Garage+Band+Connections

=  = = = =Classroom Connections - Garage Band =


 * [|5th Grade Water Cycle Podcast Example]
 * [|Buhler High School Senior Personal Codes]
 * [|Obee Elementary 5th Grade Podcasts]

What ideas do you have for using Garage Band in your curriculum?
 * Drag a Presidential Speech from the Internet into Garage Band. Make sure you read the copyright from that website first. Then add appropriate music.
 * Patriotic is always good. Record a student saying the Pledge of Allegiance. A patriotic song could be playing in the background. This would be awesome in iMovie with pictures of kids (of all ages) saying the pledge or pictures
 * of the American flag.
 * Record historical poems or short stories - add songs from that time period.
 * "Who's on First?" I ask myself that a lot! Kids could make their own radio show.
 * Newscasts
 * Fireside Chats - remember FDR? http://wwwmhric.org/fdr/fdr.html
 * Write radio commercials for a good book.
 * Make your own class 'easy listening' CD to play during writing class.
 * Record a rehearsal with garage band for students to listen to and critique at home
 * Add excitement to a poem with sound effects and music, increase student interest and interaction.
 * A great drama activity is Reader's Theatre having students study the voice of a character to a particular scene in a novel or play. Using sound effects in the background could also enforce the mood or tone of the piece behind the character's voice.

Please share your ideas of how you are using or plan to use Garage Band.
I introduced vocabulary words with definitions and pictures for a story the students were going to read. I recorded a band rehearsal with Garage Band. I then recorded comments and corrections for students on another track. I recorded a poem and added music, sound effects, and a picture. Scott and I recorded a poem, it was interesting to have two different voices to the track. We added sound effects, we did not add in any pictures. I read a section out of our Social Studies textbook and put background music with it. I also changed the pitch of my voice. I intend to add pictures - keynote. I added sound effects and music to a poem. Students could do this for varioius parts of a story, poem, or even to a technical reading passage. We recently had a discussion on Stem Cells in my Biology class. I had the students find answers to six questions that everyone needs to know before they decide whether they are for or against it. I had the students put their answers on garageband and I put it together to make a semi-commercial for understanding what stem cells are.

I selected the children's folktale "The Three Billy Goats Gruff". I read the first part of the story, added a song, sound effects, and was going to attempt to use the vocal transform to change my voice. Students would enjoy this project, and could work in groups. This would be effective to improve the students' reading fluency.

I read a children's story, The Witch's Hat, with sound effects. This would be used as an audiobook. According to an article in School Library Journal August 2006 ([|http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6357103.html)], It would not be considered a violation of copyright to record books for inhouse use if a commercial recording was not available.