Have you ever dreamed of playing the guitar? Whether you love music, want to play guitar for your family and friends, or desire to be a music star, this course is a great place to start. No prior music experience is needed. You will learn the fundamentals of music and the basic skills necessary to play a wide variety of music styles. Student guides, Carlos and Ariel, will guide you through each step of this journey towards becoming a skilled guitarist and musician. This course can be used as a performing/fine arts credit to meet the art requirement for high school graduation. Prerequisites: None
Course Objectives:
Define and recognize the basic elements of music and music notation.
Apply proper posture, finger positions, and positioning of the instrument while performing.
Use multiple methods to pick notes and strum chords.
Read and interpret fretboard diagrams, guitar tablature, and standard musical notation.
Identify half-step and whole-step intervals on the fretboard.
Play minor pentatonic and major scales.
Recognize chords by listening.
Diagnose and fix unclear chord tones.
Play major, minor, and dominant seventh chords and chord progressions.
Play basic rhythm values, and describe common rhythmic elements of poetry and music.
Translate melodies written in standard notation into tablature.
Compose a piece of music using standard musical notation.
Course Outline:
Module 01: Music: The Universal Language
Module 02: Making Music on Guitar
Module 03: Strumming Chord Accompaniment
Module 04: Reading Guitar Music: Treble Strings
Segment I Exam
Resources Included: Lesson content, musical scores, video and visual content, an online guitar tuning tool, online metronome, and a practice journal template are provided.
Additional Costs:You will need a playable six-string guitar and a way to record and submit a video performance to your instructor.
A guitar is “playable” if it is the correct size for the guitarist, is easy to press the strings down against the frets, and plays in tune up and down the fretboard. There are three common types of six-string guitars: classical, steel string, and electric. If you do not already have a guitar, you may want to seek the advice of an experienced guitarist, a guitar teacher, or your local music store.
Most guitars are built to be played right-handed, so that the right hand would pluck the strings and the left hand would press the strings down against the frets. Many left-handed guitarists play right-handed guitars. Many guitarists and teachers recommend that left-handed students try playing on a right-handed guitar when first learning. There are some guitars available that are built to be played left-handed. This course is taught using a right-handed guitar. Students choosing to use a left-handed guitar will need to adjust accordingly.
Scoring System: Michigan Virtual does not assign letter grades, grant credit for courses, nor issue transcripts or diplomas. A final score reported as a percentage of total points earned will be sent to students upon completion of a course. Your school mentor is also able to access this score within the Student Learning Portal. Schools may use this score for conversion to their own letter grading system.
Time Commitment: Semester sessions are 18-weeks long: Students must be able to spend 1 or more hours per day in the course to be successful. Summer sessions are 10 weeks long: Students must be able to spend a minimum of 2 or more hours per day, or about 90 hours during the summer, for the student to be successful in any course. Trimester sessions are 12-weeks long: Students must be able to spend 1.5 or more hours per day in the course to be successful.
Technology Requirements: Students will need a means of video recording themselves and sharing a the video file or link to the recording for instructors to view.
Please review the Michigan Virtual Technology Requirements: https://michiganvirtual.org/about/support/knowledge-base/technical-requirements/
Students must also have access to YouTube.
Instructor Support System: For technical issues within your course, contact the Customer Care Center by email at [email protected] or by phone at (888) 889-2840.
Instructor Contact Expectations: Students can use email or the private message system within the Student Learning Portal to access highly qualified teachers when they need instructor assistance. Students will also receive feedback on their work inside the learning management system. The Instructor Info area of their course may describe additional communication options.
Academic Support Available: In addition to access to a highly qualified, Michigan certified teacher, students have access to academic videos and outside resources verified by Michigan Virtual. For technical issues within the course, students can contact the Michigan Virtual Customer Care by email at [email protected] or by phone at (888) 889-2840.
Required Assessment: Assessments can be in the form of video performances, self-checks, multiple choice questions, essay writing, small projects, discussion-based assessments, collaborative assignments and numerous strategies for practicing, performing, analyzing, and composing music. Instructors evaluate progress and provide interventions through the variety of assessments built into a course, as well as through contact with the student in other venues. Students will need a means of video recording themselves and sharing a the video file or link to the recording for instructors to view.
Technical Skills Needed: Basic technology skills necessary to locate and share information and files as well as interact with others in a Learning Management System (LMS), include the ability to:
- Download, edit, save, convert, and upload files
- Download and install software
- Use a messaging service similar to email
- Communicate with others in online discussion or message boards, following basic rules of netiquette
- Open attachments shared in messages
- Create, save, and submit files in commonly used word processing program formats and as a PDF
- Edit file share settings in cloud-based applications, such as Google Docs, Sheets, or Slides
- Save a file as a .pdf
- Copy and paste and format text using your mouse, keyboard, or an html editor’s toolbar menu
- Insert images or links into a file or html editor
- Search for information within a document using Ctrl+F or Command+F keyboard shortcuts
- Work in multiple browser windows and tabs simultaneously
- Activate a microphone or webcam on your device, and record and upload or link audio and/or video files
- Use presentation and graphics programs
- Follow an online pacing guide or calendar of due dates
- Use spell-check, citation editors, and tools commonly provided in word processing tool menus
- Create and maintain usernames and passwords
Additional Information:The student is required to obtain his/her own guitar as well as to have access to hardware and software necessary to record video of personal performance