Music Curriculum

Northern Illinois District

Grade 4

 

 

XXV.  Elements of the Arts (Music Theory – Listening/ Describing)

 

State Goal:  Know the language of the arts.

 

Why This Goal Is Important:  Through observation, discussion, interpreta­tion and analysis, students learn the “language” of the arts.  They learn to understand how others express ideas in dance, drama, music and visual art forms.  In addition to acquiring knowledge essential to performance and production, students become arts consumers (e.g., attending live performances or movies, purchasing paintings or jewelry, or visiting museums) who understand the basic elements and principles underlying artworks and are able to critique them.

 

 

Learning Standard  A:  Understand the sensory elements, organizational principles, and expressive qualities of the arts.

 

Sensory elements

 

Objective 1:  Identify and discuss various tempos

Objective 2:  Identify the various rhythmic durations

Objective 3:  Identify and perform dotted rhythms

Objective 4:  Recognize syncopation in a melody

Objective 5:  Identify characteristics of melodic phrases (same/different, longer/shorter)

 

Organizational principles (Formal/ technical elements)

 

Objective 6:  Identify unison/choral harmony

Objective 7:  Identify intervals (4th, 5th, Octave)

Objective 8:  Identify and sing descants

Objective 9:  Identify solo/duet/trio/chorus singing

Objective 10:  Identify music symbols (rests, fermata)

Objective 11:  Identify and label different dynamic levels (f, p, mf, mp)

Objective 12:  Identify simple musical forms (D.C. al fine)

Objective 13:  Identify and explain different simple meters (2/4, 3/4, 4/4)

 

 

Learning Standard B:  Understand the similarities, distinctions, and connections in and among the arts.

 

Characteristics of musical styles

 

Objective 1:  View and/or participate in a musical production or worship service

Objective 2:  Discuss and suggest ways in which composers use music to convey ideas

Objective 3:  Discuss genres of various pieces of music

 

Similarities, contrasts, and relationships between music and the other fine arts

 

Objective 4:  Discuss and suggest how music relates to dance, drama, and visual art

 

 

 

XXVI.  Performance of the Arts (Applied Music – Creating/ Reading/ Performing)

 

State Goal:  Through creating and performing, understand how works of art are produced.

 

Why This Goal Is Important:  Students acquire skills to produce and perform dance, drama, music and visual art.  They learn to use media, tools and technologies.  They learn to shape ideas and emotions into sounds, images and actions.  As students create and perform their own artworks and review the works of others, they become more imaginative, strengthen their problem-solving skills and learn to respond to the creativity of others.  Creating and performing are at the core of the fine arts.  Students also learn about the role of the artist (e.g., dancer, painter, actor, director, scriptwriter, musician).

 

 

Learning Standard A:  Understand processes, traditional tools, and modern technologies used in the arts.

 

Processes used to create solo, ensemble, and choral music

 

Objective 1:  Describe the role of a composer and conductor in a performance

Objective 2:  Describe the role of a singer/instrumentalist in a performance

 

Instrumental and electronic music

 

Objective 3:  Describe how basic sound is produced (electronic vs. acoustic music)

 

Translation of written symbols of music

 

Objective 4:  Identify 2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 6/8 time signature

Objective 5:  Identify and label notes in treble clef

 

Use of musical notation

 

Objective 6:  Notate rhythms and melodies using standard notation

Objective 7:  Identify and perform rhythms and melodies using standard notation (whole, half, dotted half, quarter, paired eighth, single eighth notes, and their corresponding rests)

Objective 8:  Identify various expressive markings of standard notation (e.g. dynamics, tempos, articulations)

 

 

Learning Standard B:  Apply skills and knowledge neces­sary to create and perform in one or more of the arts.

 

Musical performance techniques

 

Objective 1:  Sing or play music accurately, reading standard music notation; on pitch; in rhythm; maintaining a steady tempo; using appropriate volume; demonstrating breath control; demonstrating proper singing and/or playing technique; and demonstrating proper articulations/diction

Objective 2:  Sing from “All God’s People Sing” hymnal

Objective 3:  Sing songs appropriate to the seasons of the Church year for performance at worship service

 

Vocal or instrumental writing and improvisational techniques

 

Objective 4:  Improvise rhythmic and melodic variations of a given song

Objective 5:  Create short vocal and/or instrumental songs within specific guidelines

 

XXVII.  The History and Application of the Arts (Music Appreciation)

 

State Goal:  Understand the role of the arts in civilizations, past and present.

 

Why This Goal Is Important: The arts are a record of civilizations, past and present.  Artists are influenced by—and influence—the times and places in which they live and work.  As students learn through the arts about people and civilizations, they learn about others and themselves.  Also, students learn about careers related to this goal (e.g., animator, curator, art historian, sound technician).

 

 

Learning Standard A:  Analyze how the arts function in history, society, and everyday life.

 

Roles of artists and audiences

 

Objective 1:  Demonstrate appropriate audience/worshipper behavior and evaluate the behavior of self and others

Objective 2:  Describe how audience/worshipper behavior changes a performance or service

Objective 3:  Categorize artists with their music and related products or performances (e.g., vocalists participate in a choir or praise ensemble, composers write advertising jingles, and instrumentalists participate in worship services)

 

Influence of music on societies, civilizations, cultures, and the church

 

Objective 4:  Compare and contrast how music functions in different types of ceremonies (e.g., parades, weddings, graduations, and sporting events)

Objective 5:  Give examples in which music is used to persuade, promote ideas, and create moods

Objective 6:  Identify the book of Psalms as the hymnal of David and the Jewish people long ago, but that it is still a relevant, useful resource for our worship today

Objective 7:  Explain that Christian people have created songs about Jesus since the beginning of the Church and that these songs are also useful for worship of our time

Objective 8:  Sing Christian songs representing the world’s cultures, if the songs are compatible with the Lutheran faith 

 

How music can express universal and specific Christian themes

 

Objective 9:  Discuss and demonstrate proper worship behavior

Objective 10:  Know the seasons in the liturgical year and sing songs appropriate to the seasons

 

How God’s Word can be communicated and remembered effectively when joined together with music

 

Objective 11:  Give examples of how music is utilized in daily Christian life

Objective 12:  Participate in Lutheran worship experiences where God is praised with various instruments and voices

Objective 13:  Listen to and or learn songs based on various scriptures and Christian concepts

 

 

Learning Standard B:  Understand how the arts shape and reflect history, society, and everyday life.

 

Changes in music through the ages: their classification by artistic periods, and their relationships to historical periods and cultures

 

Objective 1:  Sing hymns and songs from various times in our church’s history

Objective 2:  Discuss how music of different time periods, from our own cultures as well as other cultures, relates to our society now

Objective 3:  Discuss the historical, social, and theological roots of hymns and liturgy used in the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod

Objective 4:  List artists who have made significant contributions and describe their ideas