In Lesson 10 they will listen to the section of Appalachian Spring in which Copland presents 5 brief instrumental variations on the song. Identify 8th, quarter, and half notes in the song. Locate the treble clef sign. Recall the names of the lines and spaces in music notation. This is probably the best collection of American folk songs available for young people, with illustrations by Allen Garns plus guitar chords and simple piano arrangements by Krull.
Procedure Begin the class by writing the title and text for the song on the board.
Ask someone to read the title of the song to the class. Tell them they will first look at the words of the song, then at the kinds of note values and musical signs they see in the notation of the song, and then they will sing it. Ask those in the class who already know the song to raise their hands, and tell them that they can help teach it to the others. Tell them this is a Shaker tune, and that the Shakers were a group of people who came to the United States shortly before the Civil War. They were looking for religious freedom.