All Subjects: Music and Arts & Crafts

The answer is 'musical perspectives and ways of thinking' (音楽的な見方・考え方). 'Formative perspectives' (造形的な見方・考え方) belongs to the aim of arts and crafts. 'Sensitivity to music' appears in aim (3), not in the opening sentence. 'Rich sentiment' is the last phrase of aim (3), and 'musical sense' is not in the aim.

'A Expression' consists of (1) singing, (2) instrumental performance and (3) music-making. Appreciation is a separate area, 'B Appreciation'. Moving the body is to be included as a teaching consideration, but it is not a separate activity under Expression. The Common Matters apply to both Expression and Appreciation and are not part of Expression.

'Haru no Ogawa' is a Grade 3 common material. 'Haru ga Kita' is for Grade 2, 'Oborozukiyo' for Grade 6 and 'Momiji' for Grade 4. Many of these songs are about seasons, so organize them by grade, not by season.

The Grade 6 traditional song is 'Etenraku Imayō' (verses up to the second). 'Sakura Sakura' is for Grade 4, 'Komoriuta' for Grade 5 and 'Usagi' for Grade 3. Each grade from Grade 3 up has one traditional Japanese song.

'How music is structured' includes repetition, call and response, variation, and the relationship between the vertical and horizontal aspects of music. Tone colour, beat and the sound of chords are all 'elements that characterize music' (音楽を特徴付けている要素). People often mix up these two groups.

For Grades 1–2, melody instruments are chosen from 'the organ, keyboard harmonica, etc.' The recorder, keyboard instruments and Japanese instruments are for Grades 3–4, and electronic instruments, Japanese instruments and instruments from other countries are for Grades 5–6. The xylophone and glockenspiel are given as examples of percussion, and there is no rule limiting melody instruments to them.

The Course of Study says to teach 'Kimigayo' so that students can sing it in every grade. There is no rule limiting it to a certain grade or to the time before ceremonies. The commentary describes teaching suited to each stage, such as getting familiar with it in the lower grades and learning to sing it from the lyrics and score in the middle grades.

The answer is movable-do. According to the commentary, in singing with syllables the position of 'do' on the staff moves with the key, so it is called movable-do, and it builds a sense of relative pitch. Fixed-do keeps 'do' in one place and is not what is stated. Singing with English note names or numbered notation is not mentioned in the Course of Study.

A dot makes a note 1.5 times as long. A quarter note equals two eighth notes, so a dotted quarter note equals three eighth notes. Two eighth notes equal a plain quarter note, two quarter notes equal a half note, and three sixteenth notes equal a dotted eighth note.

A bar of 3/4 holds three quarter notes. A half note (2) plus a quarter note (1) equals 3, so this is correct. Two half notes equal 4, which is too long. A dotted half note (3) plus an eighth note (1/2) equals 3.5, also too long. A whole note equals 4.

The major scale follows 'whole, whole, half, whole, whole, whole, half', so in C major the half steps are Mi–Fa and Ti–Do. Do–Re, Sol–La, Re–Mi and La–Ti are all whole steps. On a keyboard, there is no black key between Mi and Fa or between Ti and Do.

For the upper grades, the skill of singing and playing from scores in 'C major and A minor' is listed. A minor is the relative minor of C major and has no key signature. C minor has three flats, D minor one flat, and E minor one sharp.

mf is mezzo forte, 'moderately loud'. 'Moderately soft' is mp (mezzo piano), 'very loud' is ff (fortissimo), and 'gradually louder' is cresc. (crescendo). Remember that m (mezzo) means 'moderately'.

A tie connects notes of the same pitch so they are played as one long note. A slur covers notes of different pitches and means playing them smoothly. The option that swaps the tie and the slur is wrong. Short and detached is staccato, making a note stand out is an accent, and the place to breathe is a breath mark.

In C major, V (the dominant) is Sol–Ti–Re, and adding Fa (a seventh above the root Sol) makes V7. Sol–Ti–Re is V without the seventh. Fa–La–Do is IV, and Do–Mi–Sol–Ti is a different chord: I with a seventh added.

The answer is 'shapes, colours and the like' (形や色など). Arts and crafts centres on seeing things in terms of shape and colour. 'Fine arts and crafts' is not in the aim. 'Artworks' and 'materials' appear elsewhere in the aims and content, but not in this phrase. 'Natural and man-made materials' appears in the content of formative play for the lower grades.

The commentary says formative play may result in a work, but it does not start with the aim of making a specific work. Formative play is in the content for every grade from 1 to 6. Starting from a theme or purpose to make a work describes drawing, sculpture and craft. Formative play is an expression activity under 'A Expression' (1)a and (2)a.

The Course of Study says to plan so that the hours given to craft are 'roughly equal' to those given to drawing and sculpture. There is no rule about one third, making them fewer, or increasing them by grade.

Grades 5–6: 'movement, depth, balance, vividness of colour, etc.' 'Various shapes and colours, how things feel to the touch' is for Grades 1–2, and 'the feel of shapes and colours, their combinations, brightness of colour' is for Grades 3–4. Weight or temperature of materials is not listed in this item.

The Course of Study says Expression and Appreciation should be linked, but that 'B Appreciation' may be done on its own when needed to make teaching more effective, depending on the students and the school. There is no rule banning this or limiting it to the upper grades. Art museums are to be used or worked with, and displaying works at school for everyday appreciation is also expected.

The Course of Study says to treat digital devices 'as one of the tools used in expression and appreciation activities' and to use them 'after fully considering the need'. It does not forbid them, require them in every unit, or limit them to recording and storage.

Grades 3–4 use 'richly' (豊かに). 'Enjoyably' (楽しく) is for Grades 1–2, and 'creatively' (創造的に) is for Grades 5–6 (it also appears in the subject aim). 'Freely' is not used in the grade aims.

The Course of Study says to 'include activities in which students create together, as appropriate'. There is no rule limiting work to individuals, to the upper grades, or to formative play. Individuality is supported by giving room in learning activities and ways of expression.

The coping saw is listed for Grades 5 and 6, together with wire. Grades 1–2 have scissors, glue and simple knives; Grades 3–4 have an easy-to-use saw and a hammer. Since it is in the elementary Course of Study, 'not listed' is wrong.

For Grades 1–2, the list is soil, clay, wood, paper, crayons, pastels, scissors, glue, simple knives and other familiar, easy-to-handle items. Watercolours, knives, easy-to-use saws, nails, hammers and boards are for Grades 3–4, and wire and coping saws are for Grades 5–6.

The three attributes are hue (the kind of colour), lightness (brightness) and saturation (vividness). A complementary colour describes a relationship between colours, not an attribute. Red, blue and yellow are colour names sometimes given as primary colours. Transparency is not one of the three.

Complementary colours sit opposite each other on the colour wheel and make each other stand out. Neighbouring colours are analogous colours. White and black are achromatic (no hue). Colours that differ only in saturation are not complementary.

The commentary describes printmaking as an activity with effects unique to prints, such as being able to print the same thing many times and printing reversed. Firing is a separate experience of baking clay works. Printmaking includes stamping, rubbings, paper prints, simple woodblocks and stencil colouring, so it is not limited to carved woodblocks.

A print made by passing ink through holes or openings is a stencil print; examples are stencils and silk screen. A relief print inks the raised parts, as in woodblock and paper prints. An intaglio print fills ink into recessed lines, as in drypoint. A planographic print uses a flat surface, as in lithography.

The commentary says safe handling includes not only how to use tools but also how to put them away and manage them. It also asks teachers not to stop at one-way explanations but to let students actually handle tools, and to confirm safe handling even for tools students have used before. Electric tools call for special care to prevent accidents, but there is no rule against using them.