Lesson plan for an activity for elementary and middle school students that introduces a pentatonic scale often used in the music of east Asia.
This activity is ideal for a music class, particularly if the students are learning some east Asian songs, and xylophone- or keyboard-type instruments are available for use during class. However, you do not have to be a music teacher to do this activity, and you may also want to use it for a social studies class that is studying eastern Asian cultures. To tie the subject to math, do
Keys and Scales are Sets before you do this activity.
Goals and standards
Grade Level - 4-12 (adaptable)
Student Prerequisites - no previous musical experience is necessary
Teacher Expertise - The teacher must be able to demonstrate on the available instrument, the scales and pieces using the scales, or arrange for someone to do the demonstration part of the activity. Since the main point of the activity is scales as sets of notes and as part of the music tradition of a culture, a high degree of musicianship in the demonstration is not necessary.
Goals - The student will understand what a musical scale is, will recognize aurally the difference between major scales and pentatonic scales, will be aware of how scales affect the sound of a musical tradition, and be able to name a culture that regularly uses major scales or pentatonic scales.
Objectives - The students will listen to examples of music identified as using either "major" or "pentatonic" scales. The class will discuss the geographical/cultural aspects of the two types of scales and discuss the differences in their sounds. On a musical instrument on which it is visually clear which notes are being used, the students will see the difference between the set of notes used for each type of scale. If possible, the student will have a chance to experiment and find melodies using the notes of each type of scale.
Time Requirements - One (approximately 45-minute) class period
Adaptations - This activity can be adapted for the sight-impaired by emphasizing aural recognition of the differences between the types of scales and allowing touch/sound exploration of the notes on the instruments.
Music Standards Addressed -
National Standards for Music Education standards 6 (listening to, analyzing, and describing music) and 9. The activity can easily be extended to also address standards 3 (improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments), 4 (composing and arranging music within specified guidelines), or 5 (reading and notating music),
Extensions - For older, gifted, or musically advanced students, include one or more of the activity extensions listed
below .
Evaluation - Assess student learning by
evaluating participation in the class discussion, ability to find or craft a tune using the correct scale notes, and any extension assignments.
Any instrument arranged like the keys of a piano is ideal for this activity. The scales can be found easily: C major is all the "white key" notes from C to C. The C sharp pentatonic scale is all the "black key" notes from C sharp to C sharp.
