Codebreaker 1

9 Backward Design Plan Template
Title: Codebreaker 1 Subject/Course: Music Time: 20-40 minutes

Level: 4
Lesson Description
Students will learn about the grand staff, the treble clef and the bass clef and their notes. Using a demonstration of the
virtual piano, students will learn about how the pitch of a song is directly related to the notes that are being played,
and how sheet music is almost universal. Students will be given a treble clef with the notes on them and they need to
identify the notes. Once they’ve done that, they’ll do the same with the bass notes.
Stage 1: Desired Results

Big Question (link to the real world)
How is sheet music organized?
Ontario Curriculum Overall Expectation
C1. Apply the creative process to create and perform music for a variety of purposes, using the elements and
techniques of musics.
Ontario Curriculum Specific Expectation
C1. 5 Demonstrate an understanding of musical signs and standard notation on the five-line staff, and use devised
notation to record the sequence of sounds in a composition of their own.
Key Concepts and/or skills to be learned/applied: Prior Knowledge Activation:
- Grand Staff - Melodic patterns (experiences carried through
- Treble Clef life/explored in Grade 3 music) - do, re, mi, so, la, ti,
- Bass Clef do.
- Line notes (EGBDF) - Pitch
- Space notes (FACE)
Stage 2: Planning learning experience and instruction
Learning Goals: “clearly identify what students are expected Instructional Strategies: See Chapter 6 Gregory and
to know and be able to do, in language that students can Chapman, Beyond Monet PDF, Wees “56 different
readily understand.” examples of formative assessment”.
Success criteria: “describe in specific terms what successful
attainment of the learning goals looks like” (Growing
Success p. 33).
Learning Goals: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/134967320056136996/
- Students will be able to tell the recognize the
treble and bass clef symbols. http://www.apronus.com/music/flashpiano.htm
- Students will know that there are five line notes
*Bring up a picture of the treble clef and show them
and four space notes
how the sound gets higher on the virtual piano as they
- Students will know that each note has its own
play the higher notes on the sheet music, and how this
name and sound, and that the order of notes
is directly related to pitch. All sheet music is organized
change depending on what clef you are in.
this way, and most instruments can share sheet music -
a violinist can use the same sheet music as someone
Success Criteria:
who plays a piano, even though the instruments aren’t
- Students will name the notes on the worksheets
from the same family*
provided to them
- Students will be able to recognize the clef http://redmusiclessons.weebly.com/uploads/3/9/6/0/3
symbols on the worksheets to help them 9608553/grandstaff.gif?509
identify the notes
Materials/Student Groupings Differentiation
- Elbow partners
- Computer
- Virtual piano
- https://i.pinimg.com/736x/9b/90/fd/9b90fd398
99f1d3a607fe260262bf7e4--music-worksheets-
worksheets-for-kids.jpg
- https://i.pinimg.com/564x/6f/2b/07/6f2b07475
eea5f63f5d0303435bcd8e3.jpg
-
Assessment For Learning, Checking for Understanding & Feedback

The students will using a paper and pencil staff worksheet to decode the notes. Checking for understanding will
be done through a Class Observation Recording Sheet. The teacher will be looking to see if the students recognize
the notes.
Stage 3: Learning Activity
Motivational Hook (5-7 MINS.):
*Create a separate heading for the schedule board that says “Codebreaking” or “Decoding” - slip it into the schedule
board towards the end of Social Studies. After Social Studies has ended, have them sit down for five minutes of silent
reading. Then ask if anyone notices anything different about the classroom. Direct them towards the schedule board.*
Welcome to Codebreaking for Beginners.
As beginner codebreakers, you’ll be learning to break some of the easier codes that criminal masterminds can
use to hide passwords or send messages to each other undetected. *Bring up a picture of simple sheet music. The
notes will be unnamed*. You all might be familiar with the image above, or something similar to it. This is sheet music.
It just looks like a bunch of circles on lines, but the funny thing about sheet music is that it can be read. Someone might
pass on a piece of sheet music without looking at it twice, or might not be able to read it, so it would be a great way to
pass on a message without it being read. The only way to decode a message on sheet music is to learn how to read
sheet music.
Open (10 MINS):

Sheet music has a grand staff, and two clefs that have five lines and four spaces. This can make it harder to
write and decode messages on sheet music. The top clef is called the treble clef, and it has certain notes on the lines
(EGBDF) and certain lines in the spaces (FACE), whereas the bottom clef is called the bass clef and has different notes
on the lines (GBDFA) and different lines in the spaces (ACEG). The symbol on the very far left will tell you what clef
you’re in, and that will give you a hint as to what notes are on the clef. You read sheet music the exact same way you
would read a book.
For codebreakers, it can be hard to remember all those notes. The only one that’s remotely easy is FACE on the
treble clef, because it spells out its own word. Most codebreakers use what’s called a mnemonic device. That’s a
memory tool that helps us retrieve information. For EGBDF, codebreakers will use the first letters and make up
sentences like “Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge.” For GBDFA, you might find one like “Green Buses Drive Fast Always,”
and ACEG might turn into, “All Cars Eat Gas.” These help us remember the names of the notes.
Body (modeling, collaborative work, individual = gradual release of responsibility, synthesis) (3-5 MINS Explanation)
(10 Worksheets):
Here are two pieces of sheet music that have hidden passwords; we need to decode them. Pay attention to the
symbols on the left - they’ll tell you what clef you’re in, and then you’ll be able to tell what the notes are. Since this is
your first time, I’ll leave the notes on the board to help you.
*Tristan and Austyn will be in charge of handing out the sheets. Students will have to decode the sheets. If
they finish early, they’ll be given pieces of paper and they’ll be asked to come up with as many mnemonic sentences
for the names of the notes as they can*.
Close (success criteria visited) (5 MINS):

By now you should have cracked the password. Austyn will pick it up, while the rest of you go get your agendas and
fill them in. Good work today.
Stage 4: Reflection
Student Reflection of Learning (metacognition)
Teacher Reflection (WWW/EBI)
Script:
*Create a separate heading for the schedule board that says “Codebreaking” or “Decoding” - slip it into the schedule board
towards the end of Social Studies. After Social Studies has ended, have them sit down for five minutes of silent reading. Then
ask if anyone notices anything different about the classroom. Direct them towards the schedule board.*
Welcome to Codebreaking for Beginners.
As beginner codebreakers, you’ll be learning to break some of the easier codes that criminal masterminds can use to
hide passwords or send messages to each other undetected. *Bring up a picture of simple sheet music. The notes will be
unnamed*. You all might be familiar with the image above, or something similar to it. This is sheet music. It just looks like a
bunch of circles on lines, but the funny thing about sheet music is that it can be read. Someone might pass on a piece of sheet
music without looking at it twice, or might not be able to read it, so it would be a great way to pass on a message without it
being read. The only way to decode a message on sheet music is to learn how to read sheet music.
Sheet music has a grand staff, and two clefs that have five lines and four spaces. This can make it harder to write and
decode messages on sheet music. The top clef is called the treble clef, and it has certain notes on the lines (EGBDF) and certain
lines in the spaces (FACE), whereas the bottom clef is called the bass clef and has different notes on the lines (GBDFA) and
different lines in the spaces (ACEG). The symbol on the very far left will tell you what clef you’re in, and that will give you a
hint as to what notes are on the clef. You read sheet music the exact same way you would read a book.
For codebreakers, it can be hard to remember all those notes. The only one that’s remotely easy is FACE on the treble
clef, because it spells out its own word. Most codebreakers use what’s called a mnemonic device. That’s a memory tool that
helps us retrieve information. For EGBDF, codebreakers will use the first letters and make up sentences like “Every Good Boy
Deserves Fudge.” For GBDFA, you might find one like “Green Buses Drive Fast Always,” and ACEG might turn into, “All Cars Eat
Gas.” These help us remember the names of the notes.
Here are two pieces of sheet music that have hidden passwords; we need to decode them. Pay attention to the
symbols on the left - they’ll tell you what clef you’re in, and then you’ll be able to tell what the notes are. Since this is your first
time, I’ll leave the notes on the board to help you.
*Tristan and Austyn will be in charge of handing out the sheets. Students will have to decode the sheets. If they finish
early, they’ll be given pieces of paper and they’ll be asked to come up with as many mnemonic sentences for the names of the
notes as they can*.
By now you should have cracked the password. Austyn will pick it up, while the rest of you go get your agendas and fill
them in. Good work today.

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What is the purpose of sheet music?

How are notes organized on the staff?

9 Backward Design Plan Template

Title: Codebreaker 1 Subject/Course: Music Time: 20-40 minutes

Stage 1: Desired Results

Assessment For Learning, Checking for Understanding & Feedback

Welcome to Codebreaking for Beginners.

Open (10 MINS):

Close (success criteria visited) (5 MINS):

Teacher Reflection (WWW/EBI)

Welcome to Codebreaking for Beginners.

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