M u s i c
The Presentation School recently purchased $10,000 of new musical instruments and announced new enhancements to the school’s music curriculum. The instruments were made possible by a grant from a school family.
All students at the K-8 school enjoy 90 minutes of hand-on musical instruction each week. Students in grades K-3 play the soprano glockenspiel, percussion instruments, the keyboard and practice a variety of vocal technique while students in grades 4-8 alternate between the recorder, the keyboard, the harmonicas and the ukulele. According to music teacher Lynn McArthur,we now have one of the best equipped music programs in the North Bay area for any K-8 school.
Presentation boasts 23 full-size Yamaha keyboards, 23 wooden ukuleles and 11 glockenspiels. The 61-key Yamaha portable keyboards have hundreds of features for music mixing and arrangement in addition to mimicking a full size piano.
Every grade breaks into groups of 15 or smaller for music class allowing each student their own instrument in most cases. “Alfred’s Basic Adult Piano Course” is the sheet music used for grades 5-8 and a song book is planned for the younger grades with the goal that every student be able to read music with ease by graduation. Students play the keyboard for 45 minutes every week where they may choose their own popular or liturgical song to master. Popular choices include “Ode to Joy,” “Aura Lee/Love Me Tender,” “Singing in the Rain” and “Chattanooga Choo Choo.” Some students are playing at an advanced level and they work off of higher level materials.
McArthur also runs the Choir and teaches a Guitar Elective for middle school students.
KINDERGARDEN:
-Practice listening and singing skills.
-Distinguish between dynamics and tempo.
-Study rhythm through work with unpitched instruments.
-Engage in steady beat activities through dance and body percussion.
-Play simple melodies on the glockenspiels by ear.
-Learn rounds.
-Learn sacred music for liturgies.
-Perform songs with actions at showcases and the spring musical.
FIRST GRADE:
-Study beginning vocal technique.
-Work in barred instrument ensemble.
-Improvise both vocally and instrumentally.
-Study melodic contours.
-Learn rounds.
-Body percussion.
-Become familiar with Symbol/Sound introduction.
-Learn multi-cultural folk music.
-Become familiar with music notation.
-Learn sacred music for liturgies.
-Perform songs with actions at showcases and the spring musical.
SECOND GRADE:
-Practice vocal technique.
-Work in barred instrument ensemble using pentatonic scales.
-Improvise both vocally and instrumentally.
-Study melodic contours and musical patterns.
-Learn multi-cultural folk music and dances.
-Become familiar with note values.
-Learn rounds and partner songs and partner work using body percussion.
-Perform songs with actions at showcases and the spring musical.
THIRD GRADE:
-Practice vocal technique.
-Work in barred instrument ensemble using pentatonic scales.
-Improvise both vocally and instrumentally.
-Become familiar with note values and rests.
-Create lyrics and dances.
-Learn rounds and partner songs.
-Learn multi-cultural music (ex: Maori Stick Song)
-Perform songs with actions at showcases and the spring musical.
FOURTH GRADE:
-Refine vocal technique.
-Play the soprano recorder.
-Perform recorder songs at showcases and Christmas liturgy.
-Become familiar with the treble clef staff.
-Create lyrics and dance.
-Learn composers through musical stories.
-Sing songs with multi-cultural emphasis.
-Community outreach (ex: Christmas caroling).
-Perform songs with actions at showcases and the spring musical.
FIFTH GRADE:
-Practice part-singing.
-Improvise both vocally and instrumentally.
-Play soprano recorder duets.
-Play recorder jazz and blues.
-Participate in thematic group composition through singing and movement.
-Create songs on Garage Band.
-Study Baroque and Classical composers.
-Perform songs at showcases and the spring musical.
SIXTH GRADE:
-Syncopation.
-Expressive singing.
-Singing and acting in spring musical.
-Play soprano recorder duets.
-Play recorder jazz and blues.
-Sight reading of melodies.
-Group composition projects using Garage Band
-Study Opera, study Baroque and Classical composers
-Participate in choir and guitar, as electives
SEVENTH GRADE:
-Expressive singing.
-Singing and acting in spring musical.
-Improvisation while playing harmonicas.
-Sight reading of melodies.
-Study Opera -Study Romantic and Impressionistic composers
-Group composition projects using Garage Band
-Participate in choir and guitar electives.
EIGHTH GRADE:
-Expressive singing.
-Create percussion compositions.
-Improvisation while playing harmonicas.
-Perform in “Opera a la Carte” with San Francisco City Opera Company
-Sight reading of melodies.
-Group composition projects using Garage Band.
-Singing and acting in spring musical.
-Participate in choir and guitar electives.
-Study Romantic and Impressionistic composers. -Learn sacred music for liturgies.
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