Stephani McDole

Content and Achievement Standards

Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.
c. sing music representing diverse genres and cultures, with proper expression and
articulation manifest in the song.
Class Goals and Objectives
Continue to develop students skills through various singing activities. Enable
students to aurally identify and define what cut time is.
Materials
Pictures of cut time symbol, common time symbol, and exit ticket
Procedures
1. Students and instructor will discuss the word hallelujah.
QUESTION: Does anyone know what the word hallelujah means? How many of you
have ever heard a song with the word hallelujah in it? What was it?
PROMPT:
Today, Im going to teach you a song that only has the word hallelujah in
it. I want you to keep a steady beat with me. As you listen to me sing the song for you
this time, try to count how many times I sing the world hallelujah.
2. Students will keep a steady beat and listen as the instructor sings/models Hallelujah as if the
song were in common time.
QUESTION: How many times did I sing the word hallelujah?
PROMPT:

Now, we are going to learn the song together.

3. Students will echo Hallelujah in small segments as modeled by the instructor in an effort to
learn the song by rote. The instructor will repeat this process many times, gradually increasing
the length of the phrase, providing enough repetition so that students will be able to sing accurate
pitches, rhythms, and lyrics.
PROMPT:

Now lets sing the whole song all together.

4. The students and instructor will keep a steady beat and sing Hallelujah. The instructor will
remember to intone the starting pitch to make sure students can start together and sing
accurately.
PROMPT:

Now, you guys are ready to sing about Hallelujah without me.

5. The students will keep a steady beat and sing Hallelujah. The instructor will be sure to
intone the starting pitch to make sure students can start together and sing accurately. The
instructor will walk around and assess the students, checking to make sure the students can
perform the song accurately.
PROMPT:
This time, I am going to sing Hallelujah differently. I want you all to
keep a steady beat for me and try to determine how I am doing it differently.
6. Students will keep a steady beat and listen as the instructor sings/models Hallelujah while
keeping the cut time beat, rather than the beat all of the students are keeping.
QUESTION: What did I do differently than what you have learned? Was my singing
different? Was the way I was keeping the beat different?
PROMPT:
Now lets have half of the class keep the old beat while the other half
keeps the beat that I just demonstrated.
7. Students and instructor will keep a steady beat and sing Hallelujah with one half keeping 2
beats and the other half keeping 4 beats. The instructor will be sure to intone the starting pitch to
make sure students can start together and sing accurately. Once theyve finished the first time
through, the positions will switch and the other half of the class will now keep 2 beats while the
other half keeps 4 beats.
QUESTION: How are these two beat patterns different? If the first beat we kept had 4
beats per measure and the new one has 2, what have we done to the beat? What would you call
this? How would you show that you want to make a song in cut time?
8. After the students learn the new version of Hallelujah, the instructor will explain why the
beat pattern now has 2 beats instead of 4 beats, thus teaching the students about cut time.

PROMPT:
Now, you guys are going to sing the song while keeping our new beat
while I do something new.

9. The instructor will count the students in, and then sing the song in canon with the students.
The instructor will ask the students what they did differently and then explain canon. Then the
class will be divided and the whole class will sing the song in canon without the instructor so that
the instructor can assess the class and make sure everyone knows the song.
QUESTION: What did I do differently this time?
PROMPT: This is called canon. A canon is when two or more instruments or voices play
or sing the same song, but start at different times. Now that you know what a canon is,
lets divide the class in two and you guys can sing our song in canon without me. Ill
count you in and then youll be on your own.
10. The instructor will then pass out an exit ticket, asking the students to draw the cut time
symbol and explain what cut time means.
Assessment of Goals and Objectives
Assessment of singing skill will be informal and achieved by monitoring students during singing
activities. The instructor will utilize a checklist to indicate which students are singing with
accurate pitch, rhythm, and articulation. Knowledge of the concept will be checked by an exit
ticket.
Follow up Lessons
Future lessons will focus on different meters in cut time, and explaining why its easier for a
composer to make a song in those meters and utilizing the cut time symbol rather than writing
the song in the cut meter.