Grade 9 - Structure (Form and the Principles of Design)

This sub-organizer contains the following sections:
Prescribed Learning Outcomes
Suggested Instructional Strategies
Suggested Assessment Strategies
Recommended Learning Resources

PRESCRIBED LEARNING OUTCOMES

It is expected that students will create, listen to, and perform music, demonstrating understanding of a variety of different forms and the principles of design.

It is expected that students will:

identify an expanded variety of forms
purposefully apply a variety of music forms and principles of design to composition
represent the form of a piece of music
use appropriate terminology to define aspects of form and principles of design
compare and contrast the form of a variety of music compositions

To view the prescribed learning outcomes for Structure (Form and the Principles of Design) in other grades click on an icon below.

SUGGESTED INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES

Listen to music examples and relate the use of the principles of design to each of the elements of expression. Students create soundscapes in a particular form and apply knowledge of one or more of the principles of design (e.g., focus on repetition within a rondo form).
Examine examples of the principles of design from other fine arts, and discuss their relationship to music. Students create multidisciplinary presentations to demonstrate each of the principles of design in music and in one or more of the other fine arts.
Listen to music from a variety of cultures and time periods, and analyse their forms. Students then compose and notate short works based on contrasting forms. Students create visual representations of their works, showing the contrast in form.
Students develop personal dictionaries of music terminology, including vocabulary related to the principles of design (e.g., rondo, verse chorus, verse chorus bridge, blues, march and trio). This is an ongoing activitystudents add to their dictionaries as they learn new terms. Students identify and define examples of vocabulary in performance literature.
Discuss form and function of music in relation to cultural and historical contexts (e.g., protest songs, music styles developed in reaction against other styles). Students then create word webs representing connections between music styles.
Students listen to recordings of music from a variety of historical and cultural contexts, and compare and contrast the forms of the compositions through discussion, written analysis, visual representations, and so on.

SUGGESTED ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES

Have the class work together to develop criteria to assess individual students' representations of form. For example, students may decide it is important to say something positive about a person's representation before they present their criticism. Then play a musical selection and ask students to represent the form of the piece using a non-musical medium (e.g., drawing, collage, poetry). Have them present and explain the intention of their work to the class. Note the extent to which students use the criteria in giving presentations and making comments to other students.
Have students record original compositions and reflect on their ability to purposely apply a specific music form to their compositions. Have students respond in their journals to prompts such as:
- I think I showed the form well when I ____________.
- I think my composition would be improved if I ____________.