Prior knowledge video - session 8
Completed explanatory animation
Final director's commentary
My topic is strings, and, umm, I know nothing about strings on the piano. And I'm probably going to do most of my research on strings on a piano more than a guitar.
This change of topic occurred during the last 10 minutes of the session so we prioritized the recording of the prior knowledge video. She hasn't started her PowerPoint file yet so there is no voice-over script.
There are several different arrangements of this formula depending on whether the focus is the tension, mass, pitch, length or frequency. My own understanding has also deepened as I have previously (erroneously) described pitch as "Mass x Tension."
Frequency can be measured using the formula:
This formula is beyond what most Grade 6 students cover in their mathematics curriculum. As we are around the half way point in the Storyboard project it is probably better to just give her the formula.
There is still plenty of room for this student to experiment and "play" with this formula, especially if she chooses to animate the variables in real time with synchronised audio.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 9
I’m thinking about animating the formula for frequency because the variables of length, tension and mass can be shown by animating how with length it goes from long to short, and tension goes from floppy to tight and mass goes from thick to thin and I’m going to animate that.
This student showed the biggest improvement in a single session for the whole Storyboard project thus far. Four out of five of the categories in her conceptual consolidation rubric reflect this progress.
I helped her dismantle an actual piano during the session so she could play around with it and see the relative string lengths. This really helped her on many levels.
During the recording of her director's commentary she looked at her concept map slide to jog her memory. This is because she had been introduced to all of the variables in only one session.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 10
I could have covered the variables in any order but today I’ve chosen to prevent (present) them in length, tension and mass.
This student has not saved her work correctly for the second consecutive week. I will lend her my laptop from now on and get her to save her work on my hard drive.
I also entered some measurements into the formula to make sure that it is correct. I know now that:
- Frequency is measured in Hertz
- Length is measured in Centimetres
- Tension is measured in Kilograms rather than Newtons
- Mass is measured in Kilograms per Metre
The director's commentary explains how she plans to explain these variables in the order of length, tension and mass.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 11
Today I was focused on my voice-over script but also thought about what I could do to explain the variables. And, I have chosen to, umm, show one string getting, being effected by each variable.
Stringed instruments such as piano and guitar have multiple strings but the science is the same for each string.
The variables of length, tension and mass combine to give each notes it’s frequency.
This can be shown by animating how with length goes from long to short, and tension goes from lose to tight and mass goes from thick to thin so my animation is about that.
The opening sentence of the voice-over script was dictated by the student as I typed and probed her to articulate the introduction. It sets the scene quickly and then moves on to discuss a single string as "...the science is the same for each string."
The original idea of replacing the variable "L" with a string of varying length and so on for Tension and Mass would have resulted in three strings being visible on the screen. This student has decided to have one longer string more prominently displayed on the screen and then to colour code each variable in turn.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 12
Today I’ve been working on my voice-over script and it’s nearly finished. I just need to find out the simplest way to explain the variables.
Stringed instruments such as piano and guitar have multiple strings but the science is the same for each string.
The variables of length, tension and mass combine to give each note it’s frequency.
This can be shown by animating how with length goes from long to short, and tension goes from loose to tight and mass goes from thick to thin.
The conceptual elements of this student's animation are in place so the focus now is on the best way to present or teach the content. It seems that the variables, although interrelated, are not sequential so the order is in fact arbitrary.
We are also trying to decide on the most appropriate audio for the frequency changes as the software demos we have tried sound very cheesy.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 13
Today I finished my voice-over script and I recorded it. I tried to make it as short as possible. I used repetition to make it easier to follow. I also wanted to put in the words “pitch” and “frequency” but in two different places depending on whether I wanted to use…focus on the musical side of it or the scientific side.
Stringed instruments such as piano and guitar have multiple strings but the science behind the pitch of the notes is the same for each string.
The pitch of a musical note is measured by its frequency which is the number of vibrations per second.
The variables of length, tension and mass combine to give each note it’s frequency.
The longer the string, the lower the frequency. The shorter the string the higher the frequency.
The looser the string, the lower the frequency. The tighter the string the higher the frequency.
The thicker the string, the lower the frequency. The thinner the string the higher the frequency.
The recording of the voice-over script is a milestone in this whole process. I have upgraded her conceptual consolidation rubric for both the identification of relevant variables and understanding the relationship between those variables.
It is also significant that she identified pitch and frequency as being different expressions and measures of the same variable. She has contextualised each term depending on the musical or scientific emphasis of the explanation which is excellent.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 14
Today I had a listen to my voice-over text. And I had a play around with video editing software. And I’m going to finish my imagery as soon as possible.
This student is the first to commence using video editing software for the final stages of her animation. In preparation for this stage I have mastered her voice-over recording using Sound Forge and imported it into Adobe Premiere Pro. It has a total run time of 56 seconds.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 15
So today I played around with a sound oscillator. And, I’m being pretty fussy about my umm, title for the heading.
A friend lent me a sound oscillator for the frequency modulation. We didn't record anything because we are wondering if other sounds like guitar strings might be more appropriate as the oscillator was obviously very electronic sounding.
This student needs individual assistance to make sense of the video editing environment as it is a steep learning curve. I had her in mind when I asked the class how they felt about the possibility of me working on the animations between sessions to ensure that the work gets finished with only two sessions to go. This has always been a delicate issue for me in my dual role as teacher/researcher but the children were unanimous in agreeing that my assistance was welcome and probably essential.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |
Director's commentary - session 16
Today I designed the opening sequence with instruments and I also recorded those same instruments which are guitar strings, piano strings and bass strings. And I also designed the imagery for a string.
This animation is the only one with additional audio added to the voice-over script. We ended up using the oscillator for the introduction where the voice-over script mentions frequency. From then on the audio corresponds to the narration with actual stringed instruments.
The string imagery which she refers to in her director's commentary is really just a horizontal line at this stage. I don't think it will be practical to have vibrations at a comparable frequency to the notes which we recorded. At 25 frames per second we would have to show an approximation anyway as all of the notes are higher than 25 Hertz.
| Uses correct terminology | With assistance | Simplified terminology | Some correct terminology | Actual terminology |
Identifies relevant variables |
Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Identifies relationships between variables | Not apparent | With assistance | Basic understanding | Deep understanding |
| Self assessment. Does the student think that they understand their topic? | No | Not really | Basic understanding | Yes |