Brass lesson Week of 3/20

Grade Level: 5th grade Class Type: Trombone

Length of Lesson:30 min

Lesson Topic/Focus Introducing a new piece, note accuracy

Students will improve note accuracy in their new piece

Objective(s)
Dragon Dance by listening to a recording and learning the
melody in order to prepare for the Spring concert.

Materials Powerpoint, computer, Dragon Dance and Return to Sterling

Forest sheet music

Prior Knowledge Knowledge of slurs, ability to read first 6 notes on their

instruments, understanding of quarter and eighth note
rhythms

Elements of DOK N/a

Planning with UDL Multiple Means of Engagement (Purposeful and motivated

learners): Asking lots of questions, listening and playing
activities

http://udlguidelines.cast.org

Multiple Means of Action and Expression (Strategic and

goal-directed learners): Reviewing concepts in a song they
know before looking at a new song, giving students an
opportunity to listen to the music and guess what it is about
 Multiple Means of Representation (Resourceful and
knowledgeable learners): notation represented on different
media forms, concepts showing up in different pieces of
music

Vocabulary Words Slur, jumps

Assessment Because of the 30 minute time constraint and introducing a

new piece of music, assessment will be taken formatively
throughout the lesson by listening for correct note jumps and
asking questions that demonstrate understanding. Students
will likely have a playing test on the melody in Dragon Dance
in the next few weeks.

LEARNING STRATEGIES/INSTRUCTIONAL PROCEDURES

Instructional Strategies -critical listening

-using the warm up to teach new material

-asking lots of questions to engage students

-making predictions

-scaffolding by breaking apart measures one by one

Opening (Hook, Let students quietly get out their instruments and play a few
Introduction, Warm-Up, notes to warm up while other students are getting ready. Pass
etc.) out concert music packet of music to students.
Procedures 1. Review measures 1-13 of Return to Sterling Forest,
go through this entire section slowly to check for note
and rhythm accuracy as we play (watch slide positions
and listen for correct notes and rhythms). Review
measures 11 and 12 to talk about the jump from c to f
and what we can do with our face to make that easier,
hold out both of those pitches and listen to students
individually if needed.

(check for students moving slides at the right time,

hitting the high f and not going down to b flat, students
making an effort to change embouchure to hit the high
notes)

2. Review measures 13-21 of the same piece, check for

understanding that they are to ignore the slurs in the
music
3. If time, run the entire section from 1-21 with the
recording (slowed down to .75)
4. Ask students to turn to the song Dragon Dance and
pass out laminated music. Ask students what they
think this song may sound like based on the title. Have
students listen to the song and follow along with the
music on the board as I yell out measure numbers.
Ask students to see if they can locate the four bar
melody that comes back many times.
5. Rehearse where the brass has the melody in dragon
dance (measure 32) to work on note and rhythm
accuracy. Play one measure at a time to listen that
students are playing the correct notes and rhythms,
reminding students that we ignore slurs and practice
jumps the same way that we did it in sterling forest.
Ask students to listen to make sure that they are
hitting correct partials, especially on the high notes;
Break apart one measure at a time, put two measures
together at a time, then try all four measures together.
Ask students how many times this melody repeats and
ask them to look at the song for homework. The end
goal is to be able to play the four measures of this
melody with 100% note and rhythm accuracy at a slow
tempo.
CLOSURE Tell students that they must always practice slurs this way
even if it is hard, so they can get comfortable with it.

HOMEWORK Heroes and Glory mm. 1-21, Return to Sterling Forest mm.
1-39, practice the rhythm video

EXTENSION Find method book exercises that have slurs in them to

practice.