Layering parts in Wade In The Water
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can sing Wade In The Water in a polyphonic texture with four vocal layers.
Key learning points
- African American spirituals were songs created by enslaved African Americans in the 19th Century.
- They expressed faith, hope, sorrow, and resistance, and sometimes carried hidden messages about freedom.
- A melody is divided up into phrases, each being a musical idea, like a sentence in a story.
- A polyphonic texture means each layer of harmony has a distinct melody that moves at different times.
- An anacrusis is when the opening note or notes of a phrase starts before the first beat of the bar.
Keywords
Phrase - a musical thought, like a sentence in a story
Harmony - the notes that accompany the melody
Texture - the combination of different layers of sounds
Polyphonic - each layer of harmony has a distinct melody that moves at different times
Anacrusis - the opening note or notes of a phrase starting before the first beat of the bar (also called a pickup)
Common misconception
In polyphonic textures, it can be hard to hear the blend of all the sounds together, so can sound "messy" while learning.
Listen to the performance tracks first to get used to what the different overlapping layers will sound like together.
Teacher tip
With smaller groups, you could just use two or three of the layers rather than all four. The audio recordings are at the lower octave. Parts can be sung at either octave to suit pupils' voices.
Licence
Prior knowledge starter quiz
4 Questions
Q1.What does the term texture mean in music?
Q2.A musical idea, similar to a sentence in a story, is called a .
Q3.When singing together in harmony, which part should be heard clearly?
Q4.If a song has harmony that moves at the same time, which type of texture does this create?
Assessment exit quiz
4 Questions
Q1.What is the musical term for notes that begin before the first strong beat of the phrase?
Q2.True or false? A polyphonic texture occurs when each layer of harmony has a distinct melody that moves at different times.
Q3.Adding one vocal part at a time means that the texture will get...
Q4.True or false? When singing in harmony, you should sing your part as loudly as possible so that you don't get distracted by the other parts.
To help you plan your 8 music lesson on: Layering parts in Wade In The Water, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 8 music lesson on: Layering parts in Wade In The Water, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 music lessons from the Year 8 song guides 2 unit, dive into the full secondary music curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.