Creating Rondo Form

Learning Resource Type

Learning Activity

Subject Area

Arts Education

Grade(s)

2

Overview

Students will use Google Chrome Music Lab - Song Maker to create a Rondo Form piece.  The students may explore different sounds and patterns to create their favorite Rondo Form. When they are satisfied with their piece, they will email the link to the teacher or post in Google Classroom. 

This activity was created as a result of the Arts COS Resource Development Summit. 

Phase

After/Explain/Elaborate
Arts Education (2017) Grade(s): 2 - Music

AE17.MU.2.4

Use iconic or standard notation and/or recording technology to combine, sequence, and document personal musical ideas.

UP:AE17.MU.2.4

Vocabulary

Rhythm
  • Eighth note, eighth rest, half note, half rest, whole note, whole rest
  • Strong/ weak beat — 2/4; 3/4 meter
  • Accelerando/ ritardando
Melody
  • Pitch Set: Do , Re, Mi, So, La
  • Five-line staff
  • Treble clef
  • Names of lines/ spaces (treble staff)
Harmony
  • Melodic ostinati
  • Partner songs
Form
  • AAB, AABA, Rondo
  • Verse/ Refrain
Expression
  • Orchestral instrument families
  • Piano (p), forte (f)
  • Crescendo/ decrescendo
  • Orchestral Music: programmatic
  • Indigenous music: Native American
  • American music: slave songs, colonial folk songs
Other
  • Age-appropriate pitch matching (B3-D5)1
  • Mallet/ drumming technique: alternating hands

Essential Questions

EU: Musicians' creative choices are influenced by their expertise, context, and expressive intent.
EQ: How do musicians make creative decisions?

Skills Examples

Performing
  • Perform original melodic patterns in do pentatonic as an introduction to a known song.
  • Perform original rhythmic patterns on body percussion or unpitched percussion, containing eighth note, eighth rest, half note, half rest, whole note, whole rest, as an introduction to a known chant.
Creating
  • Create a melody on pitched instruments using speech rhythms from a selected poem.
  • Improvise with a partner in question/answer style, using pitched or unpitched percussion instruments.
Reading/ Writing
  • Notate speech rhythms from a selected poem, using iconic or standard notation.
  • Using music composition software, create an original composition based on a personally selected topic.
Responding/ Evaluating
  • Refine compositions based on self-evaluation of a recorded performance.
  • Indicate dynamic markings for original compositions.

Anchor Standards

Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.

Learning Objectives

The student will:

use Song Maker to combine and sequence musical ideas into Rondo Form.

Activity Details

1.  Introduce Song Maker to class (use the About section for a brief introduction on using this digital tool). 

2.  Explore Song Maker as a class.

  • Create music examples of Rondo Form.

3.  Demonstrate how to "Save" the created piece and email to teacher or post in Google Classroom.  

4.  Students will open Google Chrome and search for Chrome Music Lab or the teacher can share the link with students.

5.  Click on Song Maker.

6.  Students will create a piece of music in Rondo Form.

  • They may choose how long each section is. They do not have to be uniform in length. For example, the A section may be longer than the B and C sections. Students are limited to the number of beats on the screen. It will vary depending on the device you use. (My laptop had 16 beats on the screen, but my phone only had 8.) 

7.  Once the students have composed the Rondo Form, they will save the composition.  They will "Copy" the link and email to the teacher or post in Google Classroom.  

Assessment Strategies

The teacher will assess the student composition for the accuracy of Rondo Form. 

Variation Tips

Students may work in groups if the teacher doesn't have enough devices for individual work. 

Background / Preparation

1.  Students will need access to a device with Google Chrome.  

2.  The teacher needs to be familiar with Song Maker.  

3.  Students need prior knowledge of Rondo Form. 

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