Transcript Teaching Vocabulary in music

Teaching
Vocabulary in
Music
Melinda Van Aalsburg
EdFL 4210 Spring 2012
3/4/2012
INTERACTIVE WORD WALL
Use the Word Wall to reinforce new terminology
associated with a particular style or piece of
music
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Jazz music has terms
associated with it that
are sometimes not found
in other pieces of music
Use the word wall to
define new terms
Use the word wall to
reinforce any terms
carried over from
previous music
Examples of Jazz Terms Examples of Terms to
Reinforce
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Back Beat
Bebop
Bridge
Diminished
Improvisation
Riff
Syncopation
Vamp
Whole Tone
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Accent
Beat
Coda
Dynamics
Flat
Legato
Rubato
Sharp
Staccato
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Each time you work on a section of the music
discuss the vocabulary as you come to it.
When you encounter terms in the music ask the
students if it’s one of the familiar terms or if it’s a
new one.
Add new terms to one section of the word wall.
Pull familiar terms from the other side of the
word wall and put them with the unfamiliar terms
for that song. That way students are reviewing
as well as learning new words.
When you are ready to move onto a new piece
of music add all the words to the familiar side of
the word wall.
Word Placement on the Wall
Terms already discussed
New terms and terms used
for that particular song
Basic Musical Terms
Jazz Terms
In music we rarely have a normal classroom setup. Because of this
it is important to build a quick visual reference that the class can
participate in without taking time away from the music.
Why using a Word Wall is an effective strategy
Build vocabulary related to a particular
instructional focus, in this case Jazz
Terminology.
Help students develop analytical skills like
classification and deduction
Build sight word reading fluency
Provide a visual reference tool to help
students remember important words
related to a specific topic or focus
Content Area Literacy Guide 2007
Remember:
Don’t throw every new word at the students on day one.
•Add a few new words and a few old words each day.
•In pieces of music terms are often repeated, this will give you
several opportunities to introduce new terms.
When you are ready to move onto a new piece of music do a class
review of the terms before adding them to the learned section of the
board.
We often work on several pieces of music at once so it is important to
pick one piece to focus on the vocabulary for.
•Try and pick the piece of music that has the most unfamiliar terms.
•For example, if your group plays or sings mostly classical music
they are probably more familiar with those terms. Instead, focus on
the piece that is the most different, like a jazz piece. This will give
the students the most opportunities for learning new terms.
•It will also make further instructions in that style easier.
Other options for Vocabulary Study
Knowledge Rating Guide
Give the students a list of terms in a song and ask
them to state if they know it, what it means, or they
don’t know it
Save the Last Word for Me
Have the students speak about which section of the
music was their favorite. They should use the
vocabulary words to describe what they picture is
happening in the song.
Think Aloud
Use context clues in the music to figure out what
specific words or symbols mean.