Cooking Up Great Recorder Playing: BAG Activites

My third graders LOOOVE their recorders.  They are playing up a storm and are loving it.  I decided to create a new set of BAG stations for my beginning players, as I think we may need to live in BAG land one lesson longer than I did last year.

Included in the "Cooking Up Great Recorder Playing" Set are 4 Activities.  They can be used for centers and stations as I do (I laminate the cover page on the front of a file folder, laminate any other supports such as fingering charts on the inside of the folder, and then put any copies or manipulatives on the inside of the folder so it is ready upon rotation.)  These activities are strong as stand alone, whole class ideas as well.

Cooking Direction Mix Up:This is a game for beginning recorder players to practice reading and playing melodies using the notes B, A, and G. Students have 11 pre-written melody cards to choose from, to create four and eight bar phrases to play on their recorders. Two playing card options are given, cards with just the melody notation on the staff, and a second set with pitches written below the notes on the staff. This activity is great for meeting the national standards for composing and arranging, and also provides a different venue for practicing simple melodies. Teacher directions, student directions, playing cards, and a B A G recorder fingering chart are included.

Recipe for Friendship Note Identification: To complete the "recipe for friendship," students need to identify the missing letters by reading them written as staff notation. A 2nd worksheet is included for students who finish early. It requires students to draw notes from dessert names on the music staff. (This activity does use the notes on the staff beyond BA, and G).

BAG Composition-Stir it Up: Using text and rhythm I wrote, students will compose a one measure melody for the four measures missing melody. A repeated measure (already written) is played after each composed measure. They will write the music notation for their measure long patterns using the notes B, A, and G. After writing their melody, they will practice performing their composition.

Taste Testing Self-Reflection: Comparing self-reflection to the taste testing a baker or chef does, students will listen to their own playing and identify three areas of strength to maintain and three areas to adapt or improve upon.

I can't wait to add this into my next rotation of recorder conferencing and testing stations with my kids.  Hope you find some great uses for them in your classroom too!