Episode #121: PPP: All About Presentation
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Upcoming Events!
Come see Carrie and Tanya at these upcoming workshops and events!
Carrie will be presenting "Keep them singing! Keep them playing!" in Seattle, WA
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Main Theme: PPP: All About Presentation
We are continuing our series where we'll be focusing on the 3 stages of learning commonly found in a Kodály-inspired class: Prepare, Present, Practice. This episode is all about Presentation. Carrie and Tanya share specific ideas for songs and activities to present a melodic or rhythmic concept.
What is presentation? This is the moment when the teacher presents a new concept or element to the students. We name it, show its musical symbol, and highlight how this new element is different and/or relates to known elements. The presentation moment is brief, and then the goal is to move into immediate practice where students are reading, writing, singing, and applying the new element in known song literature. In a presentation lesson, you are likely just going to focus on that one element for the entire class time, but you are still using a variety of song literature and activities including singing, movement, reading/writing, instruments, dancing, listening etc.
Presenting re
When presenting re, it is important to choose literature that features re in mi-re-do and do-re-mi patterns. Then during the practice stage, we can weave in songs that feature re in the pentatonic tone set (do, re, mi, sol, and la).
Great songs for presenting re:
Bow Wow Wow (highlighting the final m-r-d pattern)
Great Big House in New Orleans (highlighting the final m-r-d pattern)
Melodic presentation lesson for re (sample 45-50 minute class):
- Opening song/activity: This activity may or may note highlight re-it could just be for fun!
- Song match activity: Students match song titles to melodic patterns that features the "middle" note, which is what we call re before the presentation moment. Students are seeing the new element through icons on the staff and sing with body signs to demonstrate their understanding.
- Relaxation: We enjoy one of the singing games/activities that accompanies one of the songs from the song match activity.
- Presentation Moment: We isolate one phrase from a song song from the song match activity. We identify mi and do, and identify the middle note. Teacher says: "musicians call this pitch 're.' This is the body sign (or hand sign). Where is it on the staff?" Students identify that re is in between mi or do on the staff.
- Immediate practice staff reading: Students decode and sing patterns on the staff featuring do, re, and mi. Transition to the next activity by singing a pattern from another known song with do, re, and mi.
- Relaxation: Another singing game/activity from a known song.
- Barred instruments: For primary, it's helpful to set up the bars ahead of time but for intermediate students, they can set up the bars and that helps them notice where the steps and skips are. Have students echo play patterns with the new element. Transition to the final activity by having students echo play a pattern from a known do, re, mi song.
- Final relaxation: One more singing game (can be song featuring re or not), a dance, or listening activity. This should be something fun to let them relax after the heavy cognitive work they've done today!
- Closure: As we line up, I ask students to remind me what the new pitch was (re), and where it is (between mi and do), and if it's higher/lower by a step or a skip? (step higher than do, step lower than mi).
Rhythmic presentation for ti-tika:
When presenting ti-tika, look for songs where that rhythmic element is very prominent and stand out as something different. Avoid songs with tika-ti during the presentation stage (you can bring those back to practice ti-tika and prepare tika-ti).
Great songs for presenting ti-tika
The Tailor and the Mouse
Rhythmic presentation lesson for ti-tika (sample 45-50 minute class):
- Opening song or activity.
- Sing and decode a song highlighting the "long-short-short" rhythm and reading in morse code fashion with ti drawn as a line and tika shown as two dots.
- Relaxation: Play the singing game or activity from the song above.
- Presentation moment: You can present through dictation by having students draw 4 heartbeats or dots on the board. Take a phrase from a known song (ie: "hi diddle um kum feedle" = ti-tika ti-ti ti-ti rest), write the known rhythms first. Then with teacher guidance, decode and learn how to write and speak the new element. Be sure to highlight that this is a hybrid rhythm as it combines elements of ti-ti and tika-tika to create a new rhythm.
- Immediate practice: Students write other 4-beat rhythms featuring the new rhythmic element. Be sure to have students tapping the new rhythm on their hands so they are feeling each sound. Transition to another song by using a 4-beat rhythm from that song.
- Relaxation: Put away materials and now play the singing game/activity for another ti-tika song.
- Finish the lesson with other activities that are for fun or seasonal and not too cognitively taxing.
Know Better, Do Better
Carrie wants to elevate a new picture book publication based on the song "Build a House" by Rhiannon Giddens and illustrated by Monica Mikai. This is a wonderful book that highlights the many struggles and successes of Black people in the United States and is a must-read for any elementary music classroom. In addition to the picture book, there is an accompanying YouTube video that shows the illustrations, and you can also enjoy the original performance of this song with Rhiannon Giddens on banjo and Yo-Yo Ma on cello.
Work Smarter, Not Harder
Tanya reminded us of the importance of adding shortcuts to our drive when document, slideshows, and all things Google are shared with us. Look for the icon on the top of the document,
and then you can add this shortcut to any folder on your Drive for easy access. This way the item still belongs to the original owner, but you can easily organize it within your own Drive and not have to search through your shared folder every time.
Coda
Carrie recommends the picture book Going on a Goon Hunt by Michael Rex
Tanya recommends the book Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
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