Teaching Elementary Orchestra : Lesson Plan for Week 3

This post is the third in a series of beginning-of-the-year lesson plans. For previous weeks, please see:

Week 3! Students keep asking "When are we using the bow?" "Are we using the bow today?" And my answer is ambiguous--"We're getting there" or "We're getting close, aren't we." Or, "Look on the agenda on the screen to see what we're doing today." In this third week, students are writing their own composition using the open strings. We review the bow hold and add bowing with tubes (toilet paper tubes). While the only piece students pluck this day is my sample composition (and perhaps their own), this is also their first week of full orchestra, and we play everything on p. 8 and 10 in Orchestra Expressions as well as much of p. 1 of the Orchestra Expressions Supplement packet, so I feel it balances out.

After students turn in their compositions, I will type them up over the next week, saved as Google Docs, so students can play everyone else's the following week.

Again for this lesson plan's script, I will assume this is a violin group. For the other instruments, just substitute out the different sayings for the open string or instructions for how to draw the different open strings on the staff. This lesson plan is for a 30-minute small group, designed for groups of about 3-4 students all on the same instrument.

ON THE BOARD:

Agenda on screen

ON MUSIC STANDS:

Name card for each student

ALSO NEEDED:

Have spare folders and Orchestra Expressions books handy in case students forgot theirs

Composition #1 worksheet (already in folders if prepped by semester--but have extras ready for students who forgot theirs or the rare student who already discovered it in their folder and already wrote a composition on their own)

Pencils for students (already in folders attached with yarn)
Basket of toilet paper tubes
Dry erase marker/whiteboard
CD player with Orchestra Expressions CD
Camera/cell phone to take a few pictures of a few groups
Spare instrument for me
1-page Google Doc condensed version of this lesson plan (includes lesson plan for first full orchestra rehearsal too)

AS STUDENTS ARE ENTERING:

Welcome! Go ahead and grab your case off the rack. Cases go on the left-hand side of the chair with the little end in the back.

UNPACKING:

Pull the handle in towards you to put the case flat on the floor. Unzip or unlatch the case to open the top of the case. Take the violin out of the case by holding on to the neck. Sponge or shoulder pad goes on, then find rest position. [While they are getting settled in, I am pulling out their Composition #1 worksheet from their folders]

COMPOSITION #1:

So far this year, we've been playing lots of music that other people have composed. Today, YOU get to be a composer. You get to write your own music for the violin! I'll take a volunteer to read the paragraph at the top.

[Student reads]

Thanks [name]. And we'll practice drawing the different open strings together in a moment, but first, do you see the composition that I wrote? It's called "Falling Leaves." I see the treble clef at the beginning, so I know it's violin music. Next is the 4/4 time signature telling us 4 beats in a measure. Up above I see pizz. with means...pizzicato, the Italian word telling us to pluck. What's the first open string in my piece? And then?

Let's play "Falling Leaves." Playing position, left hand underneath, way up high, jawbone on chinrest. L shape, thumb on the corner of the fingerboard, "Good Dogs Always." Ready, play.

[If needed, may pause before m. 3 and regroup by figuring out the next open strings or go back and play the second half again]

Rest position. Actually, leaving the sponge or shoulder rest on, gently set your instrument in its case. In your folder you have a pencil. Go ahead and take out the pencil, and let's go through the check list together.

First, we'll need a title. I named my piece "Falling Leaves"; you can name your piece whatever you like. Next, we need the name of the composer, so go ahead and write your name on the "by" line.

We need a treble clef at the beginning so we know it's violin music--that's been done for us already! We can check off "treble clef."

Next, we need a time signature after the treble clef so we know how many beats go in each measure. Your choices are 3 beats or 4 beats in a measure. I chose 4 beats in a measure for my composition, so I wrote the 4/4 time signature after the treble clef. If you'd rather have 3 beats in a measure, write the 3/4 time signature after the treble clef.

We need bar lines between each measure--that's been done for us, so we can check off "bar lines."

Then, we need a double bar line at the very end. That's been done for us too, so you can check that off.

For rhythms, we'll use quarter notes and quarter rests, which each count as one beat.

Then, you can use any of the open strings, G, D, A, E.

Do you see the picture of the pencil about halfway down on the paper? That's where we're going to practice drawing the different open strings.

The G string is the lowest sounding string of the violin. It is so low it doesn't fit on the staff, so first we are going to draw two ledger lines below the staff [I draw the two ledger lines on the board, after the treble clef that's already up there, then walk around and make sure everyone has drawn two ledger lines on theirs and that they know where on the page we are]

Next we draw the note head below the bottom ledger line. The note head is this oval shape. We color in the note head, then give G an up-stem, up to the right. Go ahead and draw a couple of open Gs. [Walk around and look at papers to make sure everyone's following along]

The D string is a little higher sounding, so we'll find it a little higher on the staff, just below the staff. Draw the note head, the oval part, just below the staff. Color in the note head, then give D an up-stem, up to the right.

Are you ready for A? The A string is a little higher sounding, so we draw it even higher on the staff, in the second space, between the lines. Draw the note head between the second and third lines, on the space, and color it in. A gets an up-stem, up to the right.

The E string is the highest sounding open string for the violin, so we'll find it way up high on the staff, on the top space. Draw the note head for E between the top two lines, in the space, and color it in. Now, E is a little bit different from the other open strings. E gets a down-stem, down to the left. [If someone asks why, I draw an E with an up-stem and show how the stem is hanging out in the white space outside of the staff and say we want the stems to mostly be in the staff area and just keep it at that]

You may want to include a rest in your composition too. I like to draw a rest like a zig-zag or lightening bolt. A rest counts as one beat too.

Okay, it looks like we're ready to write our first composition for the violin! Congratulations!

[If students want to try out different sounds on their instrument to get ideas of what to write, that's fine, but I do try to keep things moving along so there's time for everything else I have planned. I walk around and look over their shoulders and say things like "What time signature would you like? Do you want 3 or 4 beats in a measure? The 4/4 goes right after the treble clef. There you go." Or "Which note would you like to start on?" Or "Let's count how many beats we have going on in this measure. The rest counts as one. 3/4 time signature says we have room for 3 beats in each measure and I see 5 beats, so decide which 3 you want to keep and then you can move 2 over to the next measure," etc.]

[I take a picture of one or two groups working to include in the weekly orchestra newsletter]

[As students are getting close to finishing, or in an effort to speed up their work, I'll say "Once you're done with your composition, I'll collect them so I can type them up on my computer this week so that next week you can play EVERYONE's violin composition" and possibly "I bet we can finish our compositions in the next two minutes so we can move on to the bow today."]

[If a student finishes well ahead of the others, I ask them if they want to try out their piece and see what it sounds like. Then I collect their composition--quickly glance at it to make sure their name is on it and I can read their title--and that the title is school-appropriate--and then tell the student to take out their bow. I work on their bow hand until another student is finished with their composition and ready to join us.]

BOWING WITH TUBES:

Go ahead and take the bow out of the case. The first thing we do is...tighten the bow. Righty-tighty, clockwise. You'll notice the stick and hair are getting farther apart. Keep tightening until you can fit about a pinkie or pencil between the stick and the hair.

Then find your bow hold. Shake, flop, back of hand in toward nose. [I make individual corrections as quickly as I can while I am also opening their books to p. 11]

Okay, I have a present for each of you. Don't get too excited. [Put a tube on their bow]

With the left hand, hold the tube on the left shoulder [left knee for cellos, left leg for bass]. You're going to have to hold the tube with your left hand so it stays put. Find the bow hold, pinkie on its tip, middle fingers over frog, little space for pointer, thumb is bent. [I am modeling all of this too]

There are two directions we can pull the bow: Down and Up. Down, up. [Students are copying my motions]. Notice the upper arm stays still. The elbow opens and closes so we can go Down and Up. [For cello/bass, I say "Out and In." We call "Out" "Down" and "In" "Up." I know we're not really going down and up, but the violins and violas do.]

The Italian word that tells us to play with the bow is arco. Say "arco." Then, there are symbols for down-bow and up-bow. The symbol for the down-bow looks like a staple and tells us to pull the bow down. The symbol for the up-bow is the V shape that tells us to pull the bow up, back towards the frog.

Let's play "Rhythm No. 1." Do we start down-bow or up-bow? Right, down-bow, so we need to start with our hand up by the tube, so the first direction we pull the bow is down.

[Play with CD track 13, do the repeat for each rhythm and then skip to the next rhythm. The CD timing works out that it finishes right after the repeat of "Rhythm No. 4."]

[I take a picture of one or two groups--one violin/viola group, one cello or bass group--to include in the weekly orchestra newsletter]

Now, in "Rhythm No. 2," it told us to do "down, up, rest rest" but then there weren't any bowing markings in the second measure. How did you all know which direction to pull the bow? [Take some student ideas] Well, we had just played "down, up, rest, rest"--what is our hand ready to do next, down or up? Right, we keep going back and forth, down, then up.

Tubes can go back in the basket. [I'm bringing around the basket for tubes] Do you think you can find a tube at home so you can practice this page 11 at home this week?

We had tightened the bow before, so now we need to...loosen. Lefty-loosy, counter-clockwise. You'll notice the stick and hair are getting closer together. Keep loosening until the stick and hair are just about touching. You might see some individual hairs start to separate.

Holding on to the frog, gently slide the tip of the bow back in the case, then turn the knob or dial to hold the bow in place.

LEFT HAND PLAYING POSITION:

[Violin/viola only; cello/bass skip right to packing up]

Today I'm going to show you a new place for our left hand, left hand playing position. Let's pick up our violins again and find rest position. Now, with the left arm, do an arm swing. On one of these swings, come all the way up to look at the palm. Notice the wrist is naturally straight and the fingers are naturally curvy. Let's do that again.

Now, let's go into playing position. Left hand underneath, way up high, jawbone on chin rest. Now, instead of making an L shape, let the right hand hang on to whatever is comfortable for you so that the left arm can do an arm swing. [Nope, your other left. Right hand is hanging on to the violin so left arm can swing. It might feel kind of weird] Swing all the way up to look at the palm of the hand. Notice wrist is straight, fingers are curvy.

At the base of our pointer finger is a knobby bone. We're going to balance the neck of the violin on that knobby bone, thumb touches lightly across (by the red tape). This is left-hand playing position.

[I go around adjust hands as needed]

One more thing today. Let's bring the left elbow in towards the belly button so pinkie is over the G string. Now, as the elbow swings out, let the pinkie drag across the strings to strum all the strings. I'll come around and help. After you've done it, sponge or shoulder rest comes off, time to pack up.

[I go around and help each student, then direct them to pack up]

PRACTICE ASSIGNMENT:

For practicing this week, we have p. 8 and 10 in the book again. P. 11 is new; it's the page we did today with the bow and the tube, so you'll want to find a tube at home this week.

In the white packet, we've been playing p. 1; you're ready to play everything on p. 2. There are harmony parts for songs like "Mary Lee" and "Ode to Joy."

On Canvas, there are bonus videos that go through everything that we did today, so if you want a refresher on how to bow with the tube or find that new left-hand playing position, click here and that will take you to the video you can watch and play along with at home.

Let's check the schedule for when I'll see you next.

Cases and folders can go back on the racks. See you at the end of the day when you come to pick up your instrument! Congratulations on writing your first composition today!

As compositions get turned in, I try to keep up each day with typing them up (and drawing two stars on each with colored pencil--one for drawing the different open strings and one for writing the composition--as well as writing any corrections or comments or "nice repeat" for those who thought to add the dots to turn the double bar line into a repeat sign). I also scan a copy of the whole stack once finished, just for myself, and I get the composition sheets in order for the next week so it's easy to hand them back. I also print one set of typed compositions on colored paper to tape up on the STAR Musician wall.

I also add a couple pictures to the weekly orchestra newsletter of students composing and bowing with tubes, so families get a visual too.

Go to: Lesson plan for Week 4