Lesson Plan 1

Class: Man Choir

Grade Level: 9-12

Learning Environment Preparation:

Chairs in three rows
Piano in front of chairs
Risers clear of backpacks and binders
White board clean
Television on, laptop connected to AppleTV

Instructional Resources and Materials:

Piano
Risers and chairs for practice and performance
Copy of 5-Minute Mastery (Northern Sound Press) for each student
Copies of following repertoire for each student:
3 Sea Shanties (Ron Jeffers, Earthsongs Publishing)
Cripple Creek (Ken Berg, Santa Barbara Music Publishing)
Psallite Hodie (Victor C Johnson, Hal Leonard Publishing)
Ticket to the Kingdom (Donald Moore, Alfred Publishing)
Pencils and pieces of lined paper for each student
Apple TV, television and laptop with access to the internet
Proper Singing Posture PowerPoint loaded to computer

IEP/504/ELL/Gifted (and other accommodations):

Check for understanding, repeat directions as necessary (2 students)
Preferential seating, assistance on note-taking assignments (1 student)
Breaks as needed to focus, periodical cuing for redirection, preferential seating, access
to organizational support, chunking large assignments into smaller pieces with periodic
checks (1 student)
Preferential seating (1 student)
Word processor needed when writing one paragraph or more (1 student)
May take worksheets home, may take more time to complete tests and quizzes (3
students)

Central Focus:
The central focus of this lesson is building knowledge of proper singing posture and explaining,
evaluating and applying proper singing posture to repertoire

National and State Music Standards:

National Anchor Standard #9. Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work
National Anchor Standard #3: Refine and complete artistic work
State Standard MU:Pr6.1.E.Ia Demonstrate attention to technical accuracy and
expressive qualities in prepared and improvised performances of a varied repertoire of
music representing diverse cultures, styles, and genres.
State Standard MU:Pr5.1.E.Ia Develop strategies to address expressive challenges in a
varied repertoire of music, and evaluate their success using feedback from ensemble
peers and other sources to refine performances
Academic Language (Review/Introduction):
Review: Various dynamics, solfege
 Introduce: Proper Standing Posture (PSP), alignment, sternum

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this rehearsal, students will be able to:
perform selected repertoire proper standing posture
perform dynamics in Cripple Creek
evaluate a performance of proper singing posture and dynamics
explain elements and importance of proper singing posture

Instructional Strategies and Learning Tasks (Procedures):

Do Now/Bell Work: Be in seat with music and pencil when the bell rings; stand and
participate in physical warm-ups
Activity One: Students will begin class with a physical warm-up. They will then
complete breathing exercises and vocal warm-up. After vocal warm-ups, they will take
out 5-Minute Mastery and complete one page of sight-reading exercises.
Transition: I will ask students to stand on risers and sing A Whistlin Shanty, a familiar
piece.
Activity Two: I will ask students to perform the piece thinking about posture. I will play
the pitches to begin A Whistlin Shanty, then snap to keep time for the singers. While
they are singing, I will evaluate each students posture according to designed rubric and
give them a score (1-5, the higher the number the higher the score) as a pre-
assessment. I will record each of the scores in a gradebook next to each students
name.
Transition: Once they have completed the performance, I will thank them for their
performance and ask them to take a seat close to the television. I will connect the laptop
to the AppleTV and open the PowerPoint for Proper Singing Posture.
Activity Three: I will present the interactive PowerPoint, regularly asking questions to
check for student understanding. The PowerPoint presentation walks students through
the physiology and vocabulary of Proper Singing Posture, common problems related to
Proper Singing Posture. Students will watch a video of a male singer and practice
Proper Singing Posture with him. While students are practicing, I will informally assess
them and provide direct-related feedback. I will also answer any questions students
have.
Transition: I will thank the students for practicing PSP and ask for any further questions.
I will then project Slide 7 and ask students to stand in sections in circles around the
room.
Activity Three: Once in circles, I will ask students to choose a partner. Each student
with then forget an element of proper singing posture while singing Ticket to the
Kingdom and their partner will have to identify the forgotten element and solve it. While
students are singing, I will play the accompaniment so students can easily stay in key
and follow the key changes. Halfway through the piece, I will stop the students and ask
them to identify and solve the proper singing posture problem. While students are
conversing, I will check will all groups to make sure students are able to complete the
activity. If they are having trouble identifying the problem, I will lead them toward the
answer using questioning techniques. Once all students have solved the fault, they will
finish the song using proper singing posture. I will continue to play accompaniment.
Transition: I will thank students for their participation in the activity, then direct them to
stand on the risers in sections and perform Cripple Creek, using their music if needed.
Students will perform focusing on using proper singing posture and dynamics through
the song. Students will self-assess their performance of dynamics and PSP on a 1-5
scale.
Activity Four: I will play starting pitches for Cripple Creek conduct the group, showing
dynamics in my gesture and verbally remind them of posture and dynamics. I will play
 accompaniment surrounding the key change to better assist the students in staying in
key. At the end of the performance, I will ask the group to self-assess their posture and
dynamics and show me their score on their fingers (scale of 1-5, 5 being excellent). I will
give direct-related feedback related to their scores, then ask them to perform the piece
again, improving their score by one. During the second performance, I will conduct,
showing dynamics in my gesture, but giving no verbal reminders. At the end, I will ask
students to assess themselves and show their score on their fingers. I will give them
direct-related feedback based on their assessment.
Transition: I will thank students for performing and evaluating their performance. Then I
will ask students to get out a pencil and sit in chairs close to the television. I will
reconnect the laptop to the AppleTV if necessary and project Slide 8. I will delegate a
student to pass out lined pieces of paper and ask students to respond to the three
prompts on the screen.
Activity Five: The questions students will respond to are: Why is it important to stand in
PSP during rehearsal and performance? What is something new you learned about
PSP? How can you apply what you learned about PSP outside the choral classroom? I
will ask students to use complete sentences and their own words. When they are
finished, students should put it on the piano.
Transition: After all students have turned in their work, I will ask students to stand on
the risers in sections again and sing A Whistlin Shanty. I will tell them that I am formally
assessing them on their posture.
Activity Six: I will ask students to perform the piece thinking about proper singing
posture. Before they begin, I will ask students to recall elements of proper singing
posture, and I will call on students to share. I will play the pitches to begin A Whistlin
Shanty, then snap to keep time for the singers. While they are singing, I will evaluate
each students posture according to designed rubric and give them a score (1-5, the
higher the number the higher the score) as a post-assessment. I will record each of the
scores in a gradebook next to each students name. I will then compare the pre-
assessment score with the post-assessment score to determine
Contingency Plan: If there is enough time, I will ask students to sit on the risers. I will
lead a discussion on the importance of PSP and applying PSP to areas outside the
choral classroom.

Assessments:
Informal, formative assessment: Pre-assessment of posture (A Whistlin Shanty)
Informal, formative assessment: I will watch students while practicing PSP and give
them direct, related feedback for improvement
Informal, formative assessment: S will self-assess dynamics and PSP in a performance
of Cripple Creek
Formal, summative assessment: S will explain importance of PSP and respond to
prompts related to PSP
Formal, summative assessment: Post-assessment of PSP (A Whistlin Shanty)

Summary:
As a result of this lesson, students will be able to perform with perform selected
repertoire with proper standing posture, perform dynamics in Cripple Creek, evaluate their
performance of dynamics and PSP, and explain elements and the importance of PSP.

Extension:
In the next lesson, students will review elements of proper singing posture and practice
setting up PSP. They will then build on this knowledge by learning about breathing and
engaging the diaphragm. They will make connections between PSP and an engaged
diaphragm, and evaluate their own performance of these elements through a video-recording.