAFE this E.A. finds resourceful is speech to text. They work with multiple students that have difficulty with fine motor skills, and typing is an issue. Creating a written document can now be done as simply as the student talking to the computer and the words appearing on the screen!
This week I worked on landscape. The main focus of this lesson was to learn the techniques used to make up the background and foreground. My piece is very simple, but it took some time as I had to wait for each layer to dry before continuing.
I used the video ‘How to paint a simple landscape with water colour’ on youtube. The woman leading the video gives great instruction. Check it out below:
Using ‘Uke Pal’, I show how the strings on my ukulele are tuned to match the G, E, C, and A being played on the app. Note, this ukulele is on loan from UVIC and the G string is a low G.
Second Ukulele Song Learned:
Row, Row, Row Your Boat
I chose this song because I wanted something that I could use in the classroom for beginner ukulele players. It focuses on the C Major chord and basic strumming. This is a simple song and can be learned rather quickly. I found a video that focused solely on the C Major chord, and found a second video that adds the G Major chord. I added the lyrics to this song because I felt I could do so comfortably while playing. These videos helped show me two beginner ways to play this song, which I demonstrate in the video above.
My third and final song learned on ukulele was tricky, yet enjoyable. Once I learned how to play the song, I added the lyrics. This took a lot of patience and practice. I used website ukulele tabs, youtube videos, and Spotify to practice singing along to the song. I use my ukulele felt pick for strumming and try my best to keep my left thumb placed firmly behind the fret board. It ended up staying where it felt most comfortable. Hope you enjoy my song 🙂
Stum Pattern:
I play the first two verses with the strum pattern down, down, up, down, up, as well as the second half of the final verse.
I play the first half of the final verse with a quicker pattern, down, down, up, up, down, up.
After listening to this song sung by many different people, fast and slow, I added my own take on it. I started a little slower, and picked up a bit near the end, and ended it as I had originally started.
Chords used in this song:
C, Em, Am, F, G, G7, B7, A7, Dm (note, chords stated alone are in major, and chords with a small ‘m’ beside them are in minor)
I am happy with myself that I was able to learn these two songs by final. Overall, I think I did well with Row, Row, Row Your Boat, and feel confident playing that song for and with children. For the song ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’, I am proud of myself for learning the correct chords and being able to play while singing along. Changing between chords needs some practice, as well as my left thumb placement behind the fret board. I love this song and will continue to practice until I have smooth transitions and will play it for my friends 🙂
This week I interviewed a grade 7 teacher from a middle school in Greater Victoria.
Below is a list of some of the technology they use in their classroom.
Apps:
Explain Everything
iMovie
Devices:
Chromebooks
iPads
A little about Explain Everything…
This is an app which features an interactive whiteboard used online that can be viewed throughout the classroom. There is a record function that is used when students are presenting to the class. Group activities and tutorials make this app interactive between classmates. Follow this link for more information on Explain Everything, https://explaineverything.com/.
This week I drew a fox with black ink three separate ways, and added watercolour using different techniques.
I was inspired by last weeks carrot with black ink painting, but used some different painting techniques. I used google images to look up fox drawing ideas.
For the first fox (top), I used a wet technique to purposely have the foxes paws drip colour past the black ink.
For the second fox (bottom left), I used more of a dry brush technique to add solid colour around the fox body.
For the third fox (bottom right), I used equal parts water and paint.
Last week I decided to add some black ink to my water colour.
To create this piece, I drew a carrot with a fine liner pen. I then used equal parts water and paint to add colour to the carrot. Afterwards, I used the splatter technique to spray the colours used for the carrot into the background.
This was a super fun piece and I’m going to be experimenting with more watercolour and ink.
Rosie Reynolds 