Aeolus character design process! (disclaimer: my writing sucks and I'm not good at explaining things so if it gets a bit weird just know I'm trying my best) a lot of people have been saying very ni…
Finally! The Taxonomy of my Music is complete! While I’m working on my Digital Art assignments I enjoy watching my favorite TV shows. I bring this up to help you get a sense for how long it t…
It's a rainy evening and the 1st graders in your children's choir are extra wiggly. You need a quick change-of-pace to keep their attention and get through rehearsal. Been there? I think we all have. There are lots of games you could play, but I like choosing games and activi
The musician says her new video was inspired by the refugee and migrant crisis
Homeschooling upper elementary is all about burgeoning independence (but maybe not as much as you were hoping for!) This is everything you need for homeschooling grades 4-6.
Teaching music in your homeschool may seem intimidating, but it doesn't have to be. Today I'm sharing five easy ways to teach music at home.
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.
LOL, remember ‘Flubber’?
Why do we have to use three different NAT syntax versions from the same vendor!? I'm just as frustrated as you. Hopefully this cheat sheet will help out.
A guide from German opera legend Lilli Lehmann
November 20, 2013 We have been learning all about "tempo" (the speed--fast or slow--of the beat) and "rhythm" in ...
Today, I'm going to talk about two high and low activities I have used in my classroom for several years now. Five Little Monkeys This is...
Are the National poised to be Brooklyn’s answer to Radiohead?
People can learn in more than one way. How does this info help presenters and public speakers? By making us think of the audience in different ways.
I teach reading at an elementary school. I love what I do! I wanted to share some "ways to praise" that we use in my classroom. These ...
Changing chords is one of the hardest things to do on guitar. We might learn a new strumming pattern after a few tries, or get a scale under our fingers in fifteen minutes, but changing chords smoothly and quickly can take time and effort. Any such change requires precise and often demanding movements from the … How to Change Chords Quickly on Guitar | 7 Tricks Read More »
A few years ago, our school implemented "voice levels" as a way to help at assemblies, in hallways, and within our classrooms. This has really helped with consistency across the grade levels and made the first few weeks of school even easier when introducing these concepts. In our school, if a teacher needs to get students' attention, he/she will hold up our hand in the shape of a zero. If kids are working in small groups and are getting a little noisy, I would hold up two fingers to remind them it was "Voice Level 2". When we create presentation rubrics, we always include "Voice Level 3" as an area to focus on. In the beginning of the year, when we are making our Daily 5 Anchor Charts around expectations, Voice Levels 0, 1, and 2 always make an appearance. I have loved thinking of Voice Level 1 (whisper) as "Spy Talk"! In the past, I have used the fingers-on-the-voicebox trick~ if it vibrates, it's not Voice Level 1~ but the idea of talking like a spy is soooooo much more fun! This year, I ask my Teacher's Assistant to help be my Voice Level Monitor. If they feel it is getting too noisy, they will assist me in showing the appropriate voice level with our finger(s). Here is the file for the poster (I recently changed over my font, so it looks slightly different). **UPDATE: If you like this idea, you will love my new Voice Levels Management Pack available on TpT! Be sure to download the Preview to see everything that's included and read my updated post HERE for more info! Enjoy!
Several years ago, I developed this progress chart to include in each student’s practice journal so that we could easily track which chords and scales they had mastered at various tempi. Although I haven’t used the chart for a while now, I still get comments from other teachers who are using it successfully in their […]
Hello! This is Tanya LeJeune. I hope everyone is keeping warm. It’s cold here in Colorado! For my first blog post here at Kodály Corner I’m going to focus on what I refer to as opening songs. Before they walk into the music room, most students have been sitting in the classroom at their desk and working independently. In music they have to work musically as a group and independently. Students need to change gears. Opening songs set the stage for music and provide a warm-up for the voice and the brain. Additionally, the structure and predictability that an opening song provides is helpful in keeping students focused for the class time. The song we sing may or may not be connected to the specific concepts that grade level is working on. An opening song is not the focus of the lesson and should not take up more than a few minutes. Most of the opening songs I use are also canons and give us the opportunity to practice part work. I keep my opening songs for 1 – 2 months. As students become more confident singing their opening song we add complexity with canons, ostinati, and instruments. Here are a few opening songs I’m using this month. 4th Grade I Love the Mountains The 4th graders are preparing for their Colorado concert and this familiar song will be included. For concerts and performances I like to have an audience participation piece to end the performance. Sometimes the audience participation piece is a simple line dance audience members can do from their seats, (last year the students taught their families the South African dance Pata Pata,) and sometimes I choose a well known song. This might be the audience participation song for the Colorado concert. (or I may use This Land is Your Land, I’m still deciding.) I Love the Mountains is a good song to inspire the students to create accompanying movements. We'll sing and move in canon for the concert, possibly adding the audience as a 4th part. 3rd Grade To Stop the Train Here’s a fun and melodically challenging song to sing. I'm preparing low sol in 3rd grade and later we'll extract the last two note, "five pounds!" (We won't be decoding the rest of the melody!) The movements are as follows: To stop: hands out in “stop” position The train: slide hands together in a circular motion In cases of emergency: hands up “flashing lights”moving fingers out and in on the beat Pull on the chain: both hands up and pull down Penalty for improper use: waggfinger Five pounds: show 5 fingers on “five” and then flatten hand down as if to receive payment This song also provides great audition (inner hearing) practice. I'll have students audiate and perform the motions of sections until they are inner-hearing the entire song. 2nd Grade Are You Sleeping? The 2nd graders are practicing half note. Are You Sleeping is a perfect opening song for them. They sing the lyrics and then sing the rhythm syllables. I hand out hand chimes to four students to add the “ding, ding, dongs,” at the end of the song, (we sing it in F major with the hand chimes playing F C, F F C, F.) During the next class period we’ll turn the “ding, ding, dongs” into an ostinato with half of the class singing with the hand chimes. I have a ostinato song that is sung to the tune of Are You Sleeping that I’ll use as well. (It’s one of those songs I’ve known forever and I have no idea where I first heard it, definitely BK!) Soon they'll learn the Are You Sleeping? lyrics in french and we'll create a class arrangement using ABA form. 1st Grade The 1st graders love moving and grooving to That's a Mighty Pretty Motion! Due to the cold and snow, it's looking like we'll have an "inside recess" day everyday this week. You can bet we'll be very active in the music room! Stay warm and continue singing, playing, and learning!