Edtpa task 1 planning commentary

K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

TASK 1: PLANNING COMMENTARY Respond to the prompts below (no more than 9 single-spaced pages, including prompts) by typing your responses within the brackets. Do not delete or alter the prompts. Pages exceeding the maximum will not be scored.

1. Central Focus a. Describe the central focus and purpose of the content you will teach in the learning segment. [ This unit will be focused around three foundational elements of appropriate vocal tone production: proper facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support. By the end of the unit, students will be able to identify the above terms as foundational elements of appropriate vocal tone production, define each of the terms, explain their importance in appropriate vocal tone production, describe strategies for how to position the body for each element, and evaluate a recorded singing performance using these elements as criteria.

Current choral pedagogy literature asserts that teaching correct vocal technique is key to helping singers develop their individual singing skills and supports the development of good choral technique. Because of this, I devoted my learning segment to teaching basic vocal technique. The class learning this unit is “Women’s Choir”, a non-auditioned treble choir.

Students enrolled in this class come with differing levels of singing experience, therefore this unit is designed to give students a common foundational knowledge base regarding appropriate choral vocal technique and tone production. In his handbook for vocal teachers, James C. McKinney provides a sequential framework for teaching vocal technique that begins with posture and is followed by breathing and support, then phonation. Since the students in this class have already covered how to stand with proper posture and have this unit fits sequentially as the next step. ] b. Given the central focus, describe how the standards and learning objectives within your learning segment address creating, performing, and/or responding to music/dance/theater by applying

 knowledge/skills (e.g., tools/instruments, technical proficiencies, processes, elements, organizational principles)

 contextual understandings (e.g., social, cultural, historical, global, personal reflection)  artistic expression (e.g., interpretation, creativity, exploration/improvisation, individual choices) [ The learning objectives within this learning subject address both performing and responding to music through application of skills and knowledge related to vocal technique. In Lesson 1, the objectives are for students to be able to form an appropriate facial embouchure, to sing with a lifted soft palate, and to recognize the term “appoggio”. Being able to form an appropriate facial embouchure and to sing with a lifted soft palate both demonstrate development of skills necessary for performance, as forming a facial embouchure helps ensures proper tone placement, and singing with a lifted soft palate supports proper tone production. Recognizing the term “appoggio” is a step towards students being able to apply knowledge of vocal technique to performance and response to music, as recognition of this term is the first step in being able to identify if proper breath support is being used.

In Lesson 2, the objectives are for students to be able to identify the terms “embouchure”, “hootiness”, and “appoggio” as three mechanisms used for good tone quality, to describe how to Copyright © 2016 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

form a good singing embouchure, and to demonstrate use of proper embouchure, lifted soft palate, and breath support in rehearsal of their repertoire. Being able to identify the above terms as mechanisms for good singing demonstrates development of knowledge related to vocal technique, as students need to be able to recognize the technical terms of these concepts in order to facilitate their implementation within performance and to identify them when responding to a musical performance. Being able to describe how to form a good singing embouchure also demonstrates development of knowledge related to vocal technique that supports performance, as this provides evidence that students know how to physically form an embouchure that supports appropriate tone placement. Incorporating proper embouchure, lifted soft palate, and proper breath support into rehearsal of repertoire demonstrates development of technical skill in regards to performance, as it displays student ability to apply the performance concepts that they are learning to the pieces that they will perform, which is ultimately the goal.

In Lesson 3, the learning objectives are for students be able to identify the terms “embouchure”, “hootiness”, and “appoggio” as three mechanisms used for good tone quality, to describe how to lift their soft palates, and to contrast the experiences of singing with and without a lifted soft palate. Continuing practice with having students identify the above concepts as mechanisms of good tone quality supports development of knowledge of vocal technique as it applies to performance and response, as increasing student familiarity with the terms will help them more easily implement those behaviors when performing and identify those concepts when responding to a musical performance. Being able to describe how to lift their soft palates demonstrates application of knowledge of vocal technique to performance, as it provides evidence that students know how to perform using a lifted soft palate, which is used to support proper tone production in performance. Being able to contrast the experiences of singing with and without a lifted soft palate demonstrates development of knowledge of vocal technique as it relates to both performance and response to performance, as it gives students an opportunity to reflect on what they hear and what they feel when singing in different ways and allows them to familiarize themselves with how the presence of a lifted soft palate specifically affects vocal production and sound, which will help students both implement the concept in their own performance and identify the presence of a lifted soft palate when listening to a musical performance.

In Lesson 4, the learning objectives are for students to be able to describe how to sing with appropriate tone by incorporating knowledge of embouchure, raised soft palate, and appoggio breath support, as well as to sing warmup exercises with appropriate vocal tone by incorporating knowledge of the above terms. Being able to describe how to sing with appropriate tone by incorporating knowledge of the concepts being learned supports student application of knowledge of vocal technique to performance, as it provides evidence that students know how to implement the concepts being learned in their own singing. Being able to sing warmup exercises while incorporating knowledge of embouchure, raised soft palate, and appoggio breath support demonstrates direct application of vocal technique knowledge and skill to performance, as students are implementing the concepts that they are learning to their singing, further supporting their skill development in this area.

In Lesson 5, the learning objectives are for students to be able to describe what to look for when evaluating embouchure, raised soft palate, and presence of appoggio in a musical performance, to evaluate a recorded singing performance in regards to the three elements of appropriate vocal tone production, and to describe the importance of each element in regards to appropriate vocal tone production. Being able to describe what to look for when evaluating the above terms in response to a musical performance demonstrates direct application of knowledge of vocal technique to response to a musical performance, as it shows that students are able to use Copyright © 2016 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

knowledge of the characteristics of each concept in order to engage in discourse in response to a musical performance. Being able to evaluate a recorded singing performance using the concepts being learned as a framework also demonstrates student application of knowledge of vocal technique in responding to a musical performance, as it provides evidence that students can identify characteristics of proper embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support and use that knowledge to engage in discourse regarding a musical performance. Being able to describe the importance of each element in regards to appropriate vocal tone production is another demonstration student application of knowledge in responding to musical performance, as it provides evidence that students understand how each of these elements support good tone production and can identify when they are and are not present in a musical performance. ] c. Explain how your plans build on each other to help students to create, perform, and/or respond to music/dance/theater and in making connections to knowledge/skills, contextual understandings, and artistic expression. [ The unit structure is loosely adapted from the Kodaly Method “Prepare, Present, Practice” framework and Jerome Bruner’s three modes of representation: enactive, iconic, and symbolic.

Students will first experience performing using proper facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support, then use that experience to help them learn about the deeper conceptual aspects of each element, all while developing their ability to incorporate what they are learning to their musical performance and to discourse in responding to musical performance. In Lesson 1, students will experience singing with proper facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support by learning through modeling and metaphorical explanation. This allows students to have a kinesthetic anchor for each of these elements that they can refer to when later confronted with more conceptual approaches to these elements.

They will also connect these physical sensations to the more colloquial terms “peach face”, “hootiness”, and “appoggio” (which is actually a technical term but will be presented in a colloquial and humorous manner by saying it in an exaggerated Italian accent) in order to give students an aural anchor that they will be able to recognize and remember.

In Lesson 2, students will delve into the technical aspects of proper facial embouchure, using their recognition of the term “peach face” and prior experience of singing with proper embouchure in order to support their learning of the technical term “embouchure” and to support their learning of the physiological aspects of embouchure (i.e. how to manipulate body parts to form embouchure). This will help develop student ability to perform with and respond to aspects of proper facial embouchure. While this is happening, students are also reinforcing the connection between the terms “embouchure”, “hootiness”, and “appoggio” and the concept of appropriate tone quality in order to support recognition of these three elements as vital to good tone production.

In Lesson 3, students will delve into the technical aspects of lifting the soft palate, using their recognition of the term “hootiness” and prior experience of singing with a lifted soft palate in order to support their learning of the technical term “soft palate” and to support their learning of where the soft palate is located, how to physically manipulate it, and characteristics of vocal tone quality when a lifted soft palate is or is not present. This will help develop student ability to perform with and respond to aspects of a lifted soft palate.

In Lesson 4, students will use their previous knowledge of the conceptual aspects of proper embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support in order to assume an instructional role and describe how to teach these concepts to a novice singer. They will also practice using these elements in performance by incorporating these elements in singing Copyright © 2016 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

warmup exercises. These will help develop student ability to diagnose presence of proper facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support, demonstrate how to correctly create and model proper singing technique, engage in discourse about these elements of tone production, and implement these concepts in their own singing.

In Lesson 5, students will build upon the concepts from the previous lesson of diagnosing the presence of embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support in a musical performance and engaging in discourse regarding these elements by discussing characteristics of each element, how to use these characteristics to diagnose the presence of each element in a performance, and by responding to a recorded musical performance through written evaluation and discussion. By the end of this sequence, students will have a foundational base of knowledge regarding facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support that they can use to both inform their performance and to engage in discourse when responding to a musical performance. ] 2. Knowledge of Students to Inform Teaching For each of the prompts below (2a–b), describe what you know about your students with respect to the central focus of the learning segment.

Consider the variety of learners in your class who may require different strategies/support (e.g., students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers, underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students). a. Prior academic learning and prerequisite skills related to the central focus—Cite evidence of what students know, what they can do, and what they are still learning to do. [ In the previous term, students focused on learning how to stand with proper posture and how to breathe correctly, which are the first two foundational elements of singing as listed by James McKinney in The Diagnosis and Correction of Vocal Faults. Additionally, students demonstrated basic literacy skills through daily sightreading exercises as well as individual sightreading assessments. However, students demonstrated a relative lack of knowledge regarding appropriate choral vocal technique and tone production, which showed both in their performance of repertoire and performance during rehearsal. ] b. Personal, cultural, and community assets related to the central focus—What do you know about your students’ everyday experiences, cultural and language backgrounds and practices, and interests? [ In talking with individual students before and after class, I learned a great deal about their personal engagement with singing. Most of the students enjoy singing and mostly engage with singing in informal contexts, such as in the shower, in the car, or when socializing with friends.

They generally prefer to sing by themselves or in small groups of trusted peers, and are hesitant to sing by themselves in front of large groups of peers because of a fear of having their singing ability be harshly judged. Students generally do not have much formal experience singing, mostly learning what they know through imitating singers that they listen to on the radio, television, or internet. However, many students are enrolled in this class at least in part because they want to develop and hone their personal singing abilities, and because they want to be involved with like-minded peers chasing the same goal. ] 3. Supporting Students’ Performing Arts Learning

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

Respond to prompts below (3a–c). To support your justifications, refer to the instructional materials and lesson plans you have included as part of Planning Task 1. In addition, use principles from research and/or theory to support your justifications. a. Justify how your understanding of your students’ prior academic learning and personal, cultural, and community assets (from prompts 2a–b above) guided your choice or adaptation of learning tasks and materials. Be explicit about the connections between the learning tasks and students’ prior academic learning, their assets, and research/theory. [ I implemented this unit both after discovering that the students wanted to improve their individual singing abilities and after hearing their quality of sound during performances. This unit was designed to be foundational so that, no matter what style or genre of singing students were interested in, they could have a base in healthy vocal tone production. This unit is based on the framework provided in The Diagnosis and Correction of Vocal Faults, wherein author James McKinney states that posture, breathing and support, and phonation are the foundational mechanisms of healthy tone production. Because these students have already learned how to perform with proper posture, this unit focuses on concepts relating to breathing, support, and phonation. Most of the techniques regarding tone production in this unit are adapted from Richard Miller’s The Structure of Singing, wherein Miller describes how to build foundational singing techniques using a physiological approach. This is reflected in Lessons 1-3, wherein students learn how to implement proper facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support first through imitating teacher modeling and metaphorical instruction, then by learning about the physiological aspects of each concept in the following lessons. Many of the teaching techniques I use also acknowledge multimodal learning, as I try to use a variety of auditory, kinesthetic, and visual methods to relay concepts and ideas. For example, in Lesson 1, I will teach students to create a proper facial embouchure by inviting them to pretend that they are biting into a peach, a kinesthetic approach that helps students engage the requisite muscles without needing to understand technical knowledge in detail. In the same lesson, I will teach students to feel a lifted soft palate by modeling a hooting owl and having them mimic me, an aural approach that helps students engage the requisite muscles without yet understanding exactly what they are doing. To teach students how to use appoggio breath support, I will have students lift their arms, pretend that their arms are connected to their ribs, and have them mimic me while I model expanding my arms and ribs while exhaling or singing. This is a visual and kinesthetic approach to introducing students to appoggio breath support without them needing to understand technical information.] b. Describe and justify why your instructional strategies and planned supports are appropriate for the whole class, individuals, and/or groups of students with specific learning needs.

Consider the variety of learners in your class who may require different strategies/support (e.g., students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers, underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students). [ Because of the students’ relative inexperience with formal vocal technique and because of the heavy vocabulary emphasis of this unit, it is important that I scaffold my instructional approach and give students an opportunity to use prior knowledge and experiences to inform new learning. To that end, I plan on first teaching students through modeling and metaphoric language how to physically recognize and sing with proper facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support. Experiencing each of these technical concepts in their bodies will Copyright © 2016 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

give them a kinesthetic and aural anchor that they can refer to as they delve deeper into the technical details for each concept. As students have demonstrated proficiency in learning how to sing through mimicking singers that they hear on the radio, television, and internet, this form of teaching through modeling should make learning how to perform each of the above elements of singing accessible. I will also make heavy use of student self-assessment in order to control my pacing; before moving on to the next concept or activity, I will check students for understanding by having them use their fingers to show how comfortable they are with a concept or idea on a scale from 1-5, only moving on if a majority of students show 4 or 5 fingers.

Students that consistently show self-assessments of 1-3 will have opportunities to meet with me so that I can individually work with them and help guide their understanding. One student has an IEP that states that they may need extra time with activities or assignments, so I will especially note their readiness based on their finger self-assessment before moving from activity to activity and will provide individual help if needed.] c. Describe common student errors, weaknesses, or misunderstandings within your content focus and how you will address them. [ Because of the heavy vocabulary emphasis of this unit, students may attribute terms to the wrong concept or forget terms all together. To prevent this, I plan to first associate each concept with a humorously colloquial term in order to foster recognition and retention. Once students have demonstrated that they can identify concepts based on their associated colloquial terms, I will then present the formal technical terms and have students associate them with the colloquial terms and concepts. Through this method, I will minimize the chance that students misattribute a formal vocabulary term.

Another potential difficulty that students may struggle with is being able to correctly experience each concept at the beginning of the unit, especially as they have little to no familiarity with the vocal technique concepts of proper facial embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support. To combat this, my main instructional strategies at this early point of the unit will be to demonstrate proper performance of each element listed above through call-and-response rote teaching, kinesthetic and visual modeling, and using humorous metaphorical language throughout instruction. Research on learning modalities by Barbe and Swassing indicate that using a multimodal approach such as this that includes kinesthetic, aural, and visual teaching strategies promotes student conceptual understanding and retention of content.

Yet another difficulty that students may face is misunderstanding the anatomy and physiology behind each of the vocal technique elements. Because the musculature used in singing is often within the body and not obviously visible, and because students have little to no background knowledge regarding anatomy and physiology within the context of singing, students may have difficulty performing each technique correctly simply because they do not know how to engage the requisite body parts. To combat this, I will teach students how to find and identify the requisite body parts for each technique by guiding them through experiential exploration. For example, to guide students into understanding what the soft palate is and where it is located, I will invite them to use their tongue to touch the roof of their mouth right behind the front teeth, which I will tell them is the hard palate, then invite them to move their tongue back along the roof of their mouth until the feel a softer, fleshier portion, which is the soft palate. In this way, students are guided along the process of learning requisite anatomy and physiology in a scaffolded manner. ] 4. Supporting Performing Arts Development Through Language

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

As you respond to prompts 4a–d, consider the range of students’ language assets and needs—what do students already know, what are they struggling with, and/or what is new to them? a. Language Function. Using information about your students’ language assets and needs, identify one language function essential for students to learn the performing arts knowledge within your central focus. Listed below are some sample language functions.

You may choose one of these or another more appropriate for your learning segment.

Analyze

Compare/contrast

Create

Describe

Evaluate

Explain

Identify

Improvise

Perform

Respond

Summarize [ Describe ] b. Identify a key learning task from your plans that provides students with opportunities to practice using the language function. Identify the lesson in which the learning task occurs. (Give lesson/day number.) [ In Lesson 5, students will describe how to engage the body for proper embouchure, raised soft palate, and appoggio breath support. By this point, students will have already experienced performing each vocal technique concept and have demonstrated understanding of how to engage the requisite musculature systems for each concept. To further demonstrate their knowledge, they will be asked to engage in discourse in regards to how to teach a novice singer how to sing while implementing each vocal technique concept. They will also be asked to describe aural and visual cues used to evaluate each element when evaluating a performance. ] c. Additional Language Demands. Given the language function and learning task identified above, describe the following associated language demands (written or oral) students need to understand and/or use:

 Vocabulary and/or symbols  Plus at least one of the following:  Syntax  Discourse [ In order to carry out the activity in Lesson 5 as described in the previous prompt, students will need to be able to identify and define the terms “facial embouchure”, “lifted soft palate”, and “appoggio breath support”. Specifically, they will need to be able to demonstrate understanding that having a proper “facial embouchure” involves lifting the zygomatic facial muscles and assuming a face similar to one that you make when biting into a peach in order to affect tone placement, that having a “lifted soft palate” involves lifting the soft palate, which is the soft, fleshy part of the roof of your mouth near the back of the oral cavity, and allows singers to perform with an appropriately open and spacious tone quality, and that using “appoggio breath support” involves expanding the ribs during exhalation and phonation in order to facilitate brilliance and supported sound in tone production. Demonstrating understanding of these definitions will also assist students in engaging in discourse regarding these concepts, as they will be able to talk about relevant anatomical and physiological aspects of each concept, differences in quality of sound dependent on the presence of each of these concepts in one’s musical performance, and be able to explain from a peer teaching perspective how to correctly perform each vocal technique concept. ] Copyright © 2016 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

d. Language Supports. Refer to your lesson plans and instructional materials as needed in your response to the prompt below.

 Identify and describe the instructional supports (during and/or prior to the learning task) to help students understand, develop, and use the identified language demands (vocabulary/symbols, function, syntax, discourse). [ In order to best facilitate student understanding of the vocal technique concepts of “facial embouchure”, “lifted soft palate”, and “appoggio breath support”, I will first connect each concept to a colloquial term and a kinesthetic motion in Lesson 1 in order to promote conceptual understanding and content retention, as supported by Barbe and Swassing’s research on learning modalities. In Lesson 2, students will develop their understanding of “facial embouchure” through presentation of the technical label, reviewing how to engage the requisite muscles needed to achieve an appropriate embouchure, and through engaging in discourse regarding the differences in sound and feeling when performing both with and without a proper facial embouchure. In Lesson 3, students will develop their understanding of “lifted soft palate” by identifying how to find the soft palate, generating methods and cues performers can use to engage the soft palate, and engage in discourse regarding the differences in sound and feeling when performing both with and without a lifted soft palate. In Lesson 4, students will demonstrate their understanding of each vocal technique concept by corporally “teaching” me how to perform with proper vocal technique, describing how to achieve each concept and the importance of each concept along the way. In Lesson 5, students will further demonstrate understanding of each concept by engaging in discourse regarding visual and aural characteristics of each vocal technique concept, as well as through evaluating and discussing a recorded musical performance using each vocal technique concept as evaluation criteria.

Sequencing learning tasks in this way follows Blooms Taxonomy of Learning, allowing students to develop their understanding of “facial embouchure”, “lifted soft palate”, and “appoggio breath support” first through memory and retention (Lesson 1), then understanding (Lessons 2 and 3), then application and analysis (Lessons 4 and 5), and finally evaluation (Lesson 5). ] 5. Monitoring Student Learning In response to the prompts below, refer to the assessments you will submit as part of the materials for Planning Task 1. a. Describe how your planned formal and informal assessments will provide direct evidence of students creating, performing, and/or responding to music/dance/theater by applying knowledge/skills, contextual understandings, and artistic expression throughout the learning segment. [ I will use individual and group informal assessments throughout my lessons to check for understanding and comprehension. At the end of Lesson 1, students will demonstrate identification of the three vocal technique concepts by collectively naming the three concepts (“peach-face”, “hootiness”, and “appoggio”) that they learned during the lesson. In Lesson 2, students will demonstrate their application of vocal technique knowledge in their repertoire by implementing the concepts of “peach-face”, “hootiness”, and “appoggio” in rehearsal of repertoire and self-assessing their use of each concept in rehearsal. They will also demonstrate recall of the three vocal technique concepts as well as application of their knowledge of embouchure to performance by providing a written response to the questions, “What are the three mechanisms we have to use for good tone production?” and “How do you form a good embouchure?” at the end of the lesson. At the end of Lesson 3, students will demonstrate understanding and application of “lifted soft palate” to performance by providing a written response to the questions, “How do you achieve hootiness?” and “What are some cues you can use to lift your soft palate?”. At the end of Lesson 4, students will demonstrate application of Copyright © 2016 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

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K-12 Performing Arts Task 1: Planning Commentary

knowledge regarding the three concepts of vocal technique by describing to each other in pairs how to achieve correct embouchure, lifted soft palate, and appoggio breath support. In Lesson 5, students will demonstrate their application of knowledge regarding vocal technique to responding to a musical performance by providing a written evaluation of a recorded musical performance, using “facial embouchure”, “lifted soft palate”, and “appoggio breath support” as criteria, then engaging in discourse with the class about it. At the end of the unit, students will be given a formal summative assessment that will allow them to demonstrate their understanding of each concept, application of knowledge to performance through description and explanation of each concept, and ability to engage in discourse regarding each concept through using a written evaluation to respond to a recorded musical performance, with each concept used as criteria for evaluation. ] b. Explain how the design or adaptation of your planned assessments allows students with specific needs to demonstrate their learning.

Consider the variety of learners in your class who may require different strategies/support (e.g., students with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers, underperforming students or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted students). [ Because most of the students in this class have exhibited discomfort with individual public speaking and performance in front of their peers, I chose written responses as my main form of formative and summative assessment throughout this learning segment. Use of written assessments will allow students to appropriately share their thoughts and understandings without fear of “being wrong” in front of others, which will help me adequately assess where students are in regards to their development of understanding regarding these concepts. My student with an IEP will be given extra time to finish these assessments should they so choose, as stated in their plan, and will also be given the option to be assessed verbally rather than through written assessment, as well. ]

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