High School Band
To the left is the balloon breathing exercise that I introduced to the band on my last day working with this school. The objective was to use controlled, supported air flow through their mouthpieces. The students needed to use diaphragmatic breathing in order to blow up the balloon.
During this exercise, the students breath in together for a specific amount of counts and then breath out in another specific amount of counts (without popping the balloon).
During this exercise, the students breath in together for a specific amount of counts and then breath out in another specific amount of counts (without popping the balloon).
Google Voice
As an additional tool for assessment, the use of Google Voice is extremely useful. It allows the teacher to assess students individually without the need to take away from instructional time. It also takes about 30 seconds per student for the teacher to assess. The students call the voice mail of the Google Voice number (which is not a number that goes to your phone, but alerts can be sent to your phone or email when a voice mail is received). It also takes away the "fear of the teacher watching" element.