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Practice edTPA Lesson Plan Template Secondary

Name: Jayden Gustafson

Date: April 24, 2020
School: Memorial High School
Grade Level: 10-12th grade
Subject: Concert Band
Unit (at least two weeks): The Influential Band Pieces by Gustav Holst
Learning Segment (at least three lessons): Second Suite in F
Lesson (include the day of the unit): Performing music in the way that the composer and genre intended.
Central Focus: Performing using expressive qualities and different techniques that reflect the composer’s intent and
context within the music.
Standard(s) (Copy/paste the standard with the numerical citation included):
Standard 2 - PERFORM: Students will analyze, develop, and convey meaning through the presentation of artistic
work. (MG2.P.16.h)

Learning objective (what the student will be able to do at the end of the lesson; use a Bloom’s verb)
After going through the breathing exercises and background of Holst’s Second Suite in F, students will apply Military
Band techniques to demonstrate expression reflecting the composer’s intent through their playing in rehearsal.

Links to other content areas:

Math: Time signatures, measure numbers, and note lengths are all connected to numbers and lengths seen in a math
classroom.

Science: Understanding how breathing deeply into your diaphragm to play longer is related to science and anatomy.

English/Theatre: Being expressive in your playing can relate to expressive poetry in English (Holst often bases his
work off of poems) and the expressiveness used in theatre to play characters other than yourself.

Advance Preparation Planned Provisions for Differentiated Learning

I will need to set up and gather: (Variety of Learners)
 A score of Second Suite in F by Gustav Holst
 Recording of Second Suite in F by Gustav There are no students in this particular class with IEP’s.
Holst (requires the technology of a screen and However, there are many students that are considered
speakers to listen and watch on) gifted. I have designed this lesson to include aspects of
 An exercise from Breathing Gym that focuses visual, audio, and kinesthetic learning styles to reinforce
on breathing and expressing different activities the material in a variety of different ways to accommodate
 A handout on the background and inspiration every student.
behind Holst’s Second Suite in F (35 copies)
Management and Classroom Characteristics
This classroom is set up in the traditional band room format. It has a huge semi-circle in the middle of the room filled
with black chairs and stands for the students to use during class time. The semi-circle faces a raised podium on the
front wall that the teacher uses when conducting the rehearsal. The walls are white cement bricks and there is light
grey carpet laid out across the entire room. On the right side of the room, three windows allow for natural light to
come into the band room which helps the room feel spacious and welcoming. In addition to the windows on the right
side of the room, there is a large variety of percussion equipment ranging from a keyboard and mallet instruments to
snares and a bass drum. On the back wall, there is percussion equipment covering most of the wall, but the remaining
space is filled with instrument storage that the students use to store their instruments when not in use. There is also a
door on the back wall that leads to another instrument storage room as well as to the hallways where the practice
rooms and teachers’ offices are. The left wall has a spot where the tubas are stored right next to more instrument
storage that is near the doors to the hallways outside of the classroom. At the front of the room, there is a huge filing
system that the students can use to store their music folders after class. Right next to this is the computer that is used
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with the projector allowing students to listen to music and see PowerPoints presented by the teachers at the beginning
of class. There are two whiteboards, one directly behind that podium that was previously mentioned. Finally, there is a
random table under the second whiteboard that has a collection of random music that has been found lying around the
band room as well as the instruments the teachers sometimes play during class. Sound panels cover the walls of the
band room in addition to posters and memes students have made creating a lighthearted and fun environment for
students.

I plan to use the entire room in throughout my lesson. Beginning with the Breathing Gym exercise, I will have them
spread out across the room, so that they have plenty of room to complete the exercise. When playing the recordings, I
will have students sitting down in the chairs looking at the visual aid in the front of the room in addition to the audio
recording playing. When performing, students will face the podium using chairs, music stands, and instruments.

Assets (knowledge of students):

 Personal – Music students at Memorial High School enjoy partaking in music (concert band, jazz band, pep
band, marching band, etc.), Varsity sports (specifically cross country, tennis, and wrestling), musicals, and
swimming. As a teacher, it will be important to take students interests from outside of the music classroom
and incorporate values from those interests into the classroom. For example, it is just as important to work as
a team in sports as it is in music, whether that’s during rehearsal, at pep assemblies, outside of class, etc. The
music classroom is also a great outlet for creative expression which can help students in their future
endeavors.
 Cultural –Memorial High School is a school full of diversity, and with the music classroom being known as
very diverse, it is a perfect environment for students to be a part of. In music, many different cultures,
traditions, world views, and art are represented, therefore representing every student musically within the
classroom. Memorial’s concerts consist of a diverse selection of repertoire, always playing something that
represents a different culture. There is also a culture of support at Memorial High School with the pep band
playing at almost every major sporting event as well as collaborating with the other bands within the high
school to be as supportive as possible to the other students in the school.
Community – While Memorial High School’s Community is large (it’s one of many in the Eau Claire
School District), the school is very supportive of one another. The community supports everything that the
students do with great pride in not just music activities, but all activities. Many of the students have parents
that are professors at UWEC, so there is a lot of community built through that as well. Additionally,
numerous students consider pursuing a degree at UWEC after they gradate because of how close and well-
known the university is to them. This is also true for music students seeing as many of them have frequently
attended various events at Haas Fine Arts Center ranging from Solo and Ensemble to university sponsored
concerts.

Learning Tasks (Methods, instructional strategies, activities; for example, think pair share, active graphing, etc.):
In this lesson, students will participate in think pair share conversations, a Holst background handout that addresses
the lessons objectives, and a Breathing Gym exercise used to get students moving and expressing different activities.
Introduction (hook, engage, explore, compelling why, narrative). TIME ESTIMATE: 4 min
As students enter the classroom and are putting their instruments together, I will have a performance of Holst’s
Second Suite in F playing on the projector screen and through the speakers. Once the students are seated, I will ask
them: “What are some things that you noticed/liked about the piece as you listened to it in the beginning of class
today?” After some discussion I will share that over the next few weeks we will be learning how to perform this piece,
and we will be focusing on the technique and expressivity that Holst used to create such an iconic piece of music.
After this I will introduce the “I can” statement on the board. “I can perform Holst’s Second Suite in F using the
composer’s expressive and technical suggestions to perform the story trying to be told through this piece.” By creating
a deeper understanding of this piece, it will help you understand why the composer chose to use certain techniques,
styles, stories, and expression to create such an impactful piece in the music world. This concept doesn’t only apply to
music, but to other subjects as well. In poetry, understanding a writer’s background can help you find out why the
poem they wrote is so important and how it could be a representation of their life and experiences. When you break a
bone, there is a background to how you broke that bone, and by understanding how you broke it, you can fix it more
efficiently. So, by digging for that deeper understanding, you can improve your progress and create a more meaningful
and significant outcome at the end.
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Development. This is where you develop the content of the lesson, the body. (Instructional strategies, elaborate,
explain, key questions, student tasks, applications, use of academic language, transitions emphasize the central
focus/” I can statement” throughout): Include TIME ESTIMATES for each section of development

(Have students set their instruments down, stand up, and spread out for the breathing exercise)

Warm-Up: 10 Minutes
 Breathing Gym Exercise (7 min.) 
o Daily Breathing Routine - Level Three
 Go through exercises one through four making sure that students are breathing
properly
 Begin exercise five emphasizing the importance of making the exercise as
expressive as possible
 Pause after this exercise to ask the following question:
 “Why do you think it was important to be as expressive as possible
in the last exercise?”
 Continue through the remaining exercises encouraging students to be expressive
 Brief Discussion (3 min.)
o Ask students the following questions: (these questions are to help
students to think critically about how these simple exercises can
help their performance skills)
 How does practicing these breathing exercises help you prepare to play this piece?
 What does having good breath support have to do with this piece, and music in
general?
 How might being expressive and having good breath support help you as we learn
this piece?

(Have students sit back down in their seats, grab their instruments, and prepare to play)

Run Through First Movement of the Suite: (8 min.)

 Play through the first movement of the suite (5 min.)
 Class Question: (think-pair-share activity) (3 min.)
o “Within the next minute, turn to your right and talk to your neighbor discussing one thing
that you love about the piece and one thing that you dislike or find difficult.”
 Have a few students share their thoughts with the class

(Share with students that you are going to be passing out a handout on the background of
The Second Suite in F by Holst, and that they are to read it when they receive it)

Background on Holst’s Second Suite in F and a Brief Background on Military Band Music: (10 min.)
 Pass around the handout and allow students a few moments to read
 Begin discussing key points mentioned in the handout 
 Ask the following questions:
o “Why do you think Holst incorporated folk songs into this piece”
o “What techniques can you hear throughout this piece that reflect the military band style?”
 Play a portion of the piece of the piece over the speakers one more time 
 Ask the following questions:
o “After listening to the piece again, what stood out more now that you know some
background information?”
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o “If you took out the military band techniques, would the style of the piece change? How
would it sound?”

(Have students prepare to play through the piece again)

Run Through Second Movement of the Suite: (6 min.)

 Play through the second movement of the suite (3 min.)
 Brief discussion (3 min.) 
o What would you say is significantly different in this movement compared to the first?
o Seeing as this movement is much slower than the first, how might you play your part
differently to create the same level of expression?

Closure (Summary of learning by the students; relate to objectives; link to next lesson; central focus is emphasized);
TIME ESTIMATE: 1 min.

Now that we have a better understanding of the background and techniques used throughout this piece, we can apply
that knowledge to how we actually perform it. As we’ve come to find out, this suite was based on English folk songs.
Using that information, we can perform the various movements with its intended expression to emphasize the emotion
that Holst was trying to portray through this piece. As musicians, you have the power to turn notes on a page into a
beautiful story, therefore it is important to express the ideas the composer had in mind when performing. After this
lesson, are you confident in the “I can” statement that I presented at the beginning of class today? (Show the “I can”
statement one more time).

Extensions (also known as differentiated learning; specific ideas for groups or individuals who finish early,
suggestions for future lessons; the “so, what then?”):

If the class finishes with enough time to spare, students can begin a short writing prompt asking how the breathing
exercises and technique learned through the handout helps with expression when playing Holst’s Second Suite in F.
They will also be asked how their individual parts contribute to the expression and military band style using the
information they learned in class and applying that knowledge to their specific parts.

Assessment of student performance (Clear evidence that the objectives were actually met; informal and formal
assessment of student’s learning, evaluate): TIME ESTIMATE for Assessment if not already included in the
Development section. Describe the assessment you will use and how you will measure it.
TIME ESTIMATE: 5-7 min.
Students will complete a short writing prompt asking how the breathing exercises and techniques learned through the
handout helps with expression when playing Holst’s Second Suite in F. They will also be asked how their individual
parts contribute to the expression and military band style using the information they learned in class and applying that
knowledge to their specific parts.

Teacher Reflection
Seeing as there was not an opportunity to teach this lesson plan to an actual classroom full of students, there are a few
other factors that we can reflect upon as pre-service teachers, one of them being how the assessment would measure
the objective. In this lesson, the assessment activity is measuring if the students learned military band technique and
how to be expressive in their playing through the lesson’s activities. By having individual students complete a short
writing prompt, it is not only seeing where students are in their learning, but also providing an opportunity to help
students who might be struggling. By asking the questions asked in the prompt, you can see if the activities were
helpful for students to learn what you were trying to teach as well as having them identify those elements in their piece
forcing them to apply that new material. Asking students how their individual part contributes to the style and
expression makes sure that students are paying attention and not just guessing when answering questions—which
sometimes happens with multiple choice questions. Through this assessment, it makes sure that the objective is being
met, and can help the teacher if things aren’t going as planned. I really like my lesson plan because I think that I took a
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normal band class and turned into a fun lesson that taught my objective in a somewhat undercover way. Through the
breathing exercises, handouts, student discussions, and playing, I created a “fun” way to learn a very well-known
piece and helped students learn something other than the notes on their music. I also think that with discussions and
questions, it helps students dig into what makes the music interesting, making the learning process a more enjoyable
and meaningful process. In my video, I can definitely tell that I seem a bit uncomfortable and act a little unnatural
because I was essentially talking to my computer. In a classroom, there are students responding to what you say,
asking questions, and participating in the activities, which is difficult online. I think that I probably could have moved
around a little bit more with a few more gestures as well. On the other hand, I really enjoyed recording my intro
because I had the opportunity of getting my sister involved, doing what normal band students do at the beginning of
the class as well as listening to my “hook.” Some difficulties in planning and presenting lesson plans in the future will
be finding ways to get students interacting with the material in meaningful ways. In a band classroom, it is easy to fall
into the flow of just playing the music, but I think that is very important to get students interacting with the piece,
learning the background, understanding why things were written as they are, and so forth. Creating well-developed
questions is also something that can be difficult, so it will be important to think of good questions that can be used
during class, beforehand. When presenting, I think that it will be important to move around and look friendly. If you
are scowling all of the time, students will most likely not respond well and might not pay as close attention to what
you are teaching in contrast to if you were friendly and enjoying what you were teaching. Some improvements that I
can make going forward is to move around more, look friendly, and be confident in my lesson plan. With everything
already planned and written out, it is easier to teach and stay on task, making a great learning environment for students
to learn in. Overall, this lesson plan assignment was a great experience to get a taste of what a career in teaching looks
like!