I think that in order to use a blog in my music class I will do one of two things.
1). First, I would like to create a weekly blog that has a piece of music and it's composer. I would have a link to a song and ask students to tell me what they think about the piece. I would give them a criteria that they would have to follow, or different questions that I would like answered or even ask them to discuss what about this song makes it part of the genre that we are studying.
2). Secondly, I think that I would like to create a blog in which every week I would put information up about either a composer, a group, a vocalist, or a performer and ask the students to do research on that person and tell me what they feel about the person. Did they hear anything from the person that they enjoyed? Was there something about that person that interested them?
I am not sure which one of these ideas would be best. Ideas???
I am very interested in your ideas for math education. I teach many subjects as an elementary school teacher and am interested in integrating the arts into the content areas. If I were one of your students and had a choice between your two ideas, I would prefer to answer the questions related to the first option.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most challenging things about being a teacher is motivating students. Therefore, I feel that your first idea is the better option. This option allows the students to become more engaged. You will be opening their minds to new music and genres they might never choose to listen to on their own. I like that you are asking their opinions and having them relate the music to what they are studying in class. This will help you to see the connection they are making from your class to the real world.
Your second idea is great for them to get to know the person behind the music. However, I feel that listening to the music you selected and linked will be more engaging.
Another challenge as an educator is the lack of time. You mentioned that you would do this weekly. Have you considered modeling this for a short period of time, possibly a month, and then encourage the students to create blogs? They could create a blog about a composer and incorporate links to the songs.
Modeling will definitely be something that I will have to do with the students. Making sure that my expectations are clear and understood is the key to making this a success. Thank you so much for your input!!
DeleteSince one of the subjects I teach is physical education, I am always interested in what music teachers are doing, as both our subjects are very "hands on". What age group do you teach? I am assuming your students are at the middle or high school level?
ReplyDeleteDuring a particular unit in physical education I cover a sport during practical lessons and have one classroom lesson dedicated to project work related to that sport or topic. These units run 4 to 6 weeks, and I am assuming your units run a similar length of time? Because I only see the students once a week, I need this time, and find it gives the students a chance to explore the topic in greater depth. If you have the same situation of seeing students less frequently than english or math teachers, instead of weekly blogs, call it the unit blog, sticking to one topic and extend knowledge week by week. My suggestion would be to keep it simple because work on the computer is a time-consuming process, as I hear from my students. As Richardson suggests, "start small" (Richardson, 2010, p. 44). I always have to laugh when I only get through a fourth of the lesson I planned, as time goes faster in discussion.
I upload YouTube video's more and more on our online curriculum manager to prepare students ahead of time for the PE (physical education) practical lessons. The students love them. I would think you could use this resource as well for music uploads. What do you think?
Reference
Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful Web tools for classrooms.(3rd Ed) Thousand Oaks, CA. Corwin
I teach K-5. I would mostly use this with my 4th and 5th graders. I know the younger ones would struggle with it. I like the idea of doing a unit project. That makes much more sense than my original idea. Thank you for that idea. Youtube is a godsend for our subjects I totally agree with that! Thanks for your input!
DeleteI like the first idea better where the students get to give their opinion about the music or the composer. I think that the second idea seems to be more teacher directed and research-based. The students do enough research in the classroom, I feel like the blog should be an organized piece of the classroom, but one that gives the students some choice and that will be a forum for giving an educated opinion. I feel that one of your roadblocks will be your school filter. There are many great musical pieces that are published on the web, but will you be able to access them? Another roadblock may be computer access at home. Depending on which grades you teach, you may or may not be able to make it an assignment where they are required to access the Internet to respond to a blog.
ReplyDeleteLuckily our filters can be looked at and quickly turned off if needed. That is something that I will have to consider. Thank you for reminding me of that! Computer access at home is a HUGe problem, but we do have our labs open early in the morning and late into the evening, so there is a way to get around it. I know that I wouldn't require it, but make it more of a thing that students can do as extra credit. It sounds funny, but in our school we have a lot of students that really are over-achievers, so I am not really concerned with participation. I know they will do it.
ReplyDeleteI like both of your ideas. I think it would get students involved and open their minds up to different types of music. The one suggestion I would give, is to try to make it more student centered. Your ideas are great, but YOU will have a lot of up keep. You will have to find links and composers every week. It would be neat if you could hand the power over to students. Maybe post general requirements, such as "Find a song or composer you like from _____ time period and share why you picked it." Again, I think your ideas are great, but after a while it could get tiresome for you. It also may be nice for you to start off the ways you have described and then move to more student centered once they get the hang of it! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteYou are one of the lucky ones that still has a music program. You may color me green with envy. I really enjoy both suggestions you have given for your blog. The first suggestions give the ability to share opinions. Something every student has and does not alway get a chance to express. The second idea gives a more content-rich component to your blog. It reminds students that your blog is still a place for learning. One small suggestion I would make would be to occasionally toss out a more modern piece, just to get the students opinion on it. Find out where your students stand on music from the 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, and even the 2000's. Give them opportunities to learn about influential bands and musicians that directly impacted today's music.
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