4/19/2016
Topic:
Tools and Strategies
Kim Evans
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One strategy I have used is mnemonic instruction. In this strategy, either the students or the teacher comes up with a rhyme, pattern, or saying to help students remember a specific musical concept. We frequently use FACE to label the space notes in the treble clef and All Cows Eat Grass to label the space notes in the bass clef. Fat Cats Go Down Alleys Eating Birds is a clever way to help remember the order of the sharps in the key signature. There are many other mnemonic devises we use daily in the band setting, Another helpful strategy is allowing the students to come up with their own mnemonic devices and share them out with the class. Using mnemonic devises is beneficial for all students and proves very effective in my classroom.
Another effective strategy I have used in my class is the Peer Partner strategy, Here, students can be paired in order to share learning experiences. Often if I have a brand new student to band, or a student who is struggling, I can pair them with another student who excels. This is beneficial to both students. The struggling student gets to work with a partner who can help them throughout the class, when needed. The higher achieving student can demonstrate mastery by teaching and helping the others. This has been an effective tool for use in the band classroom setting. |
4/19/2016
Topic:
Assessment of Learning
Kim Evans
|
One example of an adapted assignment that I use in my involved performance based assessments. For my students that require extended time, I am able to assign the playing or written test and allow the students to complete the assignment both during class, and if extra time is needed, students may continue their test before school or the next day in class. In special cases, students may receive fewer questions or adapted tests in order to comply with their 504 plan. I have had many students utilize this extra time and receive very high marks on their evaluations. I have also adapted assignments for non English speaking students with a 504 plan. By translating the directions into Spanish and/ or allowing them to use Spanish to English dictionaries, they are able to be successful on the written portion of the assessment. |