Using Music to teach Math
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Camosun hosts electronics workshop for students from LÁU,WELNEW Tribal School
Joyce van de Vegt and Cora Oliver created Digital Music Math for LÁU,WELNEW Tribal School students.
For eight weeks, Camosun electronics instructor Joyce van de Vegt, was at the LÁU,WELNEW Tribal School every Monday morning to teach "Digital Music Math." It all began when Cora Oliver, a math teacher at the Tribal School, began looking for ideas for an Engineering elective. Joyce devised a series of lessons and activities using the theme of digital music to practice math concepts.
Thirteen enthusiastic students between grades 7 and 10 signed up for the elective. They used an online piano and sound analysis program to learn about the amplitude and frequency of sounds and how these relate to music notes. They also learned about MP3 compression, built an LED circuit, and prepared program code for their own song.
Everyone got to build an electronic musical memory game
On Monday, November 22, the Digital Music Math class culminated in a field trip to Camosun College for a workshop hosted by the Electronics and Computer Engineering Technology department. It was the inclusion of the workshop that inspired many of the students to sign up for this elective in the first place, and they were looking forward to building an electronic musical memory game. Not to be disappointed, the students soon discovered how well their classroom lessons prepared them to understand real-world applications and they really enjoyed the hands-on work of soldering circuit components to a PCB board.
"I'm glad these students from the Tribal School have a chance to see that math can be fun and useful," says Joyce, "and they can now start picturing themselves as future college students."
The printed circuit boards and hardware components were generously provided by Schneider Electric, a community-minded local company which has agreed to continue to support this initiative in the future.
More about the LÁU,WELNEW Tribal School
LÁU,WELNEW Tribal School serves 185 students from preschool to Grade 10. First opened in 1989, it is located on the Tsartlip reserve near the Saanich Peninsula's Brentwood Bay. The school serves the Saanich People on four reserves and surrounding communities: Tsartlip, Pauquachin, Tseycum and Tsawout.
LÁU,WELNEW Tribal School promotes the values of the Saanich People by offering a quality education guided by BC Ministry of Education IRPs and locally developed SENCOTEN language and culture curriculum.
Camosun College maintains a formal partnership with the WSΆNEC' School Board, (formerly Saanich Indian School Board) which includes both the LÁU,WELNEW Tribal School and the Saanich Adult Education Centre. This partnership has led to strong working relationships with other educators, and allows Camosun to offer courses and programs off campus in partner facilities.
Last updated: November 24, 2010 8:36 am
