Top 3 Units for Middle School General Music. Organized Chaos. Ideas and resources for project based learning with middle school general music students. World music, composition, and careers in music.
To understand stringed instruments of the European Middle Ages, it helps to understand medieval music itself. The Medieval Era, roughly 500 CE to 1400 CE, was the time when the Church of Rome was
middle school chorus
Coming up with engaging games for a middle school classroom can be daunting. They are at an age where they want to be independent, yet need some hand holding. They start the “I’m too cool for school” attitude and it can be intimidating at times when you introduce a new game or project - immediately the eye rolling takes over and you are stuck with questioning yourself. I’m here to tell you, I’VE BEEN THERE! MAKE SURE TO CHECK OUT MY AWESOME MUSIC GAMES THAT REQUIRE NO MATERIALS AND THE KIDS LOVE
Get some help with the difficult older students by using these 10 music activities for middle school with your students right away. [DETAILS]
Top 3 Units for Middle School General Music. Organized Chaos. Ideas and resources for project based learning with middle school general music students. World music, composition, and careers in music.
Looking to add fun to your chorus classroom? Adding choir games is the answer to motivate your students.
Drawing musical notes is very important for beginners. These are free worksheets to teach you how to draw your notes in the treble clef.
The Yellow Brick Road Blog is a website dedicated to providing music teachers with fun education resources for serious music literacy.
My middle schoolers LOVE games. When I started teaching, I thought that middle schoolers might be too advanced for games, but I was wrong! My oldest students beg me for game days all the time. Here are some games that are great for older students! Music Trivia My students LOVE playing music trivia. I often
My district is one that is implementing Student Learning Objectives...which are basically large-scale goals for each student in class base...
Top 3 Units for Middle School General Music. Organized Chaos. Ideas and resources for project based learning with middle school general music students. World music, composition, and careers in music.
Oh, that first day of Middle School Chorus... :) We sure hit the ground running, don't we?! I've taught Middle School Chorus and General Music for 14 years and have created this 1st Day Lesson for you! Included in this .pdf: -One 45 minute Chorus lesson complete with *Easy warm ups for the first day *Music for a simple round *Movements and video for a fun activity / song to end your class Enjoy and GOOD LUCK!!
just some pictures that totally prove frerard was real, we all shipped it don't deny it yolo my frendz [frerard was real and you all know it and shipped it]
If you were to walk into my classroom, there is a very good chance that music will be playing. Whether that be as background noise or as a classroom management tool, I cannot go without music in my classroom! Click HERE for all of my school appropriate playlists! Our kids now are stimulated 24/7 by all of the technology at their fingertips. They are watching Netflix, while Snapchatting, while playing a video game all at the same time! They go from an overstimulated environment at home, to school where they are expected to be quiet the majority of their day…
Sometimes our plans go awry, and we just need a list of go-to ideas for unexpected sick days. So, here are my top two easy sub plans.
Teaching English with songs is a great way to boost student engagement. Check out these 17 ideas for activities using music and songs!
This intro to drawing curriculum includes everything you need to teach every single day in a middle school art or high school art class.
The helpless feeling you get when nothing you do seems to work with that one class can be absolutely horrible. Over the years I've had classes that leave me in tears, fill me with dread, make me want to take a sick day, or just leave me feeling like I have no idea what I'm doing. It's disconcerting at best, and can leave you completely miserable if you let it get the best of you. In this series I'm sharing some strategies that have helped me improve my ability to work with some challenging classes with various difficulties- I hope they help you if you find yourself in the same situation! Today I'm focusing on classes that have a high percentage of students with high needs. At the beginning of this series I shared my advice to keep those challenging groups from making you miserable- if you haven't already, I encourage you to read that post by clicking here. Hopefully the solutions I'm sharing today will help you improve your relationship with your tough class, but that process is going to take time and you need to make sure you keep the situation manageable (for you and your students) in the meantime. One of the points I shared in that post is to be prepared with a plan B, C, D, and E. There's a good chance the first strategy you try won't work! Remember that this is a process, and a very important one at that. Don't give up. High Needs Classes with a high percentage of students with high academic, social/ emotional, and other needs can be a particular struggle for music teachers because often these students are being given a lot of support from additional staffing, pull-outs, and other individualized supports in the homeroom but those same supports are not given in their other classes, including music. It's also difficult because we're teaching so many students, that staying on top of the individual needs and plans for each student is nearly impossible and certainly unreasonable. On top of that, the music class environment is different from their other classes, so many students respond differently to our class environment, and those challenges are not usually addressed in individualized plans for these students. So dealing with these classes appropriately can be a monumental task for us. tip #1: consolidate important information The first hurdle with these classes as music teachers is sorting through, processing, and keeping track of all the important information we need to know about individual student needs, whether that's medical information, home life situations/ background that affects behavior, IEP's, or any other information we receive formally and informally about all our students. Once we've made sure we have as much information as we can get about our students (more on that later), we need to find a way to use that information to inform our teaching. I have found it most helpful to go through all of the information I have and, for the students that I know I need to be mindful of, consolidate the information into one form. I use these IEP and medical information sheets to write down the most important information about those students that need any type of specific support in my classroom and keep them in my planner. Just the act of processing the information enough to consolidate it and then handwriting it helps tremendously with my own ability to stay on top of everything, and it's really helpful to have as a reference whenever I find myself running into problems. tip #2: integrate individual plans Often one of the frustrations with classes with high needs is that individual students will have plans in place to support them academically, behaviorally, or otherwise but a) those plans aren't shared with us, b) those plans don't include their time outside their homeroom, or c) the plans are too difficult to implement in the music room and manage alongside our hundreds of students. As frustrating as it is to take these extra steps to do so, it's in our best interest (not to mention the best interest of the students, obviously) to find ways to tap into those individual support plans. For most of us that means: continuously advocating for the need to keep us non-homeroom teachers in the loop when individualized plans are created, talking to staff members creating and implementing individual plans about how to make it work in the music room, and creating reminders for ourselves to stay on top of all these different plans. Often integrating an individual plan into our classes is as simple as including a spot for specials on any chart that is being filled out to monitor how students are doing and either making sure the chart is brought to specials for you to fill out or reporting to the homeroom teacher with how students did at the end of each class (if it's not a simple piece of paper that they can carry around). If they're earning some type of points/ rewards to reinforce specific behaviors, they should be able to earn them in your room as well and add it to their total. I find the easiest way for me to track things like how many "points" they earn in class or progress monitoring on a specific behavior is using rubber bands on my wrist, and I tell the student that the rubber band is the equivalent of their token/ dollar/ star/ whatever they're earning in their homeroom. You can read about how to do this in this post. If there are academic support tools they're using, like using a specific tool on an iPad for writing, grips for pencils, glasses, visual reminders, translation apps, etc, make sure they're bringing them to music class as well. And if they have one-on-one support staff working with them in the homeroom, advocate for the importance of having that same staffing available for music and other non-homeroom classes! Often this is a harder sell for administration but if you can document the difficulties the student is having in your class you can make a case for the importance of having them there. If there is something I need to track or equipment I need to have available to be able to bring these individual plans into my teaching, post-it note reminders directly on the seating chart for their class help me remember before they walk in the door. I use bright orange page flags with a note like "Aniya- bands" or "Jaden- chart" so that I remember to stay on top of using whatever system I have in place for them. tip #3: collaborate and communicate It's a lot of work and it's frustrating that the onus of responsibility falls on us, but the only way for us to be included as part of the team effort to support individual students, in most schools, is for us to take the initiative to include ourselves in as many meetings and conversations as we can and be proactive about staying involved in them throughout the year. Attending every single IEP meeting for the entire student population is certainly out of the question but I have asked to be added to emails so I am notified when meetings are happening so that I can give my input for others to take to the meeting, or ask to join if a student is a particular concern of mine as well. Beyond formal meetings, though, keeping the lines of communication open with colleagues is so important! Any time I notice a certain recurring behavior, or a sudden change in a student, I try to have a quick conversation with the homeroom teacher. Often they have either started noticing the same thing and my thoughts reinforce their thinking and lead to a plan, or they have a plan already to address it and I learn about it because I asked. The same goes the other way too- if I find success with a particular strategy, I try to share it with the other teachers. tip #4: prioritize procedures and structure One of the best things we can do for all of our students with behavioral and academic needs is to make our classes more predictable and structured. If your classroom isn't normally highly structured, this is probably the best place to start to help students be more successful in class! Explain and practice procedures for everything until students are all comfortable with the process, whether it's getting out pencils and paper, moving from chairs to carpet, or lining up at the end of class. Think through how to streamline each of those processes as well to make everything as straight-forward as possible. I've been freshly reminded this year that, as much as I feel like I'm repeating myself over and over again with these procedures, the students need those reminders WAY longer than I think because they're only coming into my room twice a week! For students who take longer to process things or don't instinctively do things the same way other kids their age might, these kinds of procedures have to be explicitly practiced. tip #5: provide opportunities for student collaboration For students who might be more defiant listening to a teacher or who struggle to understand a concept in the way we explain it, sometimes the best learning happens with their peers. I'm always surprised at the one thing that finally helps them understand something! Pairing up or putting students into small groups also allows me to work with students in the specific way that works best for them instead of interacting with the whole class at once, and many students learn better in a small group anyway. It's hard in elementary music where we're so used to working primarily with whole class activities, but for classes with high needs it's good to step back and give students time to process. Even just 2 minutes to share ideas or practice a part with a partner can help, doing a composition with a small group, or centers (here are lots of ideas about how to run centers, and my favorite center activities). I hope these suggestions help you better address the needs of your students in these types of classes! I'm not saying it will be easy, but these strategies have certainly made it more manageable for me to meet my students' needs as best as I can within my classroom setting. If you have any suggestions of your own or questions you'd like to ask about this topic, please leave them in the comments below! And if you'd like to read more about how I handle "behavior management" as a whole, here are all my top posts on the topic.
Hi everyone, this is Amanda Isaac. Middle School is a tough and fantastic age group to work with. They challenge you daily and demand your best; the most successful teachers serve that expectation and energy right back to them. Middle schoolers want to be both kids and grown up. I know I try to feed both halves of that personality split. Let them be goofy when appropriate and insist on professionalism when it’s time to work and perform. I also do as much as I can to lead them to certain things subconsciously for two reasons: 1. It’s good pedagogy and 2. Their subconscious usually doesn’t argue with me. During warm ups everyone vocalizes the fullest range of the voice (both girls and boys). We do at least one overall ascending exercise, one descending exercise, and either a range extender or a tongue twister. I teach them why we do certain vocalizes and what their instrument is as scientifically as possible; that knowledge gives them responsibility and accountability for their participation and performance in class and on stage. For instance my favorite warm up is what I call a lip bubble (aka motorboat sound). Ascending and descending the perfect fifth, either with a legato or glissando articulation, gives the students a limited range to manage or focus on. This exercise is wonderful for supporting and maintaining airflow as well as relaxation of many muscles. Occasionally adding the outstretched tongue, which can release some minor tongue tension, injects some purposeful silliness at the beginning of the rehearsal. I usually begin in E flat or E and ascend by half steps to D’. If the piano is used at this point, I try to only have the open fifth or adding the playing the do, re, and sol as a chord to get their ear active in tuning. As for voicing here’s how it works in my classroom. I teach them a short song or fragment and we sing it in multiple keys. I then bring the students up to the piano in small groups, eight to ten at a time, always of the same gender, and we sing thorough them again. I call this a Voice Check (like a doctor’s check-up). No one ever sings by themselves (which reduces anxiety) and I move around the circle "casually" listening to the individuals sing. I then ask them to identify which key felt best for them. The students know that I always take their opinion into account when deciding their voice part and that they don’t always get what they want. Their voice part is determined by how many singers there are in the ensemble, their ability to match pitch, overall tone quality, range, and level of experience. Students sing the part that fits their voice the best. What about the boys? I usually bring all of them up at once and first determine pitch matching ability and guesstimate (depending on my personal experience with the student) where they are in their vocal journey. We do the same exercise as above with modified keys. I use lots of analogies in my instruction and I teach the kids that their voice is like their foot: you can’t control when and how your foot grows, only how you use it. You wouldn’t wear a shoe that’s too big or small or not appropriate for a given activity, so your voice part is going to be as best a fit as possible for your voice where it is now. Boys in my groups sing soprano, alto or baritone. Since we do these voice checks at the beginning of the year and after each concert any student’s voice part is not fixed and can/does change during the year. This leads me to repertoire. The joy and vexation of repertoire! When possible and appropriate, I like to give the students some control of their repertoire. For our festival music I always program a folk song or “world music” type piece which may or may not be in English, an “art” piece which is typically not in English, and a spiritual or gospel style piece in English. I choose two to three pieces per category and present them to the students. We look at the judging form and talk about contrast of styles, genres, languages, and tempi and apply the criteria to the given pieces and together choose the literature. Where do I find my repertoire? The standard answer: everywhere! Repertoire lists found online, concert programs either passed to me or attended, honor choirs, youtube channels of some of my favorite children’s choirs, conferences, reading sessions, colleagues. Don’t be afraid of some SSA literature for a mixed voice chorus; some of those alto parts are in a good range for your changing voice boys. Or my favorite – if the music and/or text is so important to you to teach, make it work for your ensemble! I just rearranged the Peter, Paul, and Mary song “Light One Candle” (SATB) for my 3-part mixed choir because I knew they could handle the harmonies (arranging meant I could control the voicing and lines) and the text’s message was one I wanted them to internalize. Some of my favorite composers and arrangers in no particular order: Ruth Elaine Schram, Patrick Liebergen, Rollo Dilworth, Caldwell & Ivory, Susan Brumfield, Mary Goetze, Jim Papoulis, Henry Leck, Doreen Rao. So you’ve sorted them into voice parts, warmed them up, and have literature in hand. How to teach it? Literacy baby! The resources I use are: Directions to Literacy by Ann Eisen and Lamar Robertson (as a scope & sequence guide for me using different repertoire), One Minute Daily Theory Books 1 & 2 (Slabbinck), 185 Unison Pentatonic Exercises (Bacon) and Kodaly Exercises. They sight-read daily and their mantra is “Don’t stop and never give up.” They read an exercise rhythmically before adding the melody. When they struggle with an exercise I remind them of how far they’ve come (“better today than yesterday, better tomorrow than today”). When it comes to literature, my students write solfege into their music as often as possible. Lots of repetition is key (isn’t it always...). That dovetails into management (which I admit I am struggling with this year). Keep them busy! Moving swiftly in rehearsal is good for their attention span. My students also enjoy some freedoms within boundaries when appropriate. Give them some space when you can tell when they’ve hit their limit (usually occurring outside of class) and push them to develop some drive to move through and beyond the minor drama that distracts from the goal (which is sometimes just getting through rehearsal). We teach life skills as much as we teach legato most days. When I was asked to do this blog post I surveyed my friends as to what I should cover. I’ve tried to touch on everything they’ve suggested, saving my favorite for last: “How to keep your sanity”. When you figure it out can you let me know? I try to laugh and find goosebump moments as much as possible, both in and outside of class. Sometimes it’s remembering the small epiphanies the students have or connecting with a former student who is doing well in high school or beyond. In the moment – breathe – lots of breathing!! Restrain that inner voice that wants to be negative. Invest yourself in yourself. Take care of your physical/emotional/mental/intellectual/spiritual/etc needs. Connect with colleagues. I wish you sanity and success with your squirrels. You make a difference and they know it (though they rarely show it). Amanda Isaac currently directs twelve choral groups ranging between 5th through 8th grades, four of which are at the junior high, and teaches 2nd and 3rd grade classroom music at two elementary schools in the same school district in Bakersfield, California. Her junior high choirs consistently earn superiors or higher at festivals and her students regularly participate in county, all-state, division, and national honor choirs. After earning both a BA and MA in Music from California State University Chico, Mrs. Isaac furthered her professional studies by completing her Kodály Certification from McNeese State University with Lamar Robertson, Ann Eisen, and Susan Tevis. Mrs. Isaac has given presentations at both regional and state conferences for multiple organizations and enjoys guest conducting honor choirs. In 2016 she joined the faculty of the Colorado Kodaly Institute where she teaches the Level 3 Pedagogy and Folk Song Analysis courses. Named the Kern County Music Educators Association’s Choral Educator of the Year in 2013, Mrs. Isaac is currently serving her second term as the organization’s President. She also hosts the Kern County CMEA Choral Ratings Festival and holds active memberships in the California Music Educators Association, American Choral Directors Association, and Organization of American Kodaly Educators. Outside of academia, Mrs. Isaac is the Director of Music Ministries for First Congregational Church, UCC in Bakersfield. In her free time, she enjoys life with her wonderful husband and two young children.
Try these middle school drama lessons and ideas.
1. Attach an image (photo, magazine, etc.) to a notebook page and write about it. 2. What things will people in the future say about how we live now? (Examples: They ate that? They believed that?) 3. Pick one from each list to make a creature and animal combination. Now write a short story or scene in which this creature appears. List 1 List 2 Vampire porcupine Ninja armadillo Zombie pig Pirate goat Mummy lobster Clown possum Banshee shark Wraith moray eel 4. Imagine a future in which we each have a personalized robot servant. What would yours be like? What would it do? What features would it have? 5. What does your name mean? Free write about names: names you like, names you don’t, how a name can affect a person’s life, how you feel about your own name, why your parents chose your name, etc. 6. Create a brand new holiday with its own traditions, rituals, foods, and activities. 7. What road-trip would you take if you suddenly could? Write about it. 8. List six true sentences that begin with the words “I'll never forget…” 9. Imagine that we lost all electricity, water, and gas for a month without any time to prepare. Write about how your life would change and how you would survive. 10. Make your bucket list for the next 5 years, the next 10 years, and for life. 11. Tell this story: “Well, I thought it was going to be a regular summer doing all our regular things…” 12. List 10 places in the world that you would most like to visit, 10 places you’ve been, and 10 places you would never want to go. 13. Think about hospitality in your family. What’s it like to have guests in your house? Do you prefer to have friends to your house or to go to a friend’s house? 14. Pick a family member of two and write about his or her reputation in your family, or tell a family legend. 15. A guitar pick, a red balloon, and a wicker basket. Write a scene or a poem that includes these three objects. 16. What animal would judge us the most? Write a scene (based on truth or fiction) where two or more people are doing something silly, and they're being observed and criticized by animals. 17. Write about your own worst family vacation memory. 18. Write about your best family vacation memory. 19. Imagine that someone says to you, “Because that's how we've always done it!” Write this out as a scene. (Think: Who said it, what were the circumstances, how did you respond, etc.) 20. What do you think about when you can't sleep? Turn it into a piece of writing. 21. What traditions does your family have? List all of them or just pick one and write about it. 22. Think about your strongest emotion right now (irritation, boredom, happiness, contentment, etc.) and find five quotes about this emotion. 23. What do you struggle with the most? Write about it. 24. Write a self-portrait. 25. What can we learn from contrast? Write a description of something very dark (like a crow) in a very light place (like a field of snow). Make the dark thing seem innocent and the light thing seem ominous. 26. Write about someone who has no enemies. Is it even possible? 27. Think of a person from your past who really deserved a good scolding but never got one. Write a fictional piece where you tell that person off intelligently. 28. Can honesty honestly be bad? Write about someone, fact or fiction, who gets in trouble for being too truthful. 29. The word “fat” carries a negative connotation. Write a story or observation where something fat is celebrated. 30. What animal lives beneath your human skin? A mouse? A cougar? Or what? Explain with writing. 31. Write about the best piece of advice you ever received. 32. Remember a favorite book from your childhood. Write a scene that includes you and an old copy of that book you find somewhere. --> 33. “I was so mortified, I wanted to crawl in a hole!” Write a short narrative (fiction or nonfiction) where this is your first sentence. Illustrate it if you want. 34. Should books ever be banned? Discuss. If no, explain why. You might want to look at a least of commonly banned books. If yes, explain under what circumstances. 35. Ernest Hemingway said to “write hard and clear about what hurts.” Write about something that hurts, whether it’s an emotional, physical, or phantom pain. 36. What if everyone had to wear a shirt with his or her Myers-Briggs personality type on it? What would this change? How would this affect the way people interact with each other? Would you like this or hate it? (If you don’t know your “type,” try this site. 37. William Shakespeare wrote that: “Conversation should be pleasant without scurrility, witty without affectation, free without indecency, learned without conceitedness, novel without falsehood.” Write your thoughts about conversation, or make up dialogue between two characters who are meeting each other for the first time in an unexpected place. 38. Tell this story: “There it was, finally. Our island. Our very own island. It looked beautiful above the waves of fog, but there was still one question to be answered: why had they sold it to us for only five dollars?” 39. Maya Angelou said “I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way s/he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.” Tell a story in which a character has to deal with one, two, or all three of these scenarios. How does your character respond? 40. You have a chance to go back and completely re-do an event in your life. What is it, and how to you change it? What is the outcome? This can be a real or fictional event. 41. Pick two characters from different books you’ve read this year and have them get in an argument about something (e.g., who has suffered more, who has had a happier life, etc.). 42. The one shoe in the road: why is it there? Write a story about the circumstances that led to one shoe in the middle of the road. 43. You get to guest star on a TV show. What show is it? What happens in this particular episode? 44. What would you pack in your suitcase if you could not go home again? 45. You can only use 20 words for the rest of your life. You can repeat them as often as you wish, but you can only use these words. What are they? 46. What current fashion in clothing do you particularly like or dislike? Why? 47. Choose five symbols or objects that represent you. Why did you choose these things? 48. "When I stepped outside, the whole world smelled like…" Write a scene that starts with that line. 49. Write a poem entitled "Hitchhiking on a Saturday Afternoon." 50. Use these two lines of dialogue in a story: "What's in your hand?" "It's mine. I found it." 51. Write a scene that happens in a parking lot between a teenager and a man in a convertible. 52. If you only had one window to look out of for the next six months, what would you want to see on the other side? Describe the view. How would it change? 53. Write a story for children. Start with “Once upon a time” or “Long ago in a land far away.” Include a dragon, a deadly flower, and a mask. 54. "Did she actually just say that?" Write a scene that includes this line. 55. “Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.” — Jane Howard. Write what comes to mind when you read this quote. 56. List five things you want in a relationship. 57. List ten favorite lines from movies. 58. Write about the biggest mistake you made this week. Now write about the best thing you did this week. 59. What is the very first memory that you have? Write about it. 60. What if your pet could only talk to you at midnight for an hour? 61. Write an acrostic poem using your full name and three words that describe you—good and bad— for each letter. For example, S: sensitive, stubborn, smiling. A: artistic, argumentative, agoraphobic M: melodramatic, moody, magical 62. What if you could create your own TV show with all your friends and loved ones as the cast? What kind of show would it be and who would play which parts? 63. Take a photo or draw a picture of every place you go in a day. Put the pictures or drawings in your journal. 64. A to Z: Make an alphabetical list of advice for someone who is about to become a teenager. For example: A: ask forgiveness, not permission. B.: bake cookies. C.: cook something delicious once a month. D: don't compare yourself to others. 65. Find 10 quotes about happiness. 66. Write about 5 things you'd rather be doing right now. 67. Write out the lyrics to your favorite song. Find some pictures to illustrate the song. 68. Who do you spend the most time talking to? Siblings, parents, friends? Make a list of who you actually talk to during the day and estimate the amount of time invested in each individual. Does the list reveal your priorities? Is it proportional to what is important to you? Make notes of what you talk about in your daily conversations. 69. Find a quote for each month of the year. 70. Animals can sometimes seem remarkably human. Describe an experience with an animal that acted in a very human way. 71. Imagine you opted to have yourself frozen for 50 years. Describe your first days unfrozen, 50 years in the future. 72. Imagine that you are an astronaut who has been doing research on the moon for three years. You are do to go back to earth in a week when nuclear war breaks out on earth. You watch the earth explode. Then what? 73. Create a menu from a fictitious restaurant. Make sure the restaurant has a theme, such as Classic Books, and the food should all be given appropriate names (e.g., “Mockingbird Pie”). 74. Preconceived notions are often false. Describe a time when you discovered that a preconceived notion of yours (about a person, place, or thing) turned out to be wrong. 75. Create a story using words of one-syllable only, beginning with a phrase such as: “The last time I saw her, she...” “From the back of the truck...” “On the night of the full moon...” “The one thing I know for sure…” 76. Describe a significant person (teacher, neighbor, mentor, coach, parent, sibling, sweetheart) with as many physical details as possible and as many similes as possible. (E.g., “Her hair was as golden as straw.”) 77. Write about your first name—why you were given it, what associations or stories are attached to it, what you think or know it means. Do the same for your last name. What name would you give yourself other than the one you actually have? 78. Parents are our first and most important teachers. Describe a valuable lesson you learned from one of your parents. 79. Imagine a moral dilemma (for example, you see someone shoplift or a friend tells a blatant lie to her parents about where she was last night) and explain what you would do and why you would do it. 80. Review an obituary, birth, or a section from the police record or classified ads section of a local newspaper. Choose one and tell the story behind it. 81. List the most attractive things about your current hometown. Now list the most unattractive things. 82. Come up with a list of nouns and a second list of verbs, all of one syllable each. Describe a scene or situation, using a minimum of ten words from each list. 83. Where is your happy place? Write about it and include a picture or drawing. 84. Create a how-to manual for something you can do well (make a craft, bake cookies, restring a guitar, apply make up, etc.). Describe the process so that someone else could complete the task based on your directions. Use present tense verbs. 85. Free write on this quote by Samuel Johnson: “Ignorance, when voluntary, is criminal.” 86. Find a favorite quote and work it into an illustration. (Inspiration here.) 87. Make a soundtrack for your life so far. List songs that describe you or different times of your life. (Make the actual soundtrack on Spotify, etc. too!) 88. Sometimes we find ourselves in situations that force us to face our deepest fears. Tell about a time when you had to face one of your greatest fears—or make up the story. 89. You’re a talk show host. Pick two guests. Why did you choose them? Are they people who get along, or people with vastly different viewpoints? Write about the episode. 90. What three books do you think should be required reading for everyone? Why? 91. “What you don’t know what hurt you.” Write a story that begins with this statement. 92. Free write on this quote by Woodrow Wilson: “Friendship is the only cement that will hold the world together.” 93. According to a Czechoslovakian proverb, “Better a lie that soothes than a truth that hurts.” Agree or disagree? Explain. 94. Rewrite “The Tale of the Three Little Pigs” by using people that you know as the pigs and the wolf. 95. There is a saying that you should be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it. Describe a time when you wished for something and got it—and then wished you hadn’t—or make up a story in which this happens to the character. 96. As the saying goes, “rules are meant to be broken.” Tell about a time when you broke the rules and what happened as a result. 97. "That's not what I meant!" Write a story that has this line in it somewhere. 98. A blue trash can, a red picture frame, a teddy bear with the stuffing falling out, and a padlock. Put these four items somewhere in a story, scene, or poem. 99. Write your name in outline letters on a whole sheet of paper. Now fill in each letter with words you like that begin with that letter. For example: 100. Make a word collage of who YOU are. Use pictures too, if desired. **HURRAH! You can now purchase this as a digital PDF ($2) at Teachers Pay Teachers. For more creative writing ideas, check out my free WordSmithery creative writing lessons and my popular Ultimate Guide to Creative Writing Resources! Check out 100 other 100 Things posts from the bloggers at iHomeschool Network! Do you have it yet? The Big Book of Homeschooling Ideas—a collaboration of over 50 authors with 103 chapters— is now available! Don't miss this amazing resource!
middle school chorus
These worksheets are perfect for having your students practice naming line and space notes in the treble clef! Includes notes from middle C to G at the top of the treble clef (apart from middle C, no ledger line notes). New! Now includes two different versions of each worksheet to give you even more flexibility: Version 1 - Students have only one minute to name as many of the notes on the worksheet as possible Version 2 - Students can complete the worksheet at their leisure (with no time limit) Whether you decide to complete them daily, once a week, etc., or send them home with your private music students, these worksheets will help improve note-naming proficiency while providing you with information on students' progress. They are also perfect for supplies and early finishers! Includes: 10 worksheets (timed and not timed versions) - 7 with 40 notes per worksheet, 3 with 52 notes per worksheet Full solutions Recording sheet for students to track how many notes they correctly identify on each worksheet ---- If you like this product, please consider leaving a review. Reviewing products also gives you credit to put towards future purchases on TpT! Follow me for updates and notifications about new products by clicking here.
The Line Music, your favorite music on your walls Retranscription of silhouettes through clean decorative lines Line, an emerging French brand since 2015, excels in transcribing urban silhouettes through clean decorative lines, created to be hung anywhere, whether in the bedroom, living room, or even in professional offices. Conversion of sound frequency into single lines, merging visual art and music Recently, The Line has expanded its artistic scope by venturing into music performance. Thanks to an ingenious algorithm, the sound frequency of each song is converted into a single stroke. Thus, the greatest classics will no longer only be audible, but also visible, offering an enriched sensory experience. Musical lines as visual testimonies of the emotion of iconic pieces This innovative initiative merges visual art and music in a completely unique way. The musical lines created by The Line are not just graphic representations, but visual testaments to the emotion and complexity of the iconic pieces. Features 1.5mm thick painted steel line to attach to the wall with 3 nails for the medium and 5 for the large outdoors and indoors Weight & Dimensions Description Imperial Metric Length 19.6" 50cm Height The pitch varies depending on the music. Instructions & Maintenance Some assembly is required. Use a damp cloth to clean and a dry cloth to remove water marks. Avoid cleaning with abrasive products. Start by nailing the line in the middle, then simply adjust the level. Not suitable for brick or concrete walls. Shipping, Delivery & Returns Free in-store pickup. See collection centers . Online orders are shipped from our Canadian warehouse. In-stock and special order products are shipped or available for pickup on a processing time basis. See details . Returns are admissible under conditions. The merchandise must be in its original condition. See details .
Too many classroom icebreakers require students to take big social risks with people they barely know. Or they don't really help students get to know each other. Or they are just plain cheesy.
Welcome to our Music Room! Let me show you around... We are so fortunate to have SMARTboards in our classrooms! I don't know how I could ever teach without one now! Here is our instrumentarium! I am always looking to expand my Orff collection! :) Our Musical Word Wall... More classroom instruments and our music textbooks... Our Music Essential Questions posted... The Music Standards (in kid-friendly language) are also posted for each class. The 4th and 5th graders spend a few minutes during each class learning about various composers each month. They are just now finishing up a study on John Williams. They really enjoy learning facts about each composer, listening to their compositions, and playing Composer Jeopardy at the end of each study. Each class has a chance to earn stickers for good behavior each time they come to music. After they earn 6 stickers, they receive a class karaoke party! Fun times! I hope you enjoyed the tour! Check back soon for more updates on the Music Room fun!
Staff paper PDFs for your music lessons, FREE. Big horizontal & vertical staff pages with & without clef symbols! Download printable staff paper of all types
My rule #1 in a series about bringing out the best behavior in middle school students, Helpful tips for managing adolescents effectively.
People change when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change....whether they are children or adults. Many people stop speeding (at least temporarily!) when they get a ticket. People are more likely to eat healthier foods and start exercising when the doctor tells them their cholesterol or blood pressure is too high, and they are in danger of having a heart attack or stroke. Smokers often stop smoking when they feel that nagging never-ending cough that is the first sign of cancer. It's human nature. Our students are no different. When they aren't meeting our expectations, they have to be respectfully, compassionately and swiftly held accountable. Note those adverbs...they are the key to the solutions....No matter which way you decide to solve the issues at hand, do so Respectfully, Compassionately, and Swiftly. How does that look? What does that mean? How do we get there? What foundations do we have to lay? A few ideas... Many people watch my S-Cubed Sight Singing Teaching Example videos on my YouTube Channel and see my approach to teaching, and they may think that it's all fun and games. Well...as with life, it isn't quite that simple. I certainly try to laugh with my students, have fun with them and motivate them, but ultimately, as middle school teachers, we will encounter behavior issues. We have to be willing and committed to following through when it comes to discipline and grading. When we do so, ironically, it makes more laughter and fun possible in the classroom than when we don't. These are middle school children. They do what we allow. Here is an example I've experienced recently. An assignment was due. I'd told the children that if they don't meet the deadline, they will get a "0". Student "A" doesn't meet the deadline. I put the "0" in the electronic grade book immediately. No yelling. No screaming. No lecturing. I simply followed through. I allowed the child and the parent to see it online. Voila...the child brings in the assignment. The pain taught the lesson. I changed the "0" to a "50"...giving some sort of credit for the late assignment to acknowledge that the child made an effort to turn it in. Doing so shows compassion, but there is still some pain involved. That pain is what teaches the lesson. Without it, change is less likely to occur. Whatever the behavior is (repeated talking while you teach, not bringing required materials to class, etc.), there must be a tangible consequence that is felt by the student. We don't humiliate. We don't repeat threats. We just follow through. It doesn't take them long to learn that you do. Here are some questions to ask yourself? 1) Have you TAUGHT your daily procedures effectively? Do they understand the daily routines? They thrive with structure, and we must TEACH it the same way we teach how long to hold a whole note. 2) Are you using positive reinforcement with the children? Are you publicly acknowledging and praising the children who are doing things correctly. This solves so many issues and saves enormous energy. 3) Are you treating your children with respect? Some teachers balk at this. They have the attitude that "I am the adult, so I deserve respect." Forgive me for this...but you don't. Respect is a circle in every relationship...adult to adult....child to child....adult to child. We are the adults, and it is up to us to set the tone. When we don't set that tone, we set ourselves up for disaster. When we DO set it up well, we get to ask the question to the child whose just disrespected us in some way, "Have I ever treated you poorly or without respect?" When they have to say "No", you are in a position of strength to move toward good results with that child. If they answer "Yes", then you've got some introspective work to do. Always treat them with respect. Do not call them out and embarrass them in front of other children. Find discreet ways to handle behavior issues while you are teaching (proximity, a "look"), but never publicly embarrass. It won't turn out well. 4) Have you set up strong communication systems that are very easy to use to help you communicate better with parents and students? Remind.com is an easy to use tool for quick short messages. I don't use this, but lots of my peers do, and they love it. I cannot emphasize how important #4 is. When we have an easy ability to reach out to our parents when we need support, it makes everything easier...from getting chaperones for a trip, to making costumes, to partnering with you to help their child. When we have to take the time to dig around to find an email address, it diminishes the chances we will communicate and that hurts everyone. I use our school email system. I request all of the parents email addresses on the syllabus they sign. Using that document, I create a contact that says "Parent of Jane Doe". I place the contact into a list of all of the students in that particular class period. I also add it to an "All Chorus" list so that I can send an email to all chorus parents at once. This gives me three ways to easily access and use the information in a variety of circumstances that help me communicate with groups of people as well as individual people. This way, when Jane Doe misbehaves, and my strategies haven't worked with her, I can immediately go pop an email out to her. Every communication is documented. Personally, I don't like phone calls. If you get into a difficult situation with a parent, it becomes "he said/she said". With email, it's all there in black and white. Sometimes, phone calls are necessary, but 99% of the time, I handle everything with an email. In the emails, I start and end with something positive. When I state the issue that precipitated the email, I do so 100% objectively. I do not accuse. I simply state, unemotionally, the behaviors that led us to this point along with any strategies I used with the parent, and I ask for ideas from the parent about how to get better results with that child. We are partners. For me, this solves the issue 95% of the time. No administrative referrals needed. If it doesn't solve the issue, I call the parent in for a meeting with the child present. By then, I've taken meticulous, clear, non-judgmental notes about specific behaviors the child has exhibited in my room. In the meeting, I state those. I usually offer to do a daily contract of some sort that perhaps results in something positive for the child if he upholds the contract. I get the parent to sign the contract daily. It is returned to me daily. It becomes a log. I give a score of 10 if the child was perfect in the behavior that day. The score is lower if he failed to meet expectations. Middle School children enjoy immediate feedback. I prefer not to deal with administration. It's just too cumbersome. I make sure my work is focused, first, on helping the child. It helps us form a relationship with the person who matters most. When it becomes clear that he cannot do it alone with me, I reach to the parent. The goal is a better behaved child who feels successful and begins to take pride in doing the right thing. They are just children who are trying to find their way. We have to help them. I hope that this gives you some ideas that can help you in your classroom! Hundreds of teachers all over the world are using S-Cubed: How to Teach Sight Singing to Middle School Beginners. I am grateful that it seems to be helping teachers with far more than just sight singing. If you are using it, please share the news of it on social media sites in your home states and countries as well as the large group Facebook Pages like Music Teachers and I'm a Choir Director. I do not advertise in a traditional way. I'm just a teacher like the rest of us! Check out my blog!
E is for Elephant is a set of songs for young beginners to introduce the names of seven notes around middle C.
10 inexpensive rewards to use in your middle school class.
