6th Grade Orchestra

Unit 2: Music Literacy

Topic I: Notation

Learning Experience: Students correctly identify accidentals

Learning Intention: Students demonstrate sequential music literacy skills (decoding and
comprehension), defined as an association of sound-to-symbol, in a given musical context,
which includes predictive components (understanding of reading based on audiation of written
material) and knowledge of symbols and notation related to pitch, rhythm, dynamics, tonality,
clef, articulation, etc.), based on the principle that sound comes before sight.

Success Criteria:
● Students accurately echo teacher model.
● Students change the pitch in the correct direction up or down a half step.
● Students use the correct pitches when playing a piece or excerpt with accidentals.

Standards Addressed:
Priority: MU:Pr4B.E.5a
● Demonstrate, using music reading skills where appropriate, how knowledge of formal
aspects in musical works inform prepared or improvised performances.
Supporting: MU:Pr4C.E.5a
● Identify expressive qualities in a varied repertoire of music that can be demonstrated
through prepared and improvised performances.
Supporting: MU:Re7B.E.5a
● Identify how knowledge of context and the use of repetition, similarities, and contrasts
inform the response to music.
Supporting: MU:Cn11A.E.5a
● Demonstrate understanding of relationships between music and the other arts, other
disciplines, varied contexts, and daily life.

Detailed Description/Instructions:
General Information, Prior Knowledge, and Precursors
● Students should already have performed songs, by ear, that contain chromatic
alterations/non-key notes (or accidentals)
● The theoretical discussion of how accidentals affect a pitch should only come after
students have an aural basis for how it sounds.

Sequence of Activities
● The following sequence may be done with or without instruments, singing, chanting, or
playing:
○ Teacher performs echo patterns and/or familiar melodies containing chromatic
alterations or non-key notes.
 ○ Teacher asks students to identify which notes were altered, and how they were
altered. It is likely that students may give multiple correct answers for the same
thing (F#/Gb). Upon that aural foundation teacher demonstrates how the symbols
for sharp, natural, and flat change the way a note is played. Students apply this
knowledge to their instrument changing from natural note to a sharp or flat note.
Try changing from a sharp or flat note to the natural version of the note.
○ Students sight read new material using accidentals.

Unwrapped Concepts Unwrapped Skills Bloom’s Taxonomy Webb’s DOK

(Students need to know) (Students need to be Levels
able to do)

Students can echo Duplicate Remembering Level 1

teacher demonstrations

Students can change the Demonstrate Applying Level 2

pitch in the correct
direction

Students can use the new Interpret Analyzing Level 3

symbol in performance
context