• Course Description

    Sixth-Eighth Grade Choir provides sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students with opportunities to develop the singing voice, an introduction to and continuation of sight-reading, tone production, intonation, rhythm and ensemble singing. Students will perform a variety of choral compositions of contrasting styles, periods and cultures. This ensemble will perform public concerts in and outside of school throughout the school year.

    Grade Level(s): 6th-8th grades

    Related Priority Standards (State &/or National):  Missouri Grade Level Expectations for Music

    Essential Questions

    • What is the value of participation and performance in a music program?
    • How can musicianship and music literacy be applied to other aspects of life?
    • What effect does being a consumer and supporter of music have on our community and us?

    Enduring Understandings/Big Ideas

    • Music is a critical component of all societies.
    • Students are musicians and can be musicians in a variety of ways.
    • There are tools for proper performance technique (vocally and instrumentally).
    • Musicianship and music literacy are life skills.
    • It is important to be a consumer and supporter of music to carry on into future generations.

    Course-Level Scope & Sequence (Units &/or Skills)

    Unit: Performance and Participation - Individual and Ensemble

    Performance and participation includes skills that allow a Kirkwood vocal music student to continue to grow and adjust as a singer both individually and part of an ensemble.  Skills include tone, balance, blend, vowel unification, intonation, diction, and mechanics.

    • Students will sing with a well-centered pitch and a clear, focused tone.
    • Students will adjust their singing to foster balance between sections.
    • Students will sing with proper balance, tone and intonation so as to contribute to the overall blended quality of the vocal ensemble.
    • Students will sing using proper articulation of consonants and vowel unification.
    • Students will sing using proper posture (both sitting and standing), proper breathing techniques and vocal production.
    • Students will match pitch correctly alone and with others.

    Unit: Music Literacy

    Music Literacy pertains to the ability to correctly interpret musical notation, for the purpose of study and to bring to fruition through performance.

    • Students will read unison rhythmic notation and perform rhythm patterns accurately as isolated exercises and also within compositions.
    • Students will develop aural recognition and tonal memory skills.
    • Students will sing and aurally recognize scales. These scales may include: major, minor, pentatonic, whole tone and chromatic.
    • Students will identify and correctly apply musical symbols and terms relating to score navigation, dynamics, tempo, style and mood.
    • Students will be proficient in the use of the musical alphabet - writing and recognizing pitch names.
    • Students will understand the concepts of key signatures and modulation.

    Unit: Music Appreciation (Listening Literacy)

    Music appreciation provides students with the opportunity to gain knowledge and understanding through exposure to varied musical experiences. This includes different musical styles and genres as well as music from history and culture.

    • Students will be able to describe the characteristics of a variety of vocal music styles and genres (ex: vocal jazz, classical, pop, gospel, folk).
    • Students will explore historical and cultural music by experiencing vocal pieces from a variety of time periods, cultures, and traditions.

    Date Last Revised/Approved:  2016