5/28/2023
Topic:
Students with Disabilities
Shawna Grimes
|
Last year I had the opportunity to teach a student with Down Syndrome. This was my first time having a student with Down Syndrome, who also could not speak English. (I was teaching in Mexico). He came with an aid who was bilingual. The aid and I worked out how to amend different assignments for him, and to modify partner work so he was with two classmates. The student and I would communicate as best we could, given language barriers, and by the end of the year, we were communicating to each other in our native languages. I adapted assignments so he could present/gather information in whichever language he felt the most comfortable with. He taught me a lot about the clarity of instruction, and how to lay out specific information/requirements in a way that was helpful for everyone in the class, and myself. |
5/28/2023
Topic:
Students with Disabilities
Shawna Grimes
|
David Martinez-Cooley wrote:
For the past two years I have had the pleasure of working with a student who has an intellectual disability. He also had seizures when he was younger that has made it difficult for him to use one side of his body. He is reluctant to accept my help holding instruments that he can strike with a mallet, so we give him extra time to position instruments on the carpet, up close to his body in such a way that he can successfully play along with the class. During boomwhacker activities in which we were working on "left hand low" and "right hand high," we positioned the tubes on the carpet with a velcro band, so he could strike each one with a large mallet. With gross motor activities, we adjust as we go - each week it's a new adventure and we work together to discover how he can best show us what he knows.
That's pretty cool. We had a student this year with an orthopedic disability, and I think something like this would have been a great option for us to try. I definitely will have to keep this in mind for the future. |
5/28/2023
Topic:
Assessment of Learning
Shawna Grimes
|
This year we had a lovely student from Argentina added to a general education classroom. This student has a severe developmental delay, but also has William's Syndrome. For the first month or two, all assessments and conversations between us happened in Spanish. Instead of asking her to write down notes or rhythms, she communicated everything to me verbally. As she became more comfortable with English, we were able to include increased usage of solfege hand signs, iPad apps, and blossomed through partner work. She was eventually moved to the self-contained classroom, and would come to music with them, which was co-taught with another 2nd grade class. Being in the second grade class allowed her to develop much needed music fundamentals, and allowed her to flourish throughout the year. |
5/28/2023
Topic:
Assessment of Learning
Shawna Grimes
|
Marie B Hill wrote:
Last year, I had a student with Autism that was non-verbal. I was able to use technology to assess his understanding of the major musical concepts in 2nd grade general music. He was quite proficient in using the smart board during learning games and could easily participate in the Quaver curriculum that was projected. We included more instruments and movement games to reinforce the learning goals. He would always amaze his peers!
I think it's wonderful how far technology has come. Having a Smart Board, or another system where knowledge can be shown by matching or moving symbols around is such a wonderful gift. I need to figure out how to use more of it. |
5/28/2023
Topic:
Tools and Strategies
Shawna Grimes
|
One of the skills we began to teach the students this year was melodic contour, and not relationships. In order to do this, we used magnetic whiteboards with squares (for beats), and a staff. The magnets had either one googly eye (quarter note), two googly eyes (eighth notes), or one with one googly eye and part of a popsicle stick (half note). This allowed the students to demonstrate their understanding of rhythm. Each magnet was color coded to represent a note on the staff. Students would receive help, and then were asked to sing their creation for us. We sang it for them first, and then had them sing it for us on their own. This allowed us check for pitch matching, note understanding, and to begin working on solfege syllables. |
5/28/2023
Topic:
Tools and Strategies
Shawna Grimes
|
Marissa Rollins wrote:
I have employed the music program Quaver in my classroom with much success. The program has virtual lesson plans that I use to supplement my own lessons. Their lessons have great diversity in how it engages students (tactile and kinesthetically especially). It helps students with ADD/ADHD in particular when learning a class piece in particular. I always will model it (performing), say note names (auditory), view the sheet music (grades 2nd and higher), and use quaver to give clearer examples of pitch direction (kinetically using movement).
Quaver definitely has some wonderful examples of concepts. We've only started using it this year, but am looking forward to delving more into it in the coming years. |
5/28/2023
Topic:
Tools and Strategies
Shawna Grimes
|
One of the strategies I think we could implement in our classroom is the use of Semantic Maps. We assessed the 1st and 2nd graders on tempo and dynamic markings, and it didn't go very well, so we began to discuss ways in which we can improve that experience. I am formulating ways we could use that semantic map to help them differentiate between pitch, tempo, and dynamics. I think we could also focus more on chaining when preparing the students for playing their melodic composition. This year, I believe, was too much at once. I think the students would have more success if we take smaller chunks and layer them, instead of piling everything on them within two or three weeks. |