House 1 Soundscape Lessons and Children s Listening Towson University Jordyn House
House 2 Soundscape Lessons and Children s Listening The importance of sound lessons is to help students listen more effectively (Schafer, 1992). Listening is imperative to the educational setting. Children need to be able to use their auditory senses to succeed in a general education classroom. These three lessons were organized to fit with the common core curriculum and listening exercises. According to Murray Schafer (1992), the soundscapes of the world are changing and the best way to help this is to teach people to listen. These changes are adding noise pollution to the environment and the new generations are not bothered by it. The problem with this is that many people do not know how much this noise is damaging their auditory systems. Schafer s suggestion to fix this is to teach people and children to listen to the soundscapes around them. This is why the listening exercises were created. These are the basis of my lesson plans because they encourage the students to think about the details of the sounds. This leads into more creative, thoughtful, detailed and explanatory writing. The way in which each listening exercise is organized is based off of the idea that students need inquiry and investigation to learn. Science lessons are supposed to be inquiry based. This means that they should use questioning to prompt the students thinking. The listening exercises naturally present themselves to this format of teaching. The students discuss and debate about what they heard. I organized the lessons so that first the students question with themselves, then with a partner, and lastly with the class as a whole. The United States has mandated state music curriculums that have remained conservative for kindergarten through 12th grade (Freed-Garrod, n. d.). This causes an issue when trying to involve any arts in the school system. Arts integration is a practice used in many schools. Acoustic ecology can also be integrated into the content areas through ecology, light and sound,
House 3 and movement (Freed-Garrod, n. d.). This set of lessons incorporates content through environmental factors. Sounds can be recorded by students in many ways (Dikes, 2002). They can be recorded by drawings like the sound map, detailed written text, or sound recordings. If a school has the resources and time to teach the children to make recordings, the students will benefit from the playback of the sounds (Dilkes, 2002). This allows them to listen multiple times to the sounds and reanalyze what they heard which can then offer a different perspective. When students can revisit a soundscape it allows them to realize what was distracting or missing during the first experience with this environment. It also allows students to question on their own. Why is there so much talking? What is that sound? Is that sound what I had originally thought it was? Why did I not hear that the first time? Was I listening well? The idea for the sound map came from a study that was done in 2002 by Helen Dilkes on a group of 20 five year olds (Dilkes, 2002). For a period of 8 weeks, these kindergarteners from the Early Learning Cente had weekly listening activities and sound making activities. This sound map allows the students to share details of what they hear and it forces them to think about listening carefully. According to this article, the sound maps can also create a window into classmate discussions and debates of what sounds are in a visual aspect (Dilkes, 2002). The sound maps are a resource that also provides variability in learning. The sound maps support auditory and visual learners. According to Dilkes (2002), listening is all about detail the detail in communication between people, and between people and environment. This is the reason that I chose to concentrate on common core standards that are based on students developing details. Teachers can incorporate listening into writing lessons because of the focus on discussion and
House 4 development of ideas. Many of the listening exercises written by Murray Schafer have a sound journal as a component. This sound journal is a tool for teaching students to focus on the sounds around them and then share their ideas about those sounds.
House 5 References Bevington, Margot. (2001). Developing a child s sense of place: A lesson plan for ages 5-7. Retrieved from http://www.acousticecology.org/edu/educurrbevington.html Dilkes, Helen. (2002). A sense of place: An investigation of sound with young children. Freed-Garrod, Joi. (n.d.).report on sound education in North America: A gathering of voices. Schafer, R. Murray. (1992). A sound education: 100 exercises in listening and sound-making. Canada: Arcana Editions.
Acoustic ecology day 1- writing About this lesson Description: This is a 2 nd grade class of 20 students. The class has been learning about the environment. They are halfway through the school year. Prerequisites: The class will have an environmental discussion the week before about the loss of forests, rainforests, and coral reefs. The students will have an understanding of environmental pollution. The students will have talked about animal extinction. The students will have an understanding of sentence structure. (period, comma, capital letters) Estimated time: 40 minutes Potential use Purpose: whole classroom instruction Grade: 2 Common Core: Content area: College and Career Readiness: Anchor Standards o Writing Text Types and Purposes CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content. o Speaking and Listening Comprehension and Collaboration CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. Goals Objective: The students will share their ideas about what sounds they heard by having discussions with their classmates in pairs or small groups. The students will write explanatory texts by writing a descriptive sentence about a sound they heard in the soundscape. Variability: Visual students will be supported by having the opportunity to draw the sound map and draw the sound they heard to help them write a sentence about it. The soundscape recording and discussions with their partners will support auditory learners.
Assessments Formal assessment: The students will use thumbs up/down to assess during instruction. The students will also use touch your head if you heard that sound too. This will assess who was listening. Summative assessment: This will be the sound maps and the description of the sound that stood out to each student. I will collect both of these and assess who could write the descriptive sentence about a sound through words and pictures. Instructional methods Opening: Introduction Have the students close their eyes and listen for a minute. Then ask them the question: What do you hear? Read the book The Lorax by Dr. Seuss During: Introduce New Knowledge We will discuss the implications of losing the trees on the environment and the effects of losing the animals. "What would be a sign that nature is disappearing?" -less trees -less animals -food chain disruption -industry "What do you hear in nature?" -animals, wind, tree rustling, and birds, leaves on the round "If there are no trees, animals, birds, or leaves what is left?" We lose the sounds in the environment when we lose the animals and trees Ask the student to close their eyes and think about what they hear when they are outside. When you are outside on the playground or in your backyard what do you hear? What do you hear while walking to school? Give the students 30 second to think and then have them turn and talk to a partner about what they hear outside. Ask the students to touch their heads if the heard: Birds chirping? Squirrels scampering up trees? Leaves rustling in the wind? wind? rain? snow? swings? Cars? Sirens? When the environment is polluted there are less animals and plants so we won t hear as many natural sounds. Model New Skills and Knowledge
Talk about what a soundscape is. A soundscape does not have to be outside. A soundscape is all of the sounds at wherever you are. Play a nature recording for the students to listen too. Have the students practice sitting still and relaxed. Tell them that it may help them focus on listening if they close their eyes. Let the students know that what we are focusing on are the sounds in the nature recording. Questions to prompt listening: Think about what you hear? What is it? What does it sound like? Are there animals? Guided Practice The students will now create a "sound map". This is a drawing of the place they feel like they were in while listening to the recording. Have the students listen to the recording of nature again, but this time give each student a clipboard, paper, and pencil to draw the space they feel like they are in. Tell the students, "Draw what you hear. Create a space that you are in by the sounds you hear." Think about: Are there animal? What is that sound? What is around me? Where am I sitting or am I standing? Have the students share their drawing with a partner. Tell each partner to explain to the partner where they are and why they think they are there. Independent Practice What sound was dominant? Have the students think about: What sound in the recording stood out to you the most? Have them close their eyes for 30 seconds and think about this question. Then give each student a paper to take back to their seat. On the paper explain that they will write a descriptive sentence about the sound that stood out to them. (loud, soft, fuzzy, squeaky, low, high) The students can draw the sound if that helps them describe it. Closing: Bring the class back to the carpet. Have 3 or 4 students share with the class what they heard in their picture and their descriptive sentence. Then have the class give a thumbs up if they heard that sound too or a thumbs down if they did not hear that sound.
Material Materials and supplies: - Book: The Lorax by Dr. Seuss - Sound scape recording of a forest and stream - Paper for sound maps - Paper for description of sound - Jordyn House
Acoustic ecology day 2- writing/science About this lesson Description: This is a class of 20 students. The class is learning about the environment and environmental issues (pollution and extinction). Prerequisites: Read "The Lorax" and have an environmental discussion the week before. The students will have an understanding of environmental pollution. The students will have an understanding of sentence structure and writing detailed texts. (period, comma, capital letters) Estimated time: about 2 hours Potential use Purpose: whole classroom instruction Grade: 2 Content area: Writing Common core: Common Core: Content area: College and Career Readiness: Anchor Standards o Writing Text Types and Purposes CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.W.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content. o Speaking and Listening Comprehension and Collaboration CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. Goals Objective: The students will share their thoughts about the sound walk by writing explanatory texts in their sound journal and conversations with a partner/class. Variability: Auditory learners will be supported by the sound walk and discussions with a partner. They will also benefit from the teacher talking through her sound walk aloud as she writes it on the white board. Kinesthetic learners will be supported by the sound walk because they will have the opportunity to get up and walk between each listening exercise. Assessments
Formal assessment: The students will do turn and talk to a partner exercises in which he teacher will walk around and assess each pair. They can also be assesses when they share with the class. Summative assessment: The student s sound journals and books will be collected. The teacher will assess the writing for detail and thought put into the ideas. Instructional methods Opening: This is a field trip. The opening will be done on the bus. Give each student a sound journal. Explain that this is where we will write the sounds we hear and our thoughts about those sounds. (15) Have the children answer four questions to start thinking about their listening. What was the first sound you heard this morning when you woke up? What was the last sound you heard last night before sleeping? What was the loudest sound you heard today? What was the most beautiful sound you heard today? During: Introduce New Knowledge Tell all of the students that when they get off the bus it will be completely silent. I am going to lead you on a path off the bus, through the garden, past the playground, through the woods, and back to the picnic tables. We will pause at all of these places and sit down for a few minutes. Everyone should walk two body lengths behind the person in front of you. I do not want to hear any talking because we need to listen. Who can tell me how we listen? Have a few students answer: Close our eyes (when not walking). Think about what you hear. Ask yourself what is that sound that I am hearing? Sit still, no fidgeting, if you need to lay down you can Model New Skills and Knowledge Have all of the students silent so they can listen to the environment. Have them come off the bus one by one in a line. Walk slowly to the garden and sit down for 8 minutes model for the students how you close your eyes and sit still. Then move to the playground sit in the playground for 8 minutes and model for the students again how to sit and close your eyes. Next, move to the woods. Take a long walk through the woods. Then sit down for 8 minutes. Move back to the picnic tables and have the class sit down for 8 minutes. Tell the students Take 3 more minutes to reflect on what you heard on our entire walk.
Teacher shares what she heard by listing the sounds she heard on the poster board. She discusses with the students how she thinks about her walk and the sounds she heard at each stage of the walk. The teacher will list the things she heard, such as bird chirping, swings, wind, cars passing by, and doors opening closing. She will list them in order of how she heard them, a journey through her sound walk. Guided Practice In your sound journal I want you to write down what you heard when we first stepped off the bus, in the garden, on the playground, in the woods, and here at the picnic tables. This is your journey through the sound walk. Be descriptive in your writing. If you need to draw pictures you may. 10 minutes 5 questions to prompt: 1. What did I hear as I first stepped off the bus? 2. What did I hear as I was walking by the garden? 3. What did I hear as I was walking by the playground? 4. What did I hear as I was walking in the woods? 5. What did I hear as I was walking back to the picnic tables? Break up into pairs for "turn and talk". Ask the students to discuss what they heard on our silent walk and wrote in their journals with their partners. 8 minutes Have each group share with the class what sounds they had in common. Independent Practice The class will each write a book about their silent journey. The will be 5 pages 1. When I stepped off of the bus I heard 2. When I was in the garden I heard 3. When I was on the playground I heard 4. When I was in the woods I heard 5. When I was walking back to the picnic tables I heard Closing: I will ask five students to come up front and each student will share one of their pages. (Student 1-page 1, student 2- page 2 etc.) The rest on the class will give do the sign language sign for me too if they heard that sound too.
Material Materials and supplies: - A park - A bus - A sound journal for each student - A transportable white board - Pencils - Crayons Jordyn House
Acoustic ecology day 3- writing About this lesson Description: This is a class of 20 students. The class is learning about the environment and environmental issues (pollution and extinction). The class went on a field trip yesterday and did a sound walk. They also received sound journals. Prerequisites: Read "The Lorax" and have an environmental discussion the week before. The students will have an understanding of environmental pollution. The students will have a understanding of sentence structure and detail. (period, comma, capital letters) Estimated time: 40 minutes Potential use Purpose: whole classroom instruction Grade: 2 Content area: Writing Common core: Common Core: Content area: College and Career Readiness: Anchor Standards o Integration of Knowledge and Ideas CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.9 Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take. o Speaking and Listening Comprehension and Collaboration CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.SL.1 Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. Goals Objective: The students will compare analyze the difference between two soundscapes. Variability: Visual learners will be supported by the idea organizer (ven diagram). This will allow them to visualize their ideas on the paper. Auditory learners will be supported by the whole class instruction on the smart board as we talk about the categories. Kinesthetic learners will be supported by the opening listening game. Assessments Formal assessment: This will be done through turn and talks to a partner in which the teacher can walk around to assess the discussions.
The use of thumbs up/down will help the teacher assess who understands the comparisons during the group instruction on the smart board. Summative assessment: The sound journals will be collected and assessed for how many of the three categories were correct. Instructional methods Opening: Hook Have a discussion about the field trip yesterday. Ask the class if they heard any new sounds? Let the students share what new sounds they heard. Game: Do you know who it is? One student will be blindfolded. Choose another student to walk around the classroom. Let the first student try to guess who is walking around by the sound that they are making. Give every student an opportunity to guess or walk around. Tell the other students we all have to be quiet and listen so we do not give away who is walking around. During: Introduce New Knowledge Have the class listen to a sound scape recording of an industrialized city. Ask the students to think about: What was different in this recording compared to the nature recording? Give them 1 minute to close their eyes and think. Then, play the forest soundscape they heard two days ago again and then the city soundscape right after that. Have the students turn and talk to a partner about what they think was different. 3 minutes Have each pair share with the class their opinion of what the differences are in the two recordings with the class. Model New Skills and Knowledge Pull up a flipchart on the smart board with a ven diagram on it. One side will be labeled forest and the other side will be labeled city. Talk to the class about similarities and differences you heard (modeling). Under forest write birds Under city write cars Under both write wind Guided Practice
Have each student in the class come up and write on sound they heard under one of the three categories. The rest of the class will give thumbs up if they agree that that sound belongs in that category or a thumbs down if they disagree. Once the chart is done, talk about what the similarities and differences were between nature and the city. Forest- animal sounds, leaves crunching, City- cars, traffic, metal, beeping, Both- wind Independent Practice Give each student draw a ven diagram in their sound journal and write down the sounds they heard in the three categories (city, forest, and both). This will be collected to be assessed. Closing: Have all of the students come back to the carpet. Have all of the students share in small groups of four students their ven diagrams. Finish this lesson by having one last listening exercise. Have the students sit in silence for one minute. Ask them to raise their hand if the heard a sound in the classroom they have never heard before. Let the students share with the class the new sounds they heard in silence. Material Materials and supplies: - Smart board - Flipchart - Sound journals - Pencils