Name That Instrument

Music From Around the World

Grade: Years 3-4
KLA: Music
Topic: Instruments from around the world.
   
Overview:  

International music is very diverse and uses a wide array of instruments. In this lesson, students research instruments that are unique to countries or communities from across the world.

 
Key Learning Area Outcomes:
  • Music Outcomes:
    • Listens to a range of repertoire and discuss features of the music and the differences between different repertoire.
    • Discusses the role of music in a range of cultural contexts, e.g. ceremonial and sacred events, storytelling.
Additional Key Learning Area Outcomes:
  • English Outcomes:
    • Gathers information from resources including the World Wide Web.
    • Reads independently a wide range of texts on increasingly challenging topics and justifies own interpretation of ideas, information and events.
    • Produces texts clearly, effectively and accurately, using the sentence structure, grammatical features and punctuation conventions of the text type.
    • Demonstrates basic desktop publishing skills on the computer.
       
  • Social Studies Outcomes:
    • Explores the customs and traditions of communities around the world.
Application:
  • Microsoft® PowerPoint 2003
  • Microsoft® Student 2006
  • Microsoft® Internet Explorer
Additional Technology:
  • Access to the Internet
Teacher Notes:
  1. Brainstorm and list all the different instruments that your students can think of. Categorise these instruments according to the family that they belong to e.g. the violin is a member of string family.
  2. You may like to introduce students to international instruments by using the Interactive World Music game found on Microsoft® Student 2006. Alternatively, Microsoft® Encarta has a broad range of articles, multimedia files and games about instruments from around the world.
  3. Using the list of instruments resource sheet, ask students to select an instrument to research.

Instruments from around the world resource sheet

  1. Students use the Internet, Microsoft® Encarta and other resource material to research their instrument. Demonstrate how to use a search engine to find information, images and sound files. Instruct students in the procedure for saving images and sound clips to file:
    • To save an image from the Internet:
      1. Place your cursor over the image and right click the mouse.
      2. From the menu of options, select Save Picture.
      3. Locate and select the folder that you would like to save your image to, and click Save.
    • To save a sound clip from the Internet:
      1. Place your cursor on the link to the sound file.
      2. Right click the mouse and select Save Target As
      3. Locate and select the folder that you would like to save your image to, and click Save.
  2. Students present their information, images and sound files in a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation. You may like to collate these presentations an place on the school intranet or in the library for other students to view.


    Download sample file

  1. You may like to print and distribute the rubrics assessment guide to assist students in understanding the task and how it will be assessed:

    Rubrics marking criteria template
Suggested Websites:

Instruments around the world
Musical instruments
World instruments
Instruments from around the globe

 
Student Activity:
  1. There are hundreds of musical instruments, some have been around for hundreds of years. List all the different instruments that you can think of. Did you know that instruments have families that they belong to? The violin and cello are both members of the string family. An instrument is classified by how it is played such as the string family or what it is made of such as the brass family. Take the list of instruments that you brainstormed, and categorise it according to what family it comes from.
  2. Have you ever heard the sound of a sitar, the melody of a marimba or the beat of a timbale? These are all international instruments with their own unique sounds. Your teacher will give you a list of international instruments and their country of origin. Select one instrument from the list to research and learn about.
  3. Research your chosen instrument using Microsoft® Encarta, the Internet and books from the library. Your teacher will show you how to save an image of your instrument from the web. If possible, you should also save a sound file of your instrument. Your teacher will show you how to do this.

Research Guide

  1. Now that you have researched your image and saved related images and sound files, it's time to present your information. Using Microsoft® PowerPoint®, create an opening slide to introduce your instrument. When formatting your slides, think about things like colour. Are there particular colours or patterns that are relevant to the country or community that your instrument originates from?

  1. Insert a second slide and present your researched information:

  1. Insert a third slide and import an image of your instrument. Import your saved sound file by selecting Insert> Movies and Sounds> Sound from File. Locate your saved sound file and click OK. When the dialogue box appears, you will be asked to how you want the sound file to start. Select Automatically:

When this slide is viewed, the sound file will play immediately:

  1. Enjoy learning, looking and listening to musical instruments from around the world!
Extension:

Once students have completed their multimedia PowerPoint® presentation, you may like to hyperlink each project to a map of the world. This is a great way to collate your students work in an interactive format. Before you begin, you will need to save an image of a world map to file.

See Sample File (needs sound)

 Creating an Interactive Map of the World

  1. Save all the PowerPoint® presentations to one folder.

  2. Open a new Microsoft PowerPoint document.

  3. Select Format> Background. Activate the drop down menu, and select Fill Effects.

  1. Click the Picture tab then click Select Picture. Locate your image of the world map from the folder directory then click Insert. Click OK, then click Apply.

  1. We are now going to create invisible hyperlinks from countries on the world map to the relevant PowerPoint® presentations. From the drawing toolbar, select the Rectangle tool and draw a rectangle over the country that you would like to create the hyperlink from:

  1. While the rectangle is highlighted, select Insert> Hyperlink. When the hyperlink dialogue box opens, select Existing File or Web Page. Browse through the directory of folders to locate your saved PowerPoint® presentations, select the presentation you would like to link to:

Click Screen Tip and type in the name of the instrument that comes from that country. When the file is viewed as a running presentation, when the cursor runs over the country, the screen tip will appear to let the user know that their is a hyperlink there.

Test your hyperlink by running your presentation is Slide Show view by using the F5 key on the keyboard.

  1. Now to make the hyperlink invisible. Place your cursor on the rectangle and right click the mouse. From the menu of options select Format AutoShape. Change the Colour to No Fill and the Line Colour to No Line then click OK.

  1. Continue creating invisible hyperlinks from your world map to students PowerPoint® presentations.

  2. This hyperlinked presentation would make a wonderful teaching resource to use on an Interactive Whiteboard, otherwise, allow students time in the computer lab to view the completed presentation. For more on Interactive Whiteboards go to www.iwb.net.au

Assessment:
You may like to use the following template to record student achievement:

Tracking sheet