Week 9 - Our final rotation together for the School Year

In our final rotation together for the school year - week 9 - here's what happened in music:

• Kindergartners focused on learning and playing several singing and movement games:  Down in the Valley and Old King Glory of the Mountain were new ones.  We also brought back some of our favorites:  Doggie, Doggie, Where's Your Bone, Beat Detective and Jack in the Box.

• First Graders used the rhythms they have learned to read/play a piece for Hand Drum:  Big and Small.  We extended the Rondo form of the piece (ABACA) with an interlude involving improvisation (making up rhythms) and a Coda.  Some students took on the 'teacher' role and lead the echoed sections.  In addition, we also used the Boom Whackers one day to revisit our Colored Dominoes musical score reading using melody.  Our fifth day together was our final in class Talent Time and class choice.

• Second Graders used the rhythms they have focused on this year to read/play a piece for Hand Drum:  Big and Small.  We extended the Rondo form of the piece (ABACA) with an interlude involving improvisation (making up rhythms) and a Coda.  We also got a start on a second piece with 3 parts stacked together called Three Plus.  In addition, we also used the Boom Whackers and Joia tubes one day to revisit our Colored Dominoes musical score reading using melody.  Our fifth day together was our final in class Talent Time and class choice.

• Third Graders got to play the Tubanos (drums designed for drum circle) - learning the Low, Middle, and High Drum and Shekere parts of an ensemble called Drum Up the Sun (World Music Drumming), plus a recorder piece that fit with it called "Spring Rains".  Our fifth day together was our final in class Talent Time and class choice.  Our fifth day together was our final in class Talent Time and class choice.

• Fourth Graders and Fifth Graders  concentrated primarily on World Music Drumming and drum circle communication since we had not taken time for much of that kind of drumming yet this year.  We put together all of the parts of Ensemble One:  Low Drum, High Drum and Middle Drum, single bell, gankogui (double bell) and shekere.  In addition, added a djembe solo for anyone who wanted to add something 'over the top' of the ensemble.  Students also learned a traditional end call/response from the djembe to bring a piece to an end.  Starting out our drum circle work each day we did rhythmic questions and answers, sometimes augmented with echo answers.  Students really had to work together in a different way - focusing to listen and watch to keep the ensemble together.  Beside our drum circle ensemble playing, we also took one 50 in 5 challenge - our timed note naming challenge with treble clef notes.  The students that have made it into the Hall of Fames this year will still have their names up at the start of the next school year until the first time we do that challenge next year.  Our fifth day together was our final in class Talent Time and class choice.

Thank you for a great school year!  I have enjoyed making music with you.  I wish you all a restful, exciting, musical summer.  Take time to sing and dance.

Week 8

Remembering that with the specials schedule we have at Gold Rush, 4 weeks equals 1 instructional week for me with all of the students - therefore this post is called - Week 8

In our eighth rotation together a lot was happening.  Here's a glimpse into what we did together.

• Kindergartners were introduced to the rest of the timbre (tone color) families from our small percussion instruments. . . . Scrape, Ring and Membranic.  They got to play a lot of instruments - learning the instrument's name, the best way to play it and recognize it by sound.  We reinforced that with our "Listen" game.  

• First Graders focused on rhythm again, including writing out some rhythm patterns from dictation (Hearing, Decoding or figuring out what they hear, and writing it down).  These rhythms were combinations of Tah, Rest, and Tee-Tees.  (Quarter notes, quarter rests, and pairs of eighth notes).  In addition, we did a quick review of small percussion timbre families and score reading with our Colored Dominoes activity.

• Second Graders focused on rhythm again, including writing out some rhythm patterns from dictation (Hearing, Decoding or figuring out what they hear, and writing it down).  These rhythms were combinations of Tah, Rest, Tee-Tees and Ta-ahs.  (Quarter notes, quarter rests, pairs of eighth notes and half notes).  In addition, we did a quick review of small percussion timbre families and score reading with our Colored Dominoes activity.  Students collaboratively created a 4 beat rhythm suitable to their timbre family as an extension to random sounds and single beats per box reading.

• Third Graders wrapped up their musical connections with Science by sharing their "Rock Concert" with invited family and friends.  This included specials parts that students chose to work on including the narration, dramatization of a volcano with movement and props, and two groups who composed a new section for our Rock Rondo - a piece for recorders.  These small groups created a collaborative composition using rock rhythms and choosing melodic pitches for each rhythmic note.  It was great to have  a live audience to perform for.  Their pieces included:  Rock Concert - opener and closer,  Rock Rap, Earth Changes, Rock Rondo, My Favorite Rock and Obwisana - a rock passing game from Ghana.  Video clips can be found on the In the Spotlight page of this blog.

• Fourth Graders wrapped up their musical connections with the classroom by sharing their "Colorado Connections Concert" with invited family and friends.  It was great to have  a live audience to perform for.  Their pieces included:  The Symbol Song,  two recorder pieces:  Stegasaurus Stomp and Ride the Iron Horse, Cripple Creek - which featured singing in harmony, a square dance - Comin' 'Round the Mountain, a sing-along of the state song, Where the Columbines Grow, Gold Rush Rap and Colorado!   Video clips can be found on the In the Spotlight page of this blog.

• Fifth Graders focused on Colonial Music and Dance.  We began by charting what students already knew about Music and Dance in Colonial America, and what questions or curiosities they had about this.  Then we played a round of Name that Tune with only songs from Colonial America.  It was surprising what songs are still known from that time.  We sang through many of the verses to Yankee Doodle and a bit of Soldier, Soldier.  Some of our learning came through observing some video clips of Colonial Dance reenactments with live musicians.  We learned to dance two Colonial Dances - The Four Hand Reel, and George Washington's personal favorite, Sir Roger de Coverly.  Some video snippets are available to see on the In the Spotlight page of this blog.

Week 7

Our Week 7 - was February 8-19 for the White and Red Schedules and February 22-March 4th for the Black and Gold Schedules.

After completing the composition phase of their Canon assignment, Fifth Graders worked with a partner to perform their piece in a two-part canon.  Students selected instruments or body percussion to perform on and rehearsed both pieces - their own and their partners.  Students had two class periods to rehearse and then over two class periods, students shared their performances in front of their classroom audience.  The performances were video recorded so that students will have a chance to do a self-evaluation at a later time.

Fourth Graders got back to working on their Colorado Connection pieces.  In addition to reviewing what they have been introduced to so far, we added in a descant on Soprano Recorder for the song, Cripple Creek and started on our last two new songs:  Gold Rush Rap and Colorado!  In the rotation following Spring Break we will be sharing all of our Colorado Connection work during an in-school day performance for parents.  The sharing will be video recorded for parents that are not able to come during the school day.

Third Graders worked further on our Rock Concert songs and pieces.  New songs added into the mix were the Rock Rap, Earth Changes and My Favorite Rock.  We continued to work on our Rock Passing game from Ghana, Obwisana, and the opener and closer, Rock Concert.  In the rotation following Spring Break we will be sharing all of our Rock Concert work during an in-school day performance for parents.  The sharing will be video recorded for parents that are not able to come during the school day.

First and Second Graders focused on their musical performance for the Specials Program, "Chart a Course for Healthy Living".  Everyone sang together - in two parts - "Feelin' Good" and each grade level prepared two additional pieces - one that they had voted on.  Second graders all chose the song Move, Move, Move.  They not only sang, but volunteers also showed off some of their favorite dance moves.  Second Graders also extended the work they had done earlier in the year by revamping a pentatonic round with new words.  At the performance, students sang and all played the (Orff) melodic percussion instruments.  First graders brought back their song "Two, Four, Six, Eight" and added movement in a Rondo form - ABACADA - with all students accompanying singing at the xylophones, taking a turn in a movement scene, and singing.  In addition, First Graders chose a song about eating healthily to sing as a feature.  Two classes chose Veggies are Yummy and two classes chose Healthy Food.  Each of these songs had speech interludes that students helped to create based on rhythmic building bricks.

Kindergarten continued their work in this rotation in learning the best playing technique and names of a family of untuned percussion instruments.  We learned about the Rattle family - maracas, chiquita maracas, clatterpillar, vibraslap, handle castanets, and shaker eggs.  Then we mixed the Rattle family in with the Click and Jingle Families that we'd studied last time in our "Listen" game.  We also did some review of Sol-Mi with Engine, Engine and started looking at how pitches are notated.  We learned a fun singing game using those pitches, "Doggie Doggie" or "Music Cat".

Week 6 - Timbre, Canon and Program Prep

Remember that with the specials schedule we have at Gold Rush, 4 weeks equals 1 instructional week for me with all of the students.  That's why this post is called - Week 6
For the Red and White Team/Schedule this was January 10-22nd and for the Black and Gold Team/Schedule this was January 25-February 5th

In our sixth week together, our Musical Headline was again Melody and Timbre

• Kindergartners focused on learning the names and playing technique of two groups of Untuned Percussion instruments - the Click Family and the Jingle Family.  Everyone got to play every instrument as they were first passed around the circle and we played to the beat.  To help reinforce the names of the instruments and their sounds, we also played a game called "Listen".  In order to get the next turn as the instrument player, students had to identify the name of the instrument they heard playing in the song without using their eyes to figure it out - only listening.

• First Graders and Second Graders got a start on preparing for their upcoming musical performance.  We began by first listening to a recording and discussing whether it was a strong/good singing performance or not and why.  This helped to introduce vocabulary about the sound - projection, diction, blend, tone quality, pitch matching or singing in tune and rhythmic accuracy.  The song they listened to is one they are learning now for the program, "Feelin' Good".   In addition, each class got to choose a song to prepare for the program by listening to them, advocating for a favorite and voting - from 2-3 options.  The song that got the most votes is the one they are now working to prepare.  Both the 1st and 2nd grades also started re-vamping something they started on earlier in order to tie it in with the theme of the sharing.  The 2nd graders have new words to a melodic canon they learned earlier and the 1st graders are revisiting "2,4, 6, 8" with active games woven into a Rondo form.

• Third Graders got a start on a classroom connection theme that they will share out with parents after Spring Break - a "Rock Concert" - all about Rocks - which ties into the 3rd grade Rock study in Science.  This rotation we started on our opening song, Rock Concert, learned a Rock passing game from Ghana, Obwisana and the A section of a Recorder piece, Rock Rondo.  In the next rotation, students will be creating new sections for that piece.

• Fourth Graders came back to working on their Colorado Connection pieces.  We revisited Stegasaurus Stomp and our small group Railroad pieces.  We also started on a new recorder piece, Ride the Iron Horse.  In learning this piece, students were introduced to a new note, low D on recorder.  In the next rotation we'll learn the high D for that piece also.  We also revisited The Symbol Song and introduced the first verse of our State Song, Where the Columbines Grow.  We worked more on Cripple Creek, but the thing the kids have probably talked the most about is that we also learned a square dance:  Comin' 'Round the Mountain.  Square Dance is the Colorado folk dance and one of our state symbols.

• Fifth Graders revisited the musical form of Canon (like a round, starting with an echo that interrupts, but ending at the same time).  We did some instant canons with body percussion and transferred this to Hand Drums.  Students heard and discovered the phrase form of a Rhythmic Canon by Shirley McRae which we played as a Canon on Hand Drums.  After looking more carefully at the way rhythmic canons such as this one are constructed, students launched into their final composition assignment of the year.  We have done several collaborative compositions to this point in the year, but for this composition each student is writing their own piece.  They will collaborate with a partner to perform it in the next rotation.  Each student was given the option of composing either a Rhythmic Canon or a Melodic Canon.  We used a lot of our class time as Composers Workshop time to complete the initial writing process.  In addition we played a game I call Stand Up if You are the Composer to encourage students to recognize what they have written as unique.

Week * either side of Winter break and right before Spring break

This rotation is an unusual one.  Rather than give it an actual Week number - I call it the *rotation.  For the Gold and Black Team/Schedule classes this happened the weeks of December 4th and January 8th - either side of Winter Break.  For the Red and White Team/Schedule classes it will happen the weeks right before Spring Break - March 7-17.

During this rotation all grade levels focused on the World Class Outcome:  Assess (K-2) of Defend (3-5) music's role and its impact on the human experience.  This is a tricky one for kids (and adults) to make sense of the language at first.  Our discussion revolved around music's importance in our lives - particularly events or occasions that music enhances or changes the experience.  The students came up with some amazing, thoughtful examples.  Especially after reflection, coming back to it a second day.  After a brief discussion of the WCO, students each responded in a Responsive Circle talk, filling in the blanks:  My favorite (Winter-time/Spring-time) song is ______.  I like it best because ______.  After this circle response, students had the opportunity to choose songs from a menu of song choices which I had in a SMART Board document.  They were excited to discover that many of the favorites they had mentioned were choices for us to sing together.

In the other week of this * rotation, we focused on the WCO Evaluate music to make informed decisions regarding Culture.  We explored a particular kind of Chinese music called Luogu - which involves Percussion Ensembles for festivals.  We had the opportunity to play some drums that came directly to Colorado with some Chinese musicians that performed at the National Orff conference when it was here in Denver in November 2013.  Each class Kdg - 5th grade learned one piece and got to play all of the various instruments.  Each class also viewed some videos of the type of festival/dance piece - Lion Dances and Dragon Dances.
Kindergarten - Shi Wu I (Lion Dance) minus the drum part - that was played by Mrs. Petty - all the other parts (gongs and cymbals) play on the beat
First Grade and Second Grade - Shi Wu II (Lion Dance)
Third Graders learned an excerpt from Da Kaimen:  Grand Opening.  We only tackled the first 5 measures as their piece involved recorder as well as Chinese percussion.  In the process students learned a new note on recorders.
Fourth Grade - Shi Wu I (Lion Dance) including the drum parts
Fifth Grade - Long Wu (Dragon Dance)
Each group learned the percussion parts in the Chinese tradition of presenting the music aurally (only through listening and chanting the rhythm with syllables that indicate which instrument or instruments play.  For example, chahng - everyone plays, dong - the drum head, da, the rim of the drum, kwahn - large gong solo and chay - cymbals/small gongs solo.  It was loud learning, but a lot of fun playing the Chinese instruments.

"Week" 4 - Melody Ups and Downs

Remember that with the specials schedule we have at Gold Rush, 4 weeks equals 1 instructional week for me with all of the students.  That's why this post is called - Week 4

In our fourth week together, our Musical Headline was again Melody

• Kindergartners reviewed the concept and contrasts of high and low.  They used their voices in the story of Wiggle and Waggle, going up, down, and staying level on one note.  This was reinforced with movement activities using high movements, low and middle level movements.  Kindergartners were introduced to singing two specific pitches with hand signs and syllables (solfeggio) using So and Mi pitches.  We used these notes to create different melodies for our "Engine Engine Number Nine" poem.  Another new thing this rotation was introducing tone bar instruments - xylophones, glockenspiels and metallophones.  First we played with all of the bars on - exploring the full range of the instrument using movement vocabulary to relate what our hands were doing.... walking music, running music, jump with both mallets together, sliding from low to high or high to low, etc.  On a second day we used specific bars as we played a beat and sang Engine, Engine.  Students had the opportunity to lead/compose new melodies with So and Mi - either pointing to the posters of the hand signs or by using body conducting.  In body conducting, the shoulders indicates So (high) and the waist indicates Mi (low).

• First Graders reviewed the concept of Sol-Mi-La pitches.  We did this with vocal warm ups using the solfege and hand signs.  Students had more turns to create new melodies using the hand signs to direct singers to sing their newly created melody.  Students reviewed the song "2, 4, 6, 8" which uses only these 3 pitches.  To extend our "2,4,6,8" piece, students created a group movement pantomime of a possible game that could be played with friends - meeting at the garden gate.  We worked these into a rotation rondo form so that everyone gets to be 'on stage' for their movement and have a turn to accompany the singing at the instruments.  Our 5th day together in this rotation, students had the opportunity to share performances with their class during 'Talent Time' and then got to choose songs to sing and/or favorite music/movement games.

• Second Graders did more work with the pitches/notes of a Pentatonic Scale (Do, Re, Mi, Sol, La, Do').  This time around we also learned about transporting the scale - putting Do on different starting notes and setting up the instruments in the same pattern.  We revisited the Simon Solfege game and the new leaders are Mrs. Meier's class AND Mrs. Woolum's class.  We have a tie - both with the latest school record of 17 notes.  Amazing singing!  Great inner hearing!  Second Graders revisited, "Autumn is Here", trying it as both a vocal and instrumental round.  We also did some pattern recognition with pitches of the Pentatonic Scale, rotating around all of the tone bar instruments.   Our 5th day together in this rotation, students had the opportunity to share performances with their class during 'Talent Time' and then got to choose songs to sing and/or favorite music/movement games.

• Third Graders continue to work primarily with learning to play the soprano recorder.  We stayed with the pitches B, A and G and worked with the well known recorder classic - Hot Cross Buns.  We have played the theme, the inversion version (pitches go up where they used to go down) and adding in a fill in.   We combined the theme and inversion into a duet version.  In addition we learned some variations that change the rhythm and add additional percussion instruments:  the Waltz variation, the Parade variation and the Calypso variation.  Students are encouraged to log in their home practice time!  Our 5th day together in this rotation, students had the opportunity to share performances with their class during 'Talent Time' and then got to choose songs to sing and/or favorite music/movement games.

• Fourth Graders had their second opportunity to show what they know of the treble clef notes with their 2nd take on the 50 in 5 challenge - a timed note naming challenge with 50 notes on a page.  Fourth graders also reviewed recorder technique adding in a low E to the B, A and G of -Stegasaurus Stomp.  Students chose between 3 different Railroad themed pieces that will also be a part of our Colorado Connection.  They are now working in small groups to prepare those pieces.  We also started on a new vocal piece in two voice parts called Cripple Creek.  In addition to singing that we reviewed The Symbol Song and got closer to getting it memorized.  Our 5th day together in this rotation, students had the opportunity to share performances with their class during 'Talent Time' and then got to choose songs to sing and/or favorite music/movement games.

• Fifth Graders also focused on melody by reviewing the names of the lines and spaces of the treble clef for their 2nd take at the 50 in 5.  Our big project this rotation was learning all of the 4 parts - ground bass ostinato and 3 part melodic canon - of the Purcell Canon.  A couple of the classes got far enough with it that we were able to make a recording.  You'll find that posted on the In the Spotlight page of this blog.  We sent a copy to Mrs. Brown so she and her new baby could enjoy it together.  In the coming weeks the 5th graders are going to be doing their final composition.  Since one of their choices will be to write a melodic canon it was important that they have a really great example in their own playing repertoire.  Our 5th day together in this rotation, students had the opportunity to share performances with their class during 'Talent Time' and then got to choose songs to sing and/or favorite music/movement games.

Week "3" Rhythm and Halloween Happenings

Since the specials schedule at Gold Rush is a 4 weeks rotation, each instructional week = 4 weeks in real time.  So here's a look at what happened in our Week 3 together in music.


In our third week together, our Musical Headline was Rhythm.  We were able to incorporate some fun, Halloween songs and activities as a part of our Rhythm work.

• In the week closest to Halloween, Kindergartners learned a song about pretending, called "I Know There are No Witches".  They helped create additional verses thinking of other Halloween creatures that are part of the fun of pretending with Halloween.  They also explored movement qualities and steps of various 'Halloween' creatures.  We also played a singing/guessing game, "Black Cat".  The week in this rotation not as close to Halloween, Kindergartners learned a poem (speech piece) which is a traditional rhyme, "Engine, Engine, Number Nine."  We used a graphic notation for sound with train whistle messages and learned that rhythm is created by interrupting sounds - erasing part of the line - to create rhythm patterns.  We played a train traveling games where each student got to be the leader of their train line and travel to various 'train stations' around the room and play a rhythm pattern from the poem.  Students were introduced to the cabasa (instrument) for our train track travels. 

• In the week closest to Halloween, First Graders and Second Graders each learned one traditional seasonal song which we added instruments to.  First Graders learned, "We are Jack - O - Lanterns."  For this they played a beat bordun on parts of the song using xylophones, and on the "boo, boo, boo" played melodic patterns on the glockenspiels - Low/Middle/High and High/Middle/Low.  Second Graders learned the Kentucky folk song, "Skin and Bones".  They also played a beat bordun for part of the song and a melodic ostinato for part of the song.  Everyone got a chance to play one of our new Contra Bass Bars (very low and very cool!)  Also in the week closest to Halloween we did a movement activity called a Trip to the Halloween House, which involves imagination and moving like various Halloween characters (e.g. galloping with the Headless Horseman, floating with a ghost, stretching like a black cat, rolling like a pumpkin).  We also played a singing/listening game:  Who has the Pumpkin?  The other week, 2nd graders learned a new singing game, "Cut the Cake" which has the same rhythmic elements (tah, tee-tee and rest) that our "Autumn is Here" song has.  We also practiced rhythm reading and rhythm dictation using stick notation.  First graders focused on tahs and tee-tees (quarter notes and pairs of eighth notes) in movement and notation - reading and writing 4 beat patterns. 

• Third Graders worked to learn 3 songs with 3 notes on the Soprano Recorder so that the recorders purchased for home practice could be sent home.  Hooray!  All classes accomplished this.  We will continue to work on recorder technique during music class and learn more notes and songs, but this was a huge milestone.  We learned "It's in the B-A-G", "French Song" (which is really the A section of Au Claire de la Lune), and "Old Tom White".  As you practice at home, remember to log in your practice time on the blog page called Practice Logs.  Next rotation we'll review these three notes with new songs and add our next note.

• Fourth Graders learned about the traditional note and rest names in this rotation.  Although some students knew some of the 10 symbols by their 'real' names and could also tell how long they last (their value).  No student scored 20 out of 20 on the pre-test.  So, good news:  everyone had something new to learn.  Students learned why notes and rests have the traditional "mathematical" name they have based on an object lesson:  Mrs. Petty's famous BROWNIE Lesson.  In addition, we played some games and did some activities to help cement all of this new information into our thinking before re-testing at the end of the rotation.  Those that scored 20 out of 20 this time around have shown that they have grasped the information.  Those that did not received their papers back to study the few they still need to learn.  We'll keep working on it.  To apply this knowledge, we also started on a creative project of arranging given notes (or trading for silence - rests) into measures that fit the time signature.  In the coming weeks students will perform their creations and learn to recognize their rhythms when they hear them (Stand Up if You're the Composer).  

• Fifth Graders focused on reading rhythms in simple time (4/4) and using rhythms to create speech patterns.  We played a challenge/elimination game called Double Trouble in which students had to perform an 8 beat pattern by clapping and saying their rhythm and their right hand neighbor's pattern.  The beat was continuous, so as soon as one person completed their eight beats, the next person began.  Each rhythm is doubled - as it is read by one person as their last 4 beats, and then again as the next person's first 4 beats; and each person reads double measures - so Double Trouble.  This game afforded the chance to focus on reading rhythms with fluency.  In addition, 5th graders learned some beat patterns based on the work of Keith Terry's body rhythms: 3+5, 5+3 and 7 (ask for a demonstration from your student).  This was paired with a body percussion piece from Rhythmische Ubung (rhythmic exercises) with 3 levels of body percussion.  This very complex rhythm was introduced using a seasonal poem.  Once the pattern was learned, students extended the composition by creating contrasting sections with speech based on particular 2 best rhythm blocks.  This collaborative composition culminated by sharing out the new parts, woven together with the original poem/rhythm as the A section in a Rondo form.  A B A C A D A ....  

• In the next rotation, "Week 5"  the musical focus will again be Melody and Pitch.  Fourth and Fifth Graders - get ready for a second chance at the 50 in 5 Challenge