Every month, we will take one day to study our "Musician of the Month". We learn about this person's life, how they became musicians, and listen to some of their most famous pieces. These lessons are taught K-5th with the level of detail and depth increasing at each grade level. For October, our Musician was Leonard Bernstein. Mr. Bernstein was a Jewish American Composer born in Massachusetts who made New York his home.
Kindergarteners learned that Mr. Bernstein had FOUR musical jobs. He was a composer, conductor, pianist, and teacher. We watched clips of his music from two of his most famous musical movies, On the Town and West Side Story, and then heard more of his music while they colored a picture of Mr. Bernstein.
1st Graders and 3rd graders were read a biography of Mr. Bernstein's life that included great photos along with some silly cartoons about some anecdotes in his life. Afterwards, both groups completed a listening page about the song "Cool" from West Side Story. The 1st grade listening sheet was fairly simple and was filled out as a class with guidance from me. 3rd graders filled out a more detailed page while they listened, and later we talked about what they had heard.
Finally, 4th graders filled out a research log while I lectured and put notes about Mr. Bernstein on the board. Categories in the log included Family and Childhood, Musical Education, Famous Works, and Other Interesting Facts. Afterwards, they completed the same listening sheet as the 3rd graders.
If you get a chance, as your child about Mr. Bernstein and see if they can tell you anything about his life or music. :-)
Kindergarteners learned that Mr. Bernstein had FOUR musical jobs. He was a composer, conductor, pianist, and teacher. We watched clips of his music from two of his most famous musical movies, On the Town and West Side Story, and then heard more of his music while they colored a picture of Mr. Bernstein.
1st Graders and 3rd graders were read a biography of Mr. Bernstein's life that included great photos along with some silly cartoons about some anecdotes in his life. Afterwards, both groups completed a listening page about the song "Cool" from West Side Story. The 1st grade listening sheet was fairly simple and was filled out as a class with guidance from me. 3rd graders filled out a more detailed page while they listened, and later we talked about what they had heard.
Finally, 4th graders filled out a research log while I lectured and put notes about Mr. Bernstein on the board. Categories in the log included Family and Childhood, Musical Education, Famous Works, and Other Interesting Facts. Afterwards, they completed the same listening sheet as the 3rd graders.
If you get a chance, as your child about Mr. Bernstein and see if they can tell you anything about his life or music. :-)