Category: Personal and Professional Preparation

Dynamics and the high 2nd finger

On November 19, 2019

In Assessment, Complexity, edci306a, EdTech, Growth Mindset, Learning Design, Tech Tools, Uncategorised

Overall, my experience of learning how to play the violin has been a pleasure. The immediate gratification that I’ve received from playing my first few tunes has been strong and has kept me motivated to learn more. In chapter 10 and 11 of “Violinworks” by Ros Stephen, I have learned how to read and integrate dynamics into my violin playing. Such things as crescendos and diminuendos are more complex to execute on a bowed instrument compared to a drum or guitar. For example to play quietly on a drum, one simply uses less force when striking the skin of the drum, whereas to play loudly one uses more force. This relationship between force and volume is present when playing the violin as well; the more pressure that is placed on the strings by the bow produces a louder sound, and less pressure makes a quieter sound. However, it is not as simple as that, because the speed with which the bow slides across the strings also controls the volume level. This is just one example of how to articulate dynamics on a violin, but it works to show how complex it is to play this instrument.

Chapter 11 introduces using the “high 2nd finger” which eludes to there also being a “low 2nd finger”. This was BIG NEWS to me, as I had been working ahead of the book and using all of my fingers to play by just sounding things out on my own such as “come on Eileen” by Dexy’s Midnight Runners. I thought that instead of frets, there were 4 consecutive notes that corresponded to where the fingers naturally fell on the violin’ neck. What I’d forgotten about were sharps and flats! I can’t say I still completely understand it all yet, but I do know that on the top ‘G’ string on the violin, when the second finger presses down in low position (closer to the scroll), it produces a Bm note, whereas when it presses down in the high position it produces a B. In the book it only teaches to use the high position with the second finger. I may have to research another source to understand all of this better and figure out how to read these notes on a staff.

*I’ve realized that there is not much time left until I am supposed to have reached my learning goal of reading and playing the song “He’s a pirate”. Therefore, I have found the sheet music and begun to learn how to read it. Nervously, I decided to make my goal slightly easier by choosing not to learn “He’s a Pirate” and to learn to read and play two simpler songs, but I am having a hard time taking the easy way out. Let’s see if I can make it happen! If anyone knows where I can get 5 extra hours to add to my day, please let me know. Thanks!

Photo by Kenny Luo on Unsplash

Minecraft!

by dkaras

On November 4, 2019

In Augmented Reality, Coding, Collaboration, Communication, Complexity, EdTech, Educational Competencies, Gaming, Growth Mindset, Intellectual Property, Learning Design, Multimedia Learning Theory, Open Pedagogy, Pedagogical Practices, Personal Learning Networks, Technology Competencies, Working Collaboratively

Today in our EDCI336 class we were visited by a teacher and group of students from Colquitz Elementary and Spectrum High school. These bright young people helped teach our entire class how to play Minecraft– a dynamic video game that allows players to mine resources and use them to build all sorts of structures and tools. I had originally learned about the game from my younger brother who began playing it on X-box a number of years ago, and since its origination Minecraft has expanded greatly, becoming a valued classroom tool for teaching many different subjects. For those new to Minecraft, you choose a character and are set into a pixelated world of opportunity. On one hand, this limitless world of blocks can seem daunting, but on the other, it is exciting, for as you gain the knowledge and familiarity of how to play the game, Minecraft becomes an essential platform for creativity and construction. It can be used in the classroom to teach teamwork (by playing on the same server) and problem-solving, mathematics (especially in regards to patterns), art (a good alternative to a diorama), and many other things. It can even act as a platform for teaching how to code! As a pre-service teacher, this tool seems like it should be a staple in the classroom for its benefits towards pedagogy, and how it allows students to connect in a constructive way. With little instruction from educators, students are able to complete their own independent projects or shared class assignments. For example, making checklists of tasks for students to complete can be a great way of utilizing Minecraft to teach across an array of subjects all in one lesson, but one of the most effective parts is the reflection that students complete afterward. This allows students to connect what they’ve learned in the game to real life, whether that relates to environmental or mathematical lessons, or simply strategy and problem-solving. Another great feature in Minecraft is the crafting table, where players must put together certain combinations of resources to create new tools or materials. Allowing students the opportunity to figure these combinations out for themselves is greatly beneficial, as they are more likely to develop a deeper understanding than if they were told how to do it. They will also be more eager to teach the information to their friends, helping them to root these lessons deep into their memory.

When it comes to teachers using Minecraft, not only can they control a character in the same server as their students, but they monitor their students using their unique facilitator account and adjust or limit certain abilities for each student. This allows them to keep students on task when using Minecraft to teach a particular lesson.

Apart from its pedagogical benefits, Minecraft can also act as a tool for students to connect over. For those students that are more comfortable playing a cerebral game rather than competing in physical activity, Minecraft can offer a safe place for friends to socialize with friends, making it a very inclusive tool. Needless to say, my brother is going to be quite happy when I tell him how I plan to incorporate Minecraft in my classroom!

What the heck is a semi-tone?

by dkaras

On October 26, 2019

In edci306a, Free Inquiry, Growth Mindset, Image Editing, Technology Competencies, Uncategorised, Video Editing

Chapter 7- Intro to the left hand

While moving along through my instruction book (http://violin-works.com), a key point I’ve learned is how to hold my left hand on the neck of the violin; straight from the elbow to the hand, and relaxed, with points of contact on the thumb and the base knuckle of the index finger.

I also read that fret markers are not recommended because the violin is primarily an auditory instrument, where the player should not rely on their vision but their ear to determine if they are playing the right note. I agree with this point and think that it will be better for learning music as a whole if I have to sound things out, so I peeled off my fret marker. Singing the note I am trying to play will help my music sense anyway, rather than taking a more mechanical approach. This chapter also introduced me to tones and semi-tones, as well as intervals, sharps, and flats, but are covered more extensively in chapter 8 and 9.

In Chapter 8 I learned how to swing the left elbow forward and backward under the neck in order to help fingers reach the

and E strings.

I also learned that the 3rd finger notes on each string are all an interval of an octave above the neighboring lower string. Understanding this relationship gives context to how the notes are laid out along the neck. The beginning of ‘Somewhere over the rainbow’ is a good example of playing the same note in a different octave. Watch and listen!

In chapter 9, Stephen further explains tones, semi-tones and minor thirds (Something I still don’t quite understand). I can see now how to read music and interpret where my fingers go on each string. For example, if I were to play an open D string, putting my first finger down on the string would give me an E note. Therefore, if I read an E (on the bottom line of the staff), then I know I’ll need to put my first finger down in the D string. When using my fingers to stop the string on the neck, I am to make sure that I stay relaxed and use only as much pressure as necessary. It is also important to keep all of my fingers just above the string when not in use, and when stopping a string, use the pad of the tip of my finger for accuracy.

Explaining the theory as I learn it gives you a good idea of my progression in a sense, but it doesn’t really tell you about my playing. Therefore I intend to take a little video or sound clip for each new post to track my playing, skill progression and sound. Sometimes I may just play an exercise, and other times I will play songs, but for each, I will explain what I’ve accomplished, and what I may still be struggling with. As of now, keeping my hands relaxed that is a struggle, as they tend to clench up, stiffening my grip on the bow causing it to bounce across the strings. I am going to focus on staying relaxed and slowing things down.

The next chapters involve many new exercises using the fingers of the left hand in the high position and low position (whatever that means). I’m looking forward to learning about what is to come! Until next time!

Musical Growth Video (Mid-term)

by dkaras

On October 23, 2019

In edci306a, EdTech, Free Inquiry, Growth Mindset, Technology Competencies, Uncategorised, Video Editing

Hello Anita!

If all you want is to see me play twinkle twinkle little star, fast forward to 5 minutes. I also play “Come on Eileen” by Dexy’s Midnight Runners afterward.

No one said it would be easy!

by dkaras

On October 21, 2019

In Complexity, edci306a, EdTech, Free Inquiry, Growth Mindset, Uncategorised

Well, I am a little closer to my goal, but somehow I also feel further away. The further I dive into learning how to play the violin, the more I realize how challenging it truly is! I admit that I may have been a touch over-confident in my earlier assessment of what it would take to learn to play the violin, however that doesn’t mean that I am any less confident about reaching my goal. It just means that it’s going to be more challenging than I thought! In my last post, I covered some of what I learned about the basics of the violin, like how to keep proper posture and tune the strings. In this post, I describe my experience working through chapters 4, 5, and 6 of “Violinworks” by Ros Stephen (http://violin-works.com), as well as the details of my practice up to this point. Since my first post, I’ve been able to put my theoretical knowledge to the test by finally picking up the bow and trying my best to produce a good clean sound. What I’ve learned is that holding the bow properly, keeping proper angles and alignment with the strings, and remaining relaxed are all very difficult to do, especially when focusing on all of them at once. I am able to run the bow along a string smoothly if I am to focus solely on my contact point, but as I begin to shift my focus to the placement of my left hand on the neck, I notice my bowing form suffers. I suppose that practicing each of these skills individually is important as a beginner, and as the muscle memory starts to take shape, things will sound better. However, this requires patience and discipline to practice rudiments skills rather than attempting to play more exciting pieces of music, something a fairly intermediate guitar player like myself doesn’t like to do.

My music reading, on the other hand, has improved greatly! The repetition of reading from my instruction book, practicing in class and teaching drum lessons on the weekend has got me more confident than I’ve ever been. I’ve got a strong base, and now I am ready to read more into the different notes and strings specific to violin sheet music.

I still have not looked at the sheet music for “He’s a pirate”, but I have been practicing two songs by ear. Working these out has been fun, and definitely helped with learning the spatial awareness of the notes on the neck. The first is twinkle twinkle little star, which sounds good when played fast or slow, and incorporates playing on multiple strings. The second, I was inspired to learn because I love the song and because the violin solo in the introduction was fairly easy to sound out. With that, it is safe to say that my roommates are extremely tired of hearing my scratchy, barely recognizable rendition of ‘Come on Eileen’ by Dexy’s midnight runners, but I certainly am not! This song uses all of the strings and incorporates long and short strokes which makes it very fun to play. I have sounded it out in a different key than the original, but it still sounds proper. I will play what I can of this song as well as twinkle twinkle in my video to show my progress.

In chapters 7-13 of my instruction book, the focus shifts from bowing to using the left hand, and to how to properly utilize each individual finger. I’m going to try to progress a little bit faster than I have so far in the semester by working through the book a little bit quicker. I hope to have read to Chater 10 by next week. Wish me luck!

Thanks for reading!

Video Editing!

by dkaras

On October 19, 2019

In Audio Editing, EdTech, Educational Competencies, Image Editing, Multimedia Learning Theory, Personal and Professional Preparation, Professional Learning Networks, Screen Capture, Tech Tools, Technology Competencies, Uncategorised, Video Editing

We’ve reached the part in the course where I’ve learned how to edit video and audio! I have never learned how to do this before, so I’m very pleased to add this skill to my repertoire, not just for teaching but also for personal interest. Learning this skill included multiple steps, such as how to locate and upload an existing video/audio file, and how to trim, split, transition crop and export digital media. Learning how to use a green screen was also really fun! I now know how to overlay one video onto another, and add separate audio files onto videos. I am looking forward to structuring lessons that incorporate my skills and creating personal projects that I never could before.

A big thank you to Rich Mccue for visiting our class and sharing his valuable expertise! If you would like to learn from Rich, you can visit his website by clicking the link below.

www.Richmccue.com

My first Lesson

by dkaras

On September 30, 2019

In edci306a, EdTech, Free Inquiry, Growth Mindset, Professional Learning Networks

I am excited to say that I have just taken my first steps on my journey to becoming a violin aficionado! Okay, maybe not an aficionado, but baby steps right? In this post, I will outline briefly what I’ve learned thus far and what I plan to learn in this coming week.

To support my learning and set myself up for success, I decided to purchase a musical instruction book to aid in my practice. Titled “Violinworks: A comprehensive method for the older beginner” (http://violin-works.com), author Ros Stephen organizes lessons within chapters, beginning with Chapter 1; the anatomy of the violin and bow, the names of the strings and how to tune them, as well as the fingering references (numbers assigned to fingers). Key points I took away from this chapter was that unlike a guitar, the strings are tuned using mainly the “fine tuners” located at near the tailpiece, rather than the pegs located near the neck. It’s also very important when changing the strings, not to remove all of the strings at once for one risks collapse of the bridge and/or soundbar. Most things learned from this chapter pertain to preparing to play the violin and not actually playing it. For example, I also learned that it is important to tighten the bow hair before playing and to loosen it when finished, and also to run the hair of the bow over rosin 3 to 4 times before playing. Rosin is made from pine resin, which when applied, makes the bow slightly sticky so that it grips the strings, causing them to vibrate as the bow is drawn across them.

It was in Chapter 2, “Holding the Violin and Playing Pizzicato” that I began to actually use the violin, but not before I learned the basic posture required. If I were to summarize this chapter with one word, it would have to be “Relax”, because ironically it is something that is quite stressed. I soon found out why, as it must be common for beginners to tense up and become rigid when first trying to play. The violin is actually very light in weight, so you dont really need to hold it up with your hand because the weight of your head on the chinrest does just that. You’re meant to just support it very lightly, while using the neck as an anchor for your hand and fingers. I tried my best at remaining relaxed and assuming the proper posture with my shoulders back, then holding the violin on my neck/shoulder and proceeding to play pizzicato. What’s pizzicato? It’s the italian word for “picked” or “plucked” which refers to a way of playing the violin that doesn’t involve using the bow, but simply plucking the strings with one’s fingers. I learned that you can do this not just with the index finger of your right hand (bow hand), but with the pinky finger of your left hand on the neck. I played using each hand, while maintaining a steady rhythm plucking each of the open strings. It came to me quite easily and left me thirsty for more.

Chapter 3 is titled “Notation, Pulse and Rhythm” and looks as though it will begin to explain how to read music, while chapter 4, 5, and 6 explain how to properly use the bow. I plan to work through these chapters over the coming week so that I can begin to practice developing a feel for playing the violin, and move one step closer to achieving my goal of learning the song “He’s a Pirate” from Pirates of the Caribbean. Thank you very much for reading!

Free Inquiry Project- Learning Violin

by dkaras

On September 23, 2019

In edci306a, EdTech, Free Inquiry, Growth Mindset

As a young teenager, one of my greatest inspirations was music. From watching ‘Much Music’ countdown on T.V., to purchasing my first CD’s I quickly became infatuated with the dazzling allure of rock and roll, and the escape that music offered from the world. With influences like Led Zeppelin, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Shinedown, it wasn’t long before I was gifted my first guitar from my Dad and began my musical journey. Learning how to play the guitar wasn’t so much about the proper posture or music theory for me, but about recreating the sounds that had stirred my soul and spoke to my adolescent emotions. I thought is was so cool that I could play the same riffs that i saw Jimmy Page or Jimmy Hendrix play on stage. I took it upon myself to sound out songs and eventually learn how to read tablature, opening the doors to endless amounts of my favorite songs and guitar riffs. This decision- learning how to play the guitar- has brought me so much joy over the years, offering me a way to express myself artistically and connect with people in a profound way. I wouldn’t be the same person if I didn’t play the guitar; it has become a part of who I am.

It’s clear to see the impact that playing a musical instrument can have. Why wouldn’t we all want to learn how to play an instrument?

In our music class this semester we have been tasked with a free inquiry project labeled “Musical Growth Plan”. It requires us to come up with a plan to achieve a specific musical goal. We have the option to learn something totally new, or progress a skill we already have. This project is very exciting to me, and has inspired multiple ideas; learning the didgeridoo, exploring African drumming, and playing guitar as part of a classroom lesson are all interests of mine that I hope to get the opportunity to explore on the future. However, I have chosen to do my musical growth project on learning how to play the violin because I think it’s a unique instrument that has lost popularity and has a classic and timeless sound. No doubt this will be a challenging feat, and while learning any instrument has its challenges, I have heard that the violin can be especially difficult. I am prepared to face these demands, and hoping that my experience playing the guitar will carry me through to achieve my ambitious and most exciting goal of playing the famous ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ song “He’s a Pirate”. I suspect that learning how to use a bow will be my greatest challenge to start, but despite whatever setbacks may lie in my way, I am looking forward to beginning my journey of equipping myself with another musical skill, and another tool for expressing myself to the world.