Week 8 Blog

Video 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXDPjebNGsE
This video depicts a gentleman playing a guitar, which is a stringed instrument under the harmonic instrument section. This video falls under the harmonic instrument category because the gentleman is playing a harmonic tune

Second Micro-Teach: Teaching a Song

Here is my second micro-teach lesson, teaching a song. (First, I apologize for my attire, it's been a long day.) I love Christmas and I am just so excited for the holiday that I couldn't resist singing a Christmas classic! I hope you all enjoy!

 

Week 7 Blog

Example of Bad Vocal Technique <<----Link

The girl in this video exemplifies bad vocal techniques in a number of ways. Her voice sounds very nasally, which leads me to believe that she is not breathing from her diaphragm. She also does not have her shoulders back and relaxed; she is hunched over and shows poor posture. She does not pronounce her vowels correctly and form her mouth in to the correct shapes.

Example of Good Vocal Techniques

This video is the video of Carrie Underwood during her Season 4 American Idol Audition. Carrie displays correct vocal techniques by standing with her shoulders back and relaxed. She also is standing with her feet directly under her shoulders and her knees relaxed. Carrie also seems to be using the correct vocal techniques, although it is a little difficult to tell in a video.

Week 6: Review

1) For the blog during Week 5, it was instructed for us to choose a poem and record ourselves teaching the poem how it should be taught originally, then following up by putting Ta's and Ti-Ti's in the rhythm's place. **I recorded and posted my Micro-Teach lesson late before viewing this video in order to complete this assignment. I chose the poem "Here Come the Pretty Ladies".

2.) I noticed that when I did the original poem, it seemed that I had the beats and the rests correct. Mine was just a little slower paced than Chris's.

3.) I was completely right about everything on the Ta's and Ti-Ti's of the poem, except for the rests. I should have thought about it more thoroughly and realized that there were rests involved in the second and fourth lines of the poem.

4.) If I were to have the chance to re-do the assignment, I would make sure to write down my Ta's and Ti-Ti's and rests and think harder about where each would go.
I would also try to complete my assignments earlier so that I am not stuck in a bind as I was this past week and have my overall grade penalized.

5.) Throughout this lesson, I learned that rests should definitely be considered when interpreting poems such as this one.

Week 5: Micro-Teach Lesson

Week 4 Blog

Week 2: Rhythm

A rhythm can be defined in a number of ways. It is the recurring pattern that is heard throughout a song. Sometimes it can be fast and sometimes it can be slow. A rhythm can be created from every day sounds. It is the sound of raindrops on a tin roof. It is the pitter patter of little bare feet down a hallway. It is the whistle of a tea kettle and the sound of doors being opened and closed.

·         What do you like about the way she presented the information? Why?

o   I like that the information she presented on the boards seemed to be so organized.  I believe that organization is key in children understanding the information that is presented to them.

·         What do you dislike about the way she presented information? Why?

o   It seemed that Miss Taylor was talking down to her students as she taught the lesson. I believe that we should talk to children just as we would talk to anyone. If I were to put myself in a child’s shoes, I would feel as if I were inferior to Miss Taylor because of the tone of her voice and the rapid pace of her presentation.

·         Is this an example of good teaching? Why do you think so?

o   I believe this is an example of good teaching. Miss Taylor presented the information in an organized way. She also used different methods of presentation, such as the boards, verbal, and by simple, yet informative hands-on activities, where the students actually created rhythms themselves. However, I was not fond of the way that she talked to the students or how quickly she ran through the information.

·         How many different ways did she present the information? Why do you think this is important?

o   Miss Taylor presented the information in three different ways. She presented it first visually with use of the boards. She then used verbal explanation where she elaborated on the information presented on the boards. Finally, Miss Taylor used demonstrative techniques. She physically demonstrated what she had taught and then gave the students and chance to learn hands-on by doing it themselves.

o   I think this is important because not all students learn the same way. For example, some students may learn simply by reading the information presented on the boards. However, other students may need to participate in a hands-on activity to learn the same information.