Now I’m a Music Editor!

Steven C. Marsh
scmjazz@yahoo.com

TI:ME Technology Areas Addressed:

Notation Software

Level:

Middle School

Class:

General Music

Equipment:

Computers, music notation software

Duration:

40 Minutes

Prior Knowledge and Skills:

Students will have a prior knowledge of basic rhythms and note reading.

NAfME Standards of 1994 Addressed:

NAfME Standards of 1994: Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

NAfME 2014: Performing 

NAfME Standards of 1994: Composing and Arranging Music within specified guidelines.
NAfME Standards of 1994: Reading and notating music.

NAfME 2014: Creating 

NAfME Standards of 1994: Listening to, analyzing and describing music.

NAfME 2014: Responding 

Materials:

Teacher created notation file consisting of a nursery song (Mary had a little lamb, Twinkle Twinkle).

Objectives:

Students will be able to identify errors in written music and correct them.

Procedures:

1. Play song for students twice. Once without singing along and again having the students sing along.?
2. Play song again but this time it has mistakes in it.?
3. Ask students to think about what they heard, what was wrong with it, what might they have to do to fix it.
?4. Demonstrate fixing an error.
?5. Have students open up teacher created file in a notation program.
?6. Each student will spend time listening to the song and going along and fixing the problem spots. Reminding them to really use their ears and prior knowledge of the song. They can sing the song softly to themselves if it will help.

Evaluation:

At the end of class have the students unplug their headphones and go around the room listening to each others final result.

Follow Up:

More complicated pieces could follow. Or, when students start composing their own tunes, they could lend editing ideas to each other with more precise suggestions.

Items to Purchase:

When budget should be submitted: