September 2020

Music Handbook

You can see an updated copy of our Music Handbook here. I have included the Class Expectations for Zoom learning. 

Otus Lessons and Assessments

Each class is assigned a weekly Lesson in Otus. This lesson contains:

1) Week at a Glance: a brief overview of the weekly activities

2) Links to each song that we will be rehearsing and a the relevant sections we will focus on

3) A list of Assessments and Due Dates 

**Students do not need to mark the activities complete

Assessments are assigned 1-2 time per week. At this point, they are all formative as we work on our music foundations and practice navigating the new technology. 

Summative assessments will begin in another 1-2 weeks.

Time is always given during our scheduled lesson to complete these assessments. It is expected that students will complete assessments on time and during the class period they are assigned. If students choose not to complete the assessment during class, they will need to do it on their own time. 

Late submissions may not receive an immediate grade. 

Supply Pick-Up and Instrument Repairs

I will be on-site at Eich on Friday afternoons to hand out supplies, books, or repair instruments. 

Check in at the front office and I will get a call to meet you there. 

Although we have digital access to all of our music, some students have said they would prefer to have hard copies as well. I am working with our librarian to make these items available. Right now I  have the band books and choir music ready to deploy. Guitar books will take another week or two to prepare. 

Supplies Available: reeds, valve oil, guitar strings, picks, portable music stands (limited)

Books Available: Measures of Success 1 and 2, Band Ninja Packets (Guitar books coming soon)

Choir Music: hard copies of the songs we are working on in class

Live Class (Synchronous) vs Independent Practice (Asynchronous Time) 

We have been using a little over half of our class time for live learning. Typically we are finishing up with 10-15 minutes left in the class period. During this time students should continue to practice independently. Some days there are assessments to be completed in Otus and other times students are instructed to practice the material from the lesson. 

During the Independent time I encourage students to leave the Zoom meeting so that their computers will be able to run other applications (SmartMusic or MusicProdigy). I keep the Zoom meeting open until the scheduled end of class time. Students may stay or rejoin the meeting and use this time to ask clarifying questions and get 1 on 1 help. 

SmartMusic (Band and Choir) and MusicProdigy (Guitar)

We have begun using our practice applications in all classes. By now, students should have created accounts and be able to login. These accounts will be free for students to use as long as they are enrolled in a music class.  

The purpose of both SmartMusic and MusicProdigy is to allow students to access the music we are working on in class and receive feedback on the accuracy of their playing. 

Students should be using these applications daily. 

Concerts and Performances

At this time, we do not have any scheduled live concerts or performances. Realistically, it will probably be February or March before we can even begin to discuss the possibility. My hope is that we will be able to have some sort of Spring Concert before the end of the school year. Any potential performance will be aligned with state, county, and school district guidelines. 

Return to In-Person Learning and Music Making

  By now you have probably heard that our district is planning for a potential  Hybrid Model for in-person learning in early November. 

Current guidelines from the state prohibit band and choir rehearsal from taking place in an educational classroom. It is thought that these activities are "super spreader" events that could have the potential to release higher levels of aerosol particles into the air. 

There is currently a high profile study at the University of Colorado, Boulder that is researching the presence of  aerosols in music rehearsals and also testing ways to minimize those aerosols (masks for people and instruments!). 

I am staying current with the research and will keep you updated as we get closer to Eich reopening. 

In the event that we cannot rehearse in person, we will focus on music theory and composition during in-person instruction and will sing/play during the digital lessons.