Michael Barrett

ID Document
ETEC 578
Purpose of the instruction
During my time as a student teacher at a middle school I
discovered that 6th grade students were having trouble understanding
and reciting rhythmic examples. Much of class was being used to teach
and reteach basic rhythmic passages and not on practicing music and
teaching sight-reading skills. Continued lack in rhythmic skills will
cause these students to become further behind when moving into 7th
and 8th grade choirs.
To further explain the problem I had to recall my time within the
elementary school music classroom. While there I realized that
students were not given adequate instruction in rhythm. The reason I
found was that teachers simply did not have enough time in the music
classroom to teach these skills. Students were only in the class once a
week for 30-40 minutes. During this time music teachers had to teach
styles of music, instruments, intervals, as well as rhythm.
This purpose of this instruction will be to help my future students
master basic rhythmic examples in order to create a foundation as
they progress through the music program. Rhythmic exercise are to
include whole, half, quarter, eighth and sixteenth note exercises as
well as basic time signature.(4/4, 3/4, 2/4)
Description of the Learner
The students are 6th grade beginner choir students. They suffer
from a lack of foundational rhythmic skills when reciting or reading
passages in class. In the class there are students who have been in

choirs in the past and students without choir experience. All have been
introduced to music in the elementary level. (K-5)

Goals and Objectives

The goals of this instruction are:
a.
b.
c.
d.

Master basic rhythm skills

Deeper understanding of how music is constructed
Foundation skills needed for future endeavors in music.
Become productive members of music ensemble(s)
through contribution within the music classroom.

Plan for assessment of learning

Student assessment will take place weekly through classroom
activities such as onscreen rhythmic examples as well as recorded
rhythmic quizzes given every two weeks.
Scope and sequence of topics to be covered
1. Begin with basic rhythm
a. Week One
i. Whole notes (2 days)
ii. Half notes (2 days)
iii. Combination of Whole & Half (1 day)
b. Week Two
i. Quarter Notes (2 days)
ii. Combination of Whole, Half & Quarter (3 days)
c. Week Three
i. Continued Combination of Whole, Half & Quarter
d. Week Four
i. Eighth Notes (3 days)
ii. Combination of Quarter & Eighth (2 days)
e. Week Five
i. Continued Combination of Quarter & Eighth
f. Week Six
i. Combination of all rhythms
g. Week Seven End of Semester
i. Continued combination of all rhythms
ii.

Estimated time for learner to complete the instruction

The learner will work on this subject over the course of the
semester in order to prepare them for 7th and 8th grade choirs.
Selection of specific instructional strategies or methods and
rationale for selection
To make this lesson successful, a hands on approach is needed.
Students will have a much better understanding of rhythm if they can
feel it. Through out our daily lives everything has a rhythm. How we
walk, music we listen to, and even things like driving down the
highway and hitting various bumps. These examples when used in a
music classroom help students recognize just how surrounded they are
with rhythm. This is why even in middle schools students clap or pat
the rhythmic exercises. This is so they can internalize that feeling and
ultimately conquer it.
The goals of this instruction are:
a.

Master basic rhythm skills

b.

Deeper understanding of how music is constructed

c.

Foundational skills needed for future endeavors in music.

d.

Become productive members of music ensemble(s)

In my classroom I like for students to be able to develop critical

thinking skills. This will not only benefit them in the classroom but in
life in general. For example I would use the Hearing/Thinking/Question
technique. Students listen to an excerpt, take time to think about it
and then discuss what they heard and what they think about it. I
always want them to feel like what they are learning can be useful for
them in multiple disciplines not just music. Rhythmic understanding
not only benefits in music but also other areas such as math. I never
want my students to feel like what they are learning is a waste of their
time, especially when music is supposed to be enjoyable.

Selection of specific media to be developed (video, slideshows,

audio narration) and rationale for selection
The use of a computer connected to a projector will be top priority
for these lessons. Rhythmic excerpts will be shown on the screen for all
students to see. As well audio will need to be made available for
students to listen to the example. Students will have the opportunity to
view and hear rhythm exercises simultaneously and begin to develop a
connection to rhythm.
A secondary media would be an iPad. There are various apps that are
available in order to help teach students rhythm. This would help
students who may be having trouble in the classroom setting to master
the lessons.
Estimated to time to complete the development process
One week should be sufficient to prepare for this lesson. Media will
have to be set up as well as rhythmic exercises and examples prepared
for onscreen use.
Resources required for development of the instruction
Very little outside resources will be required for this instruction.
Everything is available in the classroom currently.
List of team members and primary responsibilities
Michael Barrett will handle all responsibilities.
Plan for evaluation, maintenance, and update of the
instructional materials
The teacher will evaluate the lesson on a weekly basis and
instruction will be modified if needed. The modification will take place
the following week until the end of the school year.