Incorporating music theory in the 7th and 8th grade band class

Abstract

In my 7th and 8th grade band classes, knowledge and understanding of basic music theory concepts was lacking. The purpose of my project is to fill this need. To measure the gap of knowledge my students had, I administered a pre-test that covered topics such as identifying basic music notation and symbols as well as labeling key signatures. During our in class warm-ups, I dedicated a section of that time to music theory concepts. The lessons included building scales, learning songs by scale degrees, and learning the order of sharps and flats. The goal of these lessons was for students to gain a better understanding of musical terminology and for them to be able to apply those terms and concepts to the pieces they play. As a result of these lessons, students could communicate with me and each other more efficiently, and more peer teaching occurred in the classroom. During my master's degree, I have been introduced to many different approaches to conducting rehearsals and giving students more opportunities to learn. As a new teacher, I am always searching for ways to improve my teaching and ways to give students a well-rounded music education. In my Rehearsal Techniques class, we extensively discussed different approaches that can be used in class and how fundamental warm-ups are to a productive rehearsal. These discussions allowed me to better understand how to structure my rehearsal and how to make warm-ups beneficial instead of them being seen as a chore to be marked off the list. While working through the units, I found myself utilizing different teaching strategies. Many of the strategies, such as Project Based Learning and peer learning, I learned about in Research class. By having more tactics to use in class, I was able to help students learn in ways that worked better for them. The knowledge I have gained from this program has changed how I run my classroom and has made me more confident in my teaching, which in turn has made my students more confident.