Comments from Peers on PLP

David: I love how you were able to share with us about how to motivate our students while giving us pointers on how we can implement each idea in the classroom. You provided us with feedback on your research. You spoke very clearly and I could tell that you took time in preparing your speech. Thanks for sharing.

Louise: Even though I am not a music teacher, I really took a lot from your presentation that I can start to apply in my classroom. You consistently talked about how we could motivate our children and what we could do to be better. You were very energetic in your approach and you gave us enough sources to prove that you knew what you were talking about. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I know that it would be a total success at the MENC conference.

Wimba Week 4

On this wimba, I got a lot of insight as to how the website we have created ties into everything. It kind of makes me nervous to think that I am about to turn it all in for a grade. I think I am so used to assignments where you have to turn it in before 2 weeks is out, that a year long assignment makes me kind of edgy.

Thank you for being a wonderful teacher and answering any questions that I needed. I always appreciate good teachers that are there for you because I have had some that were just there for the check and really didn't care if you learned or not. So thank you!!!!!!! Wish you all the best!!!!

Comments: Stephania Vereen

Week 4 Reading - The Art of Possibility Ch 9-12

http://www.el3mentsofwellness.com/living-in-your-possibilities

Reading through this book was like one big exhale.  Each of the chapters provided great insight and fit into my life at the very moment as I was reading it.  Maybe it was me allowing the possibilities of what I can learn from this book to take over.  Whatever it was, I found this book to be thought provoking, engaging and a reality check in so many ways.  Each chapter provided direct insight into thought processes that I needed to deconstruct and new ideas to approaching life.  It opened up my eyes and reinforced some lessons I have been learning through my own personal journey of growth.

http://www.en-derin.com/artworks/faux-photoshop-15-incredible-images-that-look-altered-but-aren’t

Sharing the things I've learned in this book is one of the main ways that I will "pay forward from my universe of possibility".  I think it will benefit those around me to see me processing things and living life a bit more open to understand the impact of this mind shift and hopefully see how it can work for them.  The possibilities are truly endless and my own creation of those possibilities for myself opens up my world to a brand new existence.  I am rejuvenated, I am free, I am able to inspire and reach more than I thought I could.  My passion and enthusiasm have always been what draws others to me and what propels me to share things that inspire me.  After reading this book, I think my spark will shift to an eternal flame.

http://asads.wordpress.com/2009/07/23/possibilities/

Wow, I really enjoyed reading this! It was like an expression of how you felt that didn't deal with a summarization of what you read, those words came from the heart. i'm glad that you are rejuvenated and willing to do anything that you put your mind to. Thanks for being so artistic in your approach!

Comments: Helen Xiong

Wk 4 Art of Possibility Chapters 9-12

Photo Credit: SmartBoard Notebook Gallery

As I continued to piece together what I wanted to write about this week's reading...I came to the conclusion I am going to blog backwards...the ending to the 9th chapter. Roz and Ben were very storng throughout the reading and continued to end the book with WE being emphasized and I think it needs to...they are sooo right. We can't do anything on our own and that will continue to make us put strong judgements upon ourselves but we need to learn to accept the things around us and to adapt and understand what WE can do and what WE can evaluate and fix and accomplish. It is funny but the last chapter a lot of their examples, words, and sayings really hit me but every time I came to a capitalized 'WE' it made me reflect upon myself and how I need to use this methodology of WE more often. It made me really reflect upon my CBR and how WE (students and myself) made it work but they were the WE. I always tell my students that WE work as a classroom and WE need to support one another...like we are a team and a building structure that leans upon each brick. Ben and Roz really pushed for the WE aspect and to do a clear reflection on weather or not we are considered the board. 

As I also reflected upon the reading, it made me really realize that we need to take everything we go through one day and one example at a time. Roz and Ben gave so many enlightening stories that we need to be aware of the things around us and to take advantage of giving others A and a chance to make mistakes and be themselves. I strongly believe that everyone needs to read this book and that I NEED to reread this book during the winter slump in great old Wisconsin because the snow really does drain us of the lacking recesses and fresh air that is highly needed to keep us motivate and open minded to keep moving forward. 

Ben showed great characterization when he reflected upon his own life and examples and what he didn't understand or deal with when he went to be on the board. He really interpreted the things around him and noticed that he was wrong and he told the truth of what was going on even though he didn't want to hear it himself. We as humans need to do this and understand that pride is one thing but being prideful is another. 

We need to continue to see the world in the half full aspect and that we aren't always right. We need to be the board and challenge ourselves to really dig deep and reflect upon ourselves. 

The story that hit me the hardest this reading was the story of Ben and the Eastlea school and it really made me reflect upon my goals as a high schooler wanting to teach inner city and make a difference in the lives of my students...the lives of those less fortunate...that didn't have the things that I did or the family stronghold I did. I continued to look back at this a regret not doing what I was passionate about. But after reading Being the Board and being the conductor and spark....I can be the difference maker in the school I am in and touch the lives of each of my students I have now by allowing them to be the conductor and the board and the spark and giving them an a.....

You are so right! WE do make a difference and there is no I when it comes to educating the students. As they learn, we learn! Thank you for sharing your take from this week's reading! Through reading your post, I feel that you know more about your worth as a teacher!

Wk4 Publishing/Leadership project part 2 of 2: MENC is for me!

While I was in college pursuing my Music Education degree, one of our requirements was to attend 5 sessions at the annual MENC conference. I went to school in Greensboro, NC and the conferences were held in Winston Salem, NC every year. They would send out the memo for the entire 4 day conference and throughout the day you could attend whatever sessions you thought suited you. This is the venue in which I want to share my research and findings through a presentation.

I would present all of my information in the form of a key note presentation and provide them with some quotes from my research that details my findings. MENC caters to all of the music educators in that district and surrounding areas. I would love to present something different every year as well as showing them how I implemented all of my ideas into my classroom.  I would give the music educators pointers and things that worked for me and we could all share on our personal experiences. We all know that each class and student is different but by working together we can better educate our students.

After presenting to the other music educators, I would share emails so that we can keep a email chain going and share ideas more than just once a year. Some days I think it would just be good to hear how certain things worked for others.

Here is a copy of my presentation that I would make during the conference.

files.me.com/ladytee2/mwvcvw.key.zip

Wk4 Publishing/Leadership Project Part 1 of 2: Making choices

For my Publishing Leadership Project, I was given the option of submitting an article or doing a presentation. I have decided to do a presentation. I have decided that this is the best way to get my ideas across and help other people like myself. This presentation will discuss my research and how I was able to implement my findings in the classroom. I would want to show this to other music educators and I am still looking for the platform that best fits what I am trying to do.

Week 4 reading: It's Just Better That Way

Our society today has changed drastically from what it was before. So many people use cell phones as a means of communication and even to handle business. I had to learn the hard way that some things just really need to be done in person. I love the story that he told about his father and how he father taught him a valuable lesson: "Some things are just better to handle in person". When texting no one knows your true emotion or how you said it so in the long run it can lead to more trouble when you could have just met up with the person to have the conversation.

I love this fact he stated in this book which says "I am the framework for everything that happens in my life". I work at an Elementary school and we all know that these grade level students are always quick to blame someone else when caught doing something wrong. In actuality, we as adults still have this problem sometimes. We blame someone else so that we can feel right!! I wish that he would have took the story from a different standpoint like this when talking about the car wreck issue. So here is my way of describing this story: A drunken, young girl immediately slams on her brakes to stop for a car in front of her and the person riding behind this young girl runs into the back of her car. In North Carolina if you hit someone from behind you are at fault regardless. If you look at the story, the person that would automatically be blamed in a line up is the drunken, young girl because she is drunk. So we must remember that we are the framework for everything that happens in our lives. We control ourselves!

Last but not least, Love is neither about self-determination nor sacrifice. It is a context in which two people build the life they want together. In a marriage, we may have to sacrifice some but the most important part is that we are building a life together and the more you build the happier you are as a unit.

Comments: Cheryl McGovern

Wk: 3 Reading Blog: Art of Possibilities

Chapter 5. Leading from Any Chair: We're all leaders. How can we make a difference in the people we influence each day? How do we listen to those who help us make our dreams become reality?

You need to ask yourself, “How can I make them engage” don’t ask “How great am I doing? How much greatness am I willing to give?” A leader listens to suggestions and can instill a sense of pride into those giving the suggestions.

Chapter 6. Rule Number 6: Don't take yourself so seriously. Life is a journey--enjoy and learn along the way. Live, laugh, and love!!

Rule Number 6: don’t take yourself so goddamn seriously. I love this line. I am reminded me of a time I was in an argument with someone. In a fit of rage, I threw a bag of un-husked corn on the cob at him. After that the fight was forgotten and laughter ensued at the absurdity of throwing a bag of corn!

Chapter 7. The Way Things Are: Sometimes settling for the way things are is a lowering of expectations, sometimes it’s finding a starting point so that one can make things better. Where are you in this continuum?

Downward Spiral Talk…rampant in Education. When I started teaching, I was full ideas and innovations, but in staff rooms and meetings my voice was drowned out by jaded, seasoned teachers complaing about this and that, until one day I found myself sucked into the Downward Spiral Talks. Of course it doesn’t help that our complaints and negative thoughts increased as working conditions decreased.

Chapter 8. Giving Way to Passion: Control says that the only way to avoid disappointment and frustration is to not care at all. No hits, no runs, but most importantly, no errors. What are you doing in your daily life that expresses your passion or the things you are passionate about?

I am passionate about art and nature. In the brief freedom of summer for my girls (before they go back to school and are sucked into a world mostly devoid of these things), I try to instill as much of these two high held passions as I can. This is one of the main reasons I chose Portland, OR to move to. This city is as passionate about art and nature as I am. I try to combine my passions, by teaching my kids that nature is full of art; nature is art. Finding and experiencing the beauty that is nature is experiencing art.

I agree with you, we should not settle for what we are. We should always strive to be better. My husband always says "Strive to be perfect". Not that he thinks that there is a perfect person but if you always trying to get to that level your always striving to be better than you are. In other words, you never become complacent, you can always do better. I can talk about Rule Number 6 all day but I won't. I'll just say I agree with you, we really do take things too seriously and sometimes we can be our worst critic!!!

Comments: Sheri Brinkerhoff

Wk 3 Reading-Rule Number 6

Chapter 6 resonated deeply with me this week.  I realized that I take myself way too seriously.  Goals and expectations fill my life.  My calculating self takes over and creates fear of failure, anxiety, and scarcity.  I am also in an environment focused on downward spiral thinking.  Everyone around me discusses pay cuts, benefit cuts, issues with students, etc.  It is very difficult not to fall into this trap.  With the beginning of the school year looming, I have decided that I do not want to participate in this type of thinking.  My personal goal is to rise above the circumstances of my present through observing Rule No. 6.  In making an effort not to take myself so seriously, I have realized that I am more at ease and generally happy. I made a Rule No. 6 sign to hang in my classroom. Yesterday, I told my students the story about the two prime ministers and Rule No. 6.  We proceeded to have a discussion on the benefits of Rule No. 6 in reference to creativity.  Many students are nervous to take an art class.   Past students told me they worry about their own artistic talent to the extent that they think they will not pass.  I told students that I did not want them to worry about making mistakes since that is where you learn the most.  The students seemed very perceptive and interested in the concept.    I am looking forward to seeing where this will lead.

I love how you were able to admit that sometimes you take things too seriously and get caught up in the hype. I had a three-day conference this week and above all things I heard constantly about how budget cuts were coming into play and even after a teacher workday, I realized how depressing it was to be around people that really don't know what the future hold because of it. I have always been the one to challenge my students to be different as well, it is okay for them to accidentally squeak when they play their instruments. By squeaking they know what they need to fix because they remember what they did to get that sound.I wish you a successful school year and I to plan to adhere to Rule Number 6.

Week 3- Wimba Session 3

Thanks for giving us more information during the wimba about what the Publishing/ Leadership project is all about. The wimba did answer some of my questions, but I do have more so that I can do this project to my best ability. I loved the discussion about The Art of Possibility, it has been a real eye opener for me as an educator. It has challenged me to really think outside the box about what me and what I bring to the table. If I don't remember anything else from my readings in that book, I will remember that there is a leader in everyone!!!!

Week3reading- LIGHTEN UP, It's not that serious!!!

It's true, a leader can be anywhere. I have always said as a teacher there are things that we learn from our students as well as our peers. Everyone has their strengths and everyone has their weaknesses, we as adults can learn from each other. I loved the story in our textbook about the conductor who was having problems getting the orchestra to play the song correctly and how someone visiting was able to make one or two suggestions and that fixed all their orchestral problems. Truth is, the visitor could have used a simple approach to LEAD the orchestra. Rule Number 6 is good advice, "Don't take yourself so seriously". In other words, lighten up. This is a prime example of the simple approach that the visiting conductor did. I can imagine now the normal conductor got up and corrected the students by saying something that was totally above their heads and the visiting conductor just made it plain.

Being an educator, I have noticed that a lot of stress gets put on educators to get and keep test scores up. As a result some teachers become so eager to get those test scores up that they will do anything even if that means boring their students. The students become stressed out and the teacher is even more stressed out, that's when Rule Number 6 really comes into play. By making class fun for the students it almost like you trick them into learning. They have so much fun that they forget that they are in a learning environment and ultimately you get the test scores you need.

Picture from http://www.flickr.com/photos/aeromartin/1470518841/

Week 2- I love Music

About two weeks ago one of the biggest things that a musician/songwriter ever wishes for happened.

Since my husband and I have met 7 and a half years ago we have created a group called Dynamic Productions. We sing everywhere and we have now released 2 CDs. I love our music because it is not your average Gospel album it speaks on real life issues that happen when you are a Christian. In our music we are letting the world know that we understand that every day is not our best day and that we understand that we go through things and lose our way so that is the message that our songs convey.

Long story short.........

We had a gig in Wadesboro, NC, a place that I had never heard of before and it took us an hour and a half to get there. We had about 4 car loads of people including the band and the singers. We got up to sing and the people were singing OUR songs WITH US. This was the first time that had ever happened when we sung before and its like a musician's dream. I am extremely excited about where we are going next and feel free to visit our website.


www.thedpcrew.com

Comments: Helen

Week 2 Reading: Chapters 1-4 (WK2BLG1)

Credit: Notebook Gallery Software (SmartNotebook)

This week in my MAC course I have finished reading chapters 1-4 in The Art of Possibility and WOW what a STRONG and uplifting book. It was nice to first view the video from TED because it really set the mood for the book before I started reading it.  Benjamin Zander is such a strong speaker and is so methodical with his speech and writing. Both Zander’s are filled with such strong stories and examples and reflections for me as a reader that I found myself rereading each of their stories multiple times.

The chapter this week that hit me the hardest was “Giving an A”. It was such a power chapters filled with uplifting stories that constantly kept making me reflect upon my daily life as a daughter, wife, educator, and all around person.  Reading these stories that Roz and Ben had to share about their lives and experiences really made me think about what I was doing towards and with others within my life. Many times we by human nature judge things before giving others the chance to prove themselves and we need to watch these barriers we put up. We need to allow the creativity flow and allow people to make their mistakes and make their judgments but ensure that we are allowing them and giving them the A they deserve.  When I first started reading the chapter I thought it had to do with standards and I couldn’t warp my brain around giving all students an A…because I kept thinking…what do they have to work for or towards then…their motivational levels fall and their thought on doing their best does as well…but it wasn’t about standards and giving the A so that something was completed but allowing our learners and peers in our lives to live up to their potential and allowing them to be passionate and share their experiences with others. I was moved through these stories and examples in this chapter and I know this sounds nerdy…but cannot wait to finish this book to reread this chapter again. I already have it bookmarked to read in the months of January-February…the time of the year when our students and teachers, myself guilty of, fall into the winter blues and hopefully this will make me become more passionate and drive my students in their learning when I ‘Give them an A’.

I really want my students and peers and myself to really reflect daily on what steps have I taken that make a difference…good or bad…We all need this opportunity in our lives to be given an A by ourselves or others. Being an educator we need to open our students eyes to see what they CAN do and what they are possible of achieving...allowing them to push themselves and be passionate about the things around them and share it. We need to change our world of learning into being able to look deeper than skin deep.

Source:
Zander, B. & Zander, R. (2000). The Art of Possibility. Boston, MA:Harvard Business School Press
TED Video: http://www.ted.com/talks/view/lang/eng//id/286

My Comments:
Helen,
I have enjoyed your take on what you read. It seems like the "Giving an A" chapter really hit home for a lot of us. Giving ourselves an A makes us want to step up our game and not lower our standards. Sometimes what we call our best really isn't our best and giving ourselves an A can help us live up to our full potential.

I often ask my students, what do you think this class requires of you for you to make an A? Some of our students do feel that their presence is merely enough and some know that it takes more work than they think. Some of my students viewed Music class as another recreation but I had to show them that there was still a lot that was left for them to learn. Not even I know everything that's why everyday is a learning process.

Thanks for sharing some of your knowledge!!

Comments: Francine

Wk2 Readings - The Art of Possibility , Chapters 1-4

Well first I will speak on the video of Benjamin Zander's presentation. Ben humorously engaged an audience of 1500 people to take a journey in listening to classical music. Awesome!  I was so amazed at how engaging he was and thoroughly enjoyed his antics and the analogies that he used to describe how human nature can direct us into negative or positive thoughts about our daily walk in this life, irregardless to what path we have chosen.  AND he did it all with his awesome and beautiful piano playing.  The video was a great preface or lead - in to the book, The Art of Possibility: Transforming  Professional and Personal Life!

Photo Credit: Francine Jackson - The Art of Nature

The stories that Ben and Roz have shared in this book have truly opened my eyes to the many possibilities that I still have left while I am on this journey called life!  Chapters 1 - 4 were very interesting and it is hard for me to choose which topic I want to address in my blog because they were all so very true and enlightening.  As a musician, the art of possibility spoke to me in such a way that I am considering the questions that were posed in the "first practice", What might I now invent, that I haven’t yet invented, that would give me other choices (Zander and Zander, 2000).  It is fascinating to think that "it is all invented!" And truthfully it is! Our thoughts, our interactions and how we approach life is all invented.  We tend to grab hold of the things that we were taught by our parents as our own, but actually they invented some of those things and now it is time for us to invent our own ideas and ways of handling adversity and positive outcomes that occur in our daily walk while on this journey.

We tend to encourage our children to accept the ideas that we have invented but actually we need to allow them to invent their own.  By protecting and sheltering them so much, our children have become stagnant in how they approach life, because their ability to achieve success and make good decisions in whatever they choose to do has been permeated ostensibly by our inventions.

Stepping out of the box is really hard for some people to do. In the "world of measurements," which is our familiar world we tend to stay inside that box because it is our comfort zone.  For example, my sister is a wonderful person, but is not able to step outside of the box of familiarity.  She is apprehensive in doing things differently than what she is accustomed to doing, and so is her daughter. The apple does not fall far from the tree. On the other hand, I am not afraid of trying new things or moving away from the familiar, and my daughter is just like me. My daughter is 24 now and has never been afraid of people or trying new things in seeking out new possibilities. In the final analysis I found the following statement of the Zander's to be very profound and that is; in the measurement world, you set a goal and strive for it. In the universe of possibility, you set the context and let life unfold. I felt this was a very powerful statement.

In addition, after reading the 3rd practice of "Giving an A," I felt compelled to call my sister to read her a passage from the wk 2 readings from this section.  In short, she has been frustrated about her job and the fact that she is isolated in her position and it appears that her supervisor is not much help in assisting her with her low moral. So I read her the passage on page 46 which basically states that giving yourself an A is not about raising your self-esteem but it allows you to lift yourself from the success/failure ladder and spirits you away from the "world of measurement" into the universe of possibility and it gives you the opportunity to see all of who you are an be all of who your are, w/o you having to resist or deny any part of yourself."  I woke her out of her sleep to share this with her and she thanked me.

I believe that I am a contribution. I didn't know I was playing this game. But I am.  I believe that I am contribution when I am teaching my students about life and the games we must play to survive.  Although I teach "choral music," I believe that I do much more than that.  I am nurturing and provide my students with a place where they are comfortable talking about whatever they need to discuss with me.  This may seem small to some, but is is huge when it comes to the daily needs of our students.  The illustration of the 5 year girl who wanted to know what the music of the composer Mahler  was trying to convey and that she was able to discern that the first story that she was told was not the truth, was quite profound.  And the fact that after she attended the concert that Zander conducted, she wrote him a note thanking him for having the orchestra transmit Mahler's feelings through his interpretation of that music was just so insightful. Loved reading the book!  Thank you, Joe! 


My Comments:

Francine,

I really enjoyed reading your blog about your take on the readings. It's always exciting when you learn something that you want to share with someone else like your sister. I agree with your statement that sometimes we copy what we see. Even right after birth and before we could take we were learners. My music professor always told me that as a baby we breathe correctly but as we get older we watch how others breath and tend to take their way. As a result, I spent 2 of my 4 years in college learning how to breathe like I once breathe before so that I could sing properly.

I believe that through giving yourself an A, you push yourself everyday to live to that standard. Ultimately, you want to be better!! In college if I thought that I would get an A in the class at the beginning of the semester, I would. If I believed that I would get a B, that's what I got. I really enjoyed your blog and thanks for sharing.
  

Wk2 reading -Out the Boat

Toes to your nose, Toes to your nose.

I took from this more than just the story, but I took this from an educational standpoint. Some times it seems that we have to say things over and over to our students. I know at my school there is an A, B, and C day for all grade levels, so that means I teach the same lesson at least 3 times depending on how well the students learn the information. This story lets me know that sometimes repeating that information is not a bad thing because in a test that's all the students would have is that memory of you and the information that you were quoting sometime daily. In the situation that he was in, I know that sometimes when in a stressful situation we can forget everything that we have been taught. In his case at first all he could think about was survival. Eventually he remembered what he had been taught to do. I think this story is the reason why we have teachers to guide us into the education that we deserve.

I think that it is important that we think outside of the box that we live in. Everything around us in this world is not always right, its just here. Some of these things we see, we can change and some we can't. Living outside of the box is a good thing to do, I would not confine myself to things that the world does as a means of entertainment or fun. The biggest thing that a high school students has problems with is being themselves. Most of them want to dress alike and act alike until they are not even themselves. Then you have some students that would rather hang with no one just to live outside of the normal High School box and it most cases these are the individuals that the followers cling to and hopefully start to be themselves.

So we should ultimately let go of that box and step out and be something that we have never been before.....OURSELVES.

Photo from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/megansauce/5315674796/

Comments for Edwin Moy

Wk1 Reading- Copyright issues

Via Flickr

The concept of copyright is confusing if you don't have all the information.  From watching all the information provided I still think there is an enormous amount of information regarding copyrights that I can still learn.  The biggest understanding I took away from the reading was how copyright laws are still changing and almost everyone is affected by it because of the internet.  With sharing sites like creative commons out there I feel hopeful that copyrights will not totally limit the creative process.


Hearing the copyrights have gone from 14 years to 100 years for companies worries me to what the future of creative media will be if new artists worry about being sued for using copyright content to create new works of art.  The video A fair(y) use tale brought a smile to my face because it uses the law to push the boundaries of copyright laws to prove a point and teach viewers about how fair use can be used as a defense in copyright law cases.
Working for a company and not being an educator creating educational media is easier to use since my target audience has more knowledge about the world and I can use photos and images within the company to prove my points.  For educators the difficult is how can I get my students to understand a point without violating a potential copyright at the same time.  We all understand popular culture and students would love to have that as a reference point for learning, so the challenge is on the educator to be able to relate the information in a way that does not violate any copyrights but still gets the message across.

Edwin,

I enjoyed your take on the required reading for this week as well. I am learning more and more about copyright and sometimes I am surprised by the number of things that are protected. As a teacher, I understand what you mean about how we can so easily break some rules of copyright. For instance, when I was in college as a voice major you could not copy your music and if paper music was present at your jury (when you sing in front of all the voice professors for a grade) you would fail. So copyright really is serious!!!

Comments for Cheryl McGovern

This weeks reading assignment was very much on target for me.  I am in the library, and am asked copyright questions all the time.  This was very helpful.  I was amazed at the fact that copyright lasts a lifetime plus 70 years! WOW! That is one long time! It is a good thing that someone came up with fair use! Teachers would be in so much trouble if fair use was not around! Another thing that I thought was that those rappers with all the profanity and sexual innuendos throughout their music should be glad that someone would even consider using any of it.  I won't even subject myself to listening to that in the first place, let alone "borrowing" any of it! I am really behind in the times, as I have never heard of Danger Mouse and the album "Grey". I also did not realize that Nigeria was so involved in the music industry.  I really liked the "Fairy Tale" using the Disney characters! That was my favorite part.












Cheryl

I also was impressed by the amount of time that a copyright last. I always wondered why most of the hymns in the hymnals are public domain, probably because the composer wrote it more than 70 years before now. It is also amazing to me how much can be copyrighted.Thanks so much for sharing your take from the required videos.

Wimba X Summary

What is MAC?

Watching the archive of this week let me know how close I was to graduation. This is the time in which we put everything together that some of us have been working on for months. This month I was able to put my Literature Review on my website which was a big step for me because that is the one thing that I stressed about when entering the program. This Month 11 class will helps us get our final website ready. 


Thanks for the sneak peek of what our final project in this course will be about so that we can start preparing. Since we only have a few days left, let's cherish this final moments and put forth our best efforts until graduation day. See you all there!!!!

Week 1 Reading: Copyright

Copyright- an creators protection (If you can create it, you can protect it)

This is one word that could get you in a lot of trouble if you are not careful. This week I learned that copyright goes beyond books, articles, and music but a dance could also be copyrighted. I remember in undergrad always trying to keep an account of everything I researched to get information for our big papers that we had in Music History. Copyright is not always a fun thing to do but at least once you really get it, you know what to do and what not to do. In writing a research paper, you must cite all of your sources so that it is very clear that some of the information you are using is not your own.

Certain citations have specific requirements. If you repeat a statement that you found in a book or article you have to cite the book and page that you got the quote from. Pretty much every quote that is not yours has to be cited with a page number and the author. This is only a certain citation system. I am a songwriter and I never thought about how important it was for an author or even a dance creator to protect their works.

I am glad that copyright allows you to protect what is yours, it is kind of like an alarm system for creators.

Copyright Picture
http://www.flickr.com/photos/man_from_md/6008832460/

Final Project

Target Audience: 9^th and 10^th grade

Time: 1^st & 3rd period

Classroom Teacher Ms. Tiffany Tyndall

North Carolina Standards Course of Study area addressed National standards addressed:

- Develop skills in improvising music

- Develop skills in composing music

- Develop skills in arranging music

- Develop skills in listening to, analyzing, and evaluating musical experiences

Lesson outcomes (objectives)

-The students will be able to create their own melody.

-The students will work in groups to establish some teamwork abilities.

-The students will be able to perform in front of their peers.

Music and Materials Needed

-Paper

-Pencils

-Laptop

-Microphone

-Soundation Studio

-Television or Projector

-Camcorder

Step-by-Step Lesson

First, I will put the students into random groups based on the number of students that are present that day. In their groups, the students will have to pick one life lesson they have learned (it can be since they have been in the class or just from their parents), after the life lesson has been approved by me they will have to create a jingle with their group members. They will be given 20 minutes to come up with a melody.  After 20 minutes they have to perform it in front of their classmates. It is important that the classmates can identify the life lesson by their performance without being told what it is. While the students are performing their jingle, I will record it using Soundation Studio (audio) and with a camcorder (video). Soundation Studio allows me to burn a copy for the students to take home and let their parents listen to their jingle.

Conclusion

After every group has performed, we will discuss the life lessons that were addressed. The groups are not allowed to tell the class what their life lesson is until we talk about it as a whole. I will sit down with the students and write out the different life lessons that the students discussed to make sure that they could recognize every lesson from the jingle that was sung. After we have discussed it, the students and I will watch their performance via video. This allows the students to see what was successful about their jingle and what could have been improved and ultimately giving them a chance to actually see their performance for themselves.

Evaluation

-See how well this lesson plan works for the students

-See how well they work with their peers

-See how creative the students are

Reflection

This lesson plan allowed me to see how well the students worked together to create their jingle. When I walked around to approve the life lesson for the jingles, I noticed that everyone was working together and that they had all came to an agreement about what they wanted to use. There was not one team that I saw had just one dominant person telling them what to do. Once they were ready to present their performances to the classroom they did a wonderful job and a lot of the students wanted to see some performances twice. This is a really good lesson plan to use when you are trying to see how creative the students are, I was really impressed. I will combine all of their performances and use Imovie to create a video. I will use this video for the student I have next semester so that they can get an idea of what the students before them did for this assignment.

PE4_SoundationStudio

On this particular day, I allowed my one on one private lesson student to create her own music. She was allowed to make it sound however she wanted and to think of something that she could sing with it.  Of course, I played an example of my song for her so that she would get an idea of how hers could sound.

There were a lot of things that I had to learn how to do. Especially when finding loops that had the same tempo and were in the same key. Sometimes it takes a lot to find everything that you need but you do have the option of creating everything yourself. My next mission is to create everything myself using my midi keyboard that I just bought. Good times ahead. Hopefully,  I will be able to create something that my students will be able to play but we will see.

Follow this link to get a glimpse of what my student and I worked on. The bass line is called a Frog, Let's see if you can hear the affect. She likes frogs!

SoundationLink

PE5_SoundationStudio

So I am becoming more and more familiar with this Web 2.0 tool, Soundation Studio. No, it is not the easiest thing to learn but it works. I have good news to start off, I just got the call today about my new job as an elementary school band teacher. This should be exciting! Ultimately, finding this tool gives me an opportunity to share the music that we do in the classroom with their parents. Concerts are not mandatory in Elementary school and a lot of parents do not realize how gifted their children are. Soundation Studio will provide the parents with an opportunity to listen to their students in and out of school. Every so often, I plan to send the parents a link to what we have been doing in the classroom so that they can hear their children. Hopefully, they will enjoy this listening opportunity and my students will enjoy hearing themselves.

The picture above is a picture of a song I am working on. It gives me some ideas for my students and their music and it sounds a whole lot better than my first song!

PE3_Imovie

As I stated in my last two blogs, I have been going through this process of learning everything about Imovie so I decided to let you guys in on my world of wedding planning. For those of you who are getting ready to get married, here is a prime example of what you will be doing real soon in short form. This video shows you some of my wedding cake ideas, as well as one of my final bouquet choices and the overall look of my wedding party. I hope you all enjoy this video and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

PE2_Imovie

I have come to blog some more about my imovie experiences. It is very hard to combine several months worth of pictures and ideas into a one-minute movie especially when it is a wedding. There are so many things that have to be considered when planning a wedding so I have tried to show everyone the important things.  In this picture you will see a screenshot of one of my wedding cake designs. I used the Scrapbook 3 transition so that through each transition you will see all of the wedding cake designs as well as the bouquets for my bridesmaids. This transition really gives you a visual of what I see everyday in this planning process.

If you are going for the scrapbook approach, please choose Scrapbook 3. It is the best. Just to give you all a sneak peak of the wedding party, I have created a picture on David Bridal’s, “Dress Your Wedding” application on their website.

Hope you enjoy!!

P.S.- Of course this is not my real wedding dress, I want it to be a surprise for everyone that day!

PE1_Imovie

Whew!!!! I have my certificate of completion for Imovie training now. Full Sail has completely opened my eyes up to a world of different tools that I know will be helpful in the classroom. Imovie is one of the many tools that I had never used before until I became a grad student at Full Sail. Throughout this process, I have been trying to make a one-minute clip of my world of planning my wedding. My fiancé and I love music so I felt that it was important that the audience hears music the minute that the video starts. The only thing is that the track is 4 minutes long and I only want 29 seconds of the song. I almost went crazy trying to figure how to cut the clip up but Lynda.com made this a lot easier. Here is a little help for those of you that may be having similar problems, when you open up the clip trimmer it has already selected the entire track. You have to go to the end of the track and unselect everything that you do not need. This is where I went wrong, I thought I had to select what I needed.

I love the process of creating this movie and I hope you all enjoy the finished product of my wedding planning world that will follow in the blog to come.

BP6_Link Two Comments

Follow this link to my comments on Jacqueline Presley's blog.

PresleysComments

BP5_Link One Comments

Follow this link to the comments on Draney Melville's blog.

MelvilleMania

BP4_Engrade

Hello Everyone,

Thanks for tuning in again! It is time to blog about another tool that I have found that can be helpful for teachers like myself through Web 2.0. This tool is called Engrade. I know a lot of school systems have their own grading sites but most do not allow you to access it from home. Home is the place where teachers spend a lot of time grading assignments but they cannot record until they get back to the school the next day. This is a great tool where you can do both at the same time and focus more on students who need after-school tutoring afterschool.

One of the main things that I have noticed about a school’s music program and the parents of the students is that they do not see music like they see a regular classroom. Music has often been thought of as an extra curricular program and not treated like classes such as Math, Reading, and English. Most parents are surprised when they find that their child has anything lower than an A in the music class. This tool is a good way for the parents to keep up with the student’s progress in my classroom. Engrade allows them to see how they are doing on test, quizzes, and other assignments in the classroom. Engrade ensures that there are no surprises when it is time for progress reports or even report cards.  It is real user-friendly and it allows you to comment on the grades that you have posted so that the parents understand why they have received the grade that they have.

Some of the other tools that you will see is the calendar tool. The calendar allows you to input things that you want the parents to know. For example, I would use it to let the parents know when they have a test or quiz coming up. I would also use it so the parents will know about the concerts. The attendance tab allows the parents to have a record of their child’s attendance. It also has a quiz tab where the students can assess their quizzes online. Overall, this is a very good tool and I would recommend this to everyone that can not access their online grade book from home.

Have a good weekend everyone,

Tiffany