Carnival of the Animals Listening Unit in 1st Grade Music

When I student taught, my wonderful co-op introduced me to the world of Carnival of the Animals.  She taught the piece in such a lively, exciting way, and the kids ate it up.  They listened and described music.  They moved to music.  They impressed me.

It was during this time that I was introduced to the book by Barrie C. Turner and Sue Williams called Carnival of the Animals: Classical Music for kids.  This gem of a book first briefly introduces the composer and the instruments of the orchestra.  I teach this page on the first day of the unit.  We practice pronouncing Camille Saint Saen's name with our best French accents and we talk about the jobs of the performers.

In each proceeding class, I introduce one animal.  I go from beginning to end of the piece when introducing animals over time.  To intro the animal, I read the short paragraph the book presents, describing the animal and the music that is used to represent it.  I then instruct the students to prove to me that they are excellent listeners, while watching me move to the animal they are learning.  They see me crawl on the floor like a lion the first day, and I've got them hook, line, and sinker.  I then give them a chance to move silently like the animal we are learning.  Each movement I use clearly aligns and matches the music, to help students remember and correlate their learning. 

After we've learned a few animals over several class periods, I do some review, playing short clips of one of the animals, having the students show me without talking which animal it is.

I assess this learning several times throughout the unit.  I give a mid point assessment, where I mix up the animals we know, and the students write the number (1 for the first listening example) beside the picture of the animal and it's instruments.  I give a final assessment, where only some animals are pictured.  I have students color the animal they hear with a specified crayon color.  I just created paper puppets to use as informal identification manipulatives as well.  All of these assessments are now available in my teacher's pay teachers store. 

Through this kinesthetic unit, I am always amazed at how well students are able to listen and describe music.  Their parents often comment on how much they love this piece of music. 


Hope this sparks some ideas for getting your kids moving and listening jointly. 

Circling Up to Practice Rhythm Reading and Performance

I took video and pics this week (without kid's faces to identify them) to share with you one of my favorite ways to practice rhythms. 

I have created a Teachers Pay Teachers set for this (at three levels, one with quarter and eighth rhythms, one adding in half notes, and one adding in 16th notes), but you may want to just use your own rhythms on sentence strips too.  If it is easy to buy the set ready to go with suggestions, go for it.  If not, create your own :-)

To start this activity, I help the kids discover that each card has the exact same number of beats (some have to be coached through the value of each note and the math to totally get this concept.)  Then, we practice all saying our cards at the same time.  I walk around to clarify and assist students who are struggling with their patterns.  We hone this until we all start and actually end together!  After mastering that, we move between the cards, using 4 beats to chant, and 4 to move to the next pattern.  Once they can do this together in time, we add music to the performance, using the beat of the piece (song suggestions in the Circle-Up Sets in my store).  I assess student performances informally by standing by a card and hearing every student perform it as they walk by, or by walking and listening to several perform at one time. 

The video below shows you an early step in the process of perfecting this activity.  You'll hear my voice coaching them for the moves.  I like to get them to the point where they internalize the four beats between and don't need my constant counting to keep them together.  It's a building process to get there.  

The kids think they are rock stars and it really helps them solidify some early ensemble skills, along with important rhythm skills.

Hope this sparks some ideas for rhythm practice for you.

BAM: Rhythm Performance Practice Game

I was pintersting today and found a cool game idea for use with sight words.  I thought to myself, this could be used for rhythm performance practice too, so BAM, I spent this afternoon and evening creating it for YOU and for ME.

To play BAM, students take a rhythm card off of the top of the stack. If they perform it correctly, they keep it. If they do it incorrectly (as deemed by the others in their group or the teacher, depending on how you set up your playing time), the card goes to the bottom of the pile. The goal at the end of the game is to have the most cards. However, if a BAM card is drawn, the student has to return all of the correct cards that they have collected to the pile. I play this as a timed game for x amount of minutes.


This can be played with multiple groups playing in your classroom at one time, or as a station in centers rotation.  As a teacher, you could be working with a small group on this activity, or allowing students to regulate the performances themselves.  I recommend discussion expectations for correcting each other ahead of time.


I created several versions:
Quarter and Eighth Notes (and quarter rest)

Half, Quarter, and Eighth Notes (and quarter and half rests)

Sixteenth Note Set (plus above rhythms)

Syncopated Set (plus above rhythms)

Ti Tika Set (plus above rhythms)

Tika Ti Set (plus above rhythms)

Then, because I know some of you would like to do this with  multiple levels, I created a combo pack of all 6 sets.

I'll be printing and laminating these tomorrow so I can cut them out on the predicted upcoming snow days as the week progresses!

Full Set of Performance Rubrics Completed

After posting my 4 free performance based rubrics for singing, playing xylophone, playing recorder, and performing rhythm, I've had several requests for a full set of performance rubrics encompassing other performance skills in the music room.  So, I finally sat down and finished the set, at least for now.

The new, full set, includes 4 point performance rubrics for the following activities:
Composition
Folk Dance
Free Movement
Improvisation
Mallet Performance Activities
Note Reading
Percussion Performances
Recorder Performances
Rhythm Performances
Singing Voice

Each skill is colored differently and these posters are quite attractive.  I post them before an assessment, and quickly talk through the 4 point levels with my students, so they know exactly where their score comes from.  They are now, quite used to these expectations.  Sometimes, I will print these and write directly on them, so students can clearly see which level they got and why.  So these can be used as visuals or paper feedback for students. 

See a skill you'd like to have a rubric for that isn't on the list?  Let me know, and I will do my best to get it quickly added to the set!

Hope this helps you give your students clear feedback and feel more fair and clear about your grading practices.  Download it here!

Recorder Reflection and Assessment Sheets

On my "Polar Vortex" day off yesterday, I created some new recorder reflection sheets to be used to get students to self-assess, to provide tickets out the door, or for the teacher to assess student knowledge and understanding.

This pack includes full sheets that can be cut into quarter sheets for quick student reflection, assessment, and self-evaluation or critique when instructing beginning ukulele players.

Included Are:
Goal Setting Sheet
Hardest/Easiest Part Sheet
On a Scale of 1-4 Sheet
Draw Me the Fingering Cards for B, A, G, C, D, E, F, F#
Identify the Fingering Sets (3 pictures to identify on each card)

These easy to print and divide sheets can be used all year long with your recorder students across differing grade levels and abilities.  Download it today!

Clothespin Clip Rhythm Game/Assessment Kit

I've been storing up this idea for awhile, but time has been slipping through my fingers.  I took the opportunity on this cold, windy day, to finally put this set together.

I've been working hard this year to think of more ways to practice and identify rhythms with my students.  Though from time to time, I've always done rhythm activities, chanting my rhythm cards always become a fall back in a time crunch.  Thus, I've been trying to have some other ready made ways to practice rhythm, thus this new kit.

This kit has printable cards, each card with differing levels of rhythm patterns.  Print and create the ones that work for your students.  I'm printing them all up to have ready for all different grade levels.

As the teacher, you will chant the rhythm pattern with syllables, or clap it without syllables.  Students will then take their clothespin and clip it on the pattern they believe you performed.  It is a great way for students to listen and audiate the pattern, then labeling it.  It also allows you, as the teacher, to see which students are getting it, in a quick skim around the room. 

 The 8 included sets are:
1. Quarter Note, Eighth Notes, and Quarter Rest
2. Half Note, Quarter Note, Eighth Notes, Half Rest, and Quarter Rest
3. Sixteenth Notes, Quarter Notes, Eighth Notes, and Half Notes
4. Dotted Half Notes, Half Note, Quarter Note, Eighth Notes, Half Rest, and Quarter Rest
5.Eighth Sixteenth Note Combinations
6. Sixteenth Eighth Note Combinations
7. Sixteenth Notes, Eighth SIxteenth Notes, Sixteenth Eighth Notes, Quarter Notes, Half Notes, and Eighth Notes 8. You name it, it's included :-)

Hope your kids enjoy clipping!

Recorder Madness Begins: Winter BA Recorder Stations

My students recorder orders arrived this week (ssshhh...I haven't told the kids they are here yet!!  They are bursting at the seams to get their hands on their recorders).

I was reflecting on how I introduce recorders and thought that I should create some more activities for just B and A, without adding the G, to build a better foundation, especially for those kids who struggle with the motor skill of changing fingers.  We use the Recorder Karate method, but they jump right into BAG right away, and I was thinking some kids would benefit from having just B and A to work with. 

So, coming to you tonight is a Winter Themed BA recorder set.  These are set up to be used in center rotations, allowing the teacher to work with a small group privately.  I also personally add in an iPad station to my cycles.

Included in the set are:

Color By Note: A winter worksheet, for your students to color. Each piece of the picture has a B or on it. Students are given directions to color each pitch a specific color. This activity focuses on the notes we are isolating in our recorder playing.

Winter Composition: Students write a very simple BA melody by choosing to write a B or an A on the staff provided on each snowflake.  They also write the fingering for each note on the recorder picture below the snowflake.   They then practice performing it.  A recorder fingering chart is also provided.

Partner Evaluation: Students have a checklist and provide each other 1 or 2 positive comments and 1 or 2 constructive comments on the notes that they are working on.

Rhythm Performance Practice: Students practice rhythm patterns on B, then A, then combinations of B and A.

I print these out and glue the station cover page on the front of file folders.  I then glue the worksheet (one copy) on the inside of the folder and laminate it.  Then, when I make copies for each station, I place them in each file folder and as students rotate stations, they know to look for the folder of their next activity.

You could also use these as individual whole class activities or at home extensions of the lessons you are teaching.

Hope this simplified set is helpful and your kids enjoy working in recorder centers as much as mine do.  I'm planned and ready.  Recorders here we come!

5 Point Rhythm Assessments

As I have been working for a few cycles with all grade levels on their new "levels" of rhythms, I thought it was time to do an identification quiz.  So, I've made up new assessment sheets for the kids.

Each assessment shows 5 patterns with the rhythms the students have been working on.  As the teacher, I will clap the patterns in random order.  I will repeat the first pattern four times, and then move on to the second, third, fourth, etc.  The students will write which number pattern they heard first, then second, then third, etc.  It helps me know if students can hear and recognize a pattern and then visually identify what that pattern looks like.

9 Different Levels of Rhythm Assessment are Included:
1. ti tika/tika ti patterns
2. ti ta ti syncopated patterns
3. quarter note and half note/rest patterns
4. dotted half note patterns
5. sixteenth note/quarter note/half note patterns
6. quarter note/rest and double eighth note patterns
7. dotted quarter note/eighth note patterns
8. eighth note/eight rest patterns
9. quarter note/quarter rest patterns

Download today, if these created documents will save you time and help you have a greater grasp of individual student levels of understanding!

Cookies and Milk Quarter Note and Eighth Note Manipulatives

I just finished making this cute set of cookie and milk manipulatives.  I had seen a cute idea similar to this on pinterest, where a teacher used purchased cookie and milk graphics and hand wrote the rhythm of the words on them.  I updated the idea a little bit, included empty plates to signify rests, and added the word as well as the rhythm on the picture.  When we can help the language arts teachers out in any way, I think it's always an awesome thing.

I used these with my part time learning support classes today, and they loved them.  We created four beat patterns and clapped them out loud, sometimes using the "food name" and sometimes using the rhythm name.  In the future, we will use them for dictation of patterns I clap.  We will also use them to play unpitched percussion, with some instruments performing the milk part, and other instruments performing the cookie part. 

I've been working hard to help my part time learning support kids correlate and recognize syllables along side rhythm.  They've responded well to this, so I keep creating new ways to practice this.

I think I may use this set with my first graders later in the year too.  So many possibilities with such a simple idea.  To make your life more simple, download this inexpensive set for only $1.00 from my Teachers Pay Teachers Store today!  I cut out the manipulatives and then laminated them and re-cut.  You could just cut the papers in half and make them more like flash cards, if that is easier!

All this talk about cookies is making me want some cookies in bed before I settle in for the night!

Music Performance Rubrics Free Download

I updated my visual rubrics for performance assessments in my classroom and am sharing them all with you! 

Free to download are four rubrics based off of a four point scale (4=Exceeds 3=Meeting Expectations 2=Developing Skill 1=Having Difficulty).  Descriptors of each requirement for each skill are included.

I post these and remind students of expectations before assessing them.  Hope you can use these with your kids too! 

Happy Freebie to You!  Download today at my Teachers Pay Teachers store!