This class was awesome. I had so much fun learning about some of the tools available to me on the web. It was nice to expand upon what I learned about in my in service this summer.I enjoyed the webquest assignment the most, mainly because I can see myself using it a great deal in the future and it was something that I haven't done before. It is amazing how much you are able to do and customize so that it can be geared towards any age level. In the future, I would love to have a webquest for each unit that I do with my students in general music at the 8th grade level and at the high school level. This is an excellent way for the students to do self guided l;learning and to take charge of their own success.
This course has shown me new ways to use the technology that is available to me. I am a huge fan of podcasting and in the future making vlogs but the things that we explored in this class I can do now. They aren't as time consuming as other things can be. It is a wonderful way to get my students involved as well as their parents and the rest of the community. This allows my students and I to communicate with musicians and music students around the county and around the world. Wouldn't it be neat to have a video conference or workshop with a conductor in Italy? I think that my students would go nuts for the opportunity to do this and they technology that we have available at our fingertips today allow this to happen. I am really excited to start updating my school website with all of the new things I learned and giving my students new things to explore.
I think this class was laid out very well. It was a short course and I don't think that the modules were over whelming at all. The guidelines to the modules and the assignments were clear and well explained and worthwhile. I was able to take away something from each and every thing that we did. This isn't always the case in online classes but it was true here. The video links that appeared in each module were very helpful and I have bookmarked them for future use! If a class like this was offered again in the future I would take it in a heartbeat. I had a great time learning and discovering with other teachers and being able to give and receive advice.
This class is great for educators and educators to be. It is practical knowledge that we can put to use right now. Thank you for offering this class for us!
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Web resources
Name of resource: Ricci Adams' Musictheory.net
URL: http://www.musictheory.net/index.html
Summary: The site is provided to give a wide array of resources in the field of music theory. There are a great deal of navigational drop-down boxes at the left to choose what area to work in. It is possible to do anything from the basics of interval training to creating matrices. There is also a chord calculator which allows chords to be built and labels to be given. It can be used by high school students, college students and beyond.
Commentary: This site has some excellent resources for musicians, music educators and college students. There is use for everything on this site. It has a staff paper generator, a matrix generator, ear training activities and written lessons. The only complaint the audio does not always stream smoothly from the site. This also could be my Internet connection, so I won't hold it against them! I get this site 5 out of 5 music notes.
Name of resource: Shar Music
URL: http://www.sharmusic.com/
Summary: Shar Music is a retailer based in Ann Arbor, MI. It was started in 1962 and provides string musicians with anything and everything their heart desires. There are strings, accessories such as shoulder-rests, endpin anchors, rosin, bow buddies, sheet music, bows, professional quality instruments and much more. Shar offers the top names in these products at fair prices.
Commentary: I have shopped at Shar for many years. It's nice that they have fair pricing and will ship anywhere in the US AND Canada. They have a large variety of strings, instruments and bows. They offer a trial program and will send an instrument/bow out to try for a week and then allow it to either be purchased or sent back in return for a different one. They have excellent sales and are really good to the educators. I wish they offered better shipping rates but it is usually worth the money spent since they get your product to you in a timely fashion. I would recommend Shar Music, and often do, to my students and their parents for all of their musical instrument needs.Shar gets 4.5 music notes out of 5 music notes in my score.
Name of resource: Good Ear- Online Ear Training Site
URL: http://www.good-ear.com/
Summary: Good Ear offers ear training in the area of chords, jazz chords, simple intervals and scales. You have the ability to chose the instrument that is playing the examples and this may be helpful to hear the example.
Commentary: The site only allows you to work at the level of beginner. Some of the examples continuously repeat themselves and it gets frustrating after the first few times. The site is not very aesthetically pleasing and takes a great deal of time to load the examples depending on the amount of traffic. It is a good site to start out with but I would recommend musictheory.net over this site. It gets 3 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: School of Music | SUNY Fredonia
URL: http://www.fredonia.edu/som/
Summary: This is the official website of SUNY Fredonia's school of music. It introduces the degree programs, ensembles and faculty. It also has a calendar of events including student recitals, audition requirements and audition dates. There is a wealth of information to be found in the sub links from the main page.
Commentary: I find that the SOM page is very easy to navigate. This page was not in existence when I was an undergraduate or even a perspective student at/for Fredonia. It is aesthetically pleasing and full of useful information. There are forms online that the current students are able to access as well as postings for auditions not only for admission but for ensembles once you are accepted. This site provides detailed information and pictures on the faculty as well as pictures of the school and musicians in action. As far as webpages go in being informative and user friendly, Fredonia is near the top. I give Fredonia 4.5 music notes out of 5 (and not just because I graduates from there!).
Name of resource: ECMEA
URL: http://ecmea.org/mambo/
Summary: Erie County Music Educators Association official website. This site has resources available to teachers and to parents. There is a schedule of festivals, list of member schools and even a specific area for parents. As an educator, there is an area that can be accessed with a user ID and password which allows access to the file exchange and monthly newsletter.
Commentary: This site is excellent for the educators of Erie County. It is a good place to find quick information- such as the students who were accepted into the ensembles or the address/phone number of music teachers in my area. It might not be the best site in terms of look but it is easy to navigate and provides a good amount of information in one single area. The user name and password is easy to remember for the teachers (a plus!) and allows us to share resources among us. I give this site 4 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: NYSSMA
URL: http://www.nyssma.org/
Summary: New York State School Music Association. This site is very similar to that of the ECMEA website. NYSSMA is a state-wide organization and all of the schools which have music programs should be members of. There are many subpages with a variety of information. This site is geared towards all of those involved in music in NYS. There is a link with documents, job openings, curriculum, special learners etc.
Commentary: This site provides excellent resources for teachers in many different areas but my favorite is sections dealing with religious music, curriculum and special learners. There are so many things that I find useful on this site that I have turned to at least once a week if not more. I think that NYSSMA did an excellent job putting this site together and allowing all of the teachers in the state a place to come together. I think in the future they should think about putting up a message board to allow us to communicate with each other. It would be instant access to years and years of experience and suggestions for us younger music teachers. I would recommend checking this site out to any music teacher in NYS and even to those out of NYS. It could spark ideas even if your requirements are different. I give the NYSSMA website 5 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: Sheet Music at JW Pepper
URL: http://www.jwpepper.com/sheet-music/welcome.jsp
Summary: JW Pepper is one of the top music retailers. At JW Pepper, you can search through the music and filter out the results based on difficulty level, instrumentation, music type, style, etc. or a combination of these. This site allows music to be ordered in a full set, individual parts or extra scores to be ordered. There are also suggestions of music choices for your groups and these change based on the month/new pieces that come out. Most of the pieces are online to be listened to and some even have snippets of the score.
Commentary: JW Pepper is my number #1 resource for looking for new pieces for my ensemble. I like it because I am able to listen to the piece before I buy it. The one thing I don't like is that most of the recordings are done by professional musicians. It always sounds great but does not give me a realistic view of what my ensemble will sound like. It is nice that JW Pepper provides the patrons with a view of the score, usually 1-4 pages, on most of the instrumental pieces they offer. Sometimes it is easier to see the piece and know if your group can play it, for me at least, than listen to it. Overall JW Pepper is an outstanding resource for finding new music and having the ability to listen to the music before you buy it. I give JW Pepper 4 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: Music Education Lesson Plans
URL: http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/lesson_plans/music/
Summary: This website offers different lesson plans for music. Most of the plans incorporate other areas and disciplines. There is a variety of plans to chose and most of them are geared towards the general music classroom.
Commentary: I like that this site has different plans for the general music classroom. I don't feel 100% comfortable or creative in coming up with ideas in this setting and this site gives me inspiration and allows me the freedom to add or take out ideas that may not work for me. A lot of these lessons plans come from reputable sources (MENC, Yale, etc.) and I enjoy that the format is easy to read. I would recommend this site to other educators not necessarily to be copied word for word but to use as a stepping stone in developing their own lesson plans. I give this site 4 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: MENC- The National Association for Music Education
URL: http://www.menc.org/
Summary: MENC is the national association for music education. It is for college students and for professional music educators throughout the field. MENC provides resources for graduates seeking employment around the country, conferences for both college students and educators and advocacy materials and more. This site has an incredible about of information available to it's visitors.
Commentary: This is by far the BEST of the BEST in association websites. This site is loaded with information and if you are struggling to find what you want a simple search within the site usually yields positive results. MENC does a great deal for its educators and provides us with the tools to not only KEEP our programs but to also keep them growing and educating the parents who support us. There is a message board which allows teachers/students to ask questions of others. This is the one site that I visit on a daily basis to see what is new in the world of music education. I LOVE MENC! I give this site 5 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: Dolmetsch Online- Music Dictionary
URL: http://www.dolmetsch.com/musictheorydefs.htm
Summary: An online music dictionary. There is a multitude of music terms and an easy way to search for the term that is needed.
Commentary: This site is awesome. There are terms on this site that I have never heard of. No matter the question, there is always an answer (to the meaning) on this site. This is just a small section of the site, the full home page can be found at http://www.dolmetsch.com/theoryintro.htm. I haven't spent a great deal exploring the site in its entirety, but the music dictionary is reliable and useful. Students are able to access the dictionary and find out meanings on their own as well. It might not be the best looking site but it is very user friendly. I would recommend this site as the first go to online resource for a music dictionary.
URL: http://www.musictheory.net/index.html
Summary: The site is provided to give a wide array of resources in the field of music theory. There are a great deal of navigational drop-down boxes at the left to choose what area to work in. It is possible to do anything from the basics of interval training to creating matrices. There is also a chord calculator which allows chords to be built and labels to be given. It can be used by high school students, college students and beyond.
Commentary: This site has some excellent resources for musicians, music educators and college students. There is use for everything on this site. It has a staff paper generator, a matrix generator, ear training activities and written lessons. The only complaint the audio does not always stream smoothly from the site. This also could be my Internet connection, so I won't hold it against them! I get this site 5 out of 5 music notes.
Name of resource: Shar Music
URL: http://www.sharmusic.com/
Summary: Shar Music is a retailer based in Ann Arbor, MI. It was started in 1962 and provides string musicians with anything and everything their heart desires. There are strings, accessories such as shoulder-rests, endpin anchors, rosin, bow buddies, sheet music, bows, professional quality instruments and much more. Shar offers the top names in these products at fair prices.
Commentary: I have shopped at Shar for many years. It's nice that they have fair pricing and will ship anywhere in the US AND Canada. They have a large variety of strings, instruments and bows. They offer a trial program and will send an instrument/bow out to try for a week and then allow it to either be purchased or sent back in return for a different one. They have excellent sales and are really good to the educators. I wish they offered better shipping rates but it is usually worth the money spent since they get your product to you in a timely fashion. I would recommend Shar Music, and often do, to my students and their parents for all of their musical instrument needs.Shar gets 4.5 music notes out of 5 music notes in my score.
Name of resource: Good Ear- Online Ear Training Site
URL: http://www.good-ear.com/
Summary: Good Ear offers ear training in the area of chords, jazz chords, simple intervals and scales. You have the ability to chose the instrument that is playing the examples and this may be helpful to hear the example.
Commentary: The site only allows you to work at the level of beginner. Some of the examples continuously repeat themselves and it gets frustrating after the first few times. The site is not very aesthetically pleasing and takes a great deal of time to load the examples depending on the amount of traffic. It is a good site to start out with but I would recommend musictheory.net over this site. It gets 3 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: School of Music | SUNY Fredonia
URL: http://www.fredonia.edu/som/
Summary: This is the official website of SUNY Fredonia's school of music. It introduces the degree programs, ensembles and faculty. It also has a calendar of events including student recitals, audition requirements and audition dates. There is a wealth of information to be found in the sub links from the main page.
Commentary: I find that the SOM page is very easy to navigate. This page was not in existence when I was an undergraduate or even a perspective student at/for Fredonia. It is aesthetically pleasing and full of useful information. There are forms online that the current students are able to access as well as postings for auditions not only for admission but for ensembles once you are accepted. This site provides detailed information and pictures on the faculty as well as pictures of the school and musicians in action. As far as webpages go in being informative and user friendly, Fredonia is near the top. I give Fredonia 4.5 music notes out of 5 (and not just because I graduates from there!).
Name of resource: ECMEA
URL: http://ecmea.org/mambo/
Summary: Erie County Music Educators Association official website. This site has resources available to teachers and to parents. There is a schedule of festivals, list of member schools and even a specific area for parents. As an educator, there is an area that can be accessed with a user ID and password which allows access to the file exchange and monthly newsletter.
Commentary: This site is excellent for the educators of Erie County. It is a good place to find quick information- such as the students who were accepted into the ensembles or the address/phone number of music teachers in my area. It might not be the best site in terms of look but it is easy to navigate and provides a good amount of information in one single area. The user name and password is easy to remember for the teachers (a plus!) and allows us to share resources among us. I give this site 4 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: NYSSMA
URL: http://www.nyssma.org/
Summary: New York State School Music Association. This site is very similar to that of the ECMEA website. NYSSMA is a state-wide organization and all of the schools which have music programs should be members of. There are many subpages with a variety of information. This site is geared towards all of those involved in music in NYS. There is a link with documents, job openings, curriculum, special learners etc.
Commentary: This site provides excellent resources for teachers in many different areas but my favorite is sections dealing with religious music, curriculum and special learners. There are so many things that I find useful on this site that I have turned to at least once a week if not more. I think that NYSSMA did an excellent job putting this site together and allowing all of the teachers in the state a place to come together. I think in the future they should think about putting up a message board to allow us to communicate with each other. It would be instant access to years and years of experience and suggestions for us younger music teachers. I would recommend checking this site out to any music teacher in NYS and even to those out of NYS. It could spark ideas even if your requirements are different. I give the NYSSMA website 5 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: Sheet Music at JW Pepper
URL: http://www.jwpepper.com/sheet-music/welcome.jsp
Summary: JW Pepper is one of the top music retailers. At JW Pepper, you can search through the music and filter out the results based on difficulty level, instrumentation, music type, style, etc. or a combination of these. This site allows music to be ordered in a full set, individual parts or extra scores to be ordered. There are also suggestions of music choices for your groups and these change based on the month/new pieces that come out. Most of the pieces are online to be listened to and some even have snippets of the score.
Commentary: JW Pepper is my number #1 resource for looking for new pieces for my ensemble. I like it because I am able to listen to the piece before I buy it. The one thing I don't like is that most of the recordings are done by professional musicians. It always sounds great but does not give me a realistic view of what my ensemble will sound like. It is nice that JW Pepper provides the patrons with a view of the score, usually 1-4 pages, on most of the instrumental pieces they offer. Sometimes it is easier to see the piece and know if your group can play it, for me at least, than listen to it. Overall JW Pepper is an outstanding resource for finding new music and having the ability to listen to the music before you buy it. I give JW Pepper 4 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: Music Education Lesson Plans
URL: http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/lesson_plans/music/
Summary: This website offers different lesson plans for music. Most of the plans incorporate other areas and disciplines. There is a variety of plans to chose and most of them are geared towards the general music classroom.
Commentary: I like that this site has different plans for the general music classroom. I don't feel 100% comfortable or creative in coming up with ideas in this setting and this site gives me inspiration and allows me the freedom to add or take out ideas that may not work for me. A lot of these lessons plans come from reputable sources (MENC, Yale, etc.) and I enjoy that the format is easy to read. I would recommend this site to other educators not necessarily to be copied word for word but to use as a stepping stone in developing their own lesson plans. I give this site 4 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: MENC- The National Association for Music Education
URL: http://www.menc.org/
Summary: MENC is the national association for music education. It is for college students and for professional music educators throughout the field. MENC provides resources for graduates seeking employment around the country, conferences for both college students and educators and advocacy materials and more. This site has an incredible about of information available to it's visitors.
Commentary: This is by far the BEST of the BEST in association websites. This site is loaded with information and if you are struggling to find what you want a simple search within the site usually yields positive results. MENC does a great deal for its educators and provides us with the tools to not only KEEP our programs but to also keep them growing and educating the parents who support us. There is a message board which allows teachers/students to ask questions of others. This is the one site that I visit on a daily basis to see what is new in the world of music education. I LOVE MENC! I give this site 5 music notes out of 5.
Name of resource: Dolmetsch Online- Music Dictionary
URL: http://www.dolmetsch.com/musictheorydefs.htm
Summary: An online music dictionary. There is a multitude of music terms and an easy way to search for the term that is needed.
Commentary: This site is awesome. There are terms on this site that I have never heard of. No matter the question, there is always an answer (to the meaning) on this site. This is just a small section of the site, the full home page can be found at http://www.dolmetsch.com/theoryintro.htm. I haven't spent a great deal exploring the site in its entirety, but the music dictionary is reliable and useful. Students are able to access the dictionary and find out meanings on their own as well. It might not be the best looking site but it is very user friendly. I would recommend this site as the first go to online resource for a music dictionary.
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