While Gillespie’s poignant statement refers to the enactment of the Orff approach in our classrooms, the possibilities are also nearly endless in our Post-Level III study of the Schulwerk. Gillespie continues in emphasizing that the secret to a fruitful life in the Schulwerk begins with seeking experiences and moments of discovery and that “the lifelong work of Orff Schulwerk must be built on the roots of wonder”  (Gillespie, 1987). As experienced Orff Schulwerk educators, many of us seek additional coursework to benefit our students’ musical experiences and feed our own need for professional, musical, and personal growth. Our “roots of wonder” truly begin to germinate, sprout, and blossom with our involvement in Post-Level III coursework. 

Curriculum Development

There is a misconception that there is little understanding of the educational capacity of the Orff Schulwerk materials, with the utilization of the Orff approach having a misguided reputation as disjointed, scattered, and lacking in curricular direction. Though we as Orff Schulwerk practitioners have gained an understanding of how to utilize both Orff and Keetman’s primary sources and other materials through the Orff approach, there is enormous potential within a Curriculum Development course to focus one’s teaching as we meet students in each grade level. 

Courses in Curriculum Development have been available for Orff Schulwerk practitioners for decades, with opportunities presenting them as early as the mid-1980s. One such course was led by Orff Schulwerk luminaries, Jane Frazee and Arvida Steen in 1984 at Hamline University (AOSA, 1984). Steen and Frazee’s initial groundbreaking course has led to the inclusion of similar courses in Curriculum Development at a number of other sites of Orff Schulwerk dispersal. Notably, Steen led courses herself and with her protegé, Jay Broeker, until her retirement in the summer of 2000 (AOSA, 2000; AOSA, 2001).

My personal experience includes courses in Curriculum Development at the University of Kentucky and the University of St. Thomas. Each of these courses were led by former students and mentees of the initial course facilitators, with my course at the University of Kentucky being led by Jay Broeker and the course at the University of St. Thomas course being led by Diana Hawley. Though varied in material, both courses took great inspiration from the initial leaders’ framework, using a curriculum grid familiar to users of Steen’s revolutionary book “Exploring Orff” as well as models from Frazee’s unprecedented text “Discovering Orff” and its supplements, including “Artful-Playful-Mindful in Action.”  

In addition to the analysis of one’s grade level activities for inclusion in the curriculum grid (which acted as a culminating project for participants), we had the opportunity to experience teaching models where the instructor led us through activities that would be appropriate for each grade level band. After participating in each activity, we would analyze why it might be appropriate in that particular grade level and discern whether it might share that appropriateness within our own teaching situation. Once we had experienced the instructor’s models, we created our own lessons for involvement in our newly revised curriculum, with a number of lab teaching experiences being some of the most valuable aspects of the course.

Though instructors in other courses might veer from Steen and Frazee’s initial model, the opportunity to analyze the skills needed to develop an effective music curriculum is invaluable. Please consider taking advantage of this opportunity for yourself and your own students. This summer (2024), there will be courses of this sort available at the University of St. Thomas (Diana Hawley) and Anderson University (Lisa Sullivan Odom). Please visit the AOSA Course Website Listings for more information or for additional courses, as they are added frequently.

Master Class

According to the Handbook for Orff Schulwerk Teacher Education Courses, Master Classes are only suited for those music and movement educators who have completed all three Orff Schulwerk Levels Courses. As stated on the AOSA website (2013), “Master Classes are intended to be a series of specialized, intense, and focused high level experiences.” Additionally, AOSA states that “Participants who do not have the background knowledge from the three levels of Teacher Education courses will not benefit from the advanced ideas that are being presented in a Master Class situation unless they have the appropriate foundational learning.” 

Each Master Class demands immense focus from the participants, but the information and materials will vary per instructor and be dependent on the course design. Courses might focus on intensive study of the Orff and Keetman primary materials, delve deeper into the historical foundations of the Schulwerk (Elemental Explorations with BethAnn Hepburn), create connections between the Schulwerk and diverse media or new music (Matt McCoy–Building on the Past, Looking Towards the Future), or find the connecting threads between Orff Schulwerk and the others arts and sciences (Integrating the Arts with Sofia Lopez-Ibor). Additionally, instructors might choose to share their greatest passions (or their students’ passions) through their course design. In another recent Master Class, Karen Medley shared her passion for catering to a child’s view of the world with a course entitled “Through Children’s Eyes.” Whatever the theme, content, or design of the Master Class, each participant will gain experiences that will weave together the various threads of the Schulwerk together in a new synthesis for themselves and their students. 

Supplemental Courses in Specialized Topics

In addition to Curriculum Development and Master Class, there are a variety of courses offered that might better support both your students’ and personal needs. You might hope to broaden your understanding of implementing the Orff approach with your youngest students– consider Janet Greene’s course in Orff Schulwerk and Early Childhood. Perhaps you have a passion for involving music unique to the United States in your approach to teaching– have you heard about Doug Goodkin’s Course in Jazz and Orff Schulwerk? 2024’s other opportunities include a course in Orff Schulwerk and Popular Music (Martina Vasil and David Dockan, University of Kentucky), Trauma-Informed Pedagogy through the Orff Schulwerk lens (Dr. Abbie Van Klompenberg, University of Kentucky),  Composing and Arranging in the Style of the Schulwerk (Elemental Composition at Anderson University), and a Post-Level III Retreat in Oregon (Portland Orff, with Kris Olsen, Matthew Stensrud, and Fauna Woolfe). These courses change from year to year, with courses still being added, so please visit the AOSA Course Listing for more details.

International Orff Schulwerk Experiences

Though these courses vary on a yearly basis, there are a multitude of opportunities beyond the United States. As the Schulwerk’s development is different in each of its countries of dispersal, exploring international coursework is also worth considering. 

The Orff-Institute in Salzburg offers a variety of courses for music and movement educators, with its yearly International Summer Course being one of its most approachable. In this course, seasoned practitioners of the approach offer classes that cater to an international clientele. I had the opportunity to visit the Orff-Institute in 2018. One of the most striking features of the course was the inclusion of students from six continents and dozens of countries. It was both incredibly exciting and humbling to be involved in a course with students with such diverse backgrounds and understandings of Orff Schulwerk. The classes at the Institute cover elemental pedagogy, movement, and learning through play– all hallmarks of the Schulwerk. Please visit the Orff-Institute’s website for details on how to register.

Outside of the Orff-Institute, there are a number of additional international courses that you might find inspiring.

• JaSeSoi Ry’s International Music Village: Often held in Finland (as it is a course associated with the Finnish Orff Association, JaSeSoi Ry), 2024’s course will be held in Croatia as the beginning of a rotating series of summer courses, with next year’s course being held in Catalonia. This rotation is being done in an effort to provide greater accessibility to the world’s Orff Schulwerk practitioners.
• Orff-Afrique: This course happens biennially in Dzodze, Ghana. Led by Dr. Kofi Gbolonyo and further facilitated by Doug Goodkin, Sofia Lopez-Ibor, and James Harding and other faculty local to Ghana, the course explores the connections between Orff Schulwerk, the traditional musics of Ghana, and the music of the West African diaspora. The course will be offered in the summer of 2025.
• There are often other courses offered around the globe, so please visit the International Orff-Schulwerk Forum Calendarfor more information.

Retaking a Level (Or More!)

If the thought of taking additional supplementary courses seems daunting, perhaps taking a familiar course will be appropriate to expand your understanding of Schulwerk. I have been fortunate to retake my Levels courses as part of my graduate program. With that opportunity, one has the chance to follow the instructor’s teaching process in a way that a first-time participant might not. Using their understanding of the Orff approach and unencumbered by first-time body percussion woes, bashful movement exploration, and speech piece tongue twisting, participants might gain even more understanding during their second “go through.” Please consider this valuable opportunity at any of the incredible courses listed on the AOSA Course Listing Website.

And if you are earlier in your Orff certification journey and want to learn more about what to expect in each course, please see our post on 2024 Summer Orff Levels.

The post Making It Work: Post-Level III first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

Why Take Orff Levels?

What to Expect When Taking an Orff Level

Making It Work: Level I by Elaine Larson

Making It Work: Level II by Betsy Kipperman Sebring

Making It Work: Level III by Rob Amchin

Links to Learn More and Find a Course Near You!

2024 AOSA Teacher Education Course List

Frequently Asked Questions about AOSA Teacher Education Levels Courses

Handbook for Orff Schulwerk Teacher Education Courses

The post 2024 Summer Orff Levels first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

        1)      Being an Orff teacher takes time.

Teaching in the Orff-Schulwerk style requires educator mastery of the material, which can be time consuming.  You need to know every note, every rhythm, every ostinato, every dance move and that takes time and effort.  You must be prepared for Orff lessons and that doesn’t always happen quickly, especially if you are adding visuals or using the SmartBoard.

Not only does it take a lot of teacher preparation time, but now the time spent working on one song or one concept is a lot longer than in the past.  This is not necessarily a negative thing – we are now working for depth of knowledge rather than breadth!  It is tough for me to spend more time on fewer activities, but mastery is an important life skill that I’m now instilling in my students!

Lastly, preparing for an Orff concert takes so much work and stress, but it is so worth it!  I could see the sense of pride in my third graders this December knowing they had performed all three of their songs without any outside accompaniment and the parents really appreciated it, too.  Your first Orff concert will be exhausting and also incredibly rewarding.

        2)      You will become a better teacher.

Like mentioned earlier, Orff teaching requires mastery of the material, but there also needs to be an internalization of the whole Orff teaching process.  I absolutely love the “do something, change one thing, change one more thing, etc.” type of teaching and it keeps the students much more engaged because the process moves quickly with less teacher talk.

Also, although I still plan my lessons out, if there is extra time at the end of class, I’m now much more comfortable improvising extensions for whatever we are working on.  Perhaps this is due to this being Year 3 for me and I’m “hitting my stride”, but I think that internalizing the Orff process has helped tremendously.

One of the amazing surprises I’ve found after taking Level I is that I can now pick up books or check out ideas on Pinterest and know how to teach the lessons.  I know the process and can see how the pieces should be taught step-by-step, even without reading the details of the lesson.  I even know how to successfully modify some of the more complicated lessons to fit with the abilities of my students.  This has made me much more confident when teaching new lessons – and there have been many this year!

        3)      It is totally okay to take baby steps.

My feeling with being an Orff teacher is that you should only do what you can do – a little Orff is better than no Orff at all!  For me, some things stayed the same from last year, especially because I wanted to do activities I loved last year that weren’t particularly Orff-y.  Some days I feel like a total convert to the Orff-Schulwerk style but other times I know that I’m not, and that’s okay!  There is nothing wrong with slowly working in Orff to your curriculum – baby steps are fine!

For my school, I’ve had to go back to basics with my students since they had a lot of transitions with music teachers before me.  For example, I’ve had to accept that my students won’t be able to read music in la pentatonic right now because we need to learn the basic do, re, mi, so, and la first.  Lay the groundwork with your students now so later they can get to all the challenging plans you have in your idea bank!

Miss C’s Baby Steps to Improvisation:

I’m not going to lie to you, improvisation is scary.  You are giving up the reins and hoping your students can make music on their own.  Not only does it scare the teacher, but the students are nervous about messing up, too.  To get kids used to performing alone, I’ve taken a few baby steps that I want to share with you:

At the beginning of the year, name games were a great way to get students used to the simple idea of performing alone without having to create their own musical ideas.  Later, I had students (especially the younger ones) create movement solos that the class “echoed”.  This soon turned into an activity my kindergarteners loved – every day I’d have three or four kids lead the class in keeping the beat to a song in a variety of ways.  This was a great way to get them focused at the beginning of class, lay the groundwork for improvisation, assess the students, and incorporate a wide variety of listening examples!  My older students have done a little bit of rhythmic improvisation with clapping and soon I’m hoping to transfer this to percussion instruments.

See?!  Improvisation doesn’t have to be scary; just take baby steps!

The post Life After Certification – Three Things first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

Friday marked the last day of my Orff Level I certification and the day was bittersweet; it was wonderful to look back at all we learned in our two weeks together but sad knowing we wouldn’t see each other and keep learning on Monday.

The course culminated in a performance where we were able to demonstrate our ability to combine singing, playing, and dancing to make our own creations.  While this performance was made by us students, it would not have been possible without our movement instructor, Kate Williamson.  She allowed us the freedom to create how we wanted, but was able to tweak our performances to improve transitions and more clearly express our intentions.  I loved watching her teach over the past two weeks – she gives students guidance but encourages free-thinkers, even when the students want to be told what to do.  I believe in acting this way she showed us a very beautiful example of an Orff teacher – twirly skirts and all!

Back to the last day of Orff Level I – we had a “Kumbaya Time” after lunch where people were able to discuss what they learned about: 1) music, 2) learning/teaching, and 3) themselves.  I’ll first delve briefly into my answers:

1)    I learned several things about music this week, but the one of the things that stuck out was how music can be created horizontally rather than vertically.  Rather than finding a melody and putting chords to go with the notes, you can compose ostinati that are interesting on their own and happen to line up well with the melody.  I love the way the music we worked on these past two weeks was created by layering on different ideas – it offers so much room for individualization depending on your classroom and students’ needs.

2)    Learning about the process of teaching music in the Orff style was the most important thing I took away from this class.  I feel like my lessons will be so much more engaging in the future because each step in the process is interesting – no more “I sing, then you sing”!  Knowing how to spend more time on a quality song and pull many things out of it is a huge reward for me.

3)    I found out these past two weeks that I still have things to work on as a musician.  I know that I’m not an awesome teacher yet – I’ve only been doing it two years – but I thought I was done having to learn how to sing or play an instrument.  Now though, it seems that I need some work on my vocal and recorder improvisational skills and solfa syllables.  It’s nice to know that I still have room to grow in this way and that when my students are struggling, I will be able to easily relate and empathize.

Before getting to my last edition of Roger’s Nuggets of Wisdom, I want to share a couple of the wonderful things some of my fellow students shared (paraphrased):

Two weeks ago I didn’t have a problem with what I was teaching my students – So many of the teachers in this class were discussing how much their plans have changed for the coming year based on what they have learned in Level I.  It’s not okay anymore to just give worksheets or sing songs without a purpose – we know what our students can achieve if we just work hard to help them get there!

I’m done being a teacher who presses play – This goes right along with what I said above – it’s not good enough anymore to have them always sing with a CD when we know how to layer parts so that they are creating all parts of the music.

It’s not competitive – The Level I class was never about competition – we were reaching for our personal bests and helping each other become the best teachers we can be.  In the secondary music world there is a lot of competition between students and schools to earn the best seat, the best scores, the best solos…in elementary music we are here to support each other on the journey and that is the environment our students should feel like they are in as well.

It’s not our job to push music into our students, it is our job to pull it out of them – What beautiful words!  I love this sentiment that we are here to facilitate student discovery of music, not tell them how to do it.  We can give students the skills they need and advice, but they must create for themselves to truly appreciate what they are learning.

Roger’s Nuggets of Wisdom

(those small phrases that seem to pretty much sum up Orff Schulwerk)

 “How many teachers don’t offer students the bridge?” – This quote was used in reference to giving students a challenge in music class.  So frequently teachers ask students to do difficult things without adequately showing them how to get there and it is our job to offer that support so they can succeed, thereby building a love for music and a love for themselves.

 “Today is a beginning, not an ending” – Even though my class is over and I’m now back to the rest and relaxation of summer, it is not the end of my Orff journey.  I still need to figure out how to implement what I’ve learned and get my students in on this new way of learning music.  I’ve already started to rethink my plan for next year and am trying to figure out how I can begin to morph myself into an Orff teacher.  Over the course of the year I am sure I will learn a lot more about myself and about Orff, so I won’t think of it as a “goodbye” but as a “see you soon”.

The post A Day in the Life of Orff Certification: Day 10 first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

A continuation of the improvisation discussion from Day 7:

First, try and use predictable forms during improvisation pieces.  You want the students to be concentrating on their improvisation skills, not their memorizing difficult form structures skills (remember that whole “working memory” thing from Day 4?).

Second, there are many ways to improvise in your classroom rather than just rhythm patterns, playing on recorder/barred instruments, and singing solfa.  For example, I’ve had Kindergarteners lead each other in keeping the steady beat in different ways and having the class copy.  It’s a great way to help them focus through a whole song and they start to think for themselves and lead each other.  I’ve particularly enjoyed using the song “Everybody” by Ingrid Michaelson, especially around Valentine’s Day.

Roger had us improvise today by singing our own text that went with the song we were singing, which was a great way to get us laughing and stop stressing out about improvisation – creating music should be fun!  We also did scat singing, which was a fun way to know if we understood the pentatonic scale without worrying about solfa syllables or creating coherent text.  If these are too hard for your students, give them options of words they can sing and let them choose their melody.  There are so many options to get kids improvising so we have to try and break out of our routines and habits and keep kids on their toes!

Roger’s Nuggets of Wisdom

(those small phrases that seem to pretty much sum up Orff Schulwerk)

 “Be a really strong ______ grader” – When modeling a skill for a student, don’t play or sing like someone with a college degree in music – sound like a strong musician a grade ahead of them.  For example, if I want to show third graders how to improvise, I should perform like a strong fourth grader would perform.

“Gut singing with skills” – This was said in relation to the scat improvisation we did today, but I think it goes for all sorts of improvisation.  We are trying to teach our students to know the rules of music so well that it lives inside them and guides their creations inherently.  We want them to know how to spot good music and how to make it on their own.  As with any skill, this will take a lot of time to become engrained inside our students, but once it’s in there all the work will definitely be worth it.

The post A Day in the Life of Orff Certification: Day 9 first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

I think it’s time to address the “c word”: concerts (get your head out of the gutter!).  For the past two years, preparing for concerts has gone in a very predictable way for me: pick a theme, find songs with CD accompaniments that fit with the theme, and then spend the month or so before the concert learning the songs (unless I happened to sneak some of them into earlier units).  I had fourth grade play recorder with CD accompaniment, did one simple whole-class composition with third grade, and had first graders help re-write the lyrics to “Ants Go Marching”, but other than that my concerts are almost exclusively singing with a CD and doing motions that go with the given lyrics.  This process has worked well for me so far – I think I’ve had some pretty darn adorable concerts so far!

Please indulge me while I delve into an analogy for a moment…Those cutesy songs that were so easy to program are kind of like the Harry Potter books – they are definitely entertaining, but they might not be the most effective for teaching curriculum.  There is a place for novelty songs in a concert, just like there’s a place for the Harry Potter series on my bookshelf, but they shouldn’t be the only thing there!

But Erin, what am I supposed to use for my concerts then?!  Great question!  You use the stuff that you’re already doing in class anyway.  Of course, you may have to beef up the arrangements by adding borduns, ostinati, repeat signs, canons, rondos, composition, and dancing, but all of that is going to fit into your curriculum!  You can still do songs that are more difficult than your students could analyze (who really wants to hear a bunch of do, re, mi songs the whole time first grade sings anyway?), but use them sparingly.  These songs are a great way to get students hearing how music should function, because, if your students are anything like mine, they’re probably not hearing quality music at home.  This kind of concert is going to be a lot of work to prepare, but, when all is said and done, I won’t feel like I’ve lost a month of instructional time to learning all those pre-packaged songs.  As an added bonus, the parents and staff will get to see what all the work that happens in music classroom and hopefully the music program will gain more support!

Roger’s Nuggets of Wisdom

(those small phrases that seem to pretty much sum up Orff Schulwerk)

 “Use your curriculum to put on a good show” – Do you really need me to explain it all again?  Put the music you use in your room on the stage for the parents!

The post A Day in the Life of Orff Certification: Day 8 first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

Today’s topic: improvisation!  This is a core skill in an Orff classroom (remember, it’s all about creativity) so I wanted to review some of the things we talked about in class today.

One big things Roger discussed was making sure we start improvisation really easy with the students and make sure they feel comfortable improvising simple rhythms.  After that is solid, you can move students onto barred instruments so that they can then apply the rhythmic improvisation to melody.  If you set the instrument up in a pentatonic scale, you also prepare the students to be successful and confident creators because whatever they play, it will sound good.  Next you can have students improvise using just a few notes and later the entire pentatonic scale on the recorder (a skill I’m still working on myself).  Finally, after using instruments the students will be ready to create their own vocal improvisations now that they have a clear understanding of the available pitch set and rhythms they can utilize.  This process takes time – lots of it – so take it slow; it’s better for students to succeed at the basics than fail at the complicated skills.

Roger’s Nuggets of Wisdom

(those small phrases that seem to pretty much sum up Orff Schulwerk)

 “Start with it, end with it, play it a lot” – This is a very easy phrase students can use once they start trying to create a sense of tonic with their improvisation.  If you are in the key of G pentatonic for example, then you start with G, end with G, and play G a lot.  Simple and to the point!

“Keep It Simple Sweetie (KISS)” – When creating music or lessons, it is best to keep things simple.  Sometimes that complex ostinato and really challenging xylophone part are appropriate, but most likely your students will need something simple and accessible.  This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t push your students to try new and difficult things, but work with what they know, not what you know.  There are several examples of things I did with my students last year that were way beyond their comfort zone – namely asking them to improvise or compose with difficult rhythms without first having them create using ta and ti-ti.  Keep it simple and work for mastery of the basics before moving on to the tough stuff!

“I don’t teach monkeys, I teach musicians” – We’ve all seen it: we ask students to improvise and there’s that one kid who decides he can play ten zillion random notes in those 8 beats you gave him.  Roger told us today that he tells that kid that he could train a monkey to play like that but he wants musicians, not monkeys.  I loved this image and I think it’s an effective way to communicate the difference between noise and music to the students.

The post A Day in the Life of Orff Certification: Day 7 first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

          This weekend I realized that I have not spent much time, if any, talking about my recorder class and I really want to share some of the things I’ve been learning from Brian Burnett.  Almost immediately I learned that he likes to use big words and has very fast paced lessons.  This could be overwhelming as a student, but he always takes the time to be sure we understand him and are caught up.  I think this style of teaching is very engaging for students because we always have to be alert or we’ll be left behind.

Today Brian taught us a recorder piece using a process he referred to as layering.  When you teach by layering, you start with a simple skeleton of the piece – break it down into quarter notes or just downbeats, just be sure it is a very simplified version.  After this, you give another layer that adds in a few more of the notes.  Repeat with as many layers as necessary then finally reveal the entirety of the piece.  I tend to use the “repeat after me” process almost all the time, so learning how to teach in a new way will be a great way to get my students focused and learning harder music.  Also, layering allows for students that are having difficulty to stay back on an easier layer while quicker learners can move onto harder music.  So often in my classroom the students who excel in music are waiting for others to catch up, so this is a nice way to differentiate instruction.

I’m definitely enjoying my recorder class – it is challenging which keeps me on my toes!  I’m hoping I can do the same for my students this coming year when we pull back out our recorders and learn more than just our simple BAG songs!

Roger’s Brian’s Nuggets of Wisdom

(those small phrases that seem to pretty much sum up Orff Schulwerk)

“There’s always another bus” and “Get off at your stop” – Brian uses these phrases to help students understand differentiated instruction.  If you get lost, don’t get upset, just jump back in when you know where we are.  If you missed that bus, just wait for the next one!  I also really enjoy the second phrase because it allows students to work on whatever is in their comfort zone.  Even if Johnny is playing sixteenth notes, when Kate needs more practice on the skeleton of a song, let her stay there.  Both students are working on mastering the level they are on – they stay on the bus until they need to get off for a while.

“Ontogeny” – I told you Brian likes big words!  “Ontogeny” means the growth and development of an organism.  In music, ontogeny plays out as the natural development of musical skills – you have to prepare and build up to learning how to do complicated tasks. For example, if you want to students to do pentatonic improvisation, you have to start with the basics – rhythm and rhythmic improvisation – and once that is secure, start adding melody.  I am realizing over the course of taking Level I that I used activities last year that were not adequately prepared for my students in their previous lessons which is why they were unsuccessful.  Next year I have to be much more aware of my students’ musical ontogeny and build up to the complicated tasks I want to use!

The post A Day in the Life of Orff Certification: Day 6 first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

Time and time again this week, I keep being reminded of just how engaging and active an elementary music lesson should be.  I know that my students have been sitting and listening to me talk too much this year because they were off-task very frequently which was overwhelming and exhausting.  Although I knew the problem, I didn’t know how to teach in any other way so I just kept doing what I knew how to do.  I am so grateful to be gaining not only engaging songs and activities to do with my students, but also tools to help me teach differently.  This change is going to involve a lot of work on my part, but I think the payoff of improved musicianship and better behavior will be completely worth it.

Roger’s Nuggets of Wisdom

(those small phrases that seem to pretty much sum up Orff Schulwerk)

“Working memory”– Working memory is what your brain is remembering at any given moment in order to complete a complex process.  In Level I today, our class had to be reminded several times to keep simple concepts – like keeping steady beat – in our working memory.  When given a difficult rhythm, we frequently lost the steady beat because we were focused on getting the rhythm right instead.  When we added body percussion or instruments, the same problem happened because steady beat was, again, shoved out of our working memory.  We must be sure to keep the basics in our working memory at all times in order to ensure a successful performance.  This is what makes music special – it is a cerebral subject that requires many things to be active in your working memory at once; there are no lazy brains when performing music!

“Prosody” – Okay, this is actually a Brian Burnett word, but since Roger used it today, I’ll give both of them credit.  Prosody is the natural rhythm of speech and is very important to consider when turning text into a song or speech piece.  Try to follow the natural inflections that happen in the text when deciding the rhythm instead of trying to mold the text into the rhythm you want.  Think of writing the rhythm as trying out different clothes on the text – you don’t want to force it into some super-tight skinny jeans, but you don’t want it to be drowning in an over-sized t-shirt either.  If the rhythm fits, wear it; if it doesn’t, try on something else until you get it right!

The post A Day in the Life of Orff Certification: Day 4 first appeared on Teaching With Orff.

When I found out I was going to be blogging about my experience in the Orff Level I class, I asked some of my friends that teach elementary school what questions they had about Orff-Schulwerk.  The question I heard time and time again was:

How much does it cost to start an Orff program?

This was something we discussed some today and have been indirectly learning about over the past several days.  To be honest, I’ve only played an “Orff instrument” maybe two or three times over the past three days.  That does not mean we aren’t using the Orff philosophy, but we are learning how to utilize all sorts of other instruments – voice (speaking and singing), hands (clapping, snapping, patting), feet, rhythm sticks, drums, un-tuned percussion, recorder – to achieve that goal of creation.  I think what it really boils down to with Orff Schulwerk is do what you can with what you have.

I’ll take you step by step through a typical activity we’d do in my Level I class and keep a running total cost of all materials needed.

1)    Teach the students a poem in rhythm ($0.00)

2)    Teach the class a spoken ostinato created by you ($0.00)

3)    Have half the class speak the poem and half the class speak the ostinato ($0.00)

4)    Teach a second spoken ostinato to the class ($0.00)

5)    Have a third of the class speak the poem, a third speak Ostinato 1, a third speak Ostinato 2 ($0.00)

6)    Change the spoken ostinato patterns into body percussion ostinato patterns ($0.00)

7)    Have a third of the class speak the poem, a third play Ostinato 1 with their bodies, a third play Ostinato 2 with their bodies ($0.00)

8)    Teacher claps rhythm patterns (improvise) and students echo ($0.00)

9)    Have a third of the class speak the poem, a third play Ostinato 1 with their bodies, a third play Ostinato 2 with their bodies ($0.00)

10)  Student claps rhythm patterns (improvise) and students echo ($0.00)

11)  Repeat Steps 9 and 10 ad nauseum ($0.00)

I may have not majored in mathematics in college, but I’m fairly confident that the total cost was $0.00.  If you happen to already have some instruments in your room then, by all means, add them in!  You could make a step 7.5 where Ostinato 1 is played with rhythm sticks and Ostinato 2 with hand drums.  You could modify step 8 to have the teacher play a simple pattern on recorder which students echo.  The possibilities are there, you just have to use your brain to find them!

Roger’s Nuggets of Wisdom

(those small phrases that seem to pretty much sum up Orff Schulwerk)

 “Start the box small and let it grow over time” – When teaching students to improvise, you don’t want to just say “play something” unless you want that deer in headlights look (or even tears in the case of the bitty ones).  Start really easy and slowly then build up to the harder stuff.  For example, you might start by asking students to lead the class in putting the beat in different spots on their bodies.  Then work up to students leading four-beat echo clapping with simple rhythms.  Add instruments or melodic improvisation once students are grasping the basic concepts.  You wouldn’t put a baby on a track and ask him to run a 100 meter race, so don’t expect your students to be able to improvise without some guidance!

The post A Day in the Life of Orff Certification: Day 3 first appeared on Teaching With Orff.