Run Big Old Turkey, RUN!

 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). 

For a copy of the slides, check out my Patreon site! 

Turkey Game

This time of year I often need a few filler activities as classes that would normally have 18 students shows up with 6 due to illness, field trips or parties where students leave after the event and such. I have a few simple games that are great filler activities but still allow for singing and community building. This is one I wrote this year after observing a classroom teacher play the game and the students begin chanting, "Run, turkey, run!" while passing the objects around. Hope you find it useful! 

  Game 

 One each of printed image of farmer and turkey. Cut out, laminate, etc. 

 Teach song. 

Players sit in circle. Sing song, pass turkey as quickly as possible from player to player. After a few players have passed, begin passing farmer to try to catch the turkey. 

Teacher can say, “reverse”, or “freeze” (or have a sound cue for each action) and students respond. 

Game ends when turkey is caught by farmer.

Enjoy!

Let's Talk Turkey

 If you haven't caught my LIVE on facebook yet, go check out all the past videos at https://www.facebook.com/ofortunaorff

Today I talked turkey. Yes, you read that right. I shared several of my favorites, many from my Sing a Song, Play a Game book and here are some pictures from the google slide you can get HERE. Please note this will force you to create a copy. :) 

Last year I posted about the rhyme, Mabel, Mabel and using this to play with meters of 2/4, 6/8, and 5/4 - which is SO much fun and a good challenge for older students!  

Click on the first picture for the original post:

Lastly, Pass Me the Turkey is a fun song with a CUP GAME! Check it out by clicking on the first picture to go to the original post. 

 

Happy Thanksgiving! I am so thankful to all of you who have been reading and following along- we are almost at 1.5 MILLION VIEWS!!! I can't believe it!  Who knew 12 years ago that I would still be blogging and publishing, editing, presenting, etc.  Certainly not me. Be open to all the world offers, friends. You never know where life is going to take you. Blessings!

Mabel Mabel Set the Table Game

Mabel, Mabel Set the Table

 I always loved this jump rope rhyme but decided it was time to give it a bit of a twist. I posted a video on facebook @o for tuna orff just moments ago with ways to play the game but you will get the idea from the pictures below. If you would like this as a pdf please email me at musicquilt@hotmail.com and I am happy to share. 

If you enjoy these materials, consider buying me a cup of coffee!

Enjoy!

Music Teachers Are Thankful For...

Since Thanksgiving is on the 22nd of November this year, here are 22 things I think most of us music teachers are thankful for.
Gobble Gobble!

1. Each other via Facebook groups.  These groups keep us connected, whether you are the only music teacher in your building or you have one other person teaching music in your school, there are times we can feel apart from and not a part of. Join one, or two, or, like me, 8!


2. An email like the one I received this week from a parent about 2 high school girls getting ready at home; they dropped everything when they heard "Sleigh Ride" and performed the body percussion routine we had performed years ago at an elementary concert. Wow!

3.  Orff instruments with mallets put back correctly and in a line. So satisfying.

4. Hugs from kiddos.  

5.  Technology working as it is supposed to. 

6.  Supportive administrators who value the arts! 

7.  The rush of pride (and relief) that comes after a performance.

8.  Supportive spouse who helps you sand rhythm sticks, bring coffee to rehearsals, create sets or ________. 

9. Artie Almeida

10.  That one second (or entire class) when no one plays their recorder when you are giving directions.

11.  Feeling a part OF, not apart from the classroom teachers, even if it might be just for a moment in time.

12. That lesson that just goes amazingly well!

13.  The lesson you are grateful you got to tweak with the third class and just wished you could have the first class back in for a do-over. 


14.  PD and conferences where you feel valued, honored, and like a "real" musician again. 

15.  Finishing a folk dance with students that rolled their eyes over having to dance but are now asking if they can do again and saying "That was so much fun!"

16.  Teachers Pay Teachers.

17. Spotify.

18.  Youtube

19.  Family and friends who "get you" and your music teaching craziness.

20.  Bringing people together through music.

21.  The ability to teach something so joyful and FUN!

22. Each of you reading all the way to the end- no, seriously, thank you for being you!  Now go bless someone and tell them thank you! 

Gobble Gobble!

Just a quick post today to re-post a fabulous song composed by a friend that is perfect for this time of year.  HILARIOUS! This is a favorite with my kiddos!
It's called "Pass Me the Turkey" and has a cup game composition project to go with it! Enjoy!

 The original post is here and has the music and the activity.
Here is another one composed by another friend that is perfect for Thanksgiving!
Happy Fall!

Pass the Turkey

Usually I don't post 2 days in a row but this was too good to pass up sharing and it is time sensitive in light of Thanksgiving next week. 
I was on the AOSA Facebook page earlier this week and, as always, found wonderful teaching material, tips, and discussions going on.  If you haven't been on the site lately, GO!! You will find so many wonderful ideas and if you are looking for a piece of music or need help with recorder, children singing in parts, or anything related to teaching music, you can ask and get various responses within a few hours.  Truly invaluable and I have learned so much from the thousands of years of teaching experience there! There are other music teacher facebook pages, Elementary Music Teachers, I'm a General Music Teacher, Orff and Kodaly Teachers, and many others.. spend some time there - you'll be glad you did.
While I was on a page recently, a lovely teacher named Sarah shared a piece she had written earlier this week.  I reached out to her and she so very kindly allowed me to share it with you!

 The quack sticks are available from West Music here.  They are about $5.00 each and kids LOOOOVE them! So much fun! Starting the second week in November, I greet kids at the door and play them as they come in; sure to get giggles and a nice way to start off class; students that behave nicely get to play it on their way out.  Yes, dangle the carrot!!
They look like this:

Here are Sarah's kids performing the song:

Happy Thanksgiving!

Turkey Gobbler Song and Game

It is funny, the day after Halloween we suddenly transform our wicked witches and leering Jack-o'-Lanterns into stalks of corn and plain ol' pumpkins in preparation for Thanksgiving. 
This song is a definite favorite in my room and I have seen other teachers who play the game slightly differently, but this is our favorite way to play it!
If you are looking for a place to hear a "real live" turkey, click here and scroll down to "gobbling".  It made me giggle, and your kiddos will, too!

If you would like the pdf, please email me at musicquilt@Hotmail.com and I will happily send it your way.
Looking for other fun things for fall?  Check out Pass Me the Turkey with a fun cup composition game!
Happy November!

Pass Me the Turkey song with cup game composition

This one I found yesterday on the AOSA (American Orff Schulwerk Association) Music Teacher Facebook page.  MANY thanks to composers Trilby Jordan and F. Thomas Simpson for sharing and allowing me to share here!  I LOVE this song and added a cup game composition using word chains of disliked Thanksgiving foods.  Students performed them for their teachers when they came to pick up the class.  LOVED it!  Definitely going into my "keep" file for years to come!

Turkey Trouble Blues

This is a really fun song I found recently on Pinterest and happens to be composed by one of my favorites, Grace Nash, and another composer, Janice Ripley. My focus today was really to work on steady beat as my third graders are rushing everything like MAD and so this was the perfect lesson for their music classes today. I opted to use only the Bass Xy and Glockenspiel part instead of the full orchestration; for my purposes it worked beautifully and we had a hilarious time squawking and gobbling!
Here are the slides I put together with it for students.  It was really fun!