‭Tyler Long‬

‭EDSEC 477ZA‬

‭16 October 2023‬

‭Bridge Text Lesson‬

‭ bjective/Purpose:‬
O
‭The purpose of this lesson is to teach modern band students a basic chord progression on guitars‬
‭that is used in many popular songs. Students will learn the four typical chords that are used in‬
‭songs in popular culture and at the end of the lesson, compose their own song using this chord‬
‭progression in groups, following a traditional songwriting structure of‬
‭verse-chorus-verse-chorus.‬

‭ tandards Addressed:‬
S
‭MU:Cr2.1.H.8a:‬‭Select, develop, and use‬‭standard notation‬‭and audio/video recording to‬
‭document melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic ideas for drafts of‬‭melodies‬‭(created over specified‬
‭chord progressions or‬‭AB‬‭/‭A ‬ BA‬‭forms) and two-to-three-chord‬‭accompaniments for given‬
‭melodies‬
‭MU:Cr3.2.H.8a:‬‭Share‬‭final versions of‬‭melodies‬‭(created‬‭over specified‬‭chord progressions‬
‭or‬‭AB‬‭/‭A
‬ BA forms‬‭) and two-to-three-chord accompaniments‬‭for given melodies, demonstrating‬
‭an understanding of how to develop and organize personal‬‭musical ideas‬‭.‬

‭Materials:‬
‭●‬ ‭Four Chord Song by Axis of Awesome‬
‭○‬ ‭https://youtu.be/mlVcn88-sQE?si=6G6kWTLTYcQTtQ2a‬
‭●‬ ‭Four Chord Song in D Major explanation‬
‭○‬ ‭https://youtu.be/2pRDLxOFIrs?si=WTxLE122Dj9YzZ-k‬
‭●‬ ‭73 Songs You Can Play With the Same Four Chords‬
‭○‬ ‭https://www.buzzfeed.com/alanwhite/73-songs-you-can-play-with-the-same-four-‬
‭chords‬
‭●‬ ‭Guitars‬
‭●‬ ‭Four chord chart‬
‭○‬ ‭https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/19pUz6AEv6k9c_ppgNDCBd0JcrwoqaX‬
‭XojUWcy0V7ivA/edit?usp=sharing‬

‭Lesson Sequence:‬
‭●‬ ‭As students walk into class, they will be asked to first sit without taking their guitars out.‬
‭I will play them the “Four Chord Song” and ask them the following questions:‬
‭○‬ ‭“What sticks out to you about this song?”‬
 ‭ ‬ ‭“How many songs did you know in the medley they sang?”‬
○
‭○‬ ‭“Using Roman numerals, what chords do you think they are using?”‬
‭●‬ ‭I will show students the video “Four Chord Song in D Major” that explains the use of‬
‭these four chords in the “Four Chord Song.”‬
‭●‬ ‭I will now pull up the link “73 Songs You Can Play With the Same Four Chords” to help‬
‭students recognize the popularity of the use of these four chords within popular music‬
‭culture and music they listen to today.‬
‭●‬ ‭Students will be asked to get out their guitars. As they do this, I will pull up the‬
‭presentation that displays the chord charts to help students visualize each chord as they‬
‭learn it.‬
‭●‬ ‭Students will learn each chord. The chords they will learn are C Major (I), G Major (V), a‬
‭minor (vi), and F Major (IV).‬
‭○‬ ‭Students will learn how to construct each chord, then play each chord on quarter‬
‭notes with the teacher. After learning another chord, the students will rehearse‬
‭moving from one chord to the next.‬
‭●‬ ‭Students will rehearse the chord progression by playing four quarter notes on each chord,‬
‭practicing the chord changes and hand placement for each chord.‬
‭●‬ ‭Students will now be split up into groups of four to begin composing their own simple‬
‭(and appropriate) lyrics to go along with the chords they just learned. Students will be‬
‭given the following questions to begin thinking about their lyrics:‬
‭○‬ ‭“What is an item in this room you want to write a song about?”‬
‭○‬ ‭“How would you describe that item?”‬
‭○‬ ‭“How does that item make you feel?”‬
‭○‬ ‭“What can you do with that item?”‬
‭●‬ ‭Students will be given 15 minutes to write their lyrics and rehearse their song with their‬
‭group, then each group will perform their song for the class.‬
 ‭Reflection‬

‭This lesson presents students with opportunities to listen to popular music that they likely‬

‭listen to in their own lives to make connections to the content covered in class. Additionally,‬

‭students will have the opportunity to read in nontraditional ways, reading chord charts from a‬

‭presentation that will help them to navigate building chords on their guitars. By reading these‬

‭charts, they will be able to visualize the placement of their hands in relation to their guitars,‬

‭helping them to be more successful with the chord progression they are learning. These materials‬

‭provided will overall enhance student literacy by deepening their understanding of chord‬

‭progressions in popular music and building chords on guitars.‬

‭Rather than simply being thrown into reading lead sheet symbols and reading music to‬

‭learn guitar, this lesson provides scaffolding to present students with the necessary information‬

‭for them to be successful. Beginning with a video relating to the content, students will gain a‬

‭deeper understanding of how the content being covered relates to their daily lives and the music‬

‭they listen to. Next, the video explaining to students the purpose of the four chords in popular‬

‭music and how each chord is built will allow them to gain a better perspective of how these‬

‭chords are used in popular music. Finally, the chord charts synthesize all this information to‬

‭provide students with information they can visualize to aid them in being successful with this‬

‭content. Students will not be asked to read a symbol and construct a chord based on that symbol.‬

‭Rather, they will be shown charts that show students how to construct that chord and where each‬

‭finger should be placed, helping them to visualize this information.‬

‭The use of these new literacies is designed to naturally engage students with the material.‬

‭The “Four Chord Song” uses popular music that students should all be familiar with, which will‬

‭be engaging in and of itself. Students are engaged when they are able to better relate and make‬
‭connections to the material, which they will be able to do with music they listen to in their own‬

‭lives, such as the content presented in the “Four Chord Song.”‬

‭Should the technology in this lesson fail, I will perform portions of the “Four Chord‬

‭Song” for the class using a guitar or a piano. I will the music/lyrics to the songs used in this song,‬

‭and using the four chords that are used throughout this song played by Axis of Awesome, I will‬

‭sing for the students rather than playing the video. Additionally, if the technology fails when‬

‭attempting to project the chord charts, I will use terminology such as “buildings” to describe the‬

‭frets, and “floors” to describe the strings that students should place their fingers on. For example,‬

‭if students should place their first finger on the second string within the first fret, I will instruct‬

‭students to navigate to the first building, second floor. I will walk around the classroom to ensure‬

‭all students are on track, whether the technology is working or failing.‬