Using iconic or rhythmic notation, various voices, elemental forms, movement, non-pitched percussion, barred percussion, movement, and improvisation, this is a "kitchen sink" lesson using everything in the classroom you CHOOSE to use. You can use this with your first graders to upper elementary, varying the complexity included in the lesson. You can get the full slide set with all of the visuals on my Patreon community.  Add your favorite book about winter and voila! A lesson with no prep!

Enjoy!

Bounce High, Bounce Low

 This is one of those games that is played many ways and has a myriad of concepts to focus on.  I love using this in Kindergarten as a beat game, then later in the year as a rhythm game, and then spiraling it up into first grade as an introduction into La.  

For the full slides, please click here and note this will force a copy. 

Hispanic Heritage Month

So many lovely songs to sing, books to read, and games to play!  I always struggle this time of year to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, starting September 15, the Chinese holiday Mid-Autumn Moon Festival September 21st, fall, and Halloween. 

So let's start with Hispanic Heritage Month! My next post will be about Mid-Autumn Moon Festival.

Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15-October 15

Songs

 Click this link to make a copy of the Google Slides with 8 songs. 

Sol solecito - check it out here at my Patreon community. This is a member exclusive. 

Children's Literature 

The ADL (Anti-Defamation League) has an article of their "must-reads" for this month. Click the picture to go to their site and read a short description and age range for each book on the list. 

I created an activity to go with the beautiful Tito Puente book and it's another Patreon exclusive. Check it out here! 

Several other books I love for this month:

Hope you enjoy!

Lemonade, Crunchy Ice Twice as Nice

If you have been on my blog for any length of time, you know my love of clapping and singing games. I liked them so much that I wrote two books of clapping games and one book that just came out about singing games! See on the left side or go to www.singsmileplay.com to see all of my books.
This is a natural pairing - two songs with Lemonade in the title and therefore, "twice as nice". This works beautifully when paired together!  Summer is almost here and it's soon to be time for lemonade stands and the very expensive lemonade at fairs and festivals.
This is a perfect mixer dance/game/activity and will keep your kiddos singing into the end of the school year.

Clap Partner - Clap partners hands
Flip Clap R - Right hand palm toward floor, left hand palm up. Clap right hand down on partners upturned palm.
Flip Clap L - Left hand palm toward floor, right hand palm up. Clap left hand down on partners upturned palm.

Twist dance down - Twist hips one way and upper body the other way, reverse, back and forth down towards the floor.
Enjoy!

A

Up and Down with Children's Lit

I am part of a wonderful group of music teachers who blog.  Together we are blogging all of February to bring you the best ideas for teaching melody ! Check us out on facebook - MusicEd Blogs Community.
Today's post is on teaching melody, specifically using children's literature to teach up and down.

Children's literature is full of wonder, excitement, and joy.  These delightful books are like magical gems that can transport a class through a concept or skill in a memorable way.  Here are my favorites to use while teaching up and down.

1.  Up, Up, Down - Robert Munsch

This is the story of a rather naughty girl, Anna, who likes to climb up up up up.. fall...... down.  She climbs everything, and finally makes it to... THE TREE!  ]I prep this by playing a lot of slide whistle games where students listen to me play various ascending and descending notes and move (first bodies, then voices later) accordingly.
While reading, encourage students to do the same while saying the six "ups" and then perform "fall" with a vocal glissando.  Of course we have to do an exaggerated fall, also!  Each time Anna lands on a different body part and we sing, "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow" with S M L S M.  The students catch on quickly and this is a very engaging story! 
The next class, we perform the story again, only this time using glockenspiels.  I can't remember who shared this idea and would thank them profusely for introducing the tree idea - cut out a tree top, tape it to the end of the glockenspiel box and hold this end in the air- voila- tree!

Each time Anna climbs up, we play an ascending note, then glissando down on the word "fall". 

 I also use this idea with the song "Let Us Chase the Squirrels" and you can find that blog post here. It is another song to use for reinforcing melodic direction instrumentally.
As a follow up, another Robert Munsch book, Mortimer!  This is a PERFECT song for up and down - and lots of other happy clanging and rattle bing banging! Here is a blog post about this one as well as some other ideas for high/low/up/down.  

2.  Up, Down, and Around by Katherine Ayers

Teacher plays slide whistle, students move up and down, vary playing slowly, quickly, legato, staccato, etc.  Then ask them to move one arm ONLY, then elbow only (very funny), hand only, thumb only.  It's an interesting thing to observe! 

Teach song; every time students sing "up" they will move higher, "down", lower, and they can choose HOW to move "'round and round". 

 

In the book each vegetable grows up, down, or around and around.  Students play glissandi on "Up and down and show around and around with movement - usually rolling their mallets around or turning around.  Sing the song each time after the words "around and around" and the final "let's have lunch" occur.

3.  Up, Up, Up! by Susan Reed

This delightful book is a song, another Barefoot Books gem!! I love the ascending DMS melody on the first three words of the chorus; Up, Up, Up!
Here is a video:

Hope you have found some new things to try with your kiddos!  Hop on over to facebook to MusicEd Blog Community to check out the other posts all month long!