Curriculum

Choir in the Oswego School district is regarded as an academic subject for all who participate. Students will receive a grade on their report card at the end of each quarter. Students do not need to be experienced singers in order to participate in chorus. Students will be taught vocal skills to improve the present use of their voice. In addition, musical concepts are presented through careful selection of quality choral music.

Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth grade choir meets daily, as part of the school curriculum.

In addition to rehearsals, interested students will have the opportunity to participate in the extra ensembles that are offered throughout the year. The ensembles are offered to all 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students. Seventh and Eighth Grade students will also have an opportunity to participate in the IMEA District IX Junior High School Music Festival. This experience is offered for those students who wish an additional challenge, and is optional. All choir students will participate in the District 308 Fine Arts Festival. Please see the concert calendar for all required choral events.

Course Goals

To heighten each student's aesthetic awareness through the musical arts;

To introduce students to the fundamental skills involved in singing in a choir;

To reinforce and develop the fundamentals of music theory and listening skills;

To provide students with an ensemble performance experience.

Course Objectives

To produce a desired vocal tone for students age;

To identify and demonstrate a knowledge of musical notation;

To develop good individual practice habits;

To demonstrate a basic understanding of the elements of music.These include:timbre, dynamics, articulation, rhythm, melody / pitch, harmony, texture, form, expression and style;

To demonstrate a basic understanding of and ability to perform ensemble skills and techniques;

To develop problem-solving and evaluation skills applicable to music;

To develop an aesthetic sensitivity to music;

To demonstrate knowledge of music as a creative art form of man in an historical context.

Learner Outcomes

Tone Production-

Model specialist demonstration of posture, breath support and vocal technique

Musical Notation-

Speak note names aloud while reading music;

Identify note and rest qualities and be able to perform rhythms correctly;

Identify key signatures and the sharps and flats contained within all keys.

Elements of Music-

Timbre-Recognize the difference in timbre of a variety of vocal examples;

Dynamics-Identify the dynamic marking of pp, p, mp, mf, f, and ff;

Demonstrate loud and soft dynamics;

Demonstrate gradual increase and decrease in volume.

Articulations-Demonstrate legato, staccato and marcato singing.

Rhythm- Demonstrate an understanding of pulse and beat division by:

Counting and singing whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth notes and rests, dotted quarter notes, dotted half notes and dotted eight notes;

Recognize syncopation and be able to demonstrate syncopated rhythms using quarter notes and eighth-notes;

Melody, Pitch, Harmony-

Identify melody and harmony in the music they perform;

Compare pitches and identify and fix pitch inconsistencies.

Texture-

Perform music in monophonic, homophonic and polyphonic textures;

Identify the difference between melody and accompaniment;

Identify, describe and evaluate the “pyramid of sound”.

Form-

Perform songs in binary and ternary form;

Perform a fugue and recognize canonic form and theme and variation;

Perform music that modulates and uses rhythmic transformation.

Expressive Elements-

Discuss the musical affect of the combined musical elements.

Style-

Explore tempo, interpretive, and articulation styles standard to specific genres;

Describe the historical background of a composition and biographical information of selected composers.

Grading Standard

The grading standard for the Sixth Grade Beginning Band on objective material is the scale adopted by the Oswego School District #308

A 90-100

B 80-89

C 70-79

D 60-69

F 59 and below

The grading standard for the Sixth Grade Beginning Band on subjective material will be based on a set of rubrics developed by the band staff.