Arts Integration: PERFORMANCE

International School of Louisiana Westbank 3rd Grade
Music/ELA & Drama/Theatre

Mr. Mike’s 3rd grade music class learned about several musical terms including dynamics, tempo, and timbre. Dynamics- the volume of music. How quiet or loud a sound is. Forte means loud, and piano means soft. Tempo- the speed of music. How slow or fast a song is. Presto means fast, Lento means slow. Timbre- the unique quality of each sound. Every instrument has its own timbre. It is why you can tell the difference between the sound of a guitar, a keyboard, and a saxophone. Every object, and every living being has its own unique timbre. *(pronounced tamber)*

During our arts integration sessions students were able to identify and demonstrate several drama/theatre strategies including pantomime (to act without using words or sound); tableau (a frozen picture or image that has emotions, facial expressions, body language, and levels); improvisation (spontaneous creation, to freestyle, to make it up on the spot). Additionally, students learned about dialogue, parts of a stage, and how to perform using a script.

The class was selected to perform at the Kid’s Tent during Jazz Fest 2023. We decided to integrate English Language Arts, Music, and Drama/Theatre strategies to enact the classic tale ‘The Tortoise and the Hare’. Although arts integration as an approach to teaching does not necessarily require a ‘performance’, it is an excellent tool to assess what happened in the classroom.