Professional Development

Making a Difference through
Music, Literacy, & Technology

Approaches for effective and efficient design, development, implementation and evaluation of new methods for teaching and learning.

Zig’s workshop was packed with knowledge with practical ideas that can be used immediately. MTGMEA

You know how you want to go to "that workshop" that will leave you stoked for the upcoming school year. Well, my friends, that workshop was today. Wish all my music friends could've been there too! Sets the tone for the whole year. This guy was a professional musician and educator named Zig Wajler and anytime you see him come through, go see him. He's inspiring! A.Stone

Thanks Zig, your attitude and personal work ethic are exemplary! Maury Co. BOE

Zig’s Professional Development workshop was wonderful with great reviews!! KEDC

Zig's workshops provide valuable resources for teachers. Wilson Schools

Connecting Literacy, Music & Technology Workshop - Enhancing student achievement and encouraging critical thinking by integrating educational tools and technologies with literacy curriculum.

Zig Wajler’s Connecting Literacy, Music, and Technology workshop connects the interdisciplinary subjects of language arts (creative writing), music (creating, arranging & composing), social studies, math, and educational technology (computers, software & internet) as an effective approach for goal oriented project based learning applied to academic, personal and communal life skills relevant to today’s global society.

The contemporary workshop engages the participants through interactive lessons to express and promote their creativity while learning through technology. The hands-on immersion format provides a platform (vehicle for change) to meet the basic needs of participants as related to academic and real-world applications of productive citizenry. A student-centered collaborative leaning environment presents doable activities which reinforce and further develop computer aptitude, abstract thinking, organization, self-esteem, active listening, and teamwork.

The activity driven workshop presents a step-by-step process using Zig’s “Think, Plan, Assemble, Produce” curriculum. Participants work in small teams to create an original “song” by writing lyrics, scripts and/or poetry, composing and arranging music with technology, and recording their own voices. The goal and final product is a mastered digital media product (CD, .mp3, Podcast) featuring all the “songs” from the workshop. All participants use Zig’s digital workstation, curriculum and recording equipment.

Curriculum Content Menu:

The Think, Plan, Assemble, and Produce Step-by-Step Lesson Plans

Think – writing themes, brainstorming, type(s) of writing

Plan - getting organized, form, revise, style(s) of music, elements of music

Assemble – technology basics, auditioning sounds, song form, orchestration

Produce – recording voices and/or instruments with technology

Personal/Expressive/Reflective and Literary Writing - Song Composition - words and music
(optional) Persuasive/Informative Writing- Producing a Radio Jingle/Podcast – creating and recording a 30 second jingle
Model Behavior Songs/ Listening & Discovering – previous participant examples of what can be accomplished representing various forms of writing and musical song styles
Technology Basics for Loop Based Software and Digital Recording
Voice Recording Techniques and Suggestions – preparation for recording words, lyrics, scripts
Elements of Music – terms and tools as related to music composition
Math & Music – formulas and activities through software applications, and subdividing of words (lyrics) for spoken word (Rapping)
Social Studies- cultural themes and history
Criteria for Composing Music and Writing – guidelines for expectations
Success Stories of Participant Achievements – examples of higher level thinking
What to do with the Finished Projects - assessment, presentations, reflection, speeches promotion, on demand writing, real-world applications

To listen to projects created by students click here: Listening Examples

Benefits of the workshop:

A new and effective teaching tool to enhance the knowledge and skills of all teachers.
A resource for non-music teachers to integrate arts education into their curriculum.
A venue that will assist educators with the ability to meet individual student differences through technology that will promote learning.
Promote literacy skills in reading, writing, thinking, spelling, listening, speaking, creating, and articulation.
Help students and teachers adapt, develop, and succeed with 21^st century computer literacy skills by applying various tasks as part of the learning process.
Raise student motivation and increasing academic engagement time with talks they can successfully accomplish.
Increase and encourage teacher/student interaction and cooperation.
Enhance and expand student critical and higher level thinking, communication, productivity, and cooperative learning.
Create opportunities for students to become more active participants in the classroom.
Introduce lessons that augment existing curriculum with focus on real-world application.
Create digital portfolios in various formats.
Relates to The National Standards for Music and TI:ME benchmarks.
Encourage students to express themselves by having fun with the writing process.
The students will be engaged in a fun, exciting, positive learning experience.

“Successful technology rich schools generate impressive results for students including; improved achievement, improved student attitude, enthusiasm and engagement, richer classroom content, and improved student retention.” The U.S. Dept. of Education

Multicultural Music workshops:

Latin 101 percussion workshop

An interactive ‘hands on’ workshop that provides everyone the opportunity to participate. Participants will be introduced to basic Latin rhythm patterns (tumbaos) through Zig’s ‘Say what you play’ teaching method which produces immediate results. The participants will learn proper technique, vocabulary, notation, and the history of Latin music by playing authentic Latin percussion instruments that include; congas, bongos, timbales, cowbells, claves, guiro, and maracas, among others. The participants will combine the rhythm patterns as a percussion rhythm ensemble along with rotating instrument so that everyone has a chance to play all the different Latin percussion instruments. Instruments are provided for the duration of the workshop.

African Drumming Rhythms with HipHop workshop

Participants will be introduced to basic rhythm patterns of Gahu from Ghana and compared to contemporary HipHop culture. Each African rhythm is introduced through a side-by-side comparison of how that rhythm is used in today’s HipHop culture. Zig teaches authentic rhythms through his ‘Say what you play’ teaching method in addition to music notation, and verbal patterns. The participants will learn proper technique, vocabulary, notation, and the history of African drumming by playing authentic African percussion instruments that include: atoke, axaste, gankogui, kidi, sogo, and kaganu, among others. The students will combine the rhythm patterns as a rhythm ensemble along with rotating instruments so that everyone has a chance to play all the different percussion instruments. Instruments are provided for the duration of the workshop.

General Music workshop:

Game Based Learning with Music workshop

Game-Based Learning is an engaging interactive experience which utilizes popular and contemporary gaming concepts with music. The workshop uses a contemporary learning approach similar to Rock-Band, and Guitar Hero using the “Easy, Medium, Hard, and Expert” levels of engagement. Participants will interact/play as small ensembles using electronic keyboards, mallet percussion and rhythm instruments. Each group will become members of a Game-Based small ensemble by reading, recognizing and matching shapes, colors, notes/rests.

Each lesson includes an “Easy, Medium, Hard, and/or Expert” level of difficulty by playing melodic and/or rhythmic phrases which will be accompanied by authentic traditional, contemporary, and multicultural song-styles based on grade specific cultural content. The program engages students as active participants by combining the learning modalities that include; auditory (listening, repetition, oral instruction, rhythmic sounds), visual (key ideas, demonstrations, recognizing shapes/colors, notation), and kinesthetic (active participation, problem solving).

The workshop will assist teachers with new methodologies and easy to replicate lesson plans which reinforce grade specific content for music by analyzing, explaining, comparing similarities/differences, describing cultures, time periods, uses of the elements of music, and purpose of music.

Program themes include:

A. Classical Composers, focus on melody

B. Rhythm Instruments, focus on rhythm

C. Multicultural Music, focus on melody and rhythm

Content Menu:

· notation – whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, dotted values, and rests

· melody – shape(s), pitches, letter names, sharps/flats

· rhythm - (2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 6/8), and syncopation

· tempo – slow to fast, etc.

· harmony – triads (chords)

· form – two part, three part, call & response

· timbre – qualities of musical sounds, families of instruments