by Kristin Pugliese
WARM-UPS:
· Bead Maze: A simple way for young children to warm up their voices and to practice the concept of high and low is to use a bead maze.
o Put the beads in the starting position (whichever side you choose) and demonstrate that when the bead goes higher, your voice goes higher, when the bead goes lower, your voice goes lower and when the voice moves horizontally, your voice stays the same.
o Next talk about what just happened. Isolate one concept at a time. Pull the bead up as your voice rises. “Can someone tell me what happened to my voice when the bead went up?”. Then demo and sing the next concept and so on.
o Kids can take turns moving the bead and either lead the group or sing by themselves.
· Chutes and Ladders: A fun game to play in your classroom to use as a warm-up or play when you have a little extra time!
o Sit in a circle with the game facing outward towards the students and close enough to you so that you can move the piece.
o Have the class choose a moving piece and place it before space 1.
o Give the student to your right the spinner and have him/her spin.
o Move the piece accordingly.
o Give the spinner to the next student and again, move the piece accordingly.
o Every student can have a turn with the spinner. When the piece lands on a ladder, kids make a low to high sound and when the piece lands on a slide, our voices go from high to low.
o The beauty of this game is that it can be played for a bit of time in the beginning of class or for a longer period of time, as it sometimes can take a long time to get to the finish square. 😊
o If the piece is not falling on a chute or a ladder, I have been known to move it there so that we can practice our sliding voices!
· CAR WARM UP
o Draw a crazy line on paper.
o Have kids drive cars on it while making a car sound ~ then get higher and lower as the car goes higher and lower!
LESSONS
· The Animals Are Invading!! Animal Crossings In The Music Classroom - Note Knacks
· Bunnies on the Go! See separate handout.
· Create A Musical City With Your Little Ones! - Note Knacks
DICE GAMES:
Game 1:
· Up to 5 players can participate
· Each player gets a Note Knacks Set.
· Roll the time signature die to choose the time signature frame
· Player 1 chooses either the note die or the rest die and rolls
· Whatever is rolled, he/ she needs to pick out the correct Note Knack and the correct side and place it on his or her time signature frame.
· Player 2 chooses either the note die or the rest die and rolls
· Whatever is rolled, he/ she needs to pick out the correct Note Knack and the correct side and place it on his or her time signature frame.
· If a note or rest is rolled that cannot fit into the players frame, then that player needs to wait until the next turn to roll again.
· Continue with Players 3-5.
· The first one to complete his/ her frame has the first chance to win. A player only wins if he/ she can say the rhythm created correctly.
Game 2:
· Up to 5 teams can participate
· Each team gets a Note Knacks Set
· First team rolls the Time Signature die and sets a timer for 3 minutes
· Each team creates and writes down as many combinations (either using just notes or adding rests as well) as will fit into that time signature frame. Teams will need to keep 2 eighth notes together and 4 sixteenths.
· The team to complete the most combinations has the first chance to win. A team only wins if they can say each rhythm created correctly
Game 3: (This is a great game for assessment!)
· Unlimited players in teams of 2
· Each team chooses a #1 player and a #2 player
· First team to start: the #1 player rolls the note die and the #2 player has to show on the rest die which rest matches the note that the #1 player rolled. On the next turn, the teams switch roles.
· The game continues for as many rolls as the teacher would like. It will depend on how much practice the students need.
· The team that has answered the most correctly, will win. In this game, there will be a lot of ties, so the teacher can create a lighting round.
Watch the video of this lesson HERE
Download a .pdf of this article HERE
