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!

Treble in the Classroom's Super Bowl Super Sale

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!  I'm taking today to celebrate with you, as well as other tpt sellers, by offering my entire store at 20% off allllllll day (Sunday, February 2).  Stock up on those great items you've been waiting to buy TODAY!

Thanks to Teaching in the Tongas for the awesome flier/clip art work!

Scat Cards: Introducing Jazz to Elementary Students

I'll admit it.  I used to strongly dislike jazz.  I didn't understand it, and I thought it was boring.  However, as I learned more about it and listened to it in more educated ways, I learned to LOVE it. 

Part of my learning about jazz has come as a teacher, trying to share understanding and performance opportunities for my students in all types of genres.  5th grade has been the grade where I've shared jazz as part of teaching improvisation skills in our curriculum.

I just finished up an updated set for use with my kids next week, so I thought I'd share it with you.  The first item in the set is a powerpoint (coming to you via pdf upon download).   I created this to help my kids understand what scat is.  Scat is defined and explained first.  Then a kid friendly video example is given, via a youtube link.  Ella Fitzgerald and her contribution to the world of scat is introduced.  A link is included to her scatting.  Modern scat is referenced and a link to Bobby McFerrin is shared.  Picture book suggestions are also given for incorporated.

The second part of the set is my scat card set.  Cards are provided with common scat syllables on them for students to manipulate and arrange an order of a scat piece for group performance.  Once students have worked with the syllables and technique, they can then attempt to scat in pentatonic, solo. 

Hope this gets your kids excited about jazz.  It never fails, my kids always surprise me with how excited they are to scat, and how willing they are to try improvisation.

Glow Stick Dancing

A teacher in my building just sent me a youtube video of glow stick dances.  I had never seen these till today.  All I can say is, awesome!

I'm thinking this would be awesome to do as a staff for one of our motivational assemblies.  I'm also thinking my Orff ensemble kids could really get into something like this.  My wheels are turning.

Here is a great blog post I found to explain a little bit more about assembling your "glow stick" costume.  Check it out!

http://teachinghappilyeverafter.blogspot.com/2013/01/talent-show-idea-for-teachers-glowstick_21.html

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!

3 Winter Sport Activities

With the big international event coming up, I thought I would pull together activities across grade levels for Winter Sports.  Three different sets are available in my TPT store for varying levels of learners.  Check them out.

Hot Off the Press: Winter Sports Ostinato Cards
Just finished these awesome ostinato cards.  I plan on having my second graders do an ensemble chant with the text and rhythms and then transfer the ensembles to unpitched percussion instruments.  Print and GO!  Lots of suggestions for use included.

Winter Sports BAGC' Recorder Centers/Stations Set
This fun set includes 4 fun activities for individual stations or centers in the music room for the notes BAG and C'.  These activities can also be done as 4 whole class lessons if you prefer.  Here's a sampling of a few.

Winter Sports Vocal Exploration Cards

 

This set includes drawn pathways and blank pathways.  I used it with my part time learning support classes as well as my 1st graders.  The first graders loved following and drawing the sounds and I definitely heard a few find their head voices during this activity, who normally struggle to do so.  I had my PTLS students make a book with the pathways they drew themselves on the blank sheets, and we shared and performed each other's pathways.  They then took their books home to share with their families. 

I'm headed to an Olympics party in two weeks.  I am assigned to represent Finland.  Creating a native costume from Finland to go along with my native dish I have to bring is posing to be more challenging than I thought!  Hope you are as excited as I am about the upcoming festivities! 

Kids Say the Darndest Things

We've been blessed to have one of my former students (eeeek I'm getting old) as an intern with our first grade music classes, while he completes his senior year of high school.  The kids have adored him and he has been so helpful in the room.  I will miss him.

To thank him for helping us, I have had the kids make books in their homerooms, to give him advice for when he's a music teacher.  Though they aren't all finished yet, I thought I'd brighten your day by sharing a few tidbits of some of my favorite wisdom about what music teachers should do from my dear 1st graders.  Hope you get a good chuckle.

Be a good teacher.  Give good kids stickers.  Do rock and roll music.  Smile a lot.  Has to be my overall favorite!

Smile a lot. 

Do what the principal says :-)

Do what the principal says, yet again!

Play rock and roll music.

Play moving games.

Play moving games.  Read books.  Teach all of Miss Martin's songs (what else is out there?!?  HA)

Play the instruments.  Teach all of Miss Martin's songs.

Teach about musical notes.

Teach how to play instruments.