Lesson Plan #3 (Elyse Mastel, Emma Arndt, Jocelyn Dufresne)

Grade/Subject:Grade 4 Unit: Social Studies, ELA, Music Lesson Duration: 40min

OUTCOMES FROM ALBERTA PROGRAM OF STUDIES
General Learning Outcomes:
1.Music: Awareness and appreciation of a variety of music, including music of the many cultures
represented in Canada
2. ELA 2. Students will listen, speak, read, write, view and represent to comprehend and respond
personally and critically to oral, print and other media texts.
Specific Learning Outcomes:
2.ELA 2.4 Create Original Text: Generate ideas, elaborate on the expression of ideas, structure texts
3.Music Creating 10. Notate and perform original compositions (does not have to be formal

notation). Take the poem they wrote and create a simple pentatonic song.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Students will:
1. Construct a song based off of their poem and display their knowledge of Canadian citizens of
the early 1900s and how lived on the prairies
2. Students will appreciate the rich history of Albertas past
3. Students will demonstrate how poetry can directly relate to music through the use of
songwriting.

ASSESSMENTS
Observations:
-listening/observing skills
-ability to write poem based on lesson given
-ability to apply prior knowledge (poetry lesson from
last class) to task
-abilities to follow along with powerpoint
presentation

Key Questions:
What is a pentatonic scale?
What are the basic components of a pentatonic
song?
What are the similarities between poems and
songs?
How does your song represent the lives of
Canadian citizens of the 1950s on the prairies?

Written/Performance Assessments:
Worksheets and song notation will be collected for formative assessment.

LEARNING RESOURCES CONSULTED

Resource #1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpvfSOP2slk video about pentatonic songs
Resource #2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Irii5pt2qE Power of the pentatonic scale

MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT

Powerpoint Presentation
Smart Board
Staff Paper and pencils
Worksheets
Colored popsicle sticks
PROCEDURE

Introduction (_5_min.):
Hook/Attention Grabber:
Assessment of Prior Knowledge:
ASK: Do you remember last class when we learned about poems?
SAY: This week we are going to be taking the poems that we wrote and learn how to set them
to music and create a song.
Expectations for Learning and Behaviour:
SAY: Today I will need you to be patient and listen carefully while we learn about songwriting.
You will have to following along and we will have an activity on the board, and then we will be
writing our song, so it is VERY important that you are paying attention.
Advance Organizer/Agenda:
SAY: Today we are learning songwriting 101! We will be learning about Folk songs in the
1900s and pentatonic songs. You will be given a worksheet that you will work with a partner as
we on as we go through the different parts and kinds of songs. At the end of class I will be
taking the worksheet in, so make sure you are putting your best work into it!
Transition to Body:
DO: Open up songwriting powerpoint on the smartboard and turn on smart board.
DO: Handout workbook
SAY: Clear off your desk and take out a pencil. The only things on your desk should be the
Songwriting 101 worksheet, a colored popsicle stick and your pencil.

Body ( 30 min.):
Learning Activity #1:
Assessments/Differentiation:
Students will observe and participate in powerpoint presentation to learn the basics of
songwriting and folk songs on the 1900s.
Remind students that you will be taking the workbook in SAY: Remember, I am going to collect
your workbooks at the end of class, so you will have to follow along carefully to make sure you
are answering all of the questions and you are giving me your best answers.
Begin Powerpoint
o Slide 1: SAY: On some of the slides you will see this music note (point to music note)
Whenever you see this music note that means there is a question or activity to do in
our workbook. They are also numbered to help you follow along. Lets start with #1.
ASK: What comes to mind when you think of folk music from Alberta?
What is the main genre you think of?
Why do you think folk songs are so catchy?
SAY: I will give you two minutes to write your answer in your workbook.
ASK: Would anyone like to share their answers?
DO: Record students answers on whiteboard
o Slide 2: DO: Read Slide on Folk songs
SAY: Remember when you see a music note, it means that you need to write
an answer on your worksheet.
SAY: Now we are going to watch a short video describing pentatonic scales in other
cultures.
o Slide 3: DO: Read Slide about pentatonic scales.
SAY: Look at doh and soh they are two very important parts of our activity today and
we will be learning about them.
DO: Point out pentatonic scale
SAY: This is the pentatonic scale. See the notes and how they are all placed on the
staff where they land on the staff is their home. Were going to sing through the scale
while I point at all of their homes so you have a visual and auditory representation of

the scale.
Slide 4: Pentatonic Melodies read off of slide.
DO:Point out what points are important for their worksheet.
SAY: Now we're going to watch a video about pentatonic melodies and how common
they are in our everyday lives.
DO: Click link and watch video
SAY: See how natural the pentatonic scale comes to us. It is so ingrained in our
everyday music that we can naturally follow the scale without learning it
Slide 5: DO: Read slide about Doh and Soh
SAY: Look at doh and soh they are two very important notes and we will be using them
to write our songs today.
DO: Read off of slide
SAY: We are now going to sing the scale that we sang earlier while I point to the notes
home on the screen.
Slide 6: Matching the Notes to their Home
SAY: Now we are going to take the scale that we learned and match the notes to their
homes. I need a few volunteers to come up and match the note names to their homes.
Slide 7: SAY: Time to start writing! Get into groups with the same popsicle stick color
as you and start working on notating your song. When you have finished your notation
and have sung it though at least 2 times come see me and I will give you an ipad so
you can record your song on voice notes like we have in the past.

Closure ( 5 min.):
DO: at 10 minutes left in class tell students they have 5 minutes left with their group to finish their song
SAY: (at 5 minutes left in class) I will be collecting your workbooks and song notations in 5 minutes
so double check that you have answered all the questions and that you have music written for every
word of your poem.
Consolidation/Assessment of Learning:
DO: collect workbooks
SAY: pass your worksheets to the last person in your row. I am collecting your workbooks to
look at how you followed along in todays class, your answers and your song notation.
Feedback From Students:
*students will respond via thumbs up and thumbs down*
ASK: Was it easy to follow along with the powerpoint in your worksheet?
Did you feel like you had enough time to answer the questions?
How did you feel about writing your song with a group?
Do you feel like you had enough time with your group to notate your full poem?
Feedback To Students:
SAY: Thank you for following along nicely throughout class today. I look forward to singing and
playing your beautiful songs!
Transition To Next Lesson:
SAY: In the next few lessons we will be taking everything weve learned over the last few
lessons and put them together into a project! So take all the stuff you have learned and lock it
away in your mind because we are going to need that knowledge in the next coming lessons.

How will the technology enhance student learning?

Technology is used (in this lesson) in the form of a smartboard and slide
presentation. The students are viewing a presentation in conjunction with
completing a workbook that corresponds with the slides. One of the slides offers
interaction between the students and the technology. By letting the students be in
contact with the technology, it is allowing them have a more interactive role in the
classroom. Slide 6 has a Matching Notes to Their Home theme and the students
are to move the music notes and match them to their correct spot. The students are
able to physically participate with the lesson, rather than just sitting and watching
the teacher use the Smartboard. Letting the students use the Smartboard
themselves keeps them more mentally and physically engaged.
What are the important considerations when integrating this technology
(student skills, technology access, engaging students, etc.)? For instance,
consider appropriate classroom climate and structure issues
(management). Think about issues raised in your EdPsych module.
The use of the smartboard accommodates for all types of learners and the different
needs that students require in order to learn to the best of their ability. Kinesthetic
learners are given an opportunity to learn by doing on the interactive matching
slide. Auditory learners are accommodated for by listening to the teacher and
hearing YouTube videos that are worked into the lesson. Finally, visual learners are
able to be stimulated by the slides and having different images and representations
throughout the lesson. When the smartboard is used collaboratively with a slides
presentation, it allows information to be delivered in number of different contexts,
reaching every students learning needs.
Describe any potential downsides or cautions to using the technology or
the way in which you will be using it.
While technology is a great thing and there are many benefits to allowing the
students to interact with it, there are some cautions or things teachers should be
aware of when using it in their classroom. For our lesson in particular, only a certain
number of students will be able to participate in the matching activity that takes
place on the smartboard. While we ask for volunteers, it would be important to
make clear that not everyone will get a chance to participate this time, but there
will be plenty of opportunities in the future for them to get a chance to use the
smartboard. If the smartboard becomes of regular use in your classroom, students
will be less upset about not getting a chance to use it.