Lesson Plans from Edumate

Grade 10

Term 2
Unit 1 – Introduction to Composition

OVERVIEW
Understanding
The students will understand that ...

 Composing a song may involve  a lot of focused efforts.

 It is worthwhile to write something original .
 Creativity and innovation attracts others to one's works.
 Things they have learned before can be very useful in the future. 
 They can contribute to the history of music by being composers themselves

Essential Questions
Students will keep considering ...

 Why is it important to try doing new things and discover new talents?
 How can one show appreciation to other's composition?
 In what ways can one widen one's materials in composition?
 Why is it important to always have a purpose in mind when composing?
 How can a student enhance his or her potentials in music writing?

Knowledge
The students will know...

 The ideal length of a song title  is from one to five words.

 The title is important because it sums up the song, it will guide the one composing, and it will keep one
focused on a particular topic. 
 A good song title is one that catches your attention, interesting, real, emotional and something which
you really want to write about. 
 Using questions as guide in writing the lyrics finishes every song, keeps listeners interested, and gives the
lyricist the chance to say what he wants to say.
 A good song draws you in with questions, and answers those questions in a new way. 
 The organization of musical elements to achieve utmost symmetry and balance is called musical form.  
 There are five most common musical forms one can choose from when considering the structure of their
compositin: 1) strophic; 2) binary; 3) ternary; 4) rondo; and 5) rhapsodic 
 In many contemporary compositions, the song path is usually  composed of the combination of verse,
chorus, and bridge. 
 Melody communicates the emotional message of the song. 
 A hook is a memorable line or series of lines in a song. It is that catchy bit of tune that grabs the
listener's attention and keeps them thinking about the song later. 
 The different key signatures exude specific emotions that students may want to consider when choosing
a particular musical key for theri  composition
Skills
Students will be skilled at...

 Analyzing the lyrics  and melody of songs 

 Giving striking  original titles with ideal lenghts 
 Writing meaningful and coherent lyrics that matches the title
 Identifying the musical forms of any given song 
 Creating an original hook and a memorable melody

EVIDENCE
Performance Tasks
Composing and Presenting an Original Chorus Part

The students will  present a short but original chorus  in a performance. The chorus should be complete with
lyrics and melody  and which should be connected to a title which they have also originally written. 

This performance task integrates several skills at the same time, including their abilities to write good title and
lyrics, create a memorable melody, and sing and play a song in front of the class. 

Assessment will primarily be based on the originality of the composition. 

Identifying Musical Forms

In this learning activity, the students will be given three audio files to examine. They are primarily to
identify the musical form of the songs by marking the lyrics where a new melody or section starts and
ends using the symbols for the different forms (Strophic=A/AAA; Binary=AB; Ternary= ABA/ABC; Rondo=
ABABA/ABACA; and Rhapsody=ABCD...). At the end of each they are to identify and to write what they
think the musical form of the song is. 

In this activity, the students' ability to listen to melodic change will hopefully surface. 

Song Analysis

In this learnign activity, the students are given a song to look into, i.e. Katy Perry's "Roar". They are
primarily to see how meaningful the lyrics of the song is, how the title of the song summarizes the story
of the song, and how the melody fits the message of the song. The students will listen to it  and answer
specific questions pertaining to the title, lyrics, and melody of the song. 

This activity aims to inspire the students to write a meaningful lyrics of their own. 

Composing and Presenting an Original Chorus Part

The students will  present a short but original chorus  in a performance. The chorus should be
complete with lyrics and melody  and which should be connected to a title which they have also
originally written. 

This performance task integrates several skills at the same time, including their abilities to write
good title and lyrics, create a memorable melody, and sing and play a song in front of the class. 

Assessment will primarily be based on the originality of the composition. 

Writing Original Titles

In this learning task, the students will write 5 original titles following the guidelines in making ideal titles
as discussed in the class. 

This activity will hopefully help make surface the specific topics tha the students would like to write
about in the future. 
Other Evidence
 Singing and Playing Musical Instruments
 Using the correct notes from a given Key Signature
 Choosing the right words to tell the story of their song
 Confidence in sharing to the class their original work
 Pen and Paper Quizzes and Seatworks

DESIGN
Lesson 1- Introduction on Composition and Course Outline for Term 2
WEEK 1 

International Period 

(W)  Opening Activity: Listening to Song and Song Analysis (10 minutes) 

The class will be given copy of the lyrics of the song "Roar" by Katy Perry. 

Then the students will read along the lyrics as they listen to the song twice. 

The students will have to answer 3 questions about the song after listening to it. 

(I) Sharing of Analysis (20 minutes) 

Individual students will then be called to share their answer to the class.

Students will share what they think the song is all about and their analysis of the lyrics and melody of the song. 

(W) Presentation of Course Outline (10 minutes)

The teacher  will  present the course outline to the class for the 2nd Term.
•Introduction: Song Analysis
•Title and Lyrics
•Adaptation
•Forms and Song Path
•Choosing a Key Signature
•Creating a Hook and a Melody
•Adding Depth to Composition
•Documentation using Muse-Score
•Groupings and Practice
•Presentation of Original Composition
Core Tactic – Guided Inquiry
In order to achieve the objective in this activity, the teacher will give some guide questions to the students in
order for them to analyze the lyrics and melody of the song "Roar" more thoroughly. 
Resources
Roar - Katy Perry
Text
This is a short analysis of the figures of speech used especially in the first stanza of the song. It
shows the build-up and the change in perspective of the 'singer' leading to the moment when she
decided to 'roar'.