Concert Choir, Advanced
Women’s Choir, Men’s Ensemble
Katie Houston
Highland High School
B114
| 801-484-4343 ext. 254 | katie.houston@slcschools.org
Course
Description:
In Highland High School choirs, students
will learn the building blocks of choral singing and music theory and
demonstrate their understanding through the preparation and performance of a
choral concert each term.
Course
Goals and Objectives
The Utah State Music Core divides the goals of music
education into four music standards, which are the following:
1.
Perform:
Students will use body and voice as means of musical expression.
2.
Create:
Students will improvise and compose music.
3.
Listen/Analyze/Evaluate: Students will expand music listening skills and use musical
vocabulary to analyze and evaluate music.
4.
Discover Meaning:
Students will find avenues of understanding and communication through
connecting music to personal growth, the joy of living, traditions, culture,
and history.
Course
Materials
· Students are required to
have a pencil during rehearsals at all times.
· Students will be checked
out a folder for the year and sheet music each term. Students are responsible to pay for lost
folders.
· Students must always
have their music folder during rehearsals.
· Every choir wears a
uniform. Students purchase their own uniforms, though I do have a limited
number available to rent for $20 a semester.
Uniforms can be purchased on a payment plan if there are financial
constraints. Additionally, there are several used uniforms from previous students
that can be purchased at a reduced cost.
Assignments
and Procedures:
We will be learning in a variety of
ways. Here is a description of each
assignment and accompanying policies:
Participation
(10 points per class period)
|
Participating in choir
each day is the most important part of this class. When students are dedicated during class,
they earn 10 points per class period. To
earn 10/10 participation points daily, a student must do the following:
· Refrain from chewing
gum and/or eating
· Have all materials ready
(folder, notebook, pencil, etc.)
· Be on time (students
automatically lose 5 participation points per tardy)
· Refrain from texting
· Refrain from talking
while teacher is instructing
Participation points
for absences are not excused, even if the absence is excused (unless student
is participating in a school-sponsored activity). Participation points can be made up within a month of the absence/tardy. To make up participation points, do one of
the following:
· Work on choir or other
vocal music outside of class for 30 minutes (piano practice doesn’t count).
Enter practice time on Charms (see blog for instructions). This counts for 10
participation points. Students MUST
indicate in the practice log under “title of song” the date of the absence or
tardy they are making up or else it
will not be counted.
· Do some brief research
on one of the pieces we are singing or one of the composers of the pieces and
type 1-2 paragraphs about what you learned.
You may print it or email it to me. This will count for 10 participation
points.
|
Music Notebooks
(5 points per entry)
|
In choir, students
learn note names, rhythms, time signatures, dynamics, and other elements of
choral singing. I will provide a notebook for students in class. Students will do an activity in their
notebooks daily after warm-ups to help build their musical
understanding. At the end of the term,
I will collect the notebooks and give 5 pts. per activity. I throw out a few
activities when I calculate the total value of the notebook so students with excused
absences won’t be penalized.
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In-Class Performances (50 points; terms 1 and 3)
|
Students will sing
alone or in a group of no more than five people for their in-class
performance. Students will be graded
as individuals for this assignment.
Term 1 can be any genre of music; term 3 must be suitable for region
solo/ensemble and have an accompanist.
More details on that will be provided in January. In-class performances must be
memorized.
|
Sing to Serve
(50 points; terms 2 and 4)
|
For Sing to Serve,
students will serve the community through music and write a one-page reflection
about their experience. I will keep
students in the loop about musical service opportunities that come up
throughout the year.
|
Concert Report
(50 points each term)
|
Students must see a
choral, orchestral, or band concert once each term. Performances must have a conductor. Choir
festival observation will count as one of the four concert reports. Upcoming
concerts are posted in the classroom under our class calendar. I will do my best to post those upcoming
concerts on the choir blog as well.
Plan in advance! Students must turn in a program along with detailed
notes on the concert report form (found on Charms). If there is no program
provided, students must take a selfie with the choir in the background. If there is not a program or picture,
the assignment will only get half credit.
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Concerts and Festivals
(100 points each; at least 1 per term)
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Performances cannot be
missed. If a performance is missed, points cannot
be made up unless it was arranged with me at least three weeks in advance by a parent due to a critical
family circumstance or region/final athletic event. If excused by me, students
will write a 3-page research paper as an alternate assignment (also worth 100
points) due the day of the concert. If there is an emergency illness excused by
a parent, the alternate assignment will be given after the concert and
student will have 1 week to complete it. A choir festival for each choir is
held once a year at one of the schools in our region during term 3 or term
4. Students are required to
participate. See the choir website or
Charms calendar for the exact date and location of the festivals.
|
Additional
Policies:
· Cell phones: I reserve the right to
take a cell phone from a student if he/she is using it during class during an
unauthorized time. The cell phone will be put in jail and cannot be “bailed
out” until the end of class. Bail is
either singing “For She’s a Jolly Good Lady” or doing 10 minutes of classroom
service during lunch.
· Hall Passes: Students will receive
three “Houston Hall Passes” each quarter. I must sign this pass before a
student leaves the classroom to use the restroom or get a drink. When the
passes are gone, so are the hall pass privileges for the quarter. Students who
do not use one or all of these passes can turn them in at the end of the
quarter for 5 points extra credit each.
Choir Calendar:
· Students are expected to
keep themselves informed of upcoming concerts and events. There will be no
acceptable excuses for not knowing about a performance! All performances are listed in two places.
§ This website will
also include concert reminders, due date reminders, notifications about
upcoming performances acceptable for concert reports, and more. Please check it
often!
§ You will need to UPDATE
YOUR INFO and ADD A PARENT in the Charms system in order to get credit for this
assignment. For instructions on how to
do this, please refer to the Highland High School Choir website. Charms is how
I best communicate with parents and students and track practice for missed
participation points.
Please visit this
website and complete the survey in order to get credit for this assignment:
