A Teaching Guideto Accompany

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A Teaching Guide to Accompany
QP#4500129217
the Music CD
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Teaching Guide
A
A
to Accompany
accompany
the Music CD
This teaching guide was prepared by Anthony Steffes to accompany the
music CD Remember, produced and arranged by Zane Zalis. The guide
suggests ways of using the music as a springboard to classroom learning
activities related to Remembrance Day in British Columbia schools.
As indicated in the liner notes accompanying the 18-track CD,
Remember has been produced in the spirit of using music of the past,
imbued with the musical sensibilities of artists from across Canada.
The intent of the CD is to evoke thought and emotion as a way of
honouring the veterans of World War II and to express gratitude for
their sacrifices and those of their families.
Design 2005:
The Studios of Wendy J., Inc.
www.swj.cc
In this guide, teachers will find suggested strategies and ideas for
• activating learning on the topic of Remembrance Day
• using individual songs from the music CD Remember
• using the theme of relationships in considering the songs in the
context of Remembrance Day
• taking a multiple intelligences approach to the songs
• finding online sources of information and activity suggestions
for further investigation
Teachers are encouraged to select and adapt the learning activities from
the guide to suit the age, learning styles, and interests of their students.
The guide does not include historical content about World War II.
Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth Cataloguing in Publication Data
394.264
A teaching guide to accompany the music CD,
Remember
ISBN 0-7711-3496-7
1. Remember (Sound recording).
2. Remembrance Day (Canada)—Study
and teaching. 3. World War, 1939-1945—
Veterans—Study and teaching. 4. World War,
1939-1945—Songs and music. 5. Remembrance
Day (Canada)—Songs and music. 6. War—
Study and teaching. I. Manitoba. Manitoba
Education, Citizenship and Youth.
Copyright © 2005, the Crown in Right of Manitoba as represented by the Minister of Education, Citizenship and Youth.
Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth, School Programs Division, 1970 Ness Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3J 0Y9.
Every effort has been made to acknowledge original sources and to comply with copyright law. If cases are identified
where this has not been done, please notify Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth. Errors or omissions will be
corrected in a future edition. Sincere thanks to those who allowed their original material to be adapted or reproduced.
This document is also available on the British Columbia Ministry of Education website at:
www.bced.gov.bc.ca/resourcedocs/remembercd/.
Adapted with permission from a guide produced by Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth, © 2005
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Remember
his year marks the 60th anniversary
of the end of the Second World War.
Our surviving veterans are in their
80s and 90s, and some are greatgrandparents of today’s students. For
some students, Remembrance Day will
conjure up images of poppies being
distributed or of veterans laying wreaths.
For some, it will mean remembering a line
or two of “In Flanders Fields” by John
McCrae. And for others, school and public
programs will be their only association
with those who have given their lives in
war. Still, today more than ever before,
war presents itself to students of all
ages via the media and information
technologies. Clearly, most of today’s
students will have been exposed to images
and ideas about war. Linking “wars” of the
present with “remembering the past” is a vital
element in students’ understanding of
Remembrance Day.
T
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etting Started:
G
G Remembrance Day
Activating Learning
about
An appropriate place to begin considering learning
activities for Remembrance Day for any age may be
to ask students questions:
• What does “war” mean to you?
• What are your visual references?
• What thoughts, concerns, and anxieties do you
have about war?
• What resonates from your exposure to the media?
• What is on your minds regarding war?
A caution related to this discussion is that teachers
need to be sensitive to immigrant students who may
have had recent experiences with war. These students
may find talking about war very emotional and may
not be comfortable taking part in this discussion.
Alternatively, a classroom discussion may be a positive
opportunity for these students to share their
experiences and to engage their classmates in
dialogue about the ongoing struggle for peace.
“Pittance of Time,” the final track on Remember,
seems a sensible place to start drawing students into
a dialogue about Remembrance Day. Terry Kelly
composed the song in response to an actual
Remembrance Day experience. While shopping in a
Nova Scotia store on November 11, 1999, Terry Kelly
was impressed as an announcement came over the
store’s PA system asking customers to be still and silent
at 11:00 a.m. as a way of showing respect for veterans
who have sacrificed so much for us. As the final
announcement for absolute silence came, all but one
man, who was with his young daughter, showed their
respect. “Pittance of Time” is an expression of Terry
Kelly’s feelings about the father and the inappropriate
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example he was setting for his daughter as he
persistently tried to engage in conversation with the
store’s clerk during this time of silence.
Younger students might be able to relate to the
experience of the young girl. Have them respond
to questions:
• How do you think the girl felt about her father
ignoring the request by the store management?
• Why might the father not take the time to
remember?
• Whom are the people in the store being asked
to remember?
• Why is it important to be silent while we
remember?
In “Pittance of Time,” Terry Kelly acknowledges the
bravery and realities of those who went to war, while
asking us to “Take two minutes, would you mind?”
As well, he raises questions such as: Why do we fight?
What do we gain? What were the effects of war on
those who remained at home?
Older students might gain insight from considering
questions such as these:
• Who were the “heroes at home”?
• Why is there a “price to be paid… if you stay”?
A reference near the end of the song to present-day
war and peacekeepers provides a starting point for
thought and discussion among older students. Asking
students to consider phrases such as “your own war”
and “someone else’s war,” and to analyze the line
“they bring hope to foreign lands that the hatemongers
can’t kill” are effective ways of prompting thought
about present-day conflicts.
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elationships:
R
R
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A Thematic
Approach to
If students see those involved in war as individuals,
they will be more likely to appreciate the significance
of what the veterans did for us. One way students
may gain this appreciation is by focusing on the
relationships described in the song lyrics featured
on the CD Remember.
Suggested Learning Activities
Have students:
• Listen to the songs on the CD over a period of
a few days.
— While listening, respond by jotting down
recurring ideas or themes that emerge from the
music and lyrics. Examples could be love, loss,
freedom, dreams, loneliness, separation,
romance, family, and feelings about the future.
— Share the ideas among the whole group.
— Working in small groups or individually, list
themes in terms of relationships. For example,
consider the individual soldier’s feelings in
relation to past experiences, family and close
friends, thoughts of home, and dreams of a
future. Another possibility would be to consider
the theme of nature as seen through the eyes of
the soldier before, during, and after the war.
— Select a relationship theme to explore further.
Begin the exploration with a “freewriting”
exercise. Ten minutes or three full pages are
appropriate for Senior Years students, less for
younger students.
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Options for Extended Activities
Students might consider the following choices for an
extended activity related to their chosen relationship
theme. Present the option of working in small groups
or individually.
Have students:
• Select pieces of current music that relate to a
chosen theme. Compare and contrast the intent and
style of the current music selections to those on the
CD that relate to the theme.
• Explore poetry that relates to the selected theme.
Present a reading and interpretation of the poem to
the class. Include an explanation of how the poem
relates to the selected theme, as well as thoughts
and questions that emerge from the poetry.
• Create a collage that includes words, images, free
drawing, and painting to explore and communicate
the selected theme.
• Illustrate a song from the CD and a related poem as
they might appear together in an illustrated book of
poetry.
• Prepare a short monologue or script for two actors
using the chosen theme. Present this work to the
class.
• Prepare a mime that illustrates the chosen theme
and perform it for the class.
• Write a poem exploring the selected relationship
theme.
An Enrichment Activity
Students may recognize that often there is a difference
between idealism and reality as they pertain to
human relationships and to war. Using their chosen
relationship theme as a basis, have students
demonstrate the contrast between the real and the
ideal. They may choose their own format and materials.
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Multiple Intelligences
A
A
Approach to
Renowned author-educator Howard Gardner defines
at least eight different “intelligences” that we all have
to some degree. Learning strategies across the
intelligences are outlined below in relation to the CD
Remember. Select strategies appropriate for the
specific learning needs of your students or your
classrooms, and adapt them as needed. It is
appropriate to structure learning experiences so that
they offer opportunities to incorporate multiple
intelligences. Successful learning occurs both when
students use the intelligence area in which they are
strong and when they call upon intelligences that they
do not usually activate.
B
B
odily-Kinesthetic Learning
8
Have students:
• Develop mime interpretations of scenes elicited
from the songs on the CD.
• Develop a series of tableaux to interpret selected
songs. (These may include an opening position,
additional tableaux suitable to changes in the music,
and a concluding pose.)
• Create dance routines based upon selected tracks
on the CD.
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erbal-Linguistic Learning
Have students:
• List words and phrases from the songs on the CD
that catch their interest. Brainstorm and expand the
list. Use the words and phrases as starting points for
original poems or raps.
• Write letters from the viewpoint of Canadians
during wartime. Listen to songs from the CD (such
as tracks 1, 5, 6, 8, 10, or 11) and imagine writing
to someone “back home.”
• Create and perform Readers’ Theatre in response
to themes derived from the CD (for example, a
dialogue of soldiers in the trenches).
• Research the Canadian recording artists on the CD.
Why would they want to be involved in a project
such as Remember?
ogical-Mathematical Learning
Have students:
• Put the songs in chronological order and search for
trends in terms of style, themes, and so on.
• Consider statistical information related to the times
and events of Canadian involvement in World War II
(tracks 14 to 17).
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A Multiple Intelligences
Approach to
II
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(continued)
ntrapersonal Learning
10
Have students:
• Listen to “Pittance of Time” and “Tribute to
Veterans” (tracks 18 and 12), and then imagine and
create a “free form” response from the viewpoint of
someone presently away from home and involved in
one of the war efforts overseas.
• Discuss how someone currently involved in a war
effort might react to this music compared to
someone living a “normal” day-to-day life in Canada.
• Identify the positive images of love and hope in the
songs. (Much of the music on the CD conjures up
images of “looking to a positive future,” “thinking
positively,” “knowing there are people who care for
and about you,” and knowing “there is someone
waiting for you.”) Discuss the role of love and hope
in the lives of individuals during war.
• Listen to “Les Feuilles Mortes” or “Autumn Leaves”
(track 9). What might the leaves symbolize?
Consider the parallels of autumn leaves and the
effects of war on humankind. Why is it believable
that the falling of autumn leaves would inspire such
a song? Why would the lyricist “miss their love most
of all when autumn leaves start to fall”? What
similarities exist in the life cycle of a leaf and that of
people involved in war?
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nterpersonal Learning
Have students:
• Talk to veterans and elderly members of the
community. Ask what they think is most important
to remember about war. Listen to their stories.
Responses could form the basis of writing or
art-making.
• Arrange a social time with veterans. Using music
from the CD as a support, and possibly performing
“Tribute to Veterans” (track 12), visit a place where
veterans gather (for example, the local Legion,
Deer Lodge Hospital, a local seniors’ centre).
• Create a dialogue with veterans by considering
some of the following questions as starters:
— What was your role during the war?
— How did you deal with leaving family and
friends?
— What did you learn about the people in the
countries where you were posted?
— Did you maintain contact with them or with
the people with whom you served?
— What was it like coming home?
— How were things different when you came
home?
— What did you try to forget?
— What will you always remember?
• Summarize and share the experiences in a
suitable format.
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A Multiple Intelligences
Approach to
N
(continued)
N
V
aturalistic Learning
Have students:
• Research and comment on the effects of World
War II on vegetation, wildlife, and the landscape.
• Note elements from nature incorporated into the
song lyrics (for example, “rainbows,” “stars,”
“leaves”). Discuss the role these references to
nature play in the lyrics. Is nature always used as
a positive reference? Why, or why not? Support
answers with examples from the lyrics.
• Discuss examples of music where nature is
portrayed realistically, and where it is portrayed
romantically. Students could consider which view
is closer to their own.
• Listen to “La Mer” (track 6) and visualize the sea.
Imagine the sea during wartime. “La Mer” might
be described as a melodically lush, romantic,
passionate piece of music. Here, the sea represents
the temporary distance between two lovers. The
song anticipates the day when the separation will
end and all will be as before. Discuss the music and
the images it evokes in the context of war.
isual-Spatial Learning
V
12
Have students:
• Listen to the various tracks on the CD and sketch
symbols and images that emerge.
• Share and discuss symbols and images derived
from the songs.
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• Imagine colours, shapes, lines, and textures that
the music evokes. Use these to create artworks
in different media.
• While listening to the music, draw images, shapes,
and lines to communicate the negative effects of
war and possible reactions to it. Alternatively, draw
images, shapes, and lines to communicate the
positive effects of “hard-won” peace. Combine and
contrast these images in an original artwork.
M
M
usical-Rhythmic Learning
Have students:
• Listen to earlier versions of songs covered on
Remember, especially those first recorded during
the war years. Compare and contrast the different
styles. Discuss how both the effect and the intended
audience vary between versions.
• Listen to “Liberation of Paris” (track 16). Imagine
preparing this piece for a radio or theatrical
presentation, and consider choices of background
music and sound effects that would make this piece
more effective. Do the same for “Mackenzie King—
Surrender” (track 17). Prepare a tape recording that
can be played as a radio piece, or perform the piece
as a monologue for an audience.
The Remember CD provides students with a musical
context for considering a range of ideas related to
war and remembrance. As students listen to, interact
with, and/or perform the music through any of the
above learning activities, they will have opportunities
to activate their musical-rhythmic intelligence.
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uestions
Q
Q Students
Page 5
for
14
of All Ages
•
Our national anthem “O Canada”
contains the line “We stand on guard
for thee.” Why do we stand on guard?
•
What is it that we must “remember”
on Remembrance Day?
•
What is worth fighting for?
•
Is war “bullying” at a world level?
•
Is there a hidden purpose to war?
•
Who is most negatively affected by war?
•
What are the positive results of war?
•
Why does mediation break down and
war persist?
•
What do cultural values have to do
with war?
•
What roles have religion and politics
played in war?
•
What can individuals do to prevent war?
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Online Information
and Activity Suggestions
• Terry Kelly’s Website: <http://www.terry-kelly.com/>.
At this site, students can view a video of the song “Pittance of
Time,” find the lyrics in English and French, and become aware of
a musical/theatrical production “Two Minutes of Silence—A
Pittance of Time” written for the stage.
• Astraweb Lyrics Search: <http://lyrics.astraweb.com>.
Lyrics to many of the songs on the Remember CD are available
for viewing through this search engine.
• The Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation, Newfoundland
and Labrador Department of Education. Elementary Themes:
<http://www.cdli.ca/CITE/remembranceday.htm>.
This site contains a wealth of Early and Middle Years activities
ready for classroom use, as well as information about the wars,
peacekeeping, “In Flanders Fields,” poppies, and so on, along
with links to many other websites.
• Halsall, Paul, ed. “There’ll Always Be an England and Other War
Music.” Internet History Sourcebook Projects. Fordham University:
<http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/ww2-music-uk.html>.
This site contains information about World War II songs.
• Library and Archives Canada. Canadian War Artists:
<http://www.collectionscanada.ca/war-artists>.
This site provides information regarding Canadian war artists.
• The Royal Canadian Legion:<http://www.legion.ca>.
This site contains a wealth of information, including facts,
statistics, song lyrics, poetry, music, and ideas for classroom
activities and school programs.
• Syracuse University Library. “World War II Songs from the Belfer
Audio Laboratory and Archive, Syracuse University Library.”
Digital Projects:
<http://libwww.syr.edu/digital/images/b/Belfer78/titles.htm>.
This site contains World War II songs, organized by title and
by topic.
Acknowledgements
Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth gratefully acknowledges the following for their contributions to this guide:
• Anthony Steffes, writer
• Zane Zalis, producer and arranger of the music CD Remember. Mesa Music Co., and Veterans Affairs
Canada, 2005.
• The Studios of Wendy J., Inc., design of CD Remember (image used on the cover of this guide)
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