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Developing Sight reading Skills Year Round

When the students are ready, select an easy piece of evaluation less stressful. Another way to reduce stress
music. As they develop, use a contest or festival tune from is to make sure that you know the rules and format. Be
a previous year. Students always enjoy reading a new comfortable in your knowledge of what you can or can’t say
pep tune or a pop title where they already have a general and can or can’t do during the contest. Research the contest
familiarity with the music. As you work to take their skills website to locate and familiarize yourself with all available
to the next level, always try to meet resources. There is an abundance of
the students where they are and give With a plan in place and information on the UIL Sight-reading
them what they need for success. Evaluation website. There you can
a mindset dedicated to find everything from the judging
Guiding Students as developing sight-reading rubric to the instrumentation to the
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They Sight read skills year-round, you can procedural script that you and your
Try to establish a routine for sight- improve your ensemble’s students will go through. Once you
reading. Vary how much information musical literacy and have done your homework, start to
you give the students. Give them build the confidence of prepare your students for the process.
more information at the beginning the individual musicians. Practice the process so that you will
and less as they advance and gain Perhaps the biggest feel comfortable and practice the
confidence. Always try to bring their benefit is that the process so that your students will feel
attention to the basic elements of students are responsible comfortable on the day of the contest.
the piece—the key signature, time for processing, evaluating Prepare your students ahead of time
signature, tempo, style, etc. Point out and adjusting their for how to enter the room, any seating
who has the melody as well as who performance in real time. arrangement modifications from your
has the accompaniment. Go over any concert set-up, who will play first/
challenging rhythms and the roadmap second parts, and assign percussion
for the piece—repeats, endings, DS, DC, Coda, etc. instruments. Use any assistant directors to assist with
Keep in mind that this is a learning process—go slow so getting students from stage to sight-reading, organizing
that students can process and react. It’s okay if you need students in the room, and following up on percussion
to regroup frequently, but try to establish the idea that you students. Do your best to be calm and professional to instill
have to keep going and that everyone is responsible for confidence in your students. After their performance,
their own part. For this to be successful, you should try thank them for their efforts.
to provide enough framework that most students can find Sight-reading can be a very beneficial part of your music
their way through the piece. curriculum. It is a great way for students to experience
and refine their musical skills and concepts. Best of all,
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Tips for UIL Sight reading Evaluation sight-reading often will give students the confidence
If sight-reading is part of an annual festival or contest to incorporate their ensemble skills into your musical
that you participate in, incorporating sight-reading into performances.
your curriculum throughout the year will make that

Asa Burk is the Associate Director of Bands at Argyle High School. Over his 25 year career he has taught at middle school, junior high, and high school.
His bands have been selected to perform at the Midwest Clinic as well as advanced to the state level of the honor band process.

Bandmasters Review • September 2017 12 Texas Bandmasters Association