A lot of these lesson I can see myself using in my classroom. The Melody jumble lesson specifically I feel is good for students to be allowed time to figure out notation software. Working with younger students means that I sometimes have to break things down a little more so that they will understand and more importantly so they don’t become overwhelmed. This Melody Jumble assignment is important to me so that I don’t accidently leave a student behind assuming they can figure something out. I also enjoyed the theme and variation assignment for students to allow their creativity to be expressed. The students are able to practice using the notation software and the students who have mastered that can practice exploring different sounds and practice varying an already existing melody. Having an already existing melody gives the students parameters to guide them while letting them explore passing tones and maybe even accidentals. I could even adapt this assignment by asking the students to write in solfege as lyrics to help them recognize how the patterns in solfege relates to a song in a specific key this can support their sight reading in a way and help them to become more comfortable reading music.

I do agree that using notation software can help keep students focused on the creativity vs. the care it takes to write on staff paper by hand. Students can get caught up on so many things from drawing a “perfect” treble clef to making sure the note head is on the line not in between the lines and a perfectionist student might have trouble moving past these details. As a teacher, I not only want to see that they can notate the music, I also want to see that they can understand form, apply musical concepts of passing tones or follow instructions in starting a Melody with do and ending with do. Notating music on software allows students to quickly show that they can place symbols in the correct place and moves the class forward into more creative and constructive assignments.

This chapter brought a lot of very good creative ideas using technology that I could use in my classroom. My favorite that I would like to use is the new clothes for an old tune lesson. I often like to ask my middle school students what they would want to change about a tune to make it more their style or something that they would find interesting. I believe this is good for students to start identifying the unique characteristics that are in music that isn’t as popular anymore like the baroque and classical style. They also begin to contrast those older styles with the style that they listen to every day. They may not be able to put into words what they are learning but they are experiencing a contrast between the styles that I believe is very important.

As a middle school choir teacher I teach a lot of fundamentals involving solfege and basic rhythms. The 8 creative principals could really help give students an opportunity to not only be taught these fundamental ideas but also practice them in a creative environment. I teach solfege by using two or three scale degrees at a time for students to hear the sounds in their head first. This year, I want students to begin creating with those two solfege syllables before they even know what they look like on the page. I have collections of sounds like: smsm, sssm, mmms, etc. that represent a measure of sound using the 3rd and 5th scale degrees. I can give each student or a group of students 3-4 measures to create a melody. They have to hear the melody in their head and be able to perform it. This can be adapted through the year by using notes on a staff instead of solfege letters and as I add more notes to their internal thoughts they can create using those notes as well. The national standards that would be addressed are, singing alone and with others, improvising melodies, harmonies and accompaniments, composing and arranging music within specific guidelines, evaluating music, listening to and describing music, and eventually once students learn music notation they will be reading and notating music.

A lesson plan I found on musictechteacher.com is displaying how to get ready for a Christmas performance with a piano class. Students were not only expected to recall information from the beginning of the year like changing sounds on the piano but they are also working independently towards and ensemble piano performance. They are being taught correct rhythms and notes for the performance pieces but also are being given an alternate project assignment in noteflight to compose phrases in C major. The project drew my attention more than the performance requirements because I never thought using notation software could be so simple as to give them 8 notes and say compose something. With some nudging and guidance students could easily come up with melodic phrases to share with the class. Teaching them the pattern of the C major scale and letting them work with sound hands on.

A rubric I would use in my classroom for the melody jumble assignment would include several things. In the melody jumble assignment students are being taught how to copy and paste in muse score, identify do or tonic in the piece, identify the tune that is being manipulated, and create their own ideas using the measures laid out for them. Students could be expected to not only follow those instructions but to varying degrees.

Use of Muse score	Uses copy and paste effectively to move entire measures at a time.(5 pts)	Can copy and paste most of the measure accurately (3 pts)	Does not understand how to copy and paste a full measure and only moves notes one at a time. (2pts)
Composition	Follows instruction and moves full measures starting and ending on do/tonic. (5pts)	Does not move full measures. (3pts)	Does not use full measures. Does not end on do or tonic. (2 pts)
Creativity	Creates strong melody using the notes given ends on do. (5pts)	Creates strong melody using the notes given does not end on do.  (3pts)	Creates a melody, does not end on do, does not complete the full 8 measures. (2pts)

Using technology in class performances can help students relate to performing a lot easier. As a teacher of students who sing they don’t understand the concept of performing until they’ve gotten on stage to do it. While I do intent on giving them more opportunities to perform throughout the year it is important to me that these students understand how they should perform before they even get on stage. Sharing projects, as a sort of show and tell concept gives students the pride to share something they’ve worked really hard on and the experience of having their peers enjoy it. I am interested to see how incorporating technology in the classroom will help students develop their experiences beyond just listening to music. I believe technology can help students better understand that they are allowed to be hands on with music similar to the creators they hear on the radio. A disadvantage is that when technology becomes familiar to them, it could lead to less effort in performing traditionally. As we have listened to several different sounds in garage band and other websites it is scary how accurate some of the sounds are to the actual instrument and they are created through technology.

I love that principal 1 and principal 8 go so well together. Sharing ones self through performing is how I like to see it. When students find things that they like about the sounds they hear they are sharing themselves and when they are allowed to create and perform those sounds it is a direct connection to principal 1. As a teacher and knowing what I know now, I can create an environment that lets students be excited to perform simply by explaining that music something they can share in themselves as principal 1 and then developing that to showing them that they do enjoy sharing their ideas which is called performing.

A lesson that could put all of these principals together well is the one about the podcast. Students are choosing their favorite songs and using audacity to create things with them. Showing them the surplus of podcasts about hundreds of different things as examples and then beginning with only 3 songs and 2 minutes of podcast can keep students on task. After letting the students work for a little while, I believe just as we did in class allowing the length of the podcast to be adjusted slightly so that students will not experience too much pressure in the guidelines of their creative processes is very good to keep from stifling creativity. To facilitate improvisation in this lesson is slightly more difficult but going around and listening to students work, giving them feedback and then letting students share their unfinished work with peers for feedback could be good. At the end of the time allotted for the project, the students can engage in principal 8 and allow their creation to be performed.

When learning an instrument the goal is to play specific techniques flawlessly and without anything that isn’t written on the page. This is important in fundamental music so that students really grasp the literacy of music and accurately mimic the finger patterns used to make certain sounds. To ask a student who has been taking formal lessons on an instrument to improvise is asking them to break all the rules they’ve lived by for the sake of creative thought. Technology involving identifying creative sounds can have a stronger affect on promoting creativity than using a midi keyboard because a piano student might be working too hard to play the piano well to find creative sounds using it. I don’t believe a student needs to have any experience to improvise. The idea behind improvising is listening and reacting to something that sounds good which is in most ways subjective. Students can improvise by assigning a sound to a keyboard and letting them create things by changing the order of what gets played or playing certain sounds at certain times.

I think the process of fooling around with sound and moving to formalized composition is first introducing a pattern approach. Using a loop can add a foundation to the formal sound and then introducing ABA forms to keep students within a structure that keeps them using things that you know will work. Things like arpeggios can keep students in a type of structure that teaches them basic rules without overwhelming them with the tendency of each chord members resolution.

Improvising with a partner can give students the confidence to make a mistake or take risks. A lot of times students are more secure when a friend is there to make comments on different sounds with them. The act of listening to random sounds turns into a discussion of which sound is the best or most useful. This is good for students to get past the fear of creating and gives them the confidence to explore things further.

Feedback is not something everyone looks forward too. Often times people share their creations for feedback but even more times people create without sharing in fear of feedback. Society sees feedback and criticism as something disheartening or negative and that is not what it is. Teaching students to receive feedback in a positive way goes in to creating a positive work environment as teachers. Students who create positive feedback and take criticism well aren’t just strengthening their confidence but also learning new ways to further their exploration in creativity. Students shouldn’t be afraid to share their ideas because feedback from another persons idea could create more ideas in the students mind. To view feedback as another source of creativity could be the best way for students to begin understanding its importance.

Teachers must understand that sharing students work is sharing their ideas and students can potentially be mean to each other. A class discussion online could create some problems when students generally feel braver when they’re “hiding behind a computer screen” As a teacher, it is important to closely monitor comments to ensure that they are constructive and to also teach students how to comment carefully using proper language and uplifting ideas. Students must be taught to find good comments and its the teachers responsibility to motivate those ideas.

Broadening our ideas of performance using technology has been suggested in this chapter to be as simple as allowing a student to present sounds that interested them. The idea that this could be called performing is interesting. Musicians work very hard to produce quality performances that bring audiences to their feet, especially in a classical setting. To redefine performing as someone simply sharing their favorite sound creates humility in my mind. To share something that you have created or identified as being interesting is expression and performing as we’ve always defined it is expression. I believe redefining the concept of performing is important for students because it instills a level of respect in the minds of those who are listening. We want to teach to actively listen and respect other peoples ideas and this is a very simple way to do that. This also gives the performer a low intensity experience of sharing their own ideas. In a society where young people crave to express themselves it gives students a sense of pride and confidence when something as simple as their favorite sound is presented as something important to share.

This chapter has many good technology plans for students to experience creativity. As I choir teacher, I love the lesson plan that forces students to cut and paste solfege syllables to create songs. This is something that makes solfege immediately practical to them. They would have already listened to the syllables several times in class, practiced them and even used them to sing sections of songs being learned for later in the year. Then, when they sit down to do this project, they will hopefully make the connection between the sounds and how it is used in music. Some students may have already understood how the syllables work, but this creates another form of explanation for those students who are still confused about the concept.

One project not in this chapter I would like to have my students experience is the project that involves the keyboard and using specific keys on the keyboard to practice rhythm and develop creative improvisation skills. Students will be allowed to practice keeping a beat and create their own ideas in the fourth measure of the lesson. The national standards used for this would be 2. Performing on instruments, alone and with others, 3. Improvising melodies and accompaniments, 4. reading and notating music, 6. listening to, analyzing and describing music, 7. Evaluating music and music performances. The creative principle to explore would be to facilitate improvisation would lead this activity and I believe it is a good way to build trust among the students.

Authentic creativity seems to be an obscure term after discussing it in class. The idea behind authenticity takes an idea and recreates it as closely as possible, but the idea of creativity would be to develop something completely new. We’ve discussed creativity in jazz class as it applies to improvisation and a quote from a famous Jazz artist that says basically, is it really improv? This was said to mean that improvisation artists are simply applying a unique set of musical skills in an even more skillful way to create something that is new. The foundation of the creativity itself is not creative, its what the mind does with the tools that it’s been given. When students are asked to create something with a certain genre, parameters, or focus in mind, it can be thought that a student will be expected to use the tools they are given similar to a Jazz artist.

Technology can foster genuine creativity by showing students different skills they can later apply to future projects. So far projects in this technology course have built up with each project having less and less guidelines. This is important for the learner to build the basic skills much like a jazz musician would do to begin learning to solo. Learning the different sounds that exist in different programs, becoming familiar with buttons on audacity, or memorizing what key on the midi keyboard makes the cow bell sound are all the foundation things that students require to be able to begin forming their creations.

Guidelines in a project can affect the outcome in various ways. To simply say that it makes a creative project easier or more difficult is unfair to the mind doing the creating. In the mind of myself, I find that time constraints on my creativity produced better results. The fear of creating something and it being under appreciated, or worse, unnoticed is a concern that can halt creativity in even the most unique minds. In my own practice, having a deadline or a goal for the thing I am using creativity to produce causes me to stop thinking about the outcome, will people notice it? will it be something enjoyable? and instead begin thinking about the task itself and the importance I have to complete it. For example: I took it upon myself to begin learning a musical theater piece that meant a lot to me with little intention to perform it. The intent was to explore my own creativity in hopes that this meaningful song would benefit the creative parts in my mind in some way. Before starting the Masters of Music Ed, I realized that I had been holding on to this piece of music and admiring it but never actually performing it even for myself. As I came upon my first voice seminar, it became apparent that this was my chance to experience this song that I knew meant a lot to me. So I memorized it in only a couple days and performed it. The performance was exactly what I wanted out of the song and working with a more experienced singer helped me to understand myself and the intention of the piece even more.

The freedom to perform whenever I felt like became the weakness in the intention. Its so easy to say, I’l create that another day. Or that’s an idea for a day when I’m really bored and in my experience, I never get bored enough to fully pursue my creativity.