Garageband: An expensive but effective tool for learning about music

This was an amazing opportunity to allow my students an engaging learning experience through this creative application. I appreciated how user friendly the application was for all ages. My students were able to teach me a thing or two also. I believe that this applications allows students to demonstrate their creativity when it comes to music production. They were able to showcase their favorite music genres, demonstrate their musicianship, collaborate with peers and preserve in their final products. My students were also able to use the phone application version of it which is extremely helpful for when they were not present in class. I am excited to teach this class again!

This is a great app for developing creativity and ensemble skills. Students are given a great deal of freedom in creating their own compositions. The downside is that the teacher truly needs to set high expectations. Students will want to play with this app if not given the appropriate direction. Although students can transfer their work out of the app, it is limited and there is no possibility for collaboration among students. This tool is fantastic at developing ensemble skills though. Students have the ability to play-along with an entire band accompaniment or to isolate their individual part. This makes it a valuable tool for elementary beginning band and my classroom.

This is a very powerful app. Students will need some preparation to use it, however. The tools in the app are quite engaging and powerful. Students will need a moment to explore and play before they can focus on a specific project. I advise the teacher to give this time as it will have students leaving class asking for more. Headphones are advised and students should be well managed before introducing the app.