Performing Arts - Curriculum Information

Year 7 Music

Rationale

Music is essentially an aural art form, which can also involve bodily movement and the senses of touch and sight. To satisfy this art form, students will use both musical instruments and voice to compose, improvise, perform, listen and respond to their own music and that of others .

Course Description

Students explore the qualities of sound by improvising, composing, interpreting and performing music in a range of styles and forms. They use vocal and instrumental, acoustic and electronic sound sources. They develop their aural perception and sensitivity in making choices about the nature of the elements of music in works they create and perform.

Objectives

Upon completion of Year 7 Music, students will be able to:

• Use starting points such as observation, experiences and research to express and present ideas and feelings when making and presenting music.
• Demonstrate a range of skills, techniques and processes in organising music elements to structure music.
• Describe how the organisation of music communicates ideas and feelings.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the ways in which music is made in particular cultural and historical contexts.
• Play either the Flute Clarinet Trumpet Trombone or Violin for a Semester.

Year 7 Drama

"Students' skills in mime and improvisation are strengthened and developed through the exploration of a variety of comic arts, as a form of dramatic communication. Students participate in a series of practical clowning workshops exploring the techniques of the style, leading into the presentation of an original comic routine. The research work offers students an understanding and appreciation of famous comedians from bygone days. Vocal and language work as a means of communication are explored through the creation of an original group-devised radio play. The significance of expression, timing, projection, tone and pronunciation in our daily oral communication is highlighted and developed through the examination and exploration of radio plays and advertising techniques"

Year 7 Drama

Drama and My World: An Introduction to the Skills of Drama

Rationale

This unit is a study that introduces the student to the major skills of drama i.e. - improvisation, mime and performance storytelling, in order to develop basic performance and communication skills. Through research, students develop an awareness and appreciation of the role of theatre in our society.

Course Description

The course as a whole is aimed at developing each student's self-esteem, awareness of self in relation to others, conflict resolution skills, imagination and ability to function confidently in social situations.

Outcomes

• At the conclusion of this unit the student will be able to:

• Experiment with ideas and feelings by manipulating dramatic elements and processes.

• Use basic elements of mime (snap, flow, isolation, exaggeration, precision, touching surfaces, slow motion, freezing and handling objects).

• Focus for a sustained period of time on a group mime piece and work according to a schedule.

• Use basic skills in the use of lighting and sound equipment.

• Develop appropriate understanding of drama terminology.

• Reflect on their own drama and the dramatic works of others, past and present.

• Analyse and make judgements about the characteristics and qualities of one's own works and the works of others.

• Develop and sustain characters.

• Select and develop stagecraft elements.

• Modify performances in response to specific audiences.

• Select and structure dramatic elements for improvisation and plays.

• Be familiar with Live Theatre in Melbourne.

Year 7 Dance

Course Description

This unit introduces dance as an art form. Students are required to explore movement ideas from a range of stimuli and to structure their dances using the elements of dance making. Students learn to apply knowledge of the safe use and care of the body in the development of their physical skills and body actions.

This unit introduces students to another form of communication-dance. Students will participate in individual and group activities exploring the elements if dance, using themes, props, sound and music. Students will use processes such as exploring, developing, selecting, rehearsing, preparing and presenting dance works.

Year 8 Music

Students continue to participate in practical music activities, extending their level of aural perception and sensitivity and increasing their understanding of music as a means of expression.

Students develop their skills and techniques as they explore and extend the possibilities of producing new qualities of sound using voice, instruments and objects. Students will learn to prepare musical works for performance using a process of rehearsal and evaluation of a range of musical styles and genres.

The study of singing comprises practical music making activities, voice building exercises, the use of music notation, rehearsal and performance of a varied repertoire. The characteristics of different styles are explored and skills for professional presentation and stage manner are practised. Students discuss their performances to develop skills in evaluation.

Rationale

Music is essentially an aural art form, which can also involve bodily movement and the senses of touch and sight. To satisfy this art form students will use both musical instruments and voice to compose, improvise, perform, listen and respond to their own music and that of others.

Course Description

Students explore the qualities of sound by improvising, composing, interpreting and performing music in a range of styles and forms. They use vocal and instrumental, acoustic and electronic sound sources. They develop their aural perception and sensitivity in making choices about the nature of the elements of music in works they create and perform.

Objectives

Upon completion of Year 8 Music, students will be able to:

• Use starting points such as observation, experiences and research to express and present ideas and feelings when making and presenting music on Keyboard and percussion instruments.
• Demonstrate a range of skills, techniques and processes in organising music elements to structure music / Composition.
• Describe a particular style of music and demonstrate an understanding of the ways in which music is made in particular cultural and historical contexts.

Year 8 Drama

Rationale

This unit aims to develop student's performance, scriptwriting, puppetry manipulation and expressive skills. The main skills of movement, mime and language work are developed in this unit in the exploration of units on comedy and puppetry.

Course Description

As a great deal of our coursework is concerned with the development of performances within a group setting, the skills of group co-operation and working within a team are highly valued and developed. Students are encouraged to work within groups, both as leaders and in carrying out the ideas of other students. The use of mime and gesture are skills particularly developed in our exploration of comedy.

The mime unit explored in Year 7 is extended upon and students use these skills in their communication of simple performance situations. The significance of facial expressions and communication through body language and manipulation of puppets is highlighted in this unit as communicative tools.

Outcomes

At the end of this unit, students should be able to:

• Use starting points such as observation, experiences and research, to express ideas and feelings in drama.

• Structure drama by organising dramatic elements and applying appropriate skills, techniques and processes.

• Plan, select and modify drama presentations for particular occasions, taking into account factors such as purpose, space, materials and equipment.

• Develop skills in oral communication through communication of a fable or a situation through language and sound.

• Draw on own observations and experiences of comedians and mime routinesTo develop storylines and characters.

• Use observations/people and society to develop characters and storylines.

• Develop an awareness of the structure with a plot/storyline.

• Use gesture, movement, language and timing to communicate the character's Feelings, thoughts, emotions and ideas.

• Have a greater understanding and awareness of the contribution of Stagecraft elements.

• Develop an understanding of the significance of refinement and characters

• Development in the development of the piece for performance.

• Will have a greater understanding of the structure and expressive qualities that focus on the history and tradition of commedia-dell'arte.

• Develop and express informed opinions of dramatic works of past and present comedians.

• Be able to evaluate the work of others and critically evaluate own work.

• Develop skills in the appropriate terminology and jargon used to examine and evaluate dramatic works.

Year 8 Dance - 20th Century Social Dance

Students will gain knowledge in dance by developing skills in the Charleston , Mambo, Cha Cha, Rock n' Roll and dances from the sixties. Students will be required to design and create sequences of movement which show co-ordinated responses when performed to music from the particular eras.

Course Description

Students will gain knowledge of 20th century social dances and they will use these dances as a basis for their own choreography. Students will be required to create their own dance performance in groups

Students learn to apply knowledge of the safe use and care of the body in the development of their physical skills and body actions.

Students will gain knowledge in dance by developing skills in the Charleston, Mambo, Cha Cha, Rock'n'Roll and other dances from the 20th century. Students will be required to develop more complex and physically demanding dances based on a dance style of the 20th century.

Middle School Electives - Music

Music Performance

Semester Unit:

This unit is designed to be an extension of Music Performer which allows singing and/or instrumental students who are considering VCE Solo Music Performance, an opportunity to consolidate their learning of performance techniques.

This unit contains three areas of study:

Performance Skill Development

This area of study involves the development of flexibility in music performance skills on an instrument(s) as a soloist and in a group.

This area of study will include: Practice and performance of solo technical work on the main instrument for development and maintenance of control and dexterity, range of styles and range of performing techniques.

Approaches used by other performers to optimize performance that can contribute to the development of the students' own solo and group performance. Ways of improving identified aspects of the student's solo and group performance.

Musicianship

This area of study focuses on music theory and skills relevant to performance that are used in organisation of sound, aural comprehension and analysis of music.

This area of study will include: Scale forms, including major, harmonic and both melodic forms. Diatonic Intervals. Primary chords and chord progressions in major and minor keys.

Rhythms, including those in simple quadruple and triple time with rhythmic subdivisions not exceeding four subdivisions a beat.

Objectives

Upon completion of Year 9/10 Music Performer, students will be able to:

• Make and present music which explores themes, issues and ideas.
• Demonstrate skills and techniques, using a range of processes, to structure and present music works appropriate to chosen styles and forms
• Use a range of skills in identifying, analysing and interpreting music and demonstrate knowledge and understanding of its structure and content in discussing responses to it.
• Demonstrate an informed understanding of the music of different social and cultural groups, including knowledge of their histories and traditions.

Music Appreciation and Study of Music Styles "Hip Hop, Pop, and the Rest"

Semester Unit:

In this unit, students will explore the many facets of modern music including, musicals, film music, new age music, music throughout the twentieth century and artists who have made an impact in the modern era. Students will research, analyse and recreate the various styles of music from the twentieth century using voice, keyboard, and other instruments.

Middle School Drama

The Craft Of Acting: A Unit Of Work On Using Selected Elements, Styles, Forms, Techniques And Processes In Drama

Rationale

This unit is a study in the craft of the actor and how a character may be created, interpreted and performed. It involves students creating characters from stimuli and in interpreting character from existing playscripts culminating in performance. Students will also identify aspects of theatre history linked to respective character contexts as well as applying stagecraft to shape the meaning of their works. Students should also acquire skills in analysing performance and dramatic form.

Course Description - "Drama and Society"

Workshops designed to extend and improve students improvisation and character development skills. This unit focuses on developing improvisation skills to allow students to work in the moment in a spontaneous manner. Improvisation skills will focus on:

• Gesture/movement

• Vocal work

• Developing sub-text of character

Students create an original character to be developed through a series of character workshops. Students create character and situations from a variety of stimuli e.g: poetry, music, visual images (photography, painting), props, text, situation. Role development and dramatic interpretation of above stimuli are explored through a combination of naturalistic/non-naturalistic drama to include; movement, drama, dance, stylised drama, mime, etc. A polished refined final product is presented to the class with appropriate stagecraft elements including: costume, make-up, set, lighting and sound/music. Students explore and manipulate stagecraft elements to further develop and heighten meaning of performance.

Theatre History and Styles:

Students will select and research a number of dramatic forms and styles from other cultures, times and places such as Commedia dell'arte, Noh theatre, Butoh or Vaudeville. They discuss and research information about significant events and dramatic artists and their contribution to the history of drama. Short analytical exercises on Theatre History are completed in class.

Middle School Dance - Dance Discovery

Course Description

Students will develop an appreciation of various dance styles from other cultures in this unit. In this unit students will develop their understanding of dance concepts and will explore these through practical workshops. The unit enables to explore the choreographic devices used by professional choreographers. Dance composition will be studied during the course to increase the students understanding of constructing and creating choreographing dance works. Dance improvisation will also be examined in this unit.

Students will be required to perform a large group and small group devised dance piece to an audience. Through research students will develop an appreciation and awareness of the role that dance plays in other cultures.

This unit enables students to develop an appreciation of dance and its importance to other cultures.

Students will increase their awareness of their body's capabilities and movement range through practical dance classes. They will gain a solid understanding of the devices used in dance composition to create interesting, communicative dances. They will also develop an appreciation for stagecraft elements as they are required to produce and perform a choreographic dance work to an audience.

VCE Music

Rationale

VCE Music offers students opportunities to approach the study of music as a performer, as a creator of music works or arrangements and as a person who studies music works from diverse cultural and historical traditions. Students can specialise in one or more approaches to the study of music, depending on their VCE program overall and the post-VCE pathways they may be interested in following. Through a study of the music of others and experimentation in their own music making, students are able to demonstrate and discuss meaning in music. Each unit of Music includes:

• music making: the study of ways of making music through developing skills in playing one or a number of instruments or singing, performing in solo and group contexts, composing, arranging and/or improvising;

• listening and aural perception: developing skills in listening, aural comprehension and making a critical response to music by analysing the characteristics of music of a wide range of styles and geographical locations;

• music language: the elements of music, compositional devices, and ways of preserving a record of works; and

• the study of music works and approaches to music making in diverse historical and cultural contexts: researching and considering information and scenarios surrounding the creation of musical compositions and performances, and perceiving and understanding trends and patterns in the way music styles emerge from different cultures, geographical locations and eras.

Structure

The Academy of Mary Immaculate offers the following units:

• Music Solo Performance Units 1 - 4

• Music Group performance Units 1 - 4

Students may enroll in all units or select specific combinations of units that cater for their interests and intended pathways. Examples of combinations of units appropriate for specific groups of students are listed in the study design.

Outcomes

Outcomes define what students will know and be able to do as a result of undertaking the study.

Outcomes include a summary statement and the key knowledge and skills that underpin them. Only the summary statements have been reproduced below and must be read in conjunction with the key knowledge and skills published in the study design.

Entry

Students must be at an inadequate ability on their instrument to enroll into Units 1 - 2. Students must undertake Unit 3 prior to undertaking Unit 4. Units 1 to 4 are designed to a standard equivalent to the final two years of secondary education. All VCE studies are benchmarked against comparable national and international curriculum. To undertake Units 3 and 4 Music Solo / Group performance, students should have about three years experience prior to Year 11 on a musical instrument or in voice.

Units 1-4: Music Solo Performance

Music Performance develops intellectual, aesthetic and cultural understanding of the value and importance of music in solo and group settings. As soloists and members of groups, students develop skills in preparing programs of works. They learn about and apply musicianship as they create music and interpret and analyse solo and ensemble works in a range of styles.

In the performance of music, students develop their skills on a main instrument or voice. They research and apply in performance relevant knowledge of performing, the rich heritage of music, theory of music and sociocultural influences on the music studied. Students experiment with interpretation and strike an appropriate balance, considering historical performance conventions, contemporary performance conventions and personal interpretation as they perform a wide range of styles and characters in music.

Details on the selection of instrument or voice and on the selection of works for study are described in the revised VCE Music Study Design.

Units 1-4 Group Music Performance

Students who elect Music Group performance Units 1-4 choose any instrument/s to practice and perform in a group context a range of styles demonstrating both authentic and individual interpretation. Students are assessed individually on their contribution to the group's performance. Units 1-4 Music Group performance focuses on performing as a member of a group. Technical, creative and interpretation skills are developed for the presentation of a performance of music in a range of styles.

The units focuses on developing performance skills in interpreting styles and applying a range of technical and artistic techniques to present a program of works in an ensemble context. The unit aims to develop aural perception and critical listening skills used by ensemble performers to prepare and present performances of music in a range of styles. The unit also analyses strategies and techniques for preparing and presenting ensemble performances.

Assessment Summary VCE Music Solo/Group Performance

• A 15 minute recital incorporating both solo and ensemble works
• The demonstration of prepared technical work and exercises, and performance of unprepared material.
• Aural and written test utilising practical components
• A written report analysing a work containing four or more instruments.
• Participation and commitment to an ensemble
• An ensemble performance of a program of selected works.
• End of Year Solo Performance Examination
• Students will present a program of approved solo works on an approved solo instrument in a live performance of a maximum of 25 minutes in duration.

Levels of Achievement

Units 1 and 2

Individual school decision on levels of achievement.

Units 3 and 4

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority will supervise the assessment of all students undertaking Units 3 and 4.

In Music Group performance Units 3 and 4 and Music Solo performance Units 3 and 4 the student's level of achievement will be determined by school-assessed coursework and two end-of-year examinations. In Music Styles Units 3 and 4 the student's level of achievement will be determined by school-assessed coursework and an end-of-year examination. Percentage contributions to the study score in Music are as follows:

VCE Music Solo Performance Units 3 and 4

• Unit 3 school-assessed coursework: 15 per cent

• Unit 4 school-assessed coursework: 10 per cent

• End-of-year Solo performance recital examination: 50 per cent

End of Year Aural and Written Examination

Students will answer a series of questions and respond to aural and written stimulus material. The examination will be of a one and a half hours duration involving both short and extended responses.

VCE Drama

The study of Drama focuses on the development of expressive skills within dramatic structures and the development and performance of imagined characters. This is achieved through the refinement of skills, techniques and processes in the creation and presentation of dramatic works and through an understanding and use of a range of content, application of stagecraft elements and the analysis of the development and performance of dramatic works.

This study also provides students with the opportunity ti examine and explore the ways in which drama gives form to, and makes meaning of social, political, cultural and historical contexts.

The study is designed to enable students to:

• develop an understanding of the origins of performance

• develop an understanding of the processes of character development

• develop, through practice and analysis, an understanding of drama as a performing art

• use dramatic elements and stagecraft to give form to dramatic works

• develop expressive skills in solo and ensemble performances.

Unit 1 Character Development

This unit enables students to focus upon the art of transforming into imagined other characters, examine the place of role and status and use performance structures such as a solo or ensemble performance. Students examine the origins of performance from a range of cultures and their significance in a variety of social, political and historical contexts. This unit also involves analysis if student performances and of professional performance work.

Areas of Study

1. Creating Characters

This area of study involves the use and analysis of dramatic processes to develop characters from a range of stimuli.

2. Analysis of Characters

This area of study involves observation and analysis of performances to explores ways in which character may be given.

Unit 2 Interpreting Drama

This unit focuses in the differing perspectives and interpretations that drama can give to play scripts and stimulus material selected from a range of cultures. The application of dramatic and stagecraft elements and the development of expressive skills to create and communicate dramatic form will be explor4ed in the student's own work and in a professional performance work.

Areas of Study

1. Creating dramatic performance

This area of study involves the use and analysis of play scripts and stimulus material from a range of other cultures, including Australia, to create an ensemble performance.

2. Analysing dramatic performances

This area of study involves the analysis of professional performance work.

Unit 3: Ensemble Performance

This unit focuses in non-naturalistic drama from a diverse range of traditions. Non-naturalistic performance styles and associated theatrical conventions are explored in the development of ensemble performance. The processes involved in the development and realisation of the ensemble performance are developed and evaluated. A non-naturalistic work selected from the prescribed play list will also be analysed.

Areas of Study

1. Creating Ensemble Performance

This area of study explores non-naturalistic dramatic form through the creation of ensemble performance

2. Analysing Non-naturalistic Performance

This area of study analyses a non-naturalistic performance from the prescribed play list.

Unit 4 Solo Performance

This unit focuses on the use of performance styles, theatrical conventions and stimulus materials from a variety of cultural sources and their uses in the development of a solo performance. The processes involved the development of solo work are also analysed and evaluated.

Areas of Study

1. Creating a Solo Performance

This area of study involves the development of a solo performance from stimulus material using research, construction and performance techniques.

2. Analysing a Solo Performance

This area of study is an analysis and evaluation of the processes involved in the conception and performance of solo work.