Lesson Sequence

 

 

1. Play Lux Aeterna as students are finding their seats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. During our last lesson about rhythm in music we talked about Note and Rest Values, which is the duration or length of a musical sound

    (for a note) or no musical sound (for a rest) in relation to the steady beat. We also discussed that a Note Value will always have a

    corresponding Rest Value - like the Whole Note and Whole Rest that each have a duration of four steady beats.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Today we are going to continue learning Note and Rest Values.  Specifically, we will be talking about the Half Note and Half Rest,

    which look like this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Ask students to write the definition in their CNW.

 

 

Definition: A Half Note is a musical sound for a duration of two steady beats.

 

Definition: A Half Rest is no musical sound for a duration of two steady beats.

 

 

 

3. You may notice that a Half Note is exactly "half" the duration of a Whole Note.  Therefore, it takes two Half Notes to be the same

    duration of a Whole Note.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Similarly, it take two Half Rests to be the same duration as a Whole Rest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. To play or sing a Half Note you must make a sound on beat 1, then "hold" the note through beat 2 (which is denoted by the _____).

    Let's practice this by clapping some Half Notes while counting out loud the numbers of beats.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

5. Let's listen to a piece of music that has both Whole Notes and Half Notes in the following rhythm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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6. Each Note Value also has a corresponding Rest Value.  Ask students to write the definition in their CNW.

 

 

Definition: A Rest Value is the duration or length of no musical sound, called a rest, in relation to the steady beat.  

 

 

 

7. Because there is a Whole Note, then there is also a Whole rest.  A Whole Rest looks like this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    This Whole Rest also gets four beats but it is four beats of no sound, which is denoted by the beats being in parentheses.  

 

 

 

8. Let's practice clapping and counting Whole Notes and Whole Rests.  I will give you a steady beat as well as tell you when to start.  You should

    either clap for a Whole Note or rest for a Whole Rest.  I would also like you to count out loud for a Whole Note saying 1, 2, 3, 4 or whisper the

    count for a Whole Rest (1, 2, 3, 4).