Amanda Herold

Dr. Heim
MUS 150
2 April 2019

Elementary Band – Beginning Flute Lesson Plan

Context: Students are in a 4th grade elementary band class. They have a basic understanding of note
identification on the staff. Students are also familiar with the values of whole notes, half notes, and
quarter notes.

Section 1: Essential Questions & Standards

Essential Questions How do we prepare students for success in assembling a flute and playing their
How are we learning? first notes?

Standards MU:Cr3.2.E.5a: Share personally developed melodic and rhythmic ideas

What is the framework for or motives – individually or as an ensemble – that
our learning outcome? demonstrate understanding of characteristics of music or
texts studied in rehearsal.
MU:Pr4.1.E.5a: Select varied repertoire to study based on interest,
music reading skills (where appropriate), an understanding
of the structure of the music, context, and the technical skill
of the individual or ensemble.
MU:Re7.1.E.5a: Identify reasons for selecting music based on
characteristics found in the music, connection to interest,
and purpose or context
MU:Cn11.0.T.5a Demonstrate understanding of relationships between
music and the other arts, other disciplines, varied contexts,
and daily life.

Section 2: Learning Outcomes

Learning Outcomes 1. Students will perform notes on the flute
How are we relating the 2. Students will identify different parts of the flute
standards to the lesson? 3. Students will create a flute embouchure
4. Students will assemble a flute

Section 3: Materials, Vocabulary, & Pre-Requisites

Materials  Flute
 Rubank Flute or Piccolo Elementary Method Book
 Coffee Stirrers

Glossary of Terms &  Embouchure: The position of the lips and mouth when playing
Abbreviations a wind instrument.
 Aperture: The shape and size of the opening of the lips
 Mouthpiece: The part of a wind instrument that is placed in, on, or
by the performer’s mouth. OnMusic Dictionary -. (n.d.). Retrieved
February 26, 2019, from http://dictionary.onmusic.org/)
 Body Joint: The middle section of the flute that contains a majority
Amanda Herold
Dr. Heim
MUS 150
2 April 2019
of the keys
 Head joint: The upper section of the flute that contains the lip plate
 Foot joint: The lowest section of the flute that contains the Eb key

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Section 4: Procedures
1) Distribute flute cases and ask the students to place their cases on the
floor in front of them
2) Talk about flute cases. Have the students to place the case flat on the
floor with the handle facing them. Talk about how to know which side of
the case is up (label up) and how to operate the latches.
3) Have students open the case lid and identify each part of the instrument.
4) Show students each of the sections of the flute one-by-one (Head joint,
body joint, and foot joint).
5) Introduce the students to the other materials in the case (tuning rod and
spit swab).
6) Hand the students coffee stirrers and have the students place them in
their mouths
7) Explain that this should be the size of the aperture (lip opening) for the
flute’s airstream. Students can practice blowing through the stirrer
8) After students have gotten comfortable doing this, have them maintain
this lip shape and apply it to the head joint
9) Have students place the embouchure hole of the head joint at the edge
of their bottom lip while maintaining the space between their lips from
the coffee stirrer
10) Have students attempt to make a sound on the flute head joint. Any
octave is acceptable at this point in time. Make sure to walk around to
assess the proper placement of the head joint
11) After students have successfully been able to get some type of sound out
of the head joint, discuss and begin the assembly of the flute
12) Begin by connecting the head joint with the body joint. Explain that the
embouchure hole should be in line with the centers of the keys on the
body of the instrument
13) Then, connect the foot joint. Make sure that the long pivot rod on the
foot joint lines up with the centers of the keys on the body joint.
14) Check that students have properly assembled the flute
15) Next, show students the proper holding position for the flute and how to
balance the flute with your thumbs.
16) From here, have students blow into the flute without pressing any keys.
This will be C#.
17) Teach the steps to an embouchure by having students perform the
following actions: Stretch bottom lip over bottom teeth, place
mouthpiece on lip, place top teeth on mouthpiece, and close mouths
18) Check student embouchures. The embouchure should be firm, but not
tight
19) Now, return to the body of the saxophone and loosen the screw on the
Amanda Herold
Dr. Heim
MUS 150
2 April 2019
body socket of the saxophone. It will typically be found on the top right
of the instrument’s body. Remove the cap on the saxophone as well
20) Insert the neck into the instrument and align it so it faces away from the
center of the bell.
21) Attach the mouth piece to the cork on the neck of the saxophone.
22) At this time, make sure students are properly holding the saxophone
and that their neck straps are adjusted for a comfortable and accessible
playing position
23) Have students blow their first notes without pressing any keys. This
note will be C#.
24) After students have successfully achieved this note, slowly descend note
by note on the left hand to B, A, and G.
25) Check for proper finger placement and pitches during this process.
26) Next, have students dissemble their instruments. While doing this, have
them identify different parts of the flute. Make sure the flute case is still
on the floor when dissembling and that students are not tightly gripping
the keys
27) Separate and set each part of the instrument in the case
28) Use the spit swab individually on each joint to remove spit in the
instrument by wrapping a cleaning cloth against the tubing rod and
swabbing it through the instrument
29) Afterwards, make sure students have properly placed the instrument
pieces in the case and have latched the case properly

Section 5: Assessment & Extensions

Assessment  Teacher will aurally assess that student perform the assigned notes on the
Checking understanding of flute (C#, B, A, and G)
objectives.  Teacher will visually and aurally assess students’ identification of the
different parts on the flute when packing up instruments
 Teacher will visually assess students’ flute embouchure
 Teacher will visually assess students’ assembly of the flute

Extension of Lesson
Where can this lesson go in
context?
 Introduce the note “Bb” and the Bb thumb key
 Students will perform the duet “Goodnight Ladies”
 Introduce the notes “F”, “E”, “C”, and “D”
 Students will transition from fingering E to D
 Students will explore octaves on the flute by changing air speed

I affirm that I have upheld the highest principles of honesty and integrity in my academic work, and have
not witnessed a violation of the honor code.

Amanda Herold