Understanding Primary Music Session 2: Listening and responding to music Teaching singing

Learning objectives: 1. Reflect on how listening and appraising activities can support the development of understanding of the elements of music 2. Consider different styles of music within listening and appraising activities 3. Evaluate different approaches for structuring pupils’ responses to music 4. Explore different uses of voice and begin to develop learning through vocal games and activities. 5. Evaluate a range of strategies for supporting vocal development.

Using listening and appraising to develop understanding of the elements of music Pitch: high/low Duration: rhythm and pulse Dynamics: louder/quieter/silence Tempo: faster/slower Timbre: different types of sound Texture: different ways sounds are combined Structure: different ways sounds are organised

Listening and appraising: areas of focus Key theme: How does the music tell a story? identifying instruments and why these sound qualities were chosen for the piece reflection on musical elements: Pitch, Duration, Dynamics, Tempo, Timbre, Texture, Structure and how these contribute to the atmosphere or mood identification of repetitions, patterns and variations personal response to the music: like/dislike; how it makes you feel How is the music used with words, movement, drama or film? What does it add?

Listening and responding to music: ways of responding Talking about sounds and music – need to support the development of musical vocabulary Movement – body percussion; moving around the floor to a steady beat; dance Art – responding to musical elements or creating images in response to music Sounds around us – listen to sounds in the environment on a sound walk and record these electronically, then make a display to represent the sounds visually

Choice of music For each piece of music you listen to identify which musical elements that piece would be particularly exploring. What are the criteria for choosing music for listening in school?

ChoirOne singerSlowFast LoudSoftHappy musicSad music Instruments with strings Percussion instruments Wind instruments Grid structure – fixed choices

Listening and appraising: structuring responses to recorded music Evaluate the different approaches for supporting listening and appraising Devise a format that will enable you to structure the listening process and facilitate recording of feelings and thoughts about a piece of music. Evaluate another group’s recording sheet using 2 stars and a wish.

Aspects of developing the singing voice Controlling the voice Developing pitch accuracy Developing musical memory Clarity of diction Understanding the words leading to singing expressively

Basics of good singing The importance of good posture Warming-up both physically and vocally prepares children for singing Breathing for singing Having fun

Vocal warm ups Body Warm ups Breathing Face Mouth Voice Finally…. Singing!

Selecting songs  Singing was a strength… where… the repertoire was matched to pupils’ voices, their ages and interests (Ofsted, 2009: 9).  When choosing s song consider: - Is the pitch range of the song suitable? - Is the level of difficulty of the song appropriate (complexity of melody and difficulty of the words) - Do the children enjoy the song and find it meaningful? Within your groups discuss possible songs you could use within the primary age phase. Choose one song from each group, identifying the Key Stage it would be most appropriate for.

Teaching children to sing Importance of repetition of short parts of a song until children are confident Using an echo approach How to start a song: Counting in using pitch of first note – to help find this use tuned percussion Advantages and difficulties of using backing tracks (see next slide) e.g. ‘Sing up’ website: dance-to-your-daddy/ dance-to-your-daddy/

Using backing tracks Many schools visited had registered with Sing Up and had either downloaded material from the song bank, or were using songs from the termly magazines. These resources were, rightly, valued by schools – particularly by those that had not accessed the Sing Up training. As with other published resources, however, their effectiveness was entirely dependent on the quality of the teaching that accompanied them. Ofsted 2012: Para 50

Teaching a song Review what you know about teaching a song – group discussion. How do you think children may respond when asked to sing? How can you help develop the skills of children who are having difficulties singing? In your small groups choose a song and use the principles you have learned to teach it to the rest of the class.

Introducing part-singing Simple rounds Songs with sung ostinato Partner songs

What’s my role? Consider the role of the teacher in fostering good quality singing. Good role-modelling Discriminating listening – for pitch and rhythmic accuracy and clear diction Attention to character, mood and expression Choice of pitch and rhythm-appropriate (and enjoyable) songs

Creating a jingle Create a short advertising slogan and compose a simple tune Sheila’s wheels We buy any car Coca cola jingle

Scaffolding composition of a song: Plainsong A plainsong also uses the approach of limiting the notes that can be used: D E F G A This type of scaffold does not facilitate more than one tuned instrument playing at once Compose a plainsong melody to accompany the following poem

What can you see? I can see the pattern of the waves on the sea What can you hear? I can hear the seagulls when they’re flying near What can you smell? I can smell the salt that’s hiding in a shell What can you feel? I can feel the stones moving under my heel What can you taste? I can taste my ice-cream, couldn’t bear to let it waste

Scaffolding vocal composition: Composing a Rap Version 1 Create a rap for a well known children’s story that has repeated elements which children could join in with. Version 2 Create a rap which sends out a message about an issue relevant to primary age children e.g. environmental issues. Develop a rhythmic or melodic pattern to use as an ostinato.

Independent Study Tasks Familiarise yourself with a range of percussion instruments and think about different ways they could be played. See the Powerpoint ‘Instruments’. Look at the findings of the Ofsted reports (2009 and 2012), identifying aspects of effective practice in teaching music. Read the excerpts from books, available as PDFs on the learning network.