December
We are singing the song Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer and putting sounds effects into the song. The children are getting to play all of the various instruments that we have put into this sound effect composition.
We are also learning a partner song for the classic holiday song Jingle Bells. This song is called Winter Fantasy. Then we will sing the two songs at the same time! Below is the track so they can practice along at home.
October/November
We are going to be playing songs and games that have to do with feeling/playing/hearing the beat verses the rhythm of a piece.
Definitions:
Beat = the pulse of the music
Rhythm = the short and long sounds, multiple sounds per beat and silences on the beats
We will feel the beat of our songs through patchen, clapping, passing games, stepping and dancing to the beat.
We will play rhythms that we read, that we echo from the teacher, that we hear in songs and that we sing in our lyrics.
The students will then be able to clap along to the beat of the song, or to the rhythm of the song and be able to switch between those two concepts mid-song.
We will also be playing a drama game this month. We will revisit “Magic Spell” – their favourite game from Kindergarten – where they mimed the movements of animals. They also will be able to move as an animal in the music room in shared space with the other children SAFELY.
September
We are starting this year with a movement song called Let’s Begin.
The children are thinking of some creative movements to put in three beats of the song.
We are also remembering which movements go with which parts of the song – there are locomotor movements (travelling movements), clapping movements and non-locomotor movements (in place). They need to pay attention to the music cues to do the movements in the correct order and with the correct words of the song.
We are review rhythms to begin the school year and playing the game Poison Rhythm.
Here is one you could play with your family at home!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO7ZHFILPzc&list=PLu_UhAPbJEJaQJwd5s-KSn_tWC57SG4ZL
And we will do the Pumpkin Patch game
Here is how it goes!
Pumpkin Patch
Looking all around in a pumpkin patch
Here is a pumpkin nice and fat
Turn into a jack-o’lantern just like that!
There is a game that goes with this poem. And as we play the game we explore drama skills as well as dynamics (loud and soft) and steady beat and rhythm music skills.