What I'm Currently Teaching In Music Class

2008-06-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

My current unit, which only lasts for another week and a half, is on the blues. I am preparing the students to play Duke Ellington's "C-Jam Blues" at the 4th grade graduation. They are learning to play the song on recorder and sing lyrics that go with it. Also, as part of my lessons in this unit, they listen to an instrumental version of the song while creating improvised movement. They also watch a video (1946) of Duke Ellington performing this song, which I have linked on my "Blues" unit page (http://musicteachermcgorry.googlepages.com/blues). In addition, classes have learned about the 12-bar blues form and are learning to form the 3 main chords (C, F, and G) in the blues in the key of C.

Welcome

2008-06-12T19:06:00.000-07:00

Every day I have the pleasure of working with many creative, dedicated, passionate educators at PS90. It is inspiring and often I think of ways I'd like to connect -- in my music class -- to what they are doing. Ideas can flow from simply watching another teacher interact with students, seeing something on their bulletin board, or actually having a chance to sit and talk with them. When I have the opportunity to chat with my colleagues (not a frequent enough event), the ideas for collaboration flow easily and are plentiful. Then, routine sets in and we often do everything but what we talked about. Recently, I thought to myself, where could we "park" all of these ideas in a place where they won't get lost (not a post-it note) and where it can be accessed from anywhere (I refuse to tattoo my ideas on my body) and by the colleagues I want to collaborate with. So, I thought of the concept of an "Idea Sharing Bank."

What is the "Idea Sharing Bank"?
The idea here is to form a core group of collaborators who feel they can make connections in their classroom that will enrich the students learning experiences (the ultimate and most important goal).

How would this work?
Each member of the group would submit a short summary of what they currently working on -- whatever their unit is. Then, the group members can submit any ideas they may have for making connections in their own classroom.

For example, let's say a member is teaching a unit on poetry, the music teacher can make some connections by setting a poem (or multiple) poems to music. A publishing party could also become part musical performance. The art teacher may have the students illustrate a drawing, create a collage, or make some other form of art to connect. Or, let's say the music teacher is doing a unit on drumming, the classroom teacher might ask "Do you have any ideas for demonstrating the concept of a closed or open circuit or a parallel circuit? By creating a chain of instruments, the music teacher could possibly illustrate these concepts with the students playing or not playing depending on where they are in the circuit.

It's important to remember that we all have our own skills and standards we needed to develop in our subject areas, but there should be some opportunities to make connections without derailing the curriculum we have set in place to accomplish our goals.

PS90 Teacher Collaboration Team

What I'm Currently Teaching In Music Class

Welcome