MUE 3210 Music in the Elementary Classroom

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MUE 3210 Music in the Elementary Classroom

• Chapters 8 Singing in the Elementary Classroom
• Chapter 9 Teaching About Melodies

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Lets sing our National AnthemThe Star
Spangled Banner
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(No Transcript)
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Lets Look at the ScoreStar Spangled Banner
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4 Flats A-flat major
three beats per measure q gets one beat
D-natural
Fermata Hold
Rall. rallentando, a little slower
Rit. ritardando, becoming slower
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Singing Across the Grades

• Grade K-3 sing primarily unison songs with
  limited ranges of an octave (8 notes)
• Grade 3-5 sing songs that are interesting, have
  grade appropriate texts, and ranges of up to 12
  tones (the Star Spangled Banner has a range of 12
  tones)

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Singing

• Part songs
• Part songs are slightly different from rounds
• The group is in two distinct parts, and the goal
  is melodic independence
• Not truly harmonic, but going towards harmonic
  singing
• Part songs are the next step in the vocal
  development of students (melody, round, part
  song, harmony)

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A Part Song for ChildrenWe Are the Children
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Singing

• Starting a song
• Students only need to know three things
• The pitch of the first note
• The tempo of the song
• When they should start

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Singing

• Introducing a New Song
• Concentrate on the interesting aspects of a song
• Chunking the process of breaking a song down
  into small, manageable portions that are taught
  sequentially until a song is learned
• Chunking is the easiest way to teach vocal music
  by rote

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Teaching a Song to Children

• Know the song from memory!
• Have the accompaniment CD ready or know the
  guitar chords from memory
• Teach the song in the most grade appropriate
  manner
• K-3 catching a ride on the tune
• 3-6 chunking in phrases
• Listen to the children sing the song in order to
  detect and correct errors

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Recommended Tessituras for Children Songs

• Grades K-3
• Grades 3-5
• Songs can extend beyond these ranges. At grade 6
  the comfortable singing range can extend to 12 or
  more tones.

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Lets review some songs weve sung this year for
their ranges
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Range E to D, 7 tones
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Range C to C, 8 tones
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Range C to A, 6 tones
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Range C to C, 8 tones
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Range C to D, 9 tones
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Range, C to C, 8 tones
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Range, Part 1, C to Bb, 7 tones Range, Part 2, A
to F, 6 tones
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Range, Ab to Eb, 12 tones
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Improving Singing

• Stand or sit erect
• When you inhale, your abdominal wall should move
  out, not in
• As you sing, your abdomen should move in
• Your throat and neck should be relaxed
• Your mouth should be open
• Project the sound through your forehead, not down
  in your throat
• Imagine projecting the sound across the room to
  some one or some object you see there.

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MUE 3210Teaching About MelodiesChapter 9
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Lets sing an American ClassicOh, Susannah!
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(No Transcript)
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Lets look at the score!
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F and C -- D major
Range D to B, six tones
2 beats per measure
VERSE
REFRAIN
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Melodies

• The most important concept for young students is
  that of high versus low this is a fundamental
  aural discrimination
• Pitch is usually only perceived in relation to
  another pitch (higher or lower)

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Visualizing Pitch Relationships

• High, low, medium
• Pitches moving up and down

High
Medium
Low
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Experiencing Pitch Relationships

• High-low games
• Drawing melodies in the air
• Creating sound pieces

Finish
Start
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Melodies have Direction!

• Melodies move in one of three ways
• Upward
• Downward
• Or, they stay the same (repeated tones)
• Melody moves either close together (conjunct) or
  in leaps (disjunct)

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Melodies

• The best way to teach these musical concepts is
  through real musical examples
• The best melodies combine these melodic
  directions in engaging and musically satisfying
  ways
• Lets review some songs weve sung this year for
  their Melodic Direction

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(No Transcript)
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The arrows point out the melodic direction
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Range C to C, 8 tones
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Range C to A, 6 tones
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Range, C to C, 8 tones
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Range, Part 1, C to Bb, 7 tones Range, Part 2, A
to F, 6 tones
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Range, Ab to Eb, 12 tones
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Melodies

• Teaching notation remember the concept of
  higher and lower
• Early notation lessons begin with a single line
  (like all music did) that expands above or below
  the staff line
• Remember the young students dont have much of a
  range, that one line is sufficient
• With more complex understanding, add more lines!

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Whats Coming Up

• Grade 4-6 project is due next Thursday, June 5th.
• Class presentations take place Tuesday and
  Wednesday, June 10th-11th
• Materials Notebooks and Annotated Bibliographies
  are due Monday, June 16th
• Test 2 Chapters 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13
  Tuesday, June 17th and the Guitar Playing Test
  Wednesday, June 18th