These are SO much fun! The full pdf has 20 pages with all the games listed. Hope you enjoy them - if you would like the pdf, send me an email at [email protected]. If you haven't yet checked out my facebook page, there are extras including a video that shows some other activities and teaching tips with hula hoops - search for @ofortunaorff.
A group of fellow bloggers are posting each day in July to gear up and rev our engines for the start of a new school year. Find us on facebook at Music Ed Blogs. Amazing group of teachers with fabulous blogs!! Names, names, oh how special they are! And how tough for us music, art, PE, library, etc. teachers to learn the hundreds of them each year. Here are a few activities to help you the first few weeks of school, and these are SO fun!! Pinkie swear promise! 1. Jump In, Jump Out There are many versions of this. I use the one from Laura at Make Music Rock.. She has a great blog post about this game! My older students love this one - maybe not for the very first activity the first day, but definitely sooner than later in the first lesson. Here is a video of Laura's kids performing the game. I love it - fun and a little sassy. Another version - love the Australian accent! I also love the beginning talk about the hand holding- very interesting! 2. Up the Ladder From Randy and Jeff's Gameplan Curriculum, Grade 3, available here. And check out the great extension using drums or UPP - again from Laura at Make Music Rock. 3. Hey, Children, Who's in Town? 4. Ickety Tickety 5. Name Game - The Original! Remember this one? I do!!! Katie, Katie, bo-ba-tee, Bo-na-na fan-na, fo-fa-nee Fee fi mo-may-tee Katie! 6. Dry Bones Come Skipping 7. I Can Say Your Name 8. Mrs, Macaroni 9. Names in Three 10. Willoughby Wallaby Woo! By Raffi Willoughby wallaby woo An elephant sat on YOU (point finger toward child whose name will be sung next) Willoughby Wallaby Wistopher An elephant sat on Christopher 11. Pig on Her Head by Laurie Berkner Use the chorus of the song. A box of beanie babies are the perfect accompaniment for this one! Let each child choose; I usually put four or five on the floor at a time and invite three children up at a time (more choices than children, always). Begin by having the animal on children's heads, then sing, "Blakely has a goose on her hand....", and the next verse, "Thomas has a dog on his knee.. " etc. I love Laurie Berkner, if you don't already know "I Have a Chicken" you need it in your repertoire to use with shaker eggs. Hilarious!!! Hope you have fun with these! If you know others, please share them in the comments below. Happy back to school!
When I first began teaching 23 years ago (yikes!) I didn't keep track of song repertoire the way I do now. I also often felt pressed to sing lots of songs (still do) but would only sing them once or twice and then be done with that song. Now I keep a list of repertoire learned and frequently revisit songs. I also try to "double dip" concepts and skills and repeat songs learned in previous grades but with a focus on a different concept. That So Mi song that has Do, Re, Mi at the ending may be great for SM in Kindergarten, but also works beautifully in first for DRM. I have a lot of different ways to start music class, see the post here about Musical Moments to Start Class, but one thing I really love to do is a "Song of the Month" (SOM) for each grade level. I have found SOM also helps students to "change gears". Opening songs set the stage for musical learning, provide a warm-up for the voice and the brain, and offer a predictable, structural transition to music class. The song we sing may or may not be connected to the specific concepts or skills we are working on. An opening song is not the focus of the lesson and should not take up more than a few minutes. I see my students on a 4 day rotation, so 1 to 2 times a week depending on the week. You could certainly sing these for 6 to 8 weeks, depending on how frequently you see your students (and how sick of the song they or you get!). Here are a few ideas for grades K-1: Hello, Hello Thanks to Katie Traxler for introducing this one to me. I am not sure of the source, but it is a familiar tune to all of us music folks! It is performed in a circle with partners facing each other and is a changing partner song/dance. Hey, There, Friend (Another thanks to Katie for this one on her youtube channel, I changed the word "glorious" to "wonderful". My kindies LOVE this! I am not sure of the source, if you know, please let me know. Hello This is one I wrote late last week for my littles. Grades 2 through 4 Bow Wow Wow My 2nd graders love this song and dance. I love the giggles each time they turn around to find a new partner! Chocolate, Chocolate Third graders enjoy this song about chocolate! We often add a "B" section with composed rhythms created from, what else, chocolate! Kit Kat, Hersheys, Peanut butter cup! Boom Snap Clap Fourth graders love this as it sounds like "beat boxing"! They love the challenge of it and that there are "levels" of play. This is in my book, Hands to Hands, available here. To Stop the Train Another of my favorites! Love the way Rob Amchin processes this with movement first!
When I first began teaching 23 years ago (yikes!) I didn't keep track of song repertoire the way I do now. I also often felt pressed to sing lots of songs (still do) but would only sing them once or twice and then be done with that song. Now I keep a list of repertoire learned and frequently revisit songs. I also try to "double dip" concepts and skills and repeat songs learned in previous grades but with a focus on a different concept. That So Mi song that has Do, Re, Mi at the ending may be great for SM in Kindergarten, but also works beautifully in first for DRM. I have a lot of different ways to start music class, see the post here about Musical Moments to Start Class, but one thing I really love to do is a "Song of the Month" (SOM) for each grade level. I have found SOM also helps students to "change gears". Opening songs set the stage for musical learning, provide a warm-up for the voice and the brain, and offer a predictable, structural transition to music class. The song we sing may or may not be connected to the specific concepts or skills we are working on. An opening song is not the focus of the lesson and should not take up more than a few minutes. I see my students on a 4 day rotation, so 1 to 2 times a week depending on the week. You could certainly sing these for 6 to 8 weeks, depending on how frequently you see your students (and how sick of the song they or you get!). Here are a few ideas for grades K-1: Hello, Hello Thanks to Katie Traxler for introducing this one to me. I am not sure of the source, but it is a familiar tune to all of us music folks! It is performed in a circle with partners facing each other and is a changing partner song/dance. Hey, There, Friend (Another thanks to Katie for this one on her youtube channel, I changed the word "glorious" to "wonderful". My kindies LOVE this! I am not sure of the source, if you know, please let me know. Hello This is one I wrote late last week for my littles. Grades 2 through 4 Bow Wow Wow My 2nd graders love this song and dance. I love the giggles each time they turn around to find a new partner! Chocolate, Chocolate Third graders enjoy this song about chocolate! We often add a "B" section with composed rhythms created from, what else, chocolate! Kit Kat, Hersheys, Peanut butter cup! Boom Snap Clap Fourth graders love this as it sounds like "beat boxing"! They love the challenge of it and that there are "levels" of play. This is in my book, Hands to Hands, available here. To Stop the Train Another of my favorites! Love the way Rob Amchin processes this with movement first!
A group of fellow bloggers are posting each day in July to gear up and rev our engines for the start of a new school year. Find us on facebo...
These are SO much fun! The full pdf has 20 pages with all the games listed. Hope you enjoy them - if you would like the pdf, send me an ema...
My kiddos love this game and BEG to play it again and again. The beauty of it, well.. it's also a great informal assessment! I use this with my Junior Kindergarten (ages 4 and 5) up through first grade. This is based on a similar one in Gameplan. The song and graphics are my own and so I am not stepping on Jeff and Randy's toes by sharing it with you but will give them all the credit for the game!! :)
We music teachers love our manipulatives, whether they are the mini-erasers from Target, stuffed animals, popsicle sticks, or printed items. Engaging students to actively create while in remote/3-learning is challenging. I have been using Google slides to create manipulatives students can move around and wanted to share these with you here. You can use these in many ways - the final slide has the ones you may want to use with students to go with the Bee Bee Bumblebee rhyme. Here is what the moveable slide looks like - with cards the students can click and drag to create new rhythms based upon the traditional rhyme. There are other slides to use as well in the classroom: Here's another to use with Bluebird Bluebird: Hope you enjoy these and let me know how you use them!
Update: July 13, due to overwhelming interest (and overwhelming my email box) the full collection will only be available until Monday, July 14. Only requests received until that time will be honored. Thanks for understanding! It's finally done.. after asking many other music teachers about their favorite clapping games for the classroom, I've put it all together into one collection. Here are some of the ones from the collection. Enjoy!
I am linking up today with Elizabeth at Organized Chaos for a linky party with other music teacher bloggers. Here are 18 favorite singing games along with sources and all other info. Send me an email at [email protected] and I will send them your way. Here are a few examples to get you excited: My kids love these and beg for them, especially the "slap games" like Ama Llama! My kids also love Mac 'n Cheese.. it's a camp song but they could play and sing this for HOURS
3 Exercises For Orff Body Percussion 1. An easy and fun rhythmic exercise for Orff Body Percussion. 2. Follow up to the first Keep the Beat. Slightly more difficult rhythmic exercise for Orff body percussion with dotted quarter note, eighth note rhythms. 3. Follow up to Keep The Beat 1 and 2. Emphasis is on precision with rests needing care. Each part should follow on to the next in a seamless flow. This exercise can be repeated at faster and faster tempos. TERMS OF USE: © Yvonne Johnson Music. All Rights Reserved Free downloads are intended for your own personal, non-commercial use or for use with students in your private studio or classroom. You may not sell, resell, distribute as your own, share or upload to the internet any sheet music either purchased or available as a free download. The copyright of all music, paid or free is owned by Yvonne Johnson Music
On this page you’ll find all the books, games, resources, links, and extras that I talked about in my Musical Mondays LIVE videos. Please be aware that some of the links shared below are “Affiliate Links,” meaning that should you purchase something I suggest I would earn a small percentage […]
Canoe Song
I love Halloween songs and music, but I'm always looking for ways to encourage solo singing. Some groups of children are amazing, and others, well.. *sigh*... it's a struggle to get them to use their singing voices as a solo; sound great together, but then there are those groups or children who LOVE to talk but are shy about their singing voices, particularly as a solo instrument. I encourage and we do a lot of solo singing and was so excited earlier today when I had my first graders who LOVED singing a monster! I am a digital scrapbooker and, as such, have quite a large collection of digital graphics and images. You can find lots of VERY cute monster images on google by doing a search for "cute monster images" or "monster cartoon image". These were the ones I printed, laminated, and cut: Here are a few to get you started: First I showed the students a monster card and I talked about the details, then using "Sol and Mi" I sang a short song about the details. Do this a few times with more monster cards, then give each child a monster and ask them to notice the details; how many eyes, hands, what color, big, small, dots, smiles, etc. I let them show their monster to a neighbor but ONLY 1 neighbor, otherwise, keep your monster "classified, top secret". Use the toy microphone (thank you Dollar Tree!) and the teacher sings, "Sing Me a Monster" on "Sol Mi Mi Sol Mi" and the student sings back details about their monster. If a child is too shy, ask them what details we could sing about, then the teacher sings and the whole class echoes the teacher. After each child sings about their monster they show it to the "world".. giggles, snorts, and whoops and hollers! Have fun!
Here in NC we RARELY get snow.. it's been 2 years since we have had a snow day.. well, woohoo.. got one today! Perfect timing as I've just come back to school from a medical leave (surgery 8 weeks ago.. final exclamation point on this past year of 4 surgeries and intense medical issues and emergencies! Yeehaw!). I've taught 2 whole days.. whew.. and now a snow day, then tomorrow (if we have a full day of school, which is in question because the high today is a whopping 28 degrees, we have an exploratory day and we have students going to a museum and visitors coming to do rotations in the afternoon, so no regular classes then, and back to a regular schedule Friday, Monday, and Tuesday, then a half day Wed. with Chinese New Year assembly that I run Wednesday AM so no regular music then either.. a fun 2 weeks being back at school! It's been so great to see the kids but my energy and my physical strength is not quite up to the task of my normal, so I have set up some rotations with the kinders. and first graders and the 2nd through 4th graders will be getting ready for Music Olympics in early February! Please email me at [email protected] if you'd rather have this in powerpoint. I've given credit where I've found games/ideas from other sites.. if you see something you've developed or know an original source I didn't credit, PLEASE let me know. Thanks for stopping by!
Elementary music lesson. "Macaroni" singing game that emphasizes pitch-matching, sol-mi melody, and steady beat bordun.
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Sarasponda
Miss White had a fright In the middle of the night Saw a ghost eating toast Halfway up the lamp post! Here's a fun arrangement to use with your young students, just in time for Halloween!
Fun and engaging hand clapping game to teach your kiddos!
Music education blog, K-8, teaching ideas & resources, advocacy, quotes, Kodaly, Orff, bells, Boomwhackers, integration, & home-made instruments.
This orff-inspired arrangement can be used to accompany the book, "Bubble Gum, Bubble Gum" by Lisa Wheeler. Teach the instrument parts to your class, have students create rhythmic word chains using names of types of bubble gum, and perform the song, ABA form at various points in the story. The xylop...
It's back to school time! Yay! I am so happy to see all of you again! I am looking forward to a fun school year with you! Here's what's up so far! Grades 4 & 5 (Rooms 13, 17 & 19) are starting the year with the song "Somebody That I Used To Know" by Gotye. We began by watching a cover of the song by the group Walk of the Earth, where each member plays one part on the guitar. From left to right: Player 1: Uses the guitar as a percussion instrument Player 2: Plays the ostinato (a repeating pattern) which is actually just IIV to I chords Player 3: Plays the guitar melody Player 4: Plays the off-beat chords (on beats 2 & 4) Player 5: Plays accent chords Then we watched another version of the song: Gotye saw that so many people were doing covers of his song that he made a compilation video of a whole bunch of YouTube videos from around the world! Next week we will be learning to play this song on the Orff Instruments: From: http://musescore.com/user/24296/scores/49627 Grades 1/2/3 are learning the Tritsch Tratsch Polka by Johann Strauss. We have coupled it with Deborah Ziolkoski's story and movement about the ringmaster and tightrope walker from Fun With Composers. We are learning about ABA form in music (same/different/same), and a little bit about the life of composer Johann Strauss. Here is a recording of it - ask your child to show you the story and movement! Did you know that the Tritsch Tratsch Polka is also used in the video game Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games? It can be found in the Synchronized Swimming section! Pretty cool, huh?
Kodaly teachers all know the importance of the Kodaly method for helping children to learn how to sing and get the full experience of music education. It’s an amazing philosophy that embraces the whole child. I’m inspired by Zoltan Kodály and his revolution in the teaching of music that began in Hungary. Some of the key […]
Good, Better, Best A Rhythm and Movement Lesson for Grades 4-6 Download a printable version of Michael Chandler's lesson here. Objectives: Working with beat and divided beat through movement, body percussion, and instruments. Choreographing simple movement to elemental forms. Rhythmic and melodic improvisation and composition with elemental forms. Arranging and orchestrating a performance piece. Materials: Unpitched
There are so many different places you can start from when creating a Curriculum Outline. A curriculum outline is a broad overview of your entire program, across all grade levels. It’s a zoomed out picture of what concepts you want to cover, and what grades will cover them. I’ve written about a c
Another one for composing with Boomwhackers with the colored dice I mentioned in an earlier post (scroll down to see other uses for these!):
A quick post today with a song you can use for upper grades. Add a body percussion pattern (patsch, clap) and raise fisted hand on "Hey" and add T (teacher) clapping/students echoing body percussion patterns (in the score). Create an additional section to create a rondo: C Section: T. plays 4 beat pattern on drum, students choose an adjective to describe themselves that is the same letter/sound as their name: I used Fabulous Pfitzner for myself, I had "Interesting Isaac", "Amazing Allison", etc. Four students, one at a time, say their adjective and name over 4 beats, next student says theirs over the next four beats, etc. My fourth graders LOVED this!
This is a lesson I did just this morning with kindergarten and we had great fun with it! Hope you enjoy!
Most of us teach multiple grade levels. I teach 4 year olds through 94 year olds. I skip 12 year olds through somewhere in the 60's, though...
I have posted before about the end of the school year and how I sing camp songs with my kiddos. They love it and can't wait for the end of ...
This post explains how teachers can use an academic version of the highly engaging Spoons game to review concepts. Free games included!
