Paige Kibbler

MUS F-200
Bunker Hill March Teaching Reflection

1. Was your teaching episode successful in achieving the objectives in your lesson plan? Why or
why not? What could you change to improve your next teaching episode?
I achieved one of my objectives pretty clearly, and that is performing measures 9-16 of
Bunker Hill March with contrasts between sections. This was the objective I focused on
throughout the lesson, and between the cake analogy and the precise descriptions of the required
style, it seemed the ensemble was able to play their parts in the appropriate style, even if they did
not play all correct notes. The first objective I had written was that the students would be able to
play the first five notes of the Bb scale in three different styles. The ensemble did not achieve
this objective. I ended up scaling this warm up activity back quite a bit because of the time
constraints and the fact that the ensemble had already been playing for an hour, so I felt they
were already pretty warmed up. When teaching fourth or fifth down the line, doing a typical
warm up activity seems pretty redundant. The last objective I had was that all students would be
able to perform measures 9-16 with 100% rhythmic accuracy. I do not remember why I added
this as an objective, especially since no part of my procedure dealt with rhythms. Based on the
video, I would say the ensemble faired pretty well with the rhythms of the piece, but they did not
need my help to do so. For the next teaching, I will not be including objectives based on my
warm up activity because I might end up ditching the activity all together. With such a short
amount of time to teach, it is better to focus on completing one objective instead of trying to
assess three at the same time. I also plan to review my objectives in my lesson plan after writing
the procedure to ensure that what Ive created does still connect to the objective.

2. Did you follow your lesson plan exactly? If no, in what ways did you modify your plan in the
moment and why? If yes, were there moments in the lesson where a modification might have
produced a different/better outcome? What might you have done differently?
From the beginning, I did not follow my lesson plan exactly. I completely changed my
warm up activity, partially because I thought it would be too long, and also because I thought it
would be a good opportunity to model sound for the students by singing. Since I did not plan to
use marcato style in this section, I left it out of the activity. In terms of explaining the cake
analogy, I stayed pretty close to the lesson plan, but I think I could have been more concise in
explaining the concept and dividing the band into their sections. If I did it again, I would label a
section (rhythmic bass line), ask the students to raise their hands if they think they are part of that
group, then tell them which part of the cake they are. This would save me a little bit of time
explaining and give us more time for the students to be playing. Through the rest of the lesson, I
followed the plan pretty well, except for the pivotal part of student-self assessment. In the heat
of the moment, I totally forgot that I wanted them to self-assess because I wanted to keep moving
and get to all the parts. I regret not including this, or using the method Brianna suggested to me,
which was asking other sections to assess the group I was working with. In the video, before
running through the last time, I told the students they were going to self-assess and then I never
allowed them to since I ran out of time.
3. How did you feel during the teaching episode? Are those emotions evident on your video and
in the feedback you received? Do you notice any personal quirks or habits you would like to
improve in your teaching?
I felt relatively comfortable on the podium, which is a drastic change from the first
semester I was enrolled in F-200. In this video, I was not dead or terrified or expressionless, and
I did laugh and smile a few times. I really liked how Brianna described my demeanor as
professional engagement because that is more or less what I want in my relationship with
students. I want to be able to engage them on a more personal level, but I also want to get the

job done. One quirk Ive noticed that is quite common among Music Ed undergraduates is
explaining to your class what youre about to do before doing it. In the real world, your students
do not need to know why theyre singing or why were about to play that section again. It is
much more efficient and less confusing to just do things and then give the students feedback on
what they did. The students have brains, if you lead them to water, theyll figure out what they
need to do to quench their thirst. This is not exactly a quirk, but I think my unpreparedness
showed through in my teaching. Being unsure of where I was going may have caused some of
the over-explaining, but I also noticed myself stumbling over myself when I realized I had
skipped something. I also tend to stay on the podium; its a safe space and I know what Im
doing up there. However, sometimes it is more effective to move around the ensemble, and since
we have the band set up with the aisle, I might as well use it.
4. What was the environment in the room like while you were teaching? Were the students
consistently engaged? What might you have done differently to further engage your students?
It seemed like students were generally engaged throughout rehearsal. They seemed bored
and unimpressed during the warm up activity, probably because it was incredibly similar to each
of the previous warm up activities they had just experienced. When I started using the cake
analogy, I noticed more students were interested, and so I think its not a bad idea to keep using
food analogies in teaching as long as they do not become monotonous and no one is too hungry.
I tried to give the other sections something to do while I was working with a specific group, but I
did not do a good job of following through and making sure they were actually doing something.
I think moving around the ensemble is a very simple and effective way to engage students.
Being closer to students physically allows me to assess their behavior more accurately, and it lets
the students know that I am paying attention to them. I regret not insisting that the candle
section sing their parts, but I was too focused on the bass line to see if they were practicing the

rhythm and singing it like I had asked. Brianna also suggested a good method of asking the
sections who arent playing to assess the sections that are playing.
5. What do you feel are your greatest strengths and weaknesses that were exhibited in this
teaching episode? What are your teaching goals for future teaching episodes? How will you
achieve those goals? Please list your goals for teaching episode two and three below.
I think my strengths include organization, planning, and a growing ability to improvise as
the lesson and the ensemble evolve. My weaknesses include not practicing my procedures
before performing them in the classroom, remaining stuck on the podium, and over-explaining.
1. Teaching Strategy; Reduce Over-explanation
a. Talk through my lesson plans prior to presenting them in the classroom. What
exactly am I going to say? How am I going to transition between these two sections?
b. Be aware of what I am saying during the lesson. Is what I am saying essential
information to my students?
2. Teaching Strategy: Get moving around the classroom!
a. Plan movement into my lessons. If I am working with a particular section, I
can write down that I am going to move towards them. If I give the students 30 seconds
to work through something, I can write down that I will be moving around the ensemble
to observe them.
b. Only stay on the podium as long as you require their full attention. If the
ensemble is discussing or working in groups, I dont need to stay on the podium. That
way, when I am on the podium it will carry more significance.