STUDENT TEACHING
Berne Union Schools | J.D. Latorre
"Home of the Rockets"
My student teaching experience was at Berne Union High School with Mr. J.D. Latorre. Berne Union is a very small rural school located in Sugar Grove, Ohio. The school consists of grades K- 12, with a total of around 887 students. I began my internship in June 2015 working with the Berne Union Golden Rocket Marching Band and wrapped up in mid- December 2015 with the conclusion of the calendar year. Along with working with the marching band, I also worked with all band classes every day (5th- 12th grade). During my experience, I was lucky enough to work with a successful competitive marching band as well as a strong concert program. Since Mr. Latorre is the only band director in the district, I was able to witness how he built his program and executed his teaching style across all grade levels.
The Berne Union Golden Rocket Marching Band (BUGRMB) consists of 7th-12th graders for a total of around 72 members and they had their most successful marching season in history in 2015. Their competition show was entitled "3" which focused on 3 very talented horn players as well as one guard member. The band competed in Class A at 6 competitions over the course of the season and received 5 Grand-Champions and 1 Reserve Grand-Champion. The band also received other awards such as 1st Place in Class A, Best Percussion in Class A, Best Auxillary in Class A, Best Overall Auxillary, Best Overall General Effect, Best Overall Music, and Best Overall Visual Effect. The band received a superior rating at every competition as well as straight superior ratings in every category at State Marching Band Finals.
My involvement with BUGRMB was very active, in that I attended pre-camp rehearsals and band camp as well as all practices, football games, and competitions. I ran sectionals with the woodwind sections, assisted in creating and teaching visuals, wrote small percussion parts, assisted with theatrical ideas for our soloists, and worked exclusively with the field commander in writing and cleaning her conducting routines. I also helped plan and manage students on an overnight trip to Kings Island in Cincinnati, Ohio. I also had the opportunity to lead fundamentals and portions of field rehearsal where I cleaned drill and rehearsed the show. During the week of State Marching Band Finals, I was able to plan and lead a full marching band rehearsal that lasted 2 hours. |
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During the school day, I worked with 5th grade band, 6th grade band, Concert Band (7th-10th graders) and Wind Ensemble (9- 12th graders). I saw each of these classes for a full class period every day. Since the marching band program is completely extra-curricular, these band classes focuses on concert ensemble material from the first day of school. These classes work out of the method book series Standard of Excellence as well as concert repertoire. I was fortunate to observe and assist the 5th graders as they put their instruments together for the first time as well as making their first sounds. I also took part in preparing the Concert Band and Wind Ensemble for three concerts where I prepared and conducted four pieces including "English Folk Suite" and "A Christmas Trilogy" by Elliot Del Borgo and "Festival Fanfare for Christmas" by John Wasson. In my teaching experience, I was able to plan and implement full lessons, and assessment strategies for both large group and individual settings. I also learned how to maintain classroom management for a variety of age groups. Overall, it was very rewarding experience to witness such a structured and successful program.
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edTPA
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For my Teaching Performance Assessment (edTPA), I planned and taught four lessons to 6th grade band. The central focus for these lessons was to develop and improve basic and advanced ensemble skills, such as correct notes/ rhythms, tone quality, tempo, articulation, dynamics, phrasing, intonation, and balance. In order to improve these skills, we worked primarily on example #116 out of "Standard of Excellence: Book One". The students were able to think critically about their playing by filling out worksheets, taking notes, rehearsing during class, listening to recordings of their playing, and breaking into groups for discussion. I have provided video clips from two of the four lessons, as well as lesson plans and other materials.
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