Weaving Music into the Social Studies Curriculum – Div. 2

Tim Paetkau, Consultant, Music

Edmonton Public Schools

Goals

Demonstrate ways to make your Social Studies lessons more engaging.

Discover music activities to enhance the curriculum.

Demonstrate samples of music strategies that can be used in all subject areas.

Share resources that can be used to enhance the curriculum.

Aboriginal Music

Protocol with Traditional Instruments: Drums: a drum is highly respected. Use of classroom

drums is most appropriate. It is often said that the beat of the drum which is central to many First Nations cultures is the heartbeat of Mother Earth.

Rattles: a rattle is also highly respected and sacred. Use of maracas or non-sacred rattles is appropriate.

Add a drum to the song first and then the rattle. The drum should represent a heartbeat/steady beat. Rattle is added as one feels the beat.

Aboriginal Music

Songs: Use of recorded or print songs is appropriate. When

using a recorded song, sing it exactly as recorded, as songs are passed down in the Aboriginal culture and the person being taught must earn the respect needed to continue the song’s journey.

When finding songs in a book, check with an Aboriginal person to make sure it is appropriate. If there is an arrangement, ensure the drum beat is steady to make it authentic.

Native legends can be read and percussion instruments can be used to represent the characters of the story.

Aboriginal Music

Dances: Metis Jigging The Round Dance – drummers are in the middle.

Dance to any round dance music. Powwow – if using powwow music, just do actions.

Don’t try to recreate specific powwow dances, since the powwow is a sacred ceremony.

The Northern Tea Dance Many of the traditional dances of First Nations were

learned from animals – the Eagle Dance, the Rabbit Dance, the Deer Dance and the Prairie Chicken Dance, for example.

Sunset

Sunset cont’d.

Grade 4

Alberta: The Land, Histories and Stories

4.1 Alberta: A Sense of the Land 4.2 The Stories, Histories and People of

Alberta 4.3 Alberta: Celebrations and

Challenges

Flunky Jim

Flunky Jim (cont’d)

The Little Old Sod Shanty

The Little Old Sod Shanty (cont’d)

The Alberta Homesteader

The Alberta Homesteader cont’d.

Basic drama objectives and techniques Develop an awareness of the body and voice as tools of

communication. The 3 P’s and a V: Pitch, Pace, Pause and Volume Open up the body to the audience – no bums to the audience Finding your focal point – fourth wall – not playing to the audience Levels – high, medium, and low Spatial control – developing respect for others – their rights, their ideas

and their differences Imagination – creating mental images of what has never been actually

experienced Emotional awareness/control/expression – develop a bank of personal

experiences and understandings of feelings which enable one to understand oneself and to empathize with others

Learn to freeze when teacher says freeze and not to talk when it is not your turn

Tableau Scenarios

Jobs of people in your community or other communities (past and present).

Traditions, celebrations or stories of people in your community or other communities (past and present).

Historical events (ex. immigrants arriving in Canada, historical building of a home, movement or migration through Canada, voyageurs traveling, Iroquois Confederacy meetings, Ancient Athens government, building of railroad by Chinese immigrants)

Citizenship situations (ex. helping clean the school yard, helping a senior, raising money to help others, …)

Geographical regions (impact of landforms, bodies of water and natural resources on quality of life; show a region using your body)

Grade 5

Canada: The Land, Histories and Stories 5.1 Physical Geography of Canada 5.2 Histories and Stories of Ways of Life in

Canada 5.3 Canada: Shaping an Identity

Voyagers

Ah! Si Mon Moine Voulait Danser

Tourist in Our Town/ RegionTown

A group of tourists have arrived at the local tourist information centre in your town. They do not know what the town has to offer but are keen to explore.

Two members of each group become the on-duty receptionists at the local tourist information centre. The remainder of the group form a group of tourists visiting the town. They ask the receptionists to recommend what they should see and do during their day-long visit.

Change the receptionists but this time, every tourist has different interests, eg art gallery, architecture, fishing …

TIP: Before acting out, have groups brainstorm and list all the special tourist attractions of your local area.

Simple Story Dramatization

Use picture books to act out a story. Read the story to the students and then have them act out the story. Plan who will play which character (could be more than one student) and which parts of the story to act out. Books with a clear problem will work best.

Grade 6

Democracy: Action and Participation 6.1 Citizens Participating in Decision Making 6.2 Historical Models of Democracy: Ancient

Athens

Snake-Dance Song

Iroquois Lullaby

Song of the False-Face Society

Protest Songs

Raging Grannies http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Best-10-

Protest-Songs

Listening Resources

Public Libraries – CD’s Music Teacher www.smithsonianglobalsound.org

Conclusion

Sing, move and play your way through your Social Studies

curriculum.

Enjoy!