Embedded Files
Service-Learning Activity1
Going beyond using premade tracks to compose- including notation, an in depth review of reading music.
Who - Tell me in a phrase who this activity is appropriate for. You might say "parents could use this for kids in preschool" or "this is for tweens and adolescents, but younger kids and adults may also like to try this activity." You could get more specific, if you like.
This activity is appropriate for anyone learning to read and write music regardless of age. This activity would be ideally appropriate for middle school through high school, and even non music major college students and older adults interested in learning about making music.
The need - Briefly state the need you identified and how you are striving to address that need through this activity.
I have found throughout my current course that not many of my students can actually read music. I do not believe that this is a necessary skill for creating, however for my proposed more in depth composition course, I think this would be a good skill to take into account and then apply to creating music on our DAW, Soundtrap, using a keyboard and/or piano roll on the DAW. This adds another layer to concepts we are already working on.
What - Describe your activity in 1 clear, concise, logically written paragraph (3-5 sentences) OR in 3-5 bullet points.
This activity has the goal of getting students to practice reading treble and bass clef. We achieve this by having an in depth discussion followed by a crossword puzzle. The discussion begins by using our free textbook, Open Music Theory. The students get a handout copy of everything projected onto the board. While we do complete the puzzle on our own, we leave time at the end to review it and answer any questions remaining.
Music - State how music is involved in 1 sentence or bullet point (is it central to the activity, supportive, in a music setting, for a music audience, etc.).
Music is involved because we are incorporating how to read music notation into our previous knowledge of our Digital Audio Workstation (Soundtrap).
UDL - State how you have incorporated at least 1 principle of UDL in 1 sentence or bullet point.
I included the multiple means of representation principle for students to access the materials in multiple ways (i.e. handouts, on the computer, or printing their own).
SEL - State how you have incorporated at least 1 element of SEL in 1 sentence or bullet point.
Social Awareness was used throughout this lesson by allowing students to share their created clef acronyms, answers, and questions during class.
7.
How - Provide a very clear step-by-step task analysis of key steps. Someone else should be able to follow to carry out your activity. I strongly recommend giving it to someone else and ask them if they "get it." You might think about this step like creating a recipe for someone else to follow.
● Options for conveying this information: a) write a list of concise, clear instructions; b) make a short video with captions (no more than 5 minutes; TikTok, YouTube, etc. are ok).
● Ask if you need help making materials accessible!
The class begins with a review of what we know so far (the DAW Soundtrap, how to select from premade tracks, what a “key” is, and clicking notes on the piano roll that fit within our premade tracks/keys).
After having an open discussion we then begin with an introduction of reading treble clef followed by bass clef. I point out the reason we are doing this is to be able to identify notes on a piano, which we can use on the piano roll on Soundtrap to create our own tracks and loops. We begin this by projecting our course book onto the board while giving an overview. https://viva.pressbooks.pub/openmusictheory/chapter/clefs/. This same information is also handed out to each student. (Handout 1 below).
The first handout given to each student.
The students get a chance to come up with their own acronyms for the spaces and lines within the treble and bass clef. For example: Every Good Boy Does Fine for the lines of treble clef and Good Boys Do Fine Always for the lines in the bass clef. We will share these acronyms to the class.
Next, we review any questions regarding the two clefs. For the purpose of this lesson, we are just focusing on what fits within the staff, no ledger lines.
Following this, we hand out the practice worksheet (Handout 2), which is where you complete a CrossWord puzzle regarding reading the notes (below). For this practice, I leave the review materials on the overhead board. This is because I am more focused on students gaining knowledge and practice rather than immediate memorization because learning to read music can be overwhelming and intimidating.
We then close this lesson by reviewing the Crossword worksheet and taking any questions the students may have.
8. Materials - list of what someone needs to do the activity. If you create materials or handouts, please provide a url link, a photo with alt-text, a downloadable pdf or Google doc (set to "anyone with the link can view").
● Ask if you need help making materials accessible.
Alt text is offered for each image attached.
https://viva.pressbooks.pub/openmusictheory/chapter/clefs/
Overview of treble and bass clef via Open Music Theory.
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