Olympic Fanfare

The Olympics are on the horizon, and I plan to celebrate during music class! If you have access to older Share the Music books, there is a listening map in the second grade book for "Olympic Fanfare" that I have used with my classes. Here is a quick rundown of a quick activity to commemorate this wonderful event, even if you don't have access to the listening map.

1. Brainstorm and list Olympic events. Here is a complete list: Summer Olympic Sports

2. Listen to "Olympic Fanfare" and follow the listening map, if available. Note the different sections. Have students give a signal to indicate when they think the sections change. 

3. Discuss the form (ABCBA) and the tempo of the different sections.

4. Listen and move to the music:

• A: March in place, as if participating in Opening Ceremony
• B: Jog in place to the beat (Students can pretend to carry the torch)
• C: Act out a sport in slow motion (Teacher can call out sports, or students can pick their own. They can change sports during this section, since it is long enough.)
• B: Jog in place again
• A: March again

5. You can add a game by playing the slow section and allowing different students to act out a sporting event in slow motion for the class to identify.

This would also be a great time to review the national anthem and discuss how each country's anthem is played when they win the gold. 

(UPDATE: I have created a PowerPoint file with a listening map and clipart of Olympic athletes for movement inspiration. It is a FREE download in my TpT store using the link below.)

Olympic Fanfare Fun

Try this activity with your students. I love it, and I hope you will, too. My only complaint is that I have to wait so long before I can use it again!

Coming Soon!

Ideas and Resources I Want to Try 

Summer is a wonderful time! Time to sleep late. Time to enjoy leisurely days outside. Time to enjoy free time. Time to use that free time to plan for next year!

I enjoy using my free time to search for new ideas to incorporate into my teaching. Finding new resources or lesson ideas builds excitement for the new year. Thank you to all the wonderful music teachers who share on Pinterest, blogs, and in Facebook groups. Your knowledge and creativity is invaluable to us all!

I'm sad to say that my summer is over, but I'm excited to think about the newly discovered goodies I plan to try this year. Take a minute to scroll through these ideas and resources. You might want to try some, like I plan to do!

Everyone Asked About You

I heard about this book from a music teacher in a Facebook group, and I've already ordered it from Amazon. She said that she uses the book with her young students at the end of class, and it leaves them mesmerized. There is a song by Bob McGrath (Sesame Street) that fits with the book that I bought through iTunes. Here it is on YouTube:

My Roots Go Down

I fell in love with this song the moment I watched the video someone posted on Facebook. Maybe it's the catchy song, maybe it's the sweet way the dad allows his daughter to figure things out on her own, or maybe it's just the adorable girl singing so joyfully. I don't know, but I had to research and find out more. I found the composer's website with lyrics: SarahPirtle.com, and noticed that the lyrics were a little different. Pirtle states that she wants people to sing and share, so I'm sharing these simple lyrics and chords if you are interested. After you watch the video, you'll want them. Trust me!

My Roots Go Down

By: Sarah Pirtle

I am a (G) maple tree growing at the school

I am a (C) maple tree growing at the (G) school
I am a maple tree growing at the (em) school
My (D7) roots go (G) down

(D) My roots go (G) down, down to the earth.
My roots go (C) down, down to the (G) earth.
My roots go down, down to the (em) earth.
My (D7) roots go (G) down.

* I am a wildflower growing in the meadow
* I am a mountain strong and still

Aurasma

This is an app that allows you to scan a photo that opens a video. You can video a class, put a photo in a newsletter or post in the hallway, and parents can watch the video. Perfect for Open House! I could write more, but I haven't used it yet. You should check out this blog post from Mrs. Dennis:  Aurasma in the Music Room.

Here is a video demonstration of how a music teacher utilizes the app:

BrainDance

BrainDance is a series of eight developmental movement patterns that humans naturally move through during the first year of life. The "dance" is said to be a wonderful full body and brain warm-up. I feel like I need to try this out in my classroom! You can read more about the philosophy and the specific movements here: Creative Dance or watch the video below for a quick demonstration of each of the 8 movement patterns. There are more videos on YouTube for more ideas.

Ukulele

I'm not ready to teach ukulele. I'm simply ready to learn how to PLAY one. Our school just added a preschool unit this year, so I figured it was the perfect time to pick up a stringed instrument to accompany simple songs. I thought I'd start with 4 strings, instead of 6 on a guitar. I am not great, but as long as I can play a I, IV, and V7 chord in a couple of keys, I'll feel like I've accomplished something!

How about you? Have you found some new ideas to try this year? It's a great way to stay fresh and excited about what we do. Have a happy new year!

Birthday Cake Rhythms

Everyone loves birthday cake - especially 1st graders! A few years ago, I was using a visual included in our textbooks to introduce quarter and eighth notes. It included pictures of 1 or 2 pies per beat to demonstrate a rhythm. We began to come up with types of pie or cake to represent the two-sound beats, i.e. "ap-ple" or "lem-on." The most popular choice for the two-sound beats was "birth-day," because it paired perfectly with "cake" on the 1-sound beat. 

This year, I decided to kick it up a notch and create a set of bright, engaging, PowerPoint slides for the intro to quarter and eighth notes. The slides introduce students to the concept of 1 or 2 sounds per beat and also lead them into reading and playing rhythms with quarter and eighth notes. The slides logically progress in the following sequential manner:

Step 1:

The introductory slides include pictures of cakes with text below to lead students to read the rhythms using "cake" and "birthday."At this point, I used students to physically display these rhythms by having 1 or 2 students stand in an area designated for each of the 4 beats. My tile floor has a checkerboard pattern with 3 foot squares of white and tan, so we use each 3 foot box to represent a beat. I've also seen this done by having students share a chair or a polyspot on the floor (each person puts a foot on it when sharing). The bottom line is that you either have one student or two on each beat, and then the class reads the rhythm using whatever words or syllables you prefer. We begin by saying "cake" and "birthday." Students absolutely LOVE being part of a rhythm!

Step 2:

After we physically demonstrate and read the introductory slides, we move to the next ones that do not include text. As I work my way around the circle, I point to the beat the student is about to represent and ask, "Do you need a partner for your beat, or should you be alone?" The child figures it out and either comes alone, or brings the next person in the circle. After the rhythm is complete, we all read and pat it.

Step 3:

Once the students have all had a turn to be a part of a rhythm, and they also demonstrate the ability to read and pat the rhythms, we move to instruments to read and play them. You can use whatever you want. Pitched percussion can be set up in a pentaton to allow them to explore the bars and play whatever pitches they choose. We like to rotate after each turn.
For each turn, we follow this procedure:
1. Say It: Just say it, do not play it.
2. Say & Play It (twice): Say it while you play it. Students often forget to speak the rhythm while they are playing, and they do not play accurately. I tell them that their mouths "boss" their hands, which helps them play accurately. I also demonstrate what happens when they don't speak, and I start out playing correctly and then fall into playing a random pattern. We play it twice to give them extra practice, the opportunity to correct themselves, and a little more time with each instrument before they rotate to the next one.

Step 4:

The slides begin to include notes below the cakes. First, they are introduced with the text included, but that quickly disappears. I simply tell the students to start paying attention to the notes, because the cakes will be going away soon.

Step 5:

Finally, the cakes disappear, and students are reading actual notation. It happened so gradually that they didn't even realize how much they were learning while they were so busy playing instruments and having fun!

At this point, students are still saying "cake" and "birthday" for the quarter and eighth notes, but we will switch over to ta and ti-ti shortly.

If you are interested, my "Birthday Cake Rhythms" file is available at my TpT store. It includes a digital file with both PowerPoint and PDF versions.

Birthday Cake Rhythms

Happy Birthday to All!

Off to a Great Start

It’s the middle of the summer, but the first day of school will be here soon and it’s never too early to plan. What should my students do in music on the first day? It’s important to consider objectives prior to formulating a plan. My first day objectives are for the students to get excited about music and learn basic procedures that will make the class run smoothly for the rest of the year.

A typical first day in my K-3 classroom has the following activities: (I swap out a few activities in my 4-6 classes, but still incorporate some name games.)

1. Welcome students

I greet classes at the door and instruct students where they need to be seated. I generally have them enter single-file and make a semi-circle on the edge of the carpet. This is not the time to discuss discipline, unless there are issues that need to be addressed.

2. Get moving

After a brief welcome and introduction, perform a simple song that incorporates some type of movement. A call and response song with motions is a good idea, so students can participate immediately.

3. Assign Seats

Assigned seating makes it easier to learn/remember names and it reduces behavior issues. I alphabetize students by first name, because it helps me remember their names better. I always reserve the right to reassign seats, if discipline issues arise.

4. Play a Name Game

Incorporate instruments when appropriate. You may view my previous post, “Getting to Know You”, for some of my favorite name games.

5. Know Your Place!

Play a memory game for younger grades to help them remember where they sit. Discuss quick guidelines for moving (Demonstrate how to move – show good and bad choices and discuss boundaries, safety, space-bubble, etc.) 

• Move around carpet to steady beat while music plays
• Freeze when keyboard stops (at this point, continue movement activity or end by playing "tip-toe" music)
• Tiptoe back to seat at special melody (I play a certain melody in a high range - always the same song)

6. Be a Star Student

Discuss positive behavior expectations for the classroom. If discipline problems arise, this may need to happen earlier. If the class runs smoothly, go over the first few rules and complete the list in the following class for younger grades. In older grades that have been in my classroom, I typically go over the expectations quicker. Each expectation has a gesture, and we do the movement and say them all in order together. For a list of my expectations, free visuals, and a video of the movements, see my previous post, “Star Students”.

7. Sound Cues

Introduce the cues to K, and review for older students Specific pitch intervals are sung or played and students respond with the appropriate movement. When introducing each cue, words are sung that instruct the students what to do. Later, they will be able to following cues without the words.  

• Stand up (sol- high do) (g1-c2)
• Turn around (all high do-re-do) (c2-d2-c2)
• Jump up (high do- high so) (c2-g2) 
• Lie down (do- low sol) (c1-g) 
• Later, add Sit up (low sol-do) (g-c1), but it can be easily confused with “stand up”, since they are the same interval in different octaves. 

8. Line Up

Discuss proper way to line up, exit, etc.

If time allows, another song or activity can be added to the lesson plan.

Next week

The following week, I take pictures of each student with my iPad to enter into the app, TeacherKit. It is a great tool that allows you to put photos of students and place them in a seating chart to assist with names. It can also be used for tracking progress on objectives. You can learn more about it in my previous post, “4 Apps 4 Teachers”.

I hope this helps get your creative juices flowing with ideas for getting music off to a great start. Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Bling Blang

I love Woody Guthrie's book, Bling Blang! It comes with a CD of the song that the children thoroughly enjoy. I like to read the book first and sing the chorus each time. The students catch on quickly and sing along. I also demonstrate the movement for the chorus prior to reading the book. It is pretty simple and learning it ahead of time gives the students plenty of practice while I read.

After we read the book, it is time to learn the rest of the movements. I vary how much of the dance we perform, according to the class. Sometimes I start with only the chorus and add the rest on another day. Sometimes we do the verse and refrain, but save the interlude for later. Other times we are able to do everything in one day.  It just depends on what else I have planned for the day and how quickly the students catch on the lesson. The basic movements that I like to perform are as follows:

Refrain:
"Bling, blang, hammer with my hammer": Pound right fist on top of left fist twice, then left on top of right twice. It doesn't really matter which is first - just do one on top, and then the other.

"Zingo, zango, cutting with my saw": Begin with four sawing motions alternating both hands (R, L, R, L) - this will be performed with a partner later. They will join hands and saw back and forth four times.

Verse:
Pat-pat-clap-clap throughout the verse while facing partners.

Instrumental Interlude:
After students can perform the verse and refrain well, you may want to let them walk around during the interlude and find a new partner.

A note about partners:
I always discuss proper behavior for finding a partner. (i.e. Eye contact with someone means they want to be your partner, never say "no" to someone, and never leave one partner for another one.) Finding a partner can be difficult for certain children. It is even a little trickier during the middle of a song, so I tell the students to raise their hand high if they don't have a partner. The key is to find someone else with a hand raised and then to actually move to that person. It's amazing how often a child will stand with his or her hand up, waiting for someone to appear.

I use this lesson with kindergarten and first grade classes. It is a fun way to work on performing a steady beat. It never fails to bring smiles and giggles.

Enjoy!

Must Be Halloween

I know it's a little early, but due to some early dismissals for parent conferences next week and the fact that I will be attending the national NAfME conference in Nashville the next week, I am trying to pack in as much Halloween fun as possible.  My kindergarten and 1st grade classes are learning "Must Be Halloween" this week, and they are playing instruments as they sing.

Here's a Halloween PowerPoint slide for the song, which is in Jeff and Randy's GamePlan. See their book for the melody and their complete lesson plans for this song. The song is either in the 1st or 2nd grade curriculum. I don't have my books at home and don't recall at the moment. I'll try to remember to edit my post later. If you don't already have any of their GamePlan books, I recommend purchasing them for well thought-out, high quality lesson plans that the students enjoy.

I also included a slide with a picture of the xylophone with the D and A bars marked:

My kindergarten students have been doing a lot of drumming to work on their steady beat, but this is the first time they have played xylophones. I like to limit the number of students playing at once on their first xylophone experience, so I can assist students as much as they need.

I set up four instruments in a square and let the students line up behind each one. I sat in the center, so I could reach all of the children. They played a steady beat bordun on D and A. After they played, they rotated to the end of the next line. We continued until each student had played all four xylophones. Students in line continued to sing & pat the beat on their thighs.

I gave my first grade classes a little challenge. All students went to instruments to sing and play. I had two rows of barred instruments with triangles interspersed. Students played xylophones on beats 1, 2, & 3, and rested on beat 4. Triangles played on beat 4. It worked great, except for the third line where there was a word to sing on the rest. It may be easier for first graders to only rest on the xylophone and play triangles after "halloween" each time and not worry about the third line.

First grade students rotated through all of the instruments, if time allowed. It's amazing how many times they will sing the same song, just so they can play every xylophone and triangle. Fortunately, my first grade classes are pretty small this year so we only had to perform about 15 times. :)

Looking for more Halloween fun? See some of my other favorites here and here.

Skin and Bones

There are so many fun fall and Halloween songs, that it is impossible to find time to fit them in to my lesson plans. However, there are a few favorites that I absolutely must make sure to include, and "Skin and Bones" is one of them. It is a wonderful opportunity for the children to experience a song in a minor key, and they love the surprise ending. (Another favorite is "What Will You Be for Halloween?" You can read more about it in my previous post by clicking here.

Our textbook series (Silver Burdett Making Music, 2nd Grade) has a good sound track for this song, and sometimes I'll use it for a dramatic, spooky-fun activity that the students beg for year, after year. I typically begin using this activity with my second graders. I turn the lights off and have the students scatter around the room and lie down on their backs with their eyes closed. As the song plays, I hide a vibraslap behind my back and quietly walk around the "graveyard," making sure that I pass near each student. At the end of the song, on "Boo!" I play the vibraslap near an unsuspecting child, and the class erupts in shrieks and giggles. I try to pick a child that I know will not be upset by the loud sound, and so far, it has worked.

I like to extend the song with an instrumental accompaniment. I created the following PowerPoint slides to help them learn their part:

Sometimes we use silly words to help us prepare and remember which bars to play, or when to play the triangles. For instance, in the pattern for this song, we sing, "Eggs & Bacon," "Eggs & Cookies," "Eggs & Bacon," "Ching" (for the triangle part). Since the left hand remains on one bar and the right hand moves to its next door neighbor, it can be a little confusing for students, at first. We practice on our thighs prior to moving to the instruments.

When I notice students struggling at the instruments, I tell them that they can focus on their left hand until they are ready to add the other. They feel so proud when they are able to play it successfully.

We also add triangles on the rests. You can finish with a vibraslap and everyone playing their triangles or any two pitches on the barred instruments on the word, "Boo!"

I'm not sure what took me so long, but I recently had the idea to add a photo of a xylophone with the bars marked in my PowerPoint presentation. Now I can stand and point to the bars on the screen, which is large enough for everyone to see. As a visual learner, I can't believe I just now thought of it. I know a lot of people use visuals of barred instruments to demonstrate, and I've even put glockenspiels under my document camera before, but this is SO much easier. Ha!

If you prefer to do a cross-over bordun, you might prefer this instrumental part:

All of these images are jpeg files directly from a PowerPoint, so you should be able to copy them and paste them right into your own presentation, if you would like to use them.

The clipart and clipart frames are from My Cute Graphics, which has a wealth of adorable clip art appropriate for classroom use.

Have a Spooky Halloween!

A Few Fun Slides

I love summer! I must admit that sleeping late is one of my favorite things to do. Another joy of summer is that I now have time for fun projects that sometimes slip by during the school year. I need a creative outlet, so I thought I would work on a few PowerPoint lyric slides to some fun traditional songs that I plan to add to our repertoire at school. I have included a link to the PowerPoint file for each, in case you are interested:

I Bought Me a Cat

I Bought Me a Cat PowerPoint Download (Free)

Shoo Fly

Shoo, Fly PowerPoint Download (Free)

I Fed My Horse

I Fed My Horse PowerPoint Download (Free)

All Around the Buttercup

All Around the Buttercup PowerPoint Download (Free)

That's all for now!

Bingo!/Bongo!

Last week, I shared a Step/Skip game which reinforces upward/downward steps and skips on the staff. In third grade this week, we transferred the game to individual white boards. These boards allowed me to check each student's progress while the entire class worked. I wanted to make sure they were able to place notes on the appropriate lines and spaces and move them the correct direction and distance.

Rather than draw from two stacks of cards as we did in the game last week, I decided to look for an app to do the job of telling the students where to place their next note. I found a free app, Make Dice Lite, which allows you to customize your own dice. It added a cool factor to the game that the children really enjoyed. I simply placed my phone under the document camera and rolled the dice to see where the next note needed to be placed. If you have an iPad that you can connect to your projector, that would be ideal. I was excited to find this app, because its possibilities are endless!

The students began by drawing a whole note on line 3. I thought it would be more fun to practice drawing steps and skips if the students had a finish line as a goal. Therefore, I told them I wanted to know when they reached the top line or the bottom line. I spontaneously told them to call out "Bingo!" when they landed on line 5, and "Bongo!" for line 1. Since this was our first time to draw steps and leaps on the white boards, we actually checked our work as we went. Later, we may play without stopping for each note. The students will know they are on the right path if they reach Bingo, or Bongo at the appropriate time.

When the students came for their second lesson this week, they wanted to play again. They asked what the game was called, and I decided that "Bingo!/Bongo!" was its name-oh. :)

I hope these ideas spark your creativity as you plan your upcoming lessons.
Enjoy!

Pinterest Picks

I love using Pinterest as a resource for finding new lesson ideas. So many music teachers have blogs and share their plans and materials, and Pinterest is a place to find many of these ideas in one centralized location. Click on a pin that interests you, and poof! You are taken right to a web page to explore further.

I have about 300 pins on my "Making Music" board on Pinterest. I only pin links after I click on them and make sure it is something that I would really want to refer to again and possibly use in my classroom. This past week, I utilized two lesson ideas that I found through pins on Pinterest. They were both a hit with my students, so I thought they were worth mentioning.

Fruit Loop Rhythms

Mrs. King's Music Room blog is a wonderful resource for engaging music lesson plans. I am a follower, but noticed her latest post through a pin on Pinterest before I had even seen her blog post on Fruit Loop Notation. I recently started teaching rhythmic notation to my first graders, and I immediately knew they would love this method of differentiating between one or two sounds per beat.

I enjoyed finding a cute font to create a Fruit Loop worksheet. You can download a copy below.

Fruit Loop Notation Worksheet

I used coffee filters to hold the cereal for the students. They are cheap and work perfectly! I measured out 1/4 cup for each student, which was usually just the right amount. 

As you can see, the students were engaged and enjoyed working on their rhythmic notation:

When I introduced ta's and ti's, I used 4 stools to represent 4 beats. As we spoke a phrase from a poem, the students determined if there is one or two sounds on each beat. If there was one sound, one student would sit on the stool. If there were two sounds, two students shared the stool. When two students shared, they put their arms around their partner's shoulders to visually represent the beam over eighth notes.

After we worked from text, I called students up to the stools to create different rhythmic patterns. We used words first, like "birthday" and "cake" for one or two sounds. Ex.: "Birthday, birthday, cake, cake." Then we moved to reading the pattern as "ti-ti, ti-ti, ta, ta."

I put a Fruit Loop Rhythm worksheet under the document camera, and demonstrated how to complete an example. If I didn't have the document camera, I would have put a worksheet on the floor and let everyone watch as I completed one pattern.

Since this was my students' first attempt at rhythmic dictation, I used the percussion setting on my keyboard and played two different sounds for the quarter notes and eighth notes. I typically used a higher pitched percussion sound for the eighth notes and a bass drum for the quarter notes. If students struggled, I added the words we had used (birthday & cake) or spoke the ti's and ta's. Most of the students were able to successfully notate the rhythms without the words or syllables.

The nice thing about this activity, is that I could sit at the keyboard and see how students were doing from a distance. I played the example several times. When most students appeared to be finished, I had them tap their boxes as I played it again to check their work.

We played a little game to check the students' work. Since I had numbered the beat boxes, I had used letters for each example. So I taught the students sign language for letters A-D. Then I played an example and they found it on their worksheet. They held up the letter for the pattern I played. I could assess how well they had done as they identified the examples. Of course, I had to try to trick them and repeat one before playing the last one. I got a few on that one when they immediately guessed the example I had not played yet. We had a good giggle over that. :)

The following lesson, we used bottle caps and mini craft sticks to represent notes. Although it wasn't as tasty as the Fruit Loops, the students still had fun as they practiced rhythmic dictation.

Next week, students will begin reading flashcards and playing rhythms. I will have them speak the rhythm prior to playing it. I use the phrase, "Say it, Say & Play, Play" They speak it first, then speak and play, then think the syllables while they play. We usually use the barred instruments set in pentaton for this activity, but any percussion instrument will do.

Thanks to Pinterest, I also found a game to use for reading and playing rhythms. I can't wait to try it with my students. It's a game from Amy Abbott, who has a fantastic music blog named Music a la Abbott. The game is called St. Patty's Day Poisoned Rhythm Game. Check it out!

Step/Skip Game

Last summer, I scoured Pinterest looking for ideas for music centers. I was reviewing some of my older pins and noticed one that would be perfect for my 3rd graders, since they are working on melodic notation. We have been using individual music staff white boards to notate line/space notes, scales, and solfege patterns. Some students were struggling with line and space notes, so I wanted a fun way to reinforce this concept.

When I am introducing line and space notes, I use my head and arms to demonstrate the difference. I put my hands on both sides of my head like an arrow going through my head for the line note. Then I put one arm over my head and one arm below my chin for a space note. I go back and forth and let the students call out which kind of note I am representing. I also tell the students that although we say a note is "on" the line, think of it as being stamped on, rather than sitting on the line. Some students may imagine that if a note were sitting on the line, it would actually be a space note. I find that stamping it on the line helps.

Okay, back to the game that I found! It came from Jennifer Fink at Pianimation. The games and resources that she shares are amazing. The game I used last week was Floor Staff Races. Follow the link to read about the game and scroll down the post for the link to the game cards.

Before playing the game, we practiced identifying space/line notes, steps/skips, and up/down. 

For the game, students drew skip/step cards and up/down cards and raced their toy from the ledger line to the top of the staff. I definitely recommend using more "up" cards than "down" in order to finish a game. I made two game boards and divided the classes in half to play and thought that would work well. However, that ended up being too many students per game, in my opinion. So the next time we played, I divided the class into 4 groups. Two groups played one game, while two groups played this one. We rotated halfway through class, so everyone got to play both games.

I even used this game with one of my 4th grade classes while I listened to individual students play for recorder karate belts. We took the game one more step by having the students identify the pitch name after they moved the animal. If they could not name it, they had to return to the previous position (unless they had moved downward, in which case they had to remain there).

What are you waiting for? Run over to Pinterest and plan your next lessons. If you need a starting point, you can check out my music board by clicking here.

See you on Pinterest!