Barnum Woods Elementary School

February 2015

Gregory J.R. Bottari, Principal Harriet Alfano, Assistant Principal

Meegan Sam Coleman, Music Teacher Jaime Assortato, Computer Teacher/Literacy Coach

Damien Bennett, Lucas Rodriguez, Suleima Ayala, Taylor Ellis,

Brooke Vislocky, Jessica Ziegler, Grade 3 Students

Standard 1: Creating, Performing and Participating in the Arts Standard 2: Knowing and Using Arts Materials and Resources Standard 3: Responding to and Analyzing Works of Art

Speaking and Listening Standards: SLS 3.5: Create engaging audio recordings of stories or poems that demonstrate fluid reading at an understandable pace; add visual displays when appropriate to emphasize or enhance certain facts or details.

Writing Standards: WS 3.11: Create and present a narrative.

Language Standards: LS 3.1: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

LS 3.2: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

Music can improve speech and reading skills by increasing one’s ability to distinguish between various sounds and understanding the patterns of language. Music and the ability to read is an actual byproduct of the overlapping cognitive structures of the brain that process music and language. Nouns and verbs are very different from tones and chords, but the parts of the brain that process them are overlapping connections. Virtually any component of literacy can be put into a musical format, from learning syllables, initial consonants, short and long vowel sounds to learning text structures of poems, and stories-both fiction and non-fiction.

For most students, this is their first actual exposure to the new language of music. Symbols, circles, and flags on a page now must be translated to sound, just as symbols, circles, and lines are translated into sounds and letters, followed by words and sentences. Playing an instrument, like the recorder, enables our third grade students to better process speech in classrooms and, more accurately, interpret the nuances of language, which are conveyed by subtle changes in the human voice.

Composition Criteria:

Our objective was to write a letter to a classmate incorporating

words comprised of letters from the musical alphabet (A – G).

• Students used five words

from the musical alphabet bank.

Letters were written with proper

salutations and closings.

Grammar, punctuation, and

spelling were revised by writing a

first draft, a final draft, and a

final copy.

Students cut their music word

choices from the bank and

pasted them into their letters, in

place of the written word.

“To me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it’s about, but the music words make.” –

Truman Capote

Exceeds – 3 points Proficient – 2 points Novice – 1 point

Criteria

Grammar,

Punctuation,

Spelling

All words are spelled correctly.

Proper punctuation is included and

sentences are grammatically

accurate.

The sentences flow well into each

other.

Most words are spelled

correctly and there is one

incorrect punctuation mark

missing. The sentences flow

well into each other.

There are two or more spelling

and/or grammar errors. The

sentences do not flow well into

each other.

Proper Letter

Format

The letter contains a proper opening

salutation and a proper closing. The

body begins with an indented

sentence. The closing is placed on

the right side of the page with a

comma and name.

The letter contains a proper

salutation and a proper

closing. The body begins

without an indented sentence.

The closing is appropriate and

contains a comma.

The letter does not open with

a proper salutation or close

appropriately. The body of the

letter contains all 5 words, but

does not begin with an indent.

Performance No mistakes in note identification or

in correct placement of fingers for

each note. Student plays the piece

with ease.

Two mistakes or less with note

identification or correct

placement of fingers for each

note.

Three or more mistakes with

note identification or correct

placement of fingers for each

note.

Hand Position

Placement

Hands are in the correct placement.

Fingers are all correctly aligned over

tone holes.

Struggles to remember correct

placement, LH Top, RH

Bottom. Fingers are not always

aligned.

Hands are not in correct

placement--LH bottom, RH

Top. Fingers are not aligned

over each hole.

Musical Alphabet Composition Self-Assessment

Learning music and languages combines the mechanics of speech and communication. With both, students need to be proficient performers, as well as proficient listeners.

Musical composition follows cognitive rules and those rules play a major role in improving students’ writing & communication skills. Emotion and cognition naturally converge when we engage in conversation, both musically and linguistically.

A few million years ago, our distant ancestors chanted together. Gradually, the chant divided into spoken language and music, with musical sounds being the basis for the development of language.

In our general music classes at Barnum Woods, we stress the

importance of the written word with the unabashed joy of creating music.