This is a fun game I watched during a morning meeting last year when I was visiting a Kindergarten class. I loved it so much I had to create a song for us to sing to go with the game! This would work well with the children's book, Run Turkey Run! This is also a good one for prepping half note (see measure 4 of the song).
This is a favorite dance and I love using it to introduce syncopation! There are (at least) 2 versions although I think Version 2 is probably more historically accurate. The song and dance is a play party. Here is more information about this song and more here from the University of Arkansas with a field recording from 1953. The speech at the beginning of Version 1 is something I created with my students.
Click here for the Google Slides.
So, breathe in, breathe out. Don't be afraid to show videos - there are many play alongs, dance alongs, and other activities from Musication, Mrs. King's Musical Corner, Ready Go Music, Swick's Classroom, and many more.
There is magic in the number three, so today here are three things you can do to continue actively making music in the classroom and keep your sanity.
Take those music concepts and play with them. Play games and review those sixteenth notes in a new way. One of my favorite things this time of year is to make rhythm snakes. Give partner pairs two different rhythm cards, practice with body percussion - assign each rhythmic element a different body percussion- chest tap quarter notes, clap eighth notes, pat sixteenth notes.
Everyone places their rhythm card in a long "snake" on the ground - students read/perform rhythms, then put students into 3 groups- each group has one timbre to play- hand drums, woods, shakers. Each group is responsible for playing ONLY their rhythmic element. Switch so each person gets to play a different instrument from each timbre. Make it more interesting and musical by adding one of these backing tracks from Music Will.
Singing games are playful and purposeful and if you can turn it into a "Level UP" game with various challenges in each level - even better! One of my favorites to teach second grade on up is Pass the Beat from my Sing a Song, Play a Game book. Level Up by teaching the basic as Level 1, replace the word "beat" with a clap for Level 2, replace "room" with a stomp for Level 3 and replace "Pass" with a snap for Level 4.
If you are not following me on instagram, here are a few other games we love to play this time of year. Click on the picture to go to the link.
Soy una serpiente
Forty Years on an Iceberg
Lemonade, New York
Mouse Mousie
And more from a facebook live!
This is a beloved tradition at my school - click here to see all the past posts.
All posts with "end of year" label can be found here.
Hope this helps you know you are not alone and helps in planning your final weeks or month! Happy almost end of the school year!
There is probably no other song more recognizable at Lunar New Year than Gong Xi, Gong Xi (Congratulations, congratulations!).
Many thanks to my friend, M. Kang, for sharing the English translation and the fan dance ideas for this song!
The full slide set is available here.
I love this song at this time of year as there is SO much that can be done with it- add an ostinato with pie flavors, perform the dance, talk about dance styles, create a new dance, student created B Section, and a game from the wonderful Mrsmainsmusicians on insta!
Grab the full google slides here. Please note this will force a copy.
For the game, I glued my pies to paper plates. This helps them to slide easier as most inexpensive paper plates have a wax coating on them. This also makes them round and pie shaped!
Here are a few slides from the set.
Enjoy!
From September 15-October 15 Hispanic and Latinx/Latine Heritage Month is celebrated in the US. The dates coincide with national independence days in Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Mexico.
I have a very sweet friend in Quito, Ecuador that I met through the pandemic. I say, "through" because I do not know if our paths would have crossed had it not been for the pandemic. During quarantine, my dear friend Thom Borden and I began the American version of International Sunday Sharing, already begun by our dear friends across the ocean in Finland, JaSeSoi, the Finnish Orff Association. We met on Sunday mornings via zoom and had hundreds of music teachers from around the world show up to sing, dance, and share. It was a beautiful thing, and I met and befriended such beautiful people, including MaCarmen from Quito. Ecuador has always held a special place in my heart as our family had an exchange student during my freshman year of college. Anita became very special to us and she is my Ecuadorian sister, now living in Cincinnati. When I got married, she came from Ecuador with her sons to be at our wedding and she is a beloved member of our family.
For more songs, books, and dances to celebrate Hispanic and Latinx/Latine Heritage Month check out this post.
Here is beautiful MaCarmen's song she shared, the song is from Colombia and is SO FUN!
For the full slide deck, check out my Patreon.
