Final Project II Reflection Paper

Name: ​[Kenzie McConnell ]

Link to your website: ​[​https://ci2300-music-ed.weebly.com/​]

Make a copy of this Reflection paper template, and save it as Reflection_Paper_[your last name].
Share it so that “anyone with link” can “comment.”

This Reflection Paper should be about two-pages (in 12 point font) where you reflect on the
choices you made throughout this project. Describe your thinking as you planned out the lesson,
including the content you selected for inclusion in your website and the production choices you
made in creating your media.

I had a lot of fun with this project! I feel like it really gave me the chance to look at all
the different things I would need to do and think about as a band director. My high school had a
band and orchestra director and a chorus and AP music theory teacher. Up until working on this
project, I never thought that my future job might extend to more than just a high school band
class. It was really cool to think about the different lesson plans I could incorporate into my
classes and the different ways I can reach students. I never thought too much about incorporating
technology and media into a music classroom, because for the most part, a band class is going to
be spent learning, and rehearsing different music selections to put on a concert. Media is not
directly ingrained into the typical music class. If I were to incorporate media and technology into
my classroom, it would make my class unique and one that students would hopefully find new
and interesting.
While working on the project, I decided to just kind of jump in and see where it took me.
The home page was easy enough, as it was mostly just a little bit about me. I already had an idea
for one of the personal choice activities, so I planned my standards around that. I wanted to
include a music theory element to the project because I enjoy learning about theory, so I know
that it is something I would probably end up pushing in my class. In my activities, I also thought
about students engagement and enjoyment. I don’t want students to be sitting in a classroom
bored while learning, so I tried to make the activities fun while still educational.

In addition to this general reflection, answer the following questions with specifics from your
design:
a) How did the project connect students to one another (social aspects of the project)? ​Students
got the chance to work together to answer questions about music. They also had the chance to
compare answers of different questions. Including technology into a class allows students to
connect with one another as they work together to figure out the answer.
b) How did the project connect them to their own skills and interests?
Students are probably sitting in the music class for a reason. The activities included in the project
allow students to think about why they are there and what their connection to music really is. It
also allowed students to look around them and figure out what it is about music that interests
them and how they learn best.

c) How did you meet the needs of a variety of students?

I tried to include a number of different teaching styles. I included visuals, I included
memorization, I included quizzes, etc. Every student learns differently, and as I was creating
each activity, I made sure to try and target a different learning style. The ultimate goal of a
teacher is for their students to come away having learned something new, but enjoyed their
learning process. I tried to remember this as I made each activity/assignment.

d) How did you get the student to be active and to connect to the physical world and the real
world around them?
I talked about topics they might already have a base knowledge of. I brought their minds back to
history and tried to help them form connections between instruments, history, and the music they
enjoy.

e) How did you get the students to wonder?

In my higher-level thinking questions, I asked questions that specifically targeted students. The
questions should have made students think about their answers and anything they did not know,
they were hopefully intrigued and wanted to find out more.

f) How might this project help students succeed in the 21st century?
Obviously, there is technology incorporated into this project. In the 21st century, media and
technology has becoming a staple. Incorporating media and technology into this project allows
students to learn and explore in an environment they are already familiar with, facilitating a
sense of prior knowledge making the learning process easier.

Finally, in a reflective conclusion paragraph, summarize not only your successes throughout this
project, but also cite specific ideas for improvement and revision.
I enjoyed making this project. It was a lot of fun incorporating technology into a subject one
would not ordinarily think about involving. If I were to do the whole thing again, I might think
about the planning process a bit more and getting the logistics of everything worked out earlier
than I did. I also would put more of an emphasis on the visual aspect of the project, making the
images and the slides more interesting and clear. Overall, this was a fun project and a great class!