K12 Performing Arts

Planning Commentary
Planning Commentary Directions: Respond to the prompts below (no more than 9 single-spaced
pages, including prompts) by typing your responses within the brackets following each prompt. Do not
delete or alter the prompts; both the prompts and your responses are included in the total page count
allowed. Refer to the evidence chart in the handbook to ensure that this document complies with all
format specifications. Pages exceeding the maximum will not be scored.
1. Central Focus
a. Describe the central focus and purpose for the content you will teach in the learning
segment.
[The students will learn about the idea of balance in an ensemble and apply
the concept through performance with large a group ]
b. iven the central focus! describe how the standards and learning ob"ectives within your
learning segment address creating! performing! or responding to music#dance#theater by
applying
artistic skills (e.g.! self expression! creativity! exploration#improvisation)
knowledge (e.g.! tools#instruments! technical proficiencies! processes! elements!
organi$ational principles)
contextual understandings (e.g.! social! cultural! historical! global! personal reflection)
Illinois State Standard Related Objective
25.B.2 : Understand how elements and principles
combine within an art form to express ideas.
Students will be able to hear a difference between
a balanced sound and an equal sound
26.A.2c: Classify musical sound sources into
groups
Students will be able to play a concert Bb scale in
a round with balanced sound and dynamics
26.A.2d: Read and Interpret the traditional music
notation of note values and letter names
Students will be able to play through m. 5-21 with
correct rhythms and pitches
26.B.2c: Sing or play acoustic or electronic
instruments demonstrating technical skill.
Students will be able to play through m. 5-21 with
correct rhythms and pitches
%&hroughout the lesson segment! students will demonstrate their previous knowledge of playing
their instruments with technical skill and being able to interpret traditional music notation.
&hrough our daily warm'up students will understand how to associate instruments into different
groups that associate with the proper balance an ensemble should play with. (fter each lesson!
) gave each student a time to reflect and express his or her answers in a small assessment.*
c. +xplain how your plans build on each other to help students in creating! performing! or
responding to music#dance#theater and make connections to artistic skills! knowledge!
and contextual understandings.
%,tudents will begin their exploration of the concepts behind the notes when playing music.
,tudents will build on their previous knowledge of recogni$ing notes and rhythms and reading
traditional music notation and work towards a goal of performing their piece with more musicality
as a group for their upcoming concert. &hey will use a song they have been working on and
apply their new knowledge of -balance. into their performance. *
2. Knowledge of Students to Inform eaching
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K12 Performing Arts
Planning Commentary
/or each of the prompts below (0a1b)! describe what you know about !our students with
respect to the central focus of the learning segment.
2onsider the variety of learners in your class who may re3uire different strategies#support (e.g.!
students with )+Ps! +nglish language learners! struggling readers! underperforming students or
those with gaps in academic knowledge! and#or gifted students).
a. Prior academic learning and prere3uisite skills related to the central focus45hat do
students know! what can they do! and what are they learning to do6
%,tudents are able to read standard music notation; they recogni$e notes and rhythms on a
page and are able to associate that with the correct fingerings on their instruments. &hey can
recogni$e instruments in their associated groups (i.e. low brass! brass! winds). &his particular
group of students is familiar with the song -7ankee Doodle /lipped his 8oodle.! which is used
throughout the lesson se3uence. &hey are learning about what balance means in an ensemble
and in music and are working to apply it in their piece.*
b. Personal#cultural#community assets related to the central focus45hat do you know
about your students9 everyday experiences! cultural backgrounds! practices! and
interests6
%&hese students come from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds however they live in a very
small neighborhood. (lthough they are originally from a different culture! many of them have
assimilated to fit the culture of the town. &he ma"ority of them have a lot of support at home and
are often encouraged by their parents to practice and to really invest themselves in the band
program. :usically! the ma"ority of them all started playing their instruments a year ago. ,ince it
is a ;'< school! they all experience the same music classes and begin band at the same time.
&his particular group of students are very social! well'mannered! and respectful of their teachers
and their peers. &hey en"oy laughing with each other and seem to always have their peers9 best
interest in everything they do. ) have actually been astonished by the calm and good'hearted
nature of all of these students. During their lesson time! we had them come in for part of their
recess time to accommodate the pro"ect and this resulted in a little more social'ness than
normal. ) have had no issues in regard to discipline with this group! however there are a few
students who struggle with keeping focus and ) can see their frustration as the time progresses.
) do my best to keep them on my radar and allow them to get a drink of water occasionally to
calm down. *
". Supporting Students# $erforming %rts &earning
Respond to prompts (=a1c) below. &o support your explanations! refer to the instructional
materials and lesson plans you have included as part of &ask >. )n addition! use principles
from research and'or theor! to support !our e(planations.
a. +xplain how your understanding of your students9 prior academic learning and
personal#cultural#community assets (from prompts 0a1b above) guided your choice or
adaptation of learning tasks and materials.
%5hen ) plan! ) know ) have to take into account the information that the students already have
learned in the sub"ect! what kind of class they are (noisy! restless! ect.)! as well as what they are
able to accomplish as a group in a given amount of time. (ll of this prior knowledge will aid in a
successful lesson plan that will keep students interested and motivated as well as provide them
as many chances as ) can to succeed at the task on hand. ) knew that ) was puling them in for a
portion of their recess time! so the chances that they would be restless and whiney were very
high. ) took this into account when teaching the lesson and made sure ) had a more relaxed
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K12 Performing Arts
Planning Commentary
atmosphere as well as provided some fun activities so it was not "ust working during their
playtime. *
b. Describe and "ustify why your instructional strategies and planned supports are
appropriate for the whole class, indi)iduals, and'or groups of students with specific
learning needs.
2onsider students with )+Ps +nglish language learners! struggling readers! underperforming
students or those with gaps in academic knowledge! and#or gifted students.
%)n my teaching! ) kept moving the entire time to make sure that there was not enough downtime
for those individuals who have focus problems in the classroom. 5hen it came to the
assessments! ) made sure ) gave them a prompt with enough information that they would not
have too many 3uestions about what ) was looking for in their answer! as well as re3uired a
more direct answers from the students. &his seemed to help those students with )+Ps since
there was clear instruction and ) was able to monitor them while they were filling out their
answers. ) also made sure to read the 3uestions aloud before they were to answer them so that
those students who have reading difficulties did not get frustrated and were able to keep up with
the rest of the class.*
c. Describe common student errors! weaknesses! or misunderstandings within your
content focus and how you will address them.
%) am teaching the concept of balance! which can be very confusing for ?
th
graders. (t this age!
they are learning that to -balance. something in science! you put it on a scale and wait for the
two sides to be e3ual. 5hen we speak of -balance. in terms of music! it means something
completely different. ) addressed this by asking two specific 3uestions on the first assessment. )
asked! -5hat is your definition of balance6. and -what do you think balance means in music6.
(fter seeing their responses and getting similar responses to what ) had assumed! we had a
3uick discussion about it at the beginning of the next lesson. *
*. Supporting $erforming %rts +e)elopment hrough &anguage
a. &anguage Function. )dentify one language function essential for students to learn the
performing arts knowledge within your central focus. @isted below are some sample
language functions. 7ou may choose one of these or another more appropriate for your
learning segment.
(naly$e 2ompare#contrast Describe +xplain +xpress
)dentify )nterpret Perform ,ummari$e ,ynthesi$e
%&he students in my lesson are able to identify if the ensemble is -balanced. or not based on the
definition of balance that we come up with as a class.*
b. )dentify a key learning task from your plans that provides students with opportunities to
practice using the language function. )dentify the lesson in which the learning task
occurs. (ive lesson#day number.)
% )n lessons 0'? students practice identifying a balanced sound within an ensemble
performance. &hey respond to multiple prompts asking if the sound was balanced or not.*
c. %dditional &anguage +emands. iven the language function and learning task
identified above! describe the following associated language demands (written or oral)
students need to understand and#or useA
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K12 Performing Arts
Planning Commentary
Bocabulary and#or symbols
$lus at least one of the followingA
,yntax
Discourse
2onsider the range of students9 understandings of the language function and other demands
4what do students already know! what are they struggling with! and#or what is new to them6
%,tudents need to know the difference between their typical definition of balance! and their
definition of balance in an ensemble. Due to this! we did not begin identifying balanced
ensemble sounds until the second lesson so that we could discuss the different definitions. (lso!
in order to determine that we have the same definitions for balance in music! we had to have a
discussion or -discourse. between the ensemble to clear up any confusions and to make sure
we were all on the same page.*
d. &anguage Supports. Refer to your lesson plans and instructional materials as needed
in your response to the prompt below.
Describe the instructional supports (during and#or prior to the learning task) that help
students understand and successfully use the language function and additional
language demands identified in prompts Ca1c.
%(s stated previously! being able to have a discussion on the topic was crucial to coming to a
agreement and making sure that the students would properly be able to identify a balanced
sound in the ensemble. (t the beginning of each lesson! we reinforced the definition with either
a 3uick discussion or a 3uick exercise to make sure they are able to identify the sounds
successfully.*
,. -onitoring Student &earning
)n response to the prompts below! refer to the assessments you will submit as part of the
materials for &ask >.
a. Describe how your planned formal and informal assessments will provide direct
evidence of students creating! performing! or responding to music#dance#theater by
applying artistic skills! knowledge! and contextual understandings throughout the
learning segment.
% :y planned formal assessments give me a 3uick answer to whether or not the students are
understanding the topic at hand. +ach lesson! ) had them write down if they thought the sound
in the exercise was balanced or not. /or each attempt! ) had one that was balanced and two
that were not. &hrough my formal assessment! ) was able to see if the students were hearing
the same thing ) was and if they were able to identify a balanced sound vs. an unbalanced
sound. :y informal assessments allowed me to see if they were transferring the idea of balance
into their performance of their piece that we were working on. ) was able to watch each
rehearsal at the end of the day and give the run through of the piece a rating! and ) was able to
compare the ensembles balance from lesson > through lesson ?.*
b. +xplain how the design or adaptation of your planned assessments allow students with
specific needs to demonstrate their learning.
2onsider all students! including students with )+Ps! +nglish language learners! struggling
readers! underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge! and#or gifted
students.
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K12 Performing Arts
Planning Commentary
%/or all my students! ) planned the assessment with = easy 3uestions. /or lessons 0'?! the
assessment sheet was the same! we "ust did different activities to demonstrate a balanced
sound. ,till! for each lesson! ) read each 3uestion aloud before the students responded so those
who struggle with reading are able to keep up with the rest of the class.*
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ll rights reserved. !2"0#13
The edT$ trade%ar&s are o'ned (y The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. Use of the edT$ trade%ar&s is
per%itted only pursuant to the ter%s of a 'ritten li)ense agree%ent.