From time to time, we will be featuring our teachers’ particularly creative activities and assignments here in order to offer our readers extra insight into the broadness, thoughtfulness,  and sophistication of our curriculum.

Today’s featured assignment was developed by Mrs. Norene Oleksiak, who teaches Fifth through Eighth Grade English and Religion.

All from a Song

Objective: To utilize music as an artistic medium which will prompt  thought and discussion related to God and our faith journey.

Directions: Choose a song which has words that echo the essence of our Christian morality.

Rubric:

• An auditory copy of a song you chose for this project. The song should either be copied to a CD, or ready to be played quickly on the Internet.

• The lyrics from your song,  beautifully typed or printed.

• Researched background of the artist who composed and/or sang the song you chose.

• Four to five typed questions to help your classmates understand the meaning of the song. You will lead this part of the class discussion. The questions will be handed in and graded for content, relevance,  choice, etc.

• Your interpretation of the song’ s lyrics will be given. This should be a 4-5 minute presentation, and you will be graded for content. Use index cards and hand them in after you present. Practice, practice, practice!

• Oral presentation graded for volume, pace, expression, etc.

How much do we love this assignment?  Let us count the ways!

1. This assignment offers an excellent example of how to build technology and multimedia learning experiences directly into the curriculum. Here, students will be turning to the internet to locate their songs, to download and save or bookmark recordings, and to research the lives of  composers and performers.
2. This assignment also beautifully demonstrates how our teachers weave faith formation into everything they do. We hear a lot about what a destructive force media and the internet can be, but here students are learning that music and the information superhighway can also provide inspiration and support for our faith, and can help us develop a deeper relationship with God and with each other.
3. We also love this assignment for helping to promote students’ critical thinking skills.  Too often, we passively absorb media, without really stopping to think about the kinds of messages it sends, and how those messages influence us.  This assignment gives students deep practice in exploring and clearly articulating what the words of the lyrics they choose really mean.   It also offers them further experience with analyzing internet resources carefully.  To complete the assignment successfully, students will have to locate and draw upon reliable web resources.
4. We are strong proponents of writing to learn.  This assignment engages students in several types of writing.  First, students will be distilling the pertinent information from their research, arranging and organizing it in clear and coherent fashion.  Then, students will use writing to explore and express their understanding of the song’s spiritual meaning.  Next, students will determine how best to present that information to an audience of their peers, which entails writing and organizing note cards that will effectively support their oral presentations.  Finally, students will be thinking and writing from an instructional  perspective, composing discussion questions that will help their classmates appreciate the songs they’ve chosen.
5. Finally, we love this assignment for drawing upon multiple learning styles, and for inviting students to strengthen multiple skills:  music and art appreciation, spiritual awareness and growth,  technological proficiency,  critical thinking, creativity, written composition for a variety of distinct aims, and oral presentation.

We hope you enjoyed learning more about our featured assignment, and we wonder:  which song would you choose, and why?