Dueling with the Dual

Approximately six years ago, my school district decided to become a "dual language district."  The initial plan was that all students would be instructed in both English and Spanish.  We did have parents who insisted their children only be instructed in English, so the dual language model in our school is not "pure" - we do have classes in each grade level that are taught solely in English.

However, as music teachers know, we teach ALL the students in the school - not just the English, not just the Spanish/English dual language classes (and all other languages that may arrive in our classes).  How does this affect our classrooms?  Many become even more concerned because we are music classes in the United States and our textbooks and other materials are generally in English.

First, if this becomes a reality where you teach, I will advise you - DO NOT PANIC!  This advice is especially for those native English speaking music specialists who do not speak Spanish.  I have lived along the Texas/Mexico border for nearly twenty years now.  I can assure you that this Pennsylvania native knew very little of the Spanish language prior to making the 2,000 mile journey to live here.  Through various programs, interactions with friends and colleagues, and sometimes just plain osmosis, I have picked up enough Spanish to hold a conversation, conference with parents, and generally speak with minimal "accent" and can do so without much effort.  I am a far cry from a "native speaker" but I can hold my own.  Using online resources that translate English to Spanish have also helped a great deal. 

If such a situation comes your way, find a language learning program you like and be diligent about learning the language.  Do not rush.  Learning Spanish, for me, has been a long and on-going process.  Being a musician gives me an advantage as my "ear" is much more analytical and can more readily reproduce sounds I hear.  Knowing a different second language was also helpful.  After all, I took four years of FRENCH in high school...if I had only known...

The dual language model in my school district is the 50/50 model - 50% of the time we speak Spanish, 50% of the time we speak English.  Certain subjects (math) are delivered solely in English.  We use a "language of the day" which means in the fall semester we speak Spanish on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays with English being the language on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  This reverses in the Spring semester.  A few years ago I began to question the exact nature of music's role in the dual language environment.  Basically, as long as the "social language" used is in the language of the day, you are satisfying the dual language environment basic requirements.

To satisfy this basic level of compliance with the dual language process, familiarize yourself with simple commands you use daily, "Please sit down, turn to page, raise your hand, choose another student, open/close your books, pass out the instruments, line up..."  Just knowing these few phrases will take you quite far in complying with the dual language program.

However, I wanted music class to be a bit more than just "meeting the basic requirement" so I got busy researching musical terms in Spanish.  This was a daunting task as there are times in music when there simply ISN'T a word in Spanish for what we are talking about.  I particularly had difficulty locating a word for "beat" ("ritmo" is what you will encounter) but after having a discussion with a colleague who was born in Mexico, I learned a fitting word that I have been using - compás.  I have always kept a word wall in my room - it is color coded by topic to assist students but I also use these when posting my objectives for each class.  In the dual language program, English words are to be written in blue, Spanish words in red.  Here is a glimpse at my word wall (I realize the photo doesn't allow you to read many of the words, but my word wall takes up a lot of space!):

These are laminated and have magnets attached so I can simply grab one and place it by the appropriate verbs for my objective for the day.  Here is the way I have these same statements in both languages (these were created before the red/blue instructions were given and I never changed them since they work just fine for my students):

Using this method, it is quite simple for me to have on my board, "Hoy voy a ser capaz de identificar, tocar, leer, y cantar ritmos con corcheas."  (Today I will be able to identify, play, read, and sing rhythms with eighth notes.) without writing a single thing.  Plus, the students frequently see where I pull the word from the word wall so they know where to find it if they need to reference it later in the year.

Last year and continuing into this year, I have started delivering my Spanish classes (on Spanish language days) almost entirely in Spanish.  If I come to a bump in the road and don't know a particular Spanish term, I simply ask the students.  No, I do NOT change my lesson plans to solely incorporate Spanish music.  If a song happens to be in Spanish, then fine, but I don't make two separate sets of materials.  After all, in music class we sing music in many different languages.  When teaching music in English and I use the song "Tanabata" I do not translate the song's words or title into English - the song is Japanese, so that's how it stays.  This means a second grade Spanish class may begin like this:

"Buenos días. Los siguientes estudiantes deben pasar los libros hoy ... cuando usted recibe su libro, por favor vaya a la página ... la canción se titula 'Lemonade'."  (Good morning.  The following students should pass out books today...when you receive your book, please turn to page...the song is called "Lemonade.")  So I don't need to keep repeating the page number, I have this section on my board as well:

The student books are sectioned in colors, so I write the page number in the color of the section next to these sentence strips that remain on my board - this helps the students get to the page more quickly - especially younger students who have difficulty finding pages like 366! 

Years ago we were trained in a discipline program that involved asking four questions.  I keep these posted in my classroom as well.  Again, these were made prior to the red/blue instruction so I have kept them in their original colors which were basically reversed (but the "red" is actually pink):

When reviewing classroom rules, I have adapted the Whole Brain Teaching concept of using hand motions that go with my five classroom rules.  These five rules are posted solely in English (a poster I had created long before the dual language program was introduced in my district); however, I go over these rules in Spanish on Spanish language days and the hand motions also help the English Language Learners grasp the meaning of the English classroom rules.  Next to the rules I have a large poster of our school Values Code which was given to me in both languages.

Adapting to the dual language environment has been a process.  I have had to do a bit of "front-end investment" work, but it has paid off.  I make use of online translation sites and Spanish/English dictionaries quite often.  A great tool for businesses (but not necessarily solely for businesses - educators can benefit too!) is Smartling.  They provide translation services and translate websites for business communication.  If you find yourself doing more translating than teaching, you may want to check out the services Smartling has to offer.

By adopting this new, more intense adoption of the dual language model in my music classes, my students whose first language is Spanish have a whole new respect for me and my class.  Prior to me going "whole hog" with the dual language integration, many of my students would ask, "Do you speak Spanish, sir?"  Since I have been conducting my classes in this manner, I don't think I've had a single student ask that question.

If a dual language situation comes to your school, relax, flow with it.  You CAN do it.  And you and your students will be all the richer for it!

Until next time...

School Runs In...Love Runs Out

Here is a quick and easy play-along for the start of the 2014-2015 school year.  The song is "Love Runs Out" performed by the group One Republic.  There is much good news with this popular song, not the least of which it is in G dorian mode.  Our Orff instruments are all set for this - all you'll need is B-flats and you're good to go!  The other good news is the lyrics have no "bad words" so you're safe to use it completely in tact in your classroom.

Please be sure to PURCHASE THE SONG before using this play-along.  A $1.23 investment isn't much.  Once you have it, you can use it as-is, there is no need to alter the key or tempo using a program such as Audacity.

This song follows a very simple I, IV, V chord progression, but in case you're not quite clear on the chord changes, I've posted the beginning play-along below.  Once you try it out, I'm sure you'll notice where the changes occur throughout the song.  Feel free to add or subtract instruments at will.  This is a fantastic review for students to see and hear the difference between BEAT and RHYTHM.  The hand drum part (or any type of drums will do) clearly plays the steady beat.  The other parts are playing a rhythm pattern (some more intricate than others).

I did this with my students by having three groups that used the Boomwhacker colors - Green (the G minor chord) Red (the C major chord) Orange (the D minor chord).  This was easier for them than having each student play all the chord changes.  I placed the three colors on the board and pointed and called out the changes as the recording played. 

There is a part in the actual recording where the bass line moves from C to B-flat and then to G, but I have only written "the basics" here for you.

Have fun!

Syncopa

Here's a "quickie" that you can use as a syncopation review during the last weeks of school...

There is an artist named Zoë Badwi from Australia.  She has a hot dance tune titled, "Release Me."  As with many dance tunes, there are a bazillion remixes available.  The one you want to look for is the standard "Radio Edit."  This song is PERFECT for reviewing the "syncopa" rhythm pattern!  What makes it even better is...it doesn't use any inappropriate language or sentiments - so it's an awesome choice for an elementary lesson.

The problem with this tune is it is in A-flat major.  Unless you have a plethora of chromatic instruments at your disposal, you'll need to change that.  A quick (literally 30 seconds) run through Audacity lowered the key to G major - perfect for classroom instruments!  Save the MP3 and then add it to your library.

Using any classroom instruments, keyboards, etc. your students can play Gs (or octave Gs) to the rhythm "ti-ta-ti-ta rest." 

You can literally repeat this pattern throughout the song and it will harmonically fit.  There is a "raise your hands" section in the middle where I have the students raise their mallets and tap them to the beat.  For contrast, you can have some students play straight quarter notes on drums (demonstrating the opposite of syncopation - "on the beat").

I did this with my third graders and even the most hard to please loved this lesson.  After a quick introduction and review of what syncopation is, I had the students get out several Orff instruments and locate "G."  We rotated through to give students a chance on different instruments.  One student even asked the name of the song so she could go download it.  Following this, we closed out the lesson by singing "Jamaica Farewell" from their textbook.  An excellent example of syncopation as well!

Release Me (Radio Edit) is available on both iTunes and Amazon MP3 downloads.

Until next time...

Getting It Together - Part II

It's a very busy time of year...and posting "part II" has been on my mind for weeks...some days you just have to make time!

Let Go of the Desire for Absolute Perfection

As musicians, it's in our nature - if it's not perfect, it's WRONG!  But...there comes a time when you need to be realistic.  In the case I just mentioned in the last post, I had almost NO time to prepare and the students I would be working with would be YOUNG.  You need to step back and say, "If I were watching this as a non-musician, what would I think of it?"  For most people, it would barely be a blip on their personal radar screen (unless their own child was in it) and for even more people, it would probably be little more than background noise.  The Academy would not be watching this.  The daytime Emmy's would not be weighing in.  I knew I needed to simply do the best I could and let the chips fall where they may.  Guess what?  They were STELLAR if I do say so myself.  And it was all done with virtually no stress.

So when life throws you it's challenges, do your best, don't freak out, and move on.

Get a System

I find that people who seem to always be running are victims of their own circumstance.  These are the people who frequently misplace their keys.  They forget appointments.  Sometimes even their personal appearance is disheveled.  While we can't prepare for everything and we all forget something sometimes, the best way to avoid this happening on a regular basis is to get a system.

What I mean by a "system" is to set places and times for regular things you have to do and use.  For example:  my cell phone.  I have basically two (sometimes three) places where it will be at ALL times - it is either on the docking charger next to my bed or in my pocket.  These are the ONLY places it goes.  I don't take it out because I "need more room" and leave it sitting somewhere - NO!  This is how I know where it is.  If you become picky about having things in your pocket or wherever, you'll need to get over that.  What would you rather do - have peace of mind about an expensive item or go running around like a chicken three out of five days wondering where you placed it?  I do this for other things - my keys (they're either on a special hook by the front door, in my pocket, or in the ignition of my vehicle - I never have to look for my keys very long!), my brief case, my wallet, etc.

I'm sure at your school you have "duty."  The way it is set up for us is that we have duty one day out of the week all year long.  Mine is on Mondays (guess why I was assigned that day?).  Duty day requires that you be at work a little earlier than usual.  There was a time when my day was Thursdays.  So...what are the options here?  Get up at a certain time every day but on that ONE day get up a little earlier.  Maybe, but no.  That doesn't work for me.  I get up at the SAME time EVERY day so I know I can get to work without panicking that I will be late for duty.

My lesson plans are due every Thursday.  I make sure they are complete by Tuesday - this means:  creating the plans, preparing any materials I may need, setting up iPod playlists, entering the assignment in my online gradebook, and creating an online backup copy of each plan. 

Having certain places for items and systems in place will make your life MUCH calmer - trust me.  Set these things up, and DO NOT deviate.  However, sometimes deviation is necessary.  This takes me to the next part...

Plan for a Change of Plans

Murphy's Law rules the world - if something can go wrong, it probably will.  If it does, what will you do?  Panic?  Throw your hands up and yell, "Why, why, WHY!?!"  Or, will you take the second option - to steal from the Boy Scouts:  be prepared.  I realize that "planning for a change of plans" borders on paranoia, but it is a fact of life.  What will you do if something changes?

This is especially true at this time of year.  The end of the school year is NUTS.  Music teachers like to talk about the frantic month of December, but...if you ask me, it's May that runs me into the ground.  Disruptions in schedules due to testing, field trips, end-of-year performances, awards ceremonies, closing up your classroom, and on and on and on.  Add to that the fact that we're all just really, really TIRED!  The answer to remaining together during these turbulent times is to first be flexible.  You had a really cool activity planned out for your fifth graders and your classes got canceled due to re-grouping for re-testing?  Oh well...put that one in the archives and move on.  Freaking out won't do you or anyone else any good.  Relax.  It is what it is.

The second problem I see more often in teachers - they just go on the assumption that the Internet will be working, those electronic devices will function properly, the projector bulb won't burn out, and the batteries won't die.  They assume the fire drill won't happen, the power won't go out.  They build an entire lesson around these assumptions.  Then one of the above mentioned things happens and...OH NO!  And, I think we can all agree, there is NOTHING more chaotic than a room full of elementary children with nothing to do!  So...you may have something alternate planned or you simply may have something in the back of your mind, "Well, if this doesn't work, I'll be able to have them do this instead..."  ALWAYS having a "plan B" will keep you together.  When preparing something important, think through the possibilities of what could go wrong and work from there.  A good example is this blog.  Here I am spending a good part of my Sunday typing and typing away.  What would happen if the power went out right now? What would happen if my computer suddenly failed?  I'm not worried.  Why?  I am comforted to see that little flash in the upper right corner of my screen that simply says, "saving" every minute or so.

I hope at this busy time of year these few words in parts I and II can help you get through it with ease.  And always remember...summer is nigh!

Until next time...

Getting It Together - Part I

I started this blog post months ago…then life got in the way.  Today, as I sat down to finish, I realized it was WAY too long, so it’s another multi-part series.  This post is for everyone - not just music types.

I have spent the latter part of my career hearing things like, "Well, you're a morning person..." and "Well, you don't have kids at home...that's why you're so organized..."  Ummm...no, and NO.  You see, despite all outward appearances, there is nothing I would like more than to become a professional lounger and sleeper.  I love sleep.  To quote Rita Rudner, "I love sleep...one time I dreamt I had insomnia...I woke up and though 'Now I can get some sleep..."

I haven't always been the master of disguises (most recently the "gee you're so organized and a morning person" disguise).  I am ashamed to admit, that I was one of those teachers racing to get the last parking spot.  I was one of "those teachers" who, if we had to be there at 8:00, it was a GOOD day if I arrived in the building at 7:59 and 45 seconds.  No, I most certainly was NOT (and still am NOT) a "morning person."  I love the night.  I do my best thinking and have the most fun in the wee hours, but...as I got on in age and in my career, I started to realize, "Uh...this ain't workin'."

So...if you're one of those people who wishes they could get themselves together, a chronic procrastinator, or one who seems to always be chasing their own tail, this post is for YOU!

Do it NOW

Here's the thing...as teachers (or basically, as American human beings) we get hundreds of things flung at us on a weekly basis.  Deadlines, bills to pay, forms to fill out, yards, cars, and homes to care for, ailing relatives...there is ALWAYS something to do.  Enter "The Deadline Dilemma."  When busy people are handed something to do, there are two responses:  1)  Oh good, it's not due until next Thursday, I'll set it aside for later...and 2) Let me do that for you immediately, while I'm thinking about it.  Here's the thing:  the latter of those two is not doing that to try to be a people pleaser.  As I've amassed some years and (hopefully) some wisdom, one thing is for sure - there will forever be something in that "to do" pile.  If you put it off because it's due later that's fine; but what I have discovered in my half century on the planet is that pile never shrinks.  It grows.  And sometimes it grows exponentially.  So, while you might be slightly pressed for time at the moment, take the extra time to GET IT DONE NOW.  Do you really want to set it aside, then get another task to complete, another, and then another, and then (this always happens) the "I need this TODAY!" request?  Then what?  You allowed all those things to pile up, you need to get them all finished at approximately the same time, and now you have the "I need this NOW" person breathing down you neck.  Now what happens?  You get stressed.  You get angry.  The stress makes you tired.  You take it out on others...it's quite the vicious cycle.  Additionally, unless you have a good system, you run the risk of forgetting a deadline altogether.  Do I feel like composing that email for a teacher who has a tech support problem at 4:30 while I'm STILL at school and dog tired?  No, I don't.  But I know if I DON'T do it right then, I'll be even angrier and more stressed later when I'm busy and possibly forget I had that to do.  Which takes me to the next part...

Never Underestimate the Power of the "Front-end Investment"

As teachers or even other professionals, there are things that come our way without fail each and every school year.  We know we will have to put on that Veteran's Day concert or we know our lesson plans will be due each Thursday.  Years ago my school district adopted an online lesson planning program.  It was quite elaborate and it seemed that all sections of it were "mandatory."  The beauty of this program is that I knew it would archive any lesson I created - FOREVER (until I deleted it).  Knowing this, I took a good look at my monthly planning grid.  I keep mine visible at all times by my desk in my classroom.  It's a simple grid that shows major concepts I want to cover in each grade level by each month.  That first year we implemented the lesson planning program, I was maniacal about my lesson plans.  Why?  Not because I loved pouring over what level of Bloom's Taxonomy the lesson would be addressing or how much I adored the state standards.  NO!  I did it because I know that in the following years, it would be quite simple to pull out the archived plan, give it the once-over, and be DONE.  My lesson plans are very elaborate and it would appear that I spend hours and hours each week preparing such wonderful pieces of literature.  The maximum time I spend using this system now?  Maybe 30 minutes but often less - and that's creating plans for seven different grade levels.

Also as a music teacher, spend time going over new music.  You don't have to use EVERY song or game or activity RIGHT NOW.  Look over the things you have, order new things, search the Internet.  Make notes somewhere or, if you want to get really meticulous about it, create a spread sheet.  Here's where that kind of thing really comes in handy.  Two months ago we were in the middle of benchmark testing.  This meant most of my classes were cancelled for that week.  I was turning in some of my student tests when the principal said to me, "They are coming from the TV station to film something for School Board Appreciation Month and I thought you could put something together with singing..." 

My response, "Sure.  When are they coming?" 
Principal:  "Monday morning at 9:30."

Now...bear in mind this was THURSDAY AFTERNOON when I had this dropped on me.  Yes, I had the rest of the day Thursday and all day Friday (when I could fit it in, I still had classes to teach!) to prepare a performance FOR TELEVISION with small children (the older kids were testing).  I did not panic.  I knew the perfect piece and I quickly mentally choreographed what it would look like, then I selected two classes that I thought could pull it off.  This takes me to another important factor to bear in mind as a music person...but that will have to wait until next week's installment.

Until next time...

Happy!

It's been a while since I posted anything that you can take right to your classroom.  Here's a new one that you can use right away - well...with a little work on your part.

The song "Happy" from "Despicable Me 2" by Parrell Williams is a very catchy tune.  I feel it's a great teaching piece for many reasons.  For one, it's a catchy, popular tune with lyrics you can actually play in the classroom!  Another reason I like it for teaching is that it illustrates a very important concept when learning music.  So often we tell students "major" songs sound "happy" and "minor" songs sound "sad." Well...here is an example that flies in the face of that logic.  When you hear this song you can't help but feel "happy" even though it's actually in the key of F minor!

First:  BUY THE SONG.  Please don't use a free service to play the song.  It's available from most music services of your choice (Amazon, iTunes, etc.).  Now, if you have a plethora of instruments at your disposal with a full compliment of chromatic notes, then by all means, transpose what I've provided here and use it as-is with the original.  Most folks with Orff instruments are limited with the only accidentals available being F-sharps and B-flats.  For this reason, I needed to transpose this song down a half step to E minor.  Not to mention my fourth graders do not have any idea of how to play A-flat or B-flat on the recorder and I have no desire to confuse what we've already started by teaching those pitches.  The way I have it here fits beautifully with the fact that my fourth grade students have just learned the pitch E, so this will be excellent (and fun) practice.

"But...how do I get the recording in the correct key?" you may ask.  There are options.  I transposed mine with a program that I love called "Wavepad."  Transposing it down took a little trial and error (it goes by percentage rather than actual pitch or half steps - 94% did the trick) and yes, the result sounds slightly different than the original - but as I find myself saying so often when I have to make do "It's close enough for this side of town!"  They do have a free version available here:   Click here.

Another option that many music teachers like is to use Audacity.  You can download Audacity completely free here.  To get you going on how to transpose music with Audacity there are several resources available on the Internet.  Simply Google "transpose with Audacity" and you should be well on your way if you need help figuring that task out.

So here's the play-along notation for the transposed version in E minor.  If you have instruments at your disposal with lower pitches (for example, I have some of the bass Joia tubes) I recommend changing the pitch B in the bass xylophone part an octave lower - but that's just a personal preference.  The unpitched percussion part can be anything you have - sticks, hand drums, tambourines, etc.  The alto xylophone part also provides a great opportunity to teach the famed "syncopa" rhythm pattern in the second measure. 

The ostinati laid out here can be played throughout and the wonderful thing about the original recording is that it gives you a nice set-up count-off at the beginning. 

Enjoy and...be HAPPY!