Thursday, October 27, 2011

This week (10/24-10/28)

This week in....

Kindergarten- students sang and acted out "I'm a Little Ghost." We listened to several songs and decided whether walking or jogging fit best with each. We sang and danced to the "Hokey Pokey", learned a Halloween poem, and moved to show music getting louder and softer.

1st/2nd grade- students were assessed on their knowledge of the musical opposites. We also followed a listening map to go with the spooky piece "In the Hall of the Mountain King." Students sang "Pick a Pumpkin" while patting the strong and weak beats.

3rd/4th grade- students played "Hot Cross Buns" on recorders and learned to play "Gently Sleep." Students worked on matching pitch with singing part of the song "Hey Jack!" We continued to learn to read notes on the staff with Mad Minutes and practiced singing and doing sign language with the song "Sing."

5th grade- students played "Gently Sleep" and other songs on recorders. We also began learning "Wavin' Flag" in Spanish and began watching part of the film "Sister Act 2."

Sing along tomorrow at 2:45pm!
Happy Halloween!

Thursday, October 20, 2011

This week (1018-10/21)

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This week in...

Kindergarten- students were assessed on their ability to hear high and low. They circled a picture of mountains if they heard high sounds, and a picture of a submarine if they heard low sounds. Students also began to learn about walking and jogging to match music.

1st/2nd grade- all of my 1st/2nd grade classes are in slightly different places because of having Monday off from school. Some classes reviewed musical opposites and practice identifying which of a pair of opposites they were hearing-steady and not steady, fast and slow, loud and soft, long and short, and finally, high and low. Students were given a quiz to assess their ability to identify each musical opposite.

3rd/4th grade- again, my 3rd and 4th grade classes are in slightly different places. Some classes learned to play the first song for Recorder Karate, "Hot Cross Buns." We also played drums and rhythm sticks to accompany phrases (short musical ideas) for the song "Hi! Ho! The Rattlin' Bog!" Students learned to play a song on recorders called "B A Dancing Zombie" and learned a rap called "Hey Jack" in the spirit of the approaching holiday.

5th grade- I missed a couple of 5th grade classes this week because of the field trip. We are continuing to listen to different musical styles and track our reactions on music logs. We are currently learning about and listening to Mozart and his music. Students also reviewed "Hot Cross Buns" and learned a song called "B A Dancing Zombie" on recorders. Students also learned a Halloween rap called "Hey Jack."

There is a sing along NEXT Friday (the 28th) at 2:45 pm in the auditorium. All are welcome to stop in and sing along. Thanks!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

This week (10/10-10/13)

This week in...

Kindergarten- students learned about high and low in music. We listened and compared pitches, deciding which of two pitches was higher. We also moved to show high and low sounds in music- twinkling like stars for high, and sliding our feet across the floor like starfish for low.

1st/2nd grade- students continued to discover long and short sounds by listening to the sounds of different unpitched percussion instruments. Students also learned about high and low and made predictions about which of two instruments would make the lower sound (it's always the larger instrument!)

3rd/4th grade- students wrote out the rhythm of foot puzzles, continued to develop note reading skills, and learned to play the white belt song for Recorder Karate, "Hot Cross Buns." Students also learned about form with the song "Hi! Ho! The Rattlin' Bog" and worked on matching pitch while singing.

5th grade- students transformed their composed rhythm from last week into a melody with notes on the staff. Students then learned to play their melodies. Students played several melodies written by their classmates and learned about the music of Mozart.

Happy long weekend!

Thursday, October 6, 2011

This week (10/3-10/7)

This week in...

Kindergarten- students learned about high and low sounds through the song "Twinkle, Twinkle" We also played to match the first part of the song on metallophone instruments.

1st/2nd grade- students were assessed on concepts learned this year, including so and mi. We learned about dynamics, which means the volume of the music and developed our skills with hearing loud and soft. We learned about long and short  and what kind of rhythms we can play to make long and short sounds.

3rd/4th grade- students began playing recorders! We learned how to hold them, what kind of air pressure we use to play (not very much air!), and we learned our first two fingerings to play notes. We also moved our feet to match sounds we heard- walk, jogging, skate.

5th grade- students began playing recorders! We reviewed how to hold them and began playing simple songs using our first two fingerings. Students composed their own 8-beat rhythm using half notes, quarter notes, eighth notes, and quarter rests.