MicroTeach Critique

Freedom High School: Warm-Ups for Advanced Orchestra

Kate R. Goodin
EDUC 429 - Mr. Uppercue
1/26/2023
2. Description of Class:
The class I am using for the microteach is “Patriot Phil” which is the top orchestra at Freedom
High School. This class meets for 6th period, and it is made up of mostly seniors, with a few
juniors, and one freshman. The ages range from 14 - 18 years old. This ensemble has the highest
skill level out of the six periods of orchestra. They are very skilled musicians who have the
knowledge and ability to adjust pitch and articulation efficiently when the instructor directs them
to do so. For my microteach, I am leading a 20 minute warm up that focuses on intonation and
articulation. The critical thinking activities outlined in my lesson plan will encourage students to
listen to each other and to adjust their finger placement accordingly.

Demographics
There are 22 students in total
Gender: 13 females, 9 males
Grade Level: 15 seniors, 6 juniors, 1 freshman
Age of Students: 14-18 years old
Race and Ethnic Diversity:
White/Non Hispanic: 1
Hispanic/Latin: 10
Black or African: 2
Asian: 5
Two or more Races: 4
English Language Learners: There are no ELL students in this class period
Students with special needs: There are no students with special needs in this class period
There are 7 students with a health indicator on their Skyward report. This indicator appears for
any health condition ranging from allergies and glasses to very severe, life-threatening health
issues.
 3. Lesson Plan
Stetson University Music Education Daily Lesson Plan
Name: Kate Goodin Date: 1/23/2023 Period: 6

Ensemble or Class: Advanced Orchestra, 6th Period “Patriot Phil” Lesson Topic: Warmup/Transition to Rehearsal on “Lyric
Metal” by Brian Balmages
Standards: (CCSS/NGSSS)
MU.912.O.3.2: Interpret and perform expressive elements indicated by the musical score and/or conductor
MU.912.S.2 : Development of skills, techniques, and processes in the arts strengthens our ability to
remember, focus on, process, and sequence information
Long Term Goal: The goal of this lesson is to increase the frequency of active listening skills over time. The other goal is to
improve intonation within each section, and within the ensemble.
Instructional objectives(s): Students will rehearse the given warm up and adjust their pitch and articulation with 80% accuracy.
Students will follow the directions for the given warm up exercise with 90% accuracy.
Key Vocabulary Instructional Materials/Resources/Technology:
SmartBoard to notate articulations/patterns
Intonation
Dr. Beat for a drone and metronome
Tendency Tones
Staccato/Marcato C Minor 3 Octaves Violin:
https://shop.theviolincase.com/template/printable/violin/3
Vibrato
octCminor.pdf
C minor
Critical Thinking: Lesson Structure:
Announcements/Introduction
1. “Looking at the articulations on the Smartboard, how can Warm-Up
you adjust your bow arm/technique to achieve the Transition into “Lyric Metal” rehearsal
desired sound?”
2. “How does the amount of bow you are using affect the
length of the note?”
3. “How can you use the weight of your arm to change the
attack of the note?”
4. Evaluating activity: Have each section play the first five
notes of the C minor scale in staccato sixteenth notes.
Which section is the most together? The goal is to sound
like one musician.

ESE Modifications CPLAMS Access Points http://www.cpalms.org/Standards/AccesspointSearch.aspx

(identify access point, if needed)
Independent: MU.912.S.2.In.a :Create or re-create a variety of musical phrases to incorporate in a new musical example

Supported: MU.912.S.2.Su.a :Re-create musical phrases or music from a variety of musical examples.

Participatory: MU.912.S.2.Pa.a: Match musical patterns or phrases to a variety of musical examples.

 Lesson/Rehearsal Procedures:
Pacing: Assessment:
Highlight Differentiated Instruction in Yellow
3 minutes Introduction Procedures: “Good afternoon, hope you had a great
weekend! We are going to jump into a warmup to prepare us for
Lyric Metal”

Lesson/Rehearsal Procedures:
4 minutes “What is the key of this piece, how do you know?”

First Part: Tuning and intonation

5 minutes 1. All students play C minor two octaves with C drone on Dr. Beat Students will self assess by listening
1 whole note per pitch to their own intonation. I will ask for
BPM = 115 or 120 verbal feedback and they will tell
Dynamic = mp
me what the most out of tune pitch
NO vibrato, focus on stabilizing pitch
was
5 minutes 2. Pitch Passoff: 4 groups all passing C, then D, then Eb, all the
way up the two octave scale I will be writing down which note,
from which section, was the most
Have the cellos/bass start with C. Two half notes, down out of tune. This is to document
bow and up bow their progress and the accuracy of
FOUR BEATS REST each pitch
Violas take over on C
FOUR BEATS REST
The seconds take over
Hearing each individual section
FOUR BEATS REST
Then the firsts take over
through the pass-off activity allows
me to assess smaller groups of
Goal: Match pitch and intonation within each section; match students. This way, I can identify and
pitch between sections isolate intonation problems easily

If all sections get the C in tune, even as it travels, then the scale
will progress. If the pitch wavers, then I will stop the passoff and I
will isolate the issue.

*If need be, the first violins can take the upper octave to increase
the difficulty of the exercise to better fit their repertoire*
If the first violins do the upper
octave, I will assess their intonation
by hearing them play with the
second violins on a C drone

5 minutes 3. Pitch Passoff: 2 groups (cellos/bass/viola vs. violin 1 & 2)

Each group will play every other note of the C minor, 2 octaves
scale
 Have the cellos/bass/violas start with C The activity of isolating each section
Two half notes and evaluating their pitch and
down bow and up bow articulation is a formative
FOUR BEATS REST assessment. I am tracking their
Have the violins take over with the NEXT note (D)
progress throughout the class, and
FOUR BEATS REST
Back to the cellos/bass/viola on Eb and so on
in days to come

Goal: Train your finger to know where to go, even if you are
missing the preceding note of the scale. In music, you won’t
always play in stepwise motion so this is a good preparation
exercise

If all sections get the C in tune, even as it travels, then the scale
will progress. If the pitch wavers, then I will stop the passoff and
we will isolate the issue.

5 minutes 3. Third Level: Ascending Thirds

Separate class into two groups: lower strings and upper strings Thirds are a great way to perfect
Have the violins stay on C intonation on a string instrument.
Violas/Cellos/Bass climb up the scale to Eb They are very tricky to get in tune,
Both groups ascend to the next note (C-D, Eb-F) = but it allows the students a chance
ascending thirds to work on intonation in a more
engaging way rather than playing in
unison whole notes
Goal: Using thirds is a great way to tune pitches while not having
everyone playing in unison

3 minutes Second Part:

Articulation Passoff The activity of isolating each section
and evaluating their articulation is a
Violin 1 plays 4 staccato sixteenth notes like how it appears in formative assessment. I am tracking
Lyric Metal on C for four counts (BPM 120) their progress in small groups
FOUR BEATS REST throughout the class, and in days to
Violin 2 continues
come
FOUR BEATS REST
Violas
FOUR BEATS REST
Cellos
FOUR BEATS REST
Bass

*The goal is to sound like one player*

*Could potentially have students move around to make mixed

groups*
Ending the class with the same scale
from the beginning is a post test to
2 minutes I will end the warmup by having them play the C minor scale see how/where they’ve improved
 Closure Procedures:
“The intonation work we did will come in handy with Lyric Metal.
Be sure to use the bow to the full extent, AND to hold out notes
for their designated time. With the longer notes especially, use
their length to your advantage and slightly adjust your finger
when needed.

Additionally, the articulation we just practiced appears in the

violas and second violins immediately. Use little bow, and use
applied pressure on your index finger to get the desired
shortness”

My CT will then follow with rehearsal on “Lyric Metal.”

Post Rehearsal or Lesson Reflections

Content Adjustment: Based on diagnostic and formative assessments during today’s lesson/rehearsal, list any repertoire or
activities that were omitted from the plan. Why? Will the omitted items need to be included in tomorrow’s lesson/rehearsal?

I omitted the activity where the two groups (lower strings and upper strings) play every other note. This was omitted because my
first two activities took a lot more time than I thought they would, and I just didn’t have time to fit it in. This variation/extension
of the activity WILL be included in the next lesson. I think that this activity has great value because perfecting intonation without
having the preceding note of the scale, will be very helpful for repertoire work later down the line.

I omitted the activity where the first violins go up the octave on the C minor scale. This was omitted because I could tell that I was
losing focus and attention to the class and I was running out of time for the warm up. This was my first time on the podium and
honestly I was quite nervous. The intonation on the lower two octaves still needed work as well, so I spent the time instead
working on those octaves rather than the 3rd octave. This activity will eventually be included in a warm up to come. I really would
like to perfect the bottom two octaves before I add the third octave to the mix. Giving the students too much to focus on all at
once can be problematic.

Rehearsal or Lesson Adjustment: If you were going to re-teach today’s lesson/rehearsal, how would you have done it differently?

If I were to reteach today’s lesson, I would have used my violin more and used the white board behind me. I am a very visual
person, and I like to see things clearly laid out. Having the notes/patterns/activities on the board would have benefited me in the
lesson because students could have looked at the board for clarification. The times that I lost the attention and focus of the
students was when I was explaining things in circles, or when I was confused myself. Having a visual representation of the lesson
will also appeal to the other visual learners in the class. I would have also used my violin more because it's kinda my comfort
when I’m on the podium. I noticed that I was only uncomfortable when my hands weren’t doing anything. Using my violin to
demonstrate things/concepts/patterns would have helped me feel more comfortable and would have helped the aural learners in
the room. Additionally, I would have walked around the class more to observe and fix intonation.

I would have also tried to incorporate more exciting rhythms/variations into the lesson. Intonation work is necessary for any
orchestra, but it’s not always the most engaging activity. I could tell that the students wanted to do something more energetic,
rather than playing a scale with a drone. My goal is to find a way to make intonation work fun and engaging!
Reflection on Teaching: Analyze and evaluate your lesson/rehearsal and classroom management.

The content of the lesson was useful and applicable to the group. The intonation on the C minor scale GREATLY improved over the
course of the activity, and that was great to hear. My CT asked me what percent of the students were doing what I wanted, and I
couldn’t really answer. Today was my first time on the podium, and I could feel the anxiety that was building in my brain SO I
didn’t really dive deep into observing the students on how they were doing. Instead, I was focused on how I was appearing to
them, and if they sounded better. For the sections with less people, I could clearly hear the intonation and I could tell them how
to fix it; however, with the first violins, there were 8-10 of them and I couldn’t tell that they were badly out of tune. My CT told
me afterwards that they were very out of tune. I stayed on the podium the whole time, and I wish I would have walked around
the class. It’s hard to not feel glued to the podium, especially when both teachers are watching. The actual activities
went…decently well. I felt like I explained clearly at the beginning, but then the directions got unclear as I went on. I think I was
also getting in my head a lot, making it worse than it should have been. The class that I taught was the highest level one, so they
followed my directions and understood what to do; however, I definitely need to figure out my personal style of displaying/giving
directions to the class.

This class is made up of mostly seniors and juniors. They are at a really high level, and they are a pretty close-knit group. There
were no evident behavior issues in this period. The students were attentive, responsive, and I accomplished what I wanted to
with them. The classroom management that I want to improve upon based on this lesson was making sure that every student is
involved and that they are all doing what I am asking of them (adjusting the pitch when necessary).

Assessment C: Self Assessment on next page

4. Assessment C Self Assessment
​Score Breakdown:
My highest scores were in the “Showing Professionalism” and in the “Designing Coherent Instruction”
domains. Showing professionalism is something that Stetson prepares us for. I like to arrive at work early,
with appropriate lesson plans and activities in mind. For designing coherent instruction, I take a lot of
time to plan my lesson to make it as useful, and beneficial as possible. I take into account where the
students already are, and the resources that are available to me.

My lowest score was a 1 in the “Using Assessment in Instruction” domain. This was because I didn’t
know how to appropriately assess individual progress in the 20 minute warm up. The point of a warm up
is to get the fingers and mind ready for the class to come, so in my head it was a weird time to give an
assessment. However, in reflection, having each section play by themselves acted as a mini formative
assessment because it allowed me to evaluate and assess the specific sound and intonation of each section.

5. Assessment C (Peers)
Not Applicable because recording is not allowed in Orange County

6. Commendations and Recommendations

Favorable Comments from CT:
● “I think it was good that you dropped the activity on the upper octave. You read the room and you
made the right call.”
● The overall demeanor you have on the podium is calm, comforting and confident. He said “based
on your demeanor you had today, I would be happy to have my child in your classroom.”
 ● “It was a good lesson overall, and especially for your first time on the podium”
● “I thought it was excellent”
● “The kids really like you”
My CT gave me the favorable comments listed above. Overall, he was very kind and complimentary of
my microteach. He said that my demeanor was calm and comforting, and that the students like me. He
said that the students responded well to my instructions. I think his comments were very kind and valid! I
felt relatively comfortable teaching for the first time, and I definitely felt like I had the students’ attention.
I am working hard to build relationships with the students and I think it’s paying off.

Recommendations for Improvement:

● “What percent of students were doing what you wanted them to do?”
● “The only time you looked uncomfortable was after you started the students on the scale, it
looked like you were trying to figure out what to do next…sorta in a panic”
● “The first violins should have been addressed, they were out of tune. Maybe do the “pass the
pitch” activity student by student. That would have woken them up and made them adjust their
pitch”
● “Maybe utilize your instrument more, or sing the pitches, or write them on the board”
● “Move around the classroom!”
My CT gave me the recommendations above. I will implement all of these suggestions because they are
very good things to be aware of. I have a tendency to feel glued to the podium, when in reality, the
classroom is mine to move around in as much as I want. He noted that I looked uncomfortable when my
hands were empty or when I wasn’t giving instruction, which was very true. I panicked and I didn’t know
what to do while the students were playing, so he suggested that I play along or walk around the
classroom so that I am actively involved with the students.

7. Reflection
1. Were your teaching objectives appropriate? Did you meet your objectives?

My CT and I agree that yes, my teaching objectives were appropriate. They lined up with the long-term
learning goal of improving intonation and the ability to adjust finger placement to match pitch across the
ensemble. The objectives in this warm up also worked on skills that were then transferred to the rehearsal
on the repertoire. By the end of my microteach, about 85% of students met the objectives; however, not
every student did exactly what I wanted them to do 100% of the time.

2. Were your teaching strategies effective or ineffective? Explain.

Some of my teaching strategies were effective and some were not. The actual activity that I crafted was
beneficial, and deemed positive results with the intonation of the students and the different sections. The
lesson flowed well, and there weren’t a lot of awkward pauses or breaks. The teaching strategies that were
less effective were my instructional tactics. I tended to explain in circles, and I received a lot of confused
looks and questions. I also need to improve upon my assessment processes, and the feedback that I give to
the students. I want to be sure that I am always a kind but effective teacher. These students are at a really
high level and I need to give them specific, related feedback to push them to that next level of
musicianship.

3. Were your assessment strategies effective or ineffective (think formative assessment)? Explain.

My assessment strategies were partly effective. I divided the class by section, and had each section play
alone. This was an effective way to assess each section; however, there were individual intonation
problems that I failed to address or fix. I did not utilize any individual assessments in this microteach and
that caused the overall intonation of the group to suffer. I hope to improve on this aspect of my teaching
so I can gather data and give specific related feedback to the students.

4. How did you differentiate your lesson for diverse learners (think content, process, product, and
environment)? Were the differentiation strategies effective? Explain.

I differentiated my lesson by breaking down the 16 note scale, down to 8 notes and down to 5 notes for
the students. This allowed them to tackle intonation issues in small chunks rather than the whole scale at
once. I also had the more advanced students work on the upper two octaves of the C minor scale, so that
they could do the part of the scale that challenged them the most. The lower strings and the second violins
stayed on the lower two octaves. I also tried to explain my directions as plainly as I could. Next time, I
will definitely try to appeal more to the other learning styles like visual learning and aural learning. I will
do this by playing examples on my violin, and by writing on the white board behind me so that students
have something to look at for clarification.

5. Were your questions high quality and higher-order? Explain. How did you facilitate students’
responses?

My questions were mostly higher order thinking questions. I focused a lot on bow control and usage, and
intonation. I used the critical thinking questions that I mapped out in my lesson plan to guide the lesson.
Most of the time, I asked for a volunteer to share the answer or I asked the class and called on a student.
When they would answer the question, I would try to expand on the answer to have them dive deeper into
the problem/concept at hand. A lot of the students also bounced ideas and answers off of each other,
which was productive!

6. Explain the impact your teaching strategies had on student learning. What evidence proves the
impact on student learning?

My teaching approach this day allowed the students to feel safe to ask questions and for guidance with the
activities. The lesson got slightly more difficult as it progressed, so it challenged the students
appropriately. The lesson also used notes and pitches that they were familiar with, so that they weren’t put
too off guard by my warmup. The instructional strategies were a little bit disorganized and unclear on my
end, but the students still followed my lead and did what I wanted them to do. In terms of adjusting
intonation, they liked when I would demonstrate and when I would tell them how to adjust their own
finger placements. The evidence was that the intonation got better over the course of the warmup, and that
the sections (and individuals) were taking less and less time to adjust their pitch.

7. How will you reteach any part of this lesson, if needed? How would change your lesson if you
were to teach it again?

If I were to reteach today’s lesson, I would have used my violin more and used the white board behind
me. I am a very visual person, and I like to see things clearly laid out. Having the notes/patterns/activities
on the board would have benefited me in the lesson because students could have looked at the board for
clarification. The times that I lost the attention and focus of the students was when I was explaining things
in circles, or when I was confused myself. Having a visual representation of the lesson will also appeal to
the other visual learners in the class. I would have also used my violin more because it's my comfort when
I’m on the podium. I noticed that I was only uncomfortable when my hands weren’t doing anything.
Using my violin to demonstrate things/concepts/patterns would have helped me feel more comfortable
and would have helped the aural learners in the room. Additionally, I would have walked around the class
more to observe and fix intonation. I would have also tried to incorporate more exciting
rhythms/variations into the lesson. Intonation work is necessary for any orchestra, but it’s not always the
most engaging. I could tell that the students wanted to do something more energetic, rather than playing a
scale with a drone. My goal is to find a way to make intonation work fun and engaging!

8. Summary
Overall, this microteach critique was beneficial. I have concluded that I like to allot the time to
plan as much as possible. Planning my lesson reduces my personal anxiety when I get up to teach, which
helps with the lesson flow and class environment. However, as much as I love to plan, I need to allow
myself the ability to be flexible and adaptable. It is impossible to predict every single student's tendency,
so it’s inevitable that plans will change depending on the day, mood and vibe of the class. I learned that I
am the most comfortable when I have something in my hand, like my instrument. I also have learned that
string students really benefit from hearing a certain pitch, scale, or pattern before they play it. It helps to
instill a pitch in their ear that they can match theirs more easily. With this critique, I liked having specific
reflective questions to base my reflection on. These questions helped me process my teaching experience
more thoroughly.
I will specifically focus on the following components of the Danielson Domain: Assessment,
Managing Classroom Procedures, Engaging Students in Learning, and Designing Coherent Instruction. To
improve on these aspects, I can work with my CTs and utilize online teaching resources and videos to
help spark new ideas for working with intonation issues in a string classroom.