7th Grade Music Appreciation -Mrs. Smith
marilea.smith@beavercreek.k12.oh.us
Welcome!
I would like to welcome students to 7th Grade Music Appreciation! Students will have many
opportunities to experience various aspects of music including:
Music Theater and auditioning techniques with a review of where theater originates and some
famous musicals from history. The students will also get to read through a full length musical in
the classroom, and they will get to read different parts from the musical. The students will then
get to read/act out the musical in the classroom only! Students will get to learn the basic
element of playing the keyboard with our brand new state of the art Yamaha keyboard
laboratory with headsets and full weighted 88 keyboards for students to play on! (Students
with experience on the piano need to inform the instructor during the first week so we can
accommodate your level of experience and put you in the proper book/level), and finally,
students will get to incorporate technology and music by creating a ‘power point’ on a musical
production of their choice and present their final project to their classmates. They will receive
5 days of computer lab time to work on the musical and must have a ‘flash drive’ to save their
work and to be able to take it home to work on/finish.
Each student is graded in the following categories:
Classroom Assignments (15%) (anything involving you completing a handout at home)
Written Tests (20%)
Quizzes (15%)
Playing tests (20%) (for guitar and keyboard unit only)
(1) Power Point Project (30%)
Unit One: Musical Theater (3 weeks)
One week review of Musicals using a power point that students will read aloud in class and take quizzes
following each Unit covered. Students are responsible to cover any portion of the Power Point at home
by reading it on my teacher webpage (click on Music Appreciation Assignments) if they are absent from
school.
3-4 Days: Students will watch a DVD that covers musical theater from Vaudville to Broadway (including
musical excerpts) ~they are required to complete the video sheet during class while watching 'Broadway,
The American Musical" PBS DVD Series.
One week ~ Computer Lab time~ Students will work on power point project of chosen Broadway
Musical criteria sheet available) They will need a flash drive to complete this assignment.
One week ~ Power Point Presentations Students will present their power point of their chosen musical
to their classmates and all students will take notes during the presentations and turn in for a grade. If
absent, they are to ‘borrow notes’ from another student to get notes missed. The criteria sheet for this project is
available online.
Unit Two:
How to prepare for an 'Audition' (One week)
One week -Students will read packet covering information on how to 'audition' for a musical or
any stage production. Students will conclude the unit by taking a written test that covers the
information in the packet.
Unit Three:
Piano Lab~ (4weeks)
Students will learn the basic skills of how to play the piano.
Students will be using a piano methods booklet that has been adopted and approved by the
Beavercreek Board of Education in learning the basic skills of playing the piano in a piano lab
setting. Students will get to play on our new state of the art piano lab on one of several Roland
F-120 weighted keyboards with split key capability and headsets that allow them to listen to
themselves only when playing and talk to the instructor privately. Students will work as a class
and demonstrate the basic skills for playing the piano. Students will receive a ‘theory written
test’ following this unit and have 2-3 playing tests during the unit covering the material.
Unit Four:
"Music Of the Heart" PG ~DVD movie & worksheet (4 days )
One week-Adresses: The Power of Music to evoke group collaboration in an inner
school environment and the struggles that music education has to endure to
sustain in an ever changing educational institution. It is a true story of a young
teacher who persuades the Board of Education to teach underprivileged kids
music through the violin. Students must complete a video worksheet and turn in upon
completion of the DVD.
Unit Five:
"HAIRSPRAY” the musical …PG ~DVD movie & worksheet (4 days
)
One week-Adresses: This musical covers the CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT and deals with
issues of ‘segregation’ vs. integration. Students will have to complete a video
worksheet and turn it in for a grade upon completion of the movie.
Unit Six:
Intune Monthly Magazine (one week) (if time permits)
Students will read from a current educational music magazine called intune
monthly and listen to musical excerpts from the magazine.
Unit Seven:
"History of Jazz Music"- Power point (one week)(if time permits)
This unit addresses the different types of jazz music with listening examples~ the
end of the unit will include a listening quiz to see if students can identify the
music with the specific jazz artist or type of jazz music.