Can I confess something to you? I have no idea how any of my elementary or junior high teachers came up with a grade for me. Not a single one. Did they just "give" me a grade? Did I do something to earn it? Was there every any real assessment? I don't think so. I think that I got an A because I was a good kid that did what I was told. Of course, that must mean that kids that didn't do that would have received a different grade. Is that crazy? Have you been guilty of that?
I guess that is one of the reasons that assessment has been so important to me. I've created hundreds of rubrics, sat through dozens of assessment workshops for math and reading teachers trying to glean everything I could and challenged other music teachers to show me how they plan for authentic assessment. I've learned that there is a wide variety of strategies for grading or assessing students in music class. I've seen elaborate data tables and heard others say "I just give them an S, no matter what." Whaaaat? I've tried to find a balance based on how often I see my students and what I want them to be able to do when they leave my classroom.
Today I'm going to share with you one of my favorite tools for assessing rhythm skills. I call it ear training, but it isn't exactly what I remember doing for my Ear Training classes in college. I use these assessments most often with 3rd through 6th grades but they could be adapted for use with younger and older students. When I taught high school band I used this type of assessment all of the time.
Check out this video to see how I use my What Do You Hear set of worksheets. You can download them HERE if you are interested in trying them out in your classroom.
It can happen during the week before Christmas, the days before Spring Break or during each and every sunny day in May. Your students come to music class with an overabundance of energy and a deficit of attention. It is tough for them to concentrate and they need to move! In this post I'll share some of my favorite wiggly activities to get through "those" days: creative movement, watch and wiggle and dance party.
Creative Movement
I've been using these posters for quite some time. Last year I turned them into something a little prettier and now have several sets in my TpT store. These movement sets each have a theme and come with two different activities: Freeze Dance and Creative Movement. Freeze Dance is probably self explanatory, but the creative movement cards may need a little more explaining.
I either project the file or print it out and just hold the posters up while students dance. I actually prefer printing them out so that I can come back to a really fun move over and over. I start the music (Suggestions are included, but almost anything works!) and then hold up a creative movement poster. Students look at the picture and/or the name on the card and then decide how to interpret it. This is SO much fun that kids ask for it every week. Sometimes I mix and match the sets to keep them on their toes. Here are a few samples from different sets:
You can click each of these pictures to learn more about the sets.
Watch and Wiggle
Teacher Confession #1: Sometimes, especially at the end of the school year, I just need to sit down for a few minutes. I need to sit and rest because there is just no tired like end-of-the-year-tired. For me, it is a great time to pull out my watch and wiggle videos.
Teacher Confession #2: I have quite a few student favorites saved on Symbaloo and until this day, I have never shared my list with anyone. Why? This visual playlist ups my cool factor by about 50 degrees. Kids love it that much. So, be careful and use it wisely. :-)
This is the most exhausting but exhilarating options for "those" days. It is time to wear them out with an all out dance party! WooOoOooT! On dance party days (or days where the last half of class is a dance party), I have students stack their chairs and leave a ton of open space. We talk about acceptable dance behavior, personal space and rule #2 in the music room "Don't touch Mrs. King's stuff!"
Then, we dance. I usually dance with them as they need a leader for some of the dances. Here are some of our favorites: Cha Cha Slide
Hurray for spring! I love to watch the trees and flowers bloom and love the chance to get outside just a little more as the temperature warms. In the classroom, spring fever seems to creep in and surprise me so I'd like to share a few of my favorite springtime activities to shake it up a little!
Like many teachers, I often shop post-holiday sales for goodies that I can use in my classroom. Easter time is a great time to pick up colorful plastic eggs in a variety of colors, sizes and styles. Although they are obviously Easter eggs, I repurpose them for classroom activities all year long. They are so much fun that the students don't seem to mind. Here are a few ideas for using shaky eggs:
Shake 'em!
Okay...that was probably a little obvious, huh? I fill them with dry beans or rice and then seal them. I have tried glue and super glue without the success that I wanted. If students squeeze the egg hard enough, it still pops open. I've found the most success with Scotch tape or washi tape (a pretty, patterned version). I let students know that the eggs will NOT pop open by themselves and the tape won't come off by itself so if something happens, they will be responsible. Totally works for me!
This song is SO much fun and works around Easter or just for a song about farm animals. We use our shaky eggs to show fast/slow, up/down and more.
This number is called Hunting Easter Eggs. Not only do we sing this song, but we use shaky eggs to keep the steady beat. Occasionally we will use this song to move sneakily around the room and play musical statues.
Plank Road Publishing also has several other songs that are super for shaking eggs. Check out: Shakey, Shakey Egg and Dip an Egg
Centers
Plastic eggs make great puzzles that are quick and easy to complete at workstations in class. I've used them for several different kinds of centers, but the concept is the same. Match the top with a bottom (usually not the same color because that would be too easy!). I actually use these centers for several months and don't worry about if it is near Easter or not. Here are a few examples of workstations:
Symbol Match - Write the name of the symbol on one half and the symbol on the other. I use this set with 3rd grade and up.
Instrument Scrambled Eggs (See what I did there? *wink*) -Write the instrument name on one half and the scrambled letters in that name on the other part. Make it a little more advanced by providing baskets labelled: brass, woodwinds, percussion, strings and let them sort them into their families.
Syllable Sort -notation on one half, syllables on the other.
EGGcellent Math -Musical addition problems on one half and answers on the other.
These centers were pretty easy to make, but if you wanted to make several sets it might be fun to have an older class create sets for you. They would think it was fun and you would have several sets of the same game to use with small groups.
Use them like scarves and ribbons.
I think it is so important for kids to have time to explore movement in a fun and safe environment. I like to give students two egg shakers and then use these ribbon/scarf movement cards. I show them a card with a shape on it and them imitate it by shaking their eggs and moving. I use many different songs for this activity but "Bunny Hop" or "Twist and Shout" are especially fun! Check it out HERE.
Tips for Improving Audience Behavior at Your Next Performance
The music is ready. The lines are memorized. The stage is decorated. It is concert time! The next thing to consider is how to keep the audience entertained and under control during the entire evening. Let's face it. Your students know what your expectations are for the evening. They have practiced walking in lines, being quiet and using good audience behavior in your classroom all year. The audience? In all likelihood, they have been to more ballgames than concerts and may need a little prompting to be a good audience. This doesn't mean that they aren't there to be supportive or that they don't like the arts. It may just be that they don't know what is expected of a great audience.
1. Add a little reminder about audience behavior in your program. Something like this:
2. I always have students welcome the audience and introduce songs. On occasion, I've had them rap or recite a poem about audience etiquette. I love THIS one by Tami Mangusso.
3. Use slideshows and videos before the concert to help students and audience members know what's going on. I also use this as an opportunity to remind concert goers about good audience behavior. Here is a sample from about 7 years ago. I set the show to loop and have thematic music playing in the background. This concert was easy as there are many great country Christmas songs out there.
4. It's not usually before a concert that I have problems with noise. It is during the time that students are getting on and off the risers. With large groups this takes a few minutes no matter how much we practice. During this time the audience starts chatting and moving around. This is fine (I would rather they do that when we are not performing!) but it can be hard to get them back to a reasonable level before the next group starts. My solution? Entertain them!
I play slideshows with pictures of class activities, trivia (related to the theme of the concert) or other thematic content. As soon as the first group of students takes their bow, the slideshow starts and we transition to a new group.
5. Decorate with a purpose. You may have noticed that I kind of LOVE bulletin boards! LOL. Well, I've got one for audience behavior too. Check out Thankful for Good Audience Behavior.
I hope these tips help you have a great performance! Best wishes! Like this article? Pin it!
Can I tell you a secret? I have not always been a fan of Halloween. I’m not really sure why, but I’ve come around and now feel comfortable teaching a Halloween song or two. As I prepare lessons for my K-6 classroom I try to incorporate songs and activities that feel like Halloween without being too scary or creepy. We do many songs about pumpkins and spiders and so on.
At one district we avoided everything Halloween and even called the classroom celebrations on that day “Fall Parties”. At another school we celebrate with a big parade, all students and most staff members dress up and hang decorations in our classrooms and on bulletin boards. You probably know which end of the spectrum your district falls into and can adjust some of the activities below to suit your needs.
Below you’ll find a small compilation of ideas for October and some fun ideas for Halloween in the music room.
There’s a Spider on My Head
This fun song is great for Kindergarten and First Grade. It is sung to the tune of “If You’re Happy and You Know It”. I start by modeling this song, but honestly by the time I get to verse three they can’t resist singing along, pausing to hear the new part of the verse. Because this song isn’t specifically a Halloween song, I often tie it into the change in the weather and how spiders and flies want to come in to our warm houses instead of staying out in the cold. This gives us an opportunity to sing the song another day. The second time we’ll make up new (and often sillier) verses.
Pumpkin Patch
This is a fun song to sing with 1st and 2ndGraders. We learn the song by rote adding actions with each phrase. Next, we sing and move with a partner.
Pumpkin Patch Lyrics
Pumpkin patch, Pumpkin patch. Looking for a pumpkin in a pumpkin patch.
Here is one, nice and fat. Turn into a Jack-o-lantern, just like that.
Pumpkin Patch Tune
Sol sol mi, sol sol mi, do do do re mi mi sol fa mi re do.
Sol sol mi, sol sol mi, do do do re mi mi so fa mi re do.
Pumpkin Patch Actions:
“pumpkin patch” =clap hands twice on “pumpkin” and in the air on “patch”. Later transfer the air clap to a partner’s hands. Do this for every “pumpkin patch” in the song.
“looking for a pumpkin”=Put hand over eyes and on your forehead as though you are shading your eyes
“here is one” =right hand out as though you were hugging a giant pumpkin
“nice and fat” =left hand joins the right as though you were hugging the giant pumpkin with two hands
“turn into a Jack-o-lantern” =turn around with arms still outstretched. Later join hands with a partner and turn in a circle.
“just like that” = clap clap air pat (that later becomes a partner clap)
Music K-8 Songs
I just love Plank Road Publishing! My kids really connect with my kids and they are easy to sing. This is a list that I use 2nd through 6th grades. Here are a few of my favorites for October:
Eight Legs (We actually sing this one all year round.)
I have a Symbaloo page with some of the songs we might add at the beginning or end of class if we have time. They are short and simple and are probably most useful for 2nd grade or younger. The link to this Symbaloo page is at the bottom of this blog post.
Jazzy Jack-o-Lanterns
Such fun! I don’t always do this each fall, but it always seems to work its way in for at least one grade level do to an oddity in scheduling or special events. Often I’ll do this activity during the week of parent teacher conferences with the one class that I will see from a specific grade level. Students use the chart that I give them with music symbols to create an interesting jack-o-lantern face. They can use them in any fashion, upside down and in any color. I walk around while they are working on them and quiz them on the names of the symbols or explain what they are if they are new to them.
I do centers at least once every four times I see students so seasonal workstations are so much fun! With the Candy Corn Puzzlers I actually had the whole class do the same puzzles in small groups. Fourth graders worked pitch names, 5thgrade worked on recorders, etc… I allowed about 10-15 minutes for this activity including the time it took us to break into groups and get supplies. If you have the puzzles in a little baggie you could probably do this in less time.
Pumpkin Patterns
This is a quick and easy game to create and to play. It is essentially a matching game. The pumpkins have four-beat rhythms on the back side of the jack-o-lantern. I created a duplicate of each pattern so that students could match them up. I created this set specifically for what fourth graders would know this time of the year. You could create multiple sets that were usable with more than one grade level. Students turn the pumpkins so that the rhythms are face down and take turns turning over pairs of pumpkins. If they find a match, they keep it. The person with the most matches wins the game. Often they will have time to play multiple times before our time is up.
Ideas to Shake Your BOOty (see what I did there? *grin*)
Oh my goodness! This set of creative movement cards is so much fun! I turn on some awesome seasonal songs and then hold up the posters for students to imitate. It is so fun to see students do the “The Broom Dance” or the “Zombie Wobble”. The idea is that students get to interpret the move named on the poster in any reasonable way. Wow! What creativity! In this set there is also a freeze dance setof posters too. If you like them, I have several more themes that you can use. They are also fun to mix and match.
Here are some of the songs I like to use for this activity:
“Monster Mash” by Bobby “Boris” Pickett
“Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker Jr.
“Purple People Eater” by Sheb Wooley
“Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees
“Thriller” by Michael Jackson
Pass the Pumpkin
I buy a bag of mini pumpkins at Walmart each year for Pass the Pumpkin. I divide students into small groups of 4-6 and we say the pattern “Bounce, 2, 3, Pass”. This allows students to pass every four beats. This is fun for Kindergarten and 1st. With older students we make the pattern shorter with “bounce, pass” or “pass, pass, pass, pass” on each beat. The word “bounce” doesn’t actually mean bounce it on the floor! Messy! It means to bounce it in the air to show the beat.
Here’s a video of a 1st grade group from a long time ago. This was their first attempt at “bounce, pass, bounce, pass”. *giggle* Not perfect, but certainly fun!
Dance Videos
I think it is so important to keep kids moving so I have several go to movement activities and videos. I’vegrouped some of the Halloween videos on a Symbaloo page. You’ll also find the links to a few sing along songs for the lower grades. Enjoy!
Hurray for summer! If you are a teacher, it means a slightly slower schedule but many projects. My summers are filled with professional development, college classes, designing next year's classroom (I'm sure that I'll totally get it perfect riiiiiiiight before I retire.) and working on the projects I just couldn't squeeze in during the school year. Join me during June and July for Summer Project Sundays. This series of blog posts will inspire you to get started on a few projects of your own.
A few years ago I posted about how to create Pool Noodle Ponies. Check out that post HERE to learn how to create these adorable creatures! Last summer I gained an entire herd of noodle ponies. I had been in a car accident, so I really just supervised their construction. My fabulous sister in law manned the pony factory and created them. We decided to use a western themed duct tape to bind them together. I love how that turned out!
Now that you have created a herd of noodle ponies, what can you do with them? Here are a few ideas:
1. This is the Way We Walk Our Horse
You know that song "Here We Go 'Round the Mulberry Bush"? It is used as a nursery rhyme reminder of daily chores (Monday=wash the clothes, Tuesday=iron the clothes, Wednesday=mend the clothes, etc...). You may have learned this version in elementary school. Check out this link to learn about pioneer living and daily chores.
This song transforms into a perfect pool noodle pony song! Take a look at a video of some of my Kindergarteners using their ponies with this song.
Fun, right? This is an adaptation of an activity by the amazing Artie Almeida. Here are some of the lyrics we use:
1. This is the way we walk our horse
2. This is the way we pet our horse
3. This is the way we trot our horse
4. This is the way we water our horse
5. This is the way we jump our horse
6. This is the way we feed our horse
7. This is the way we race our horse
8. This is the way we brush our horse
9. This is the way we trade our horse (Chaotic but fun!)
10. This is the way we stable our horse (put horses back in their tub "stable")
2. Act Out Horse Songs
A couple of my favorite are "10 Little Horses" (think 10 Little Indians) and "Trot Old Joe".
Trot Old Joe
Trot old Joe, trot old Joe,
You ride better than any horse I know.
Trot old Joe, trot old Joe
You're the best horse in the country, oh
Whoa, Joe!
We keep the steady beat on our laps like singing. Then we change the lyrics so that old Joe can walk, run, jump, skip, dance etc... After learning this song it is great fun to act it out with the pool noodle ponies. It's a great way to talk about tempo and it creates a memorable experience for your kiddos.
3. William Tell's Overture
Who doesn't love this classic? I've done it with instruments, with movement, with manipulatives and now with noodle ponies. Create a listening map for this piece (or use the fabulous one in Artie Almeida's "Parachutes, Ribbons and Scarves, Oh My". On the "A" section, ponies trot in a circle. Use instruments or other movement during the other sections.
4. Wild Donkeys (from Carnival of the Animals)
This quick little piece (called "Wild Asses" in most translations) is perfect for getting the wiggles out with a noodle pony ride. I have about 8 students line up with their ponies. Four students on one side of the room and their partner on the other side. Students switch places with their partner by galloping with their noodle. They start when the music starts and stop when the music stops.
This activity is usually used with several Carnival of the Animals activities. Read more about those HERE. We talk about tempo, but don't really analyze the piece. I use it more as an opportunity for them to get to hear the piece over and over in an exciting way. When we go back to listen to the pieces from CofA they really know this one!
Here's a clip from one of my classes:
There are many other ways to use the ponies in your classroom. If you've used them, I would love to hear about it or see pictures.
In a few weeks, voters in Missouri will have the opportunity to make their voices heard at the voting booth. On the ballot is Amendment 3. This amendment would require students to be tested in all subjects, change our performance based teacher evaluations to be mostly based on those tests (imagine YOUR job evaluation being based on one test on one day out of the year...what if its a bad day for the kids? UGH!) and will take away local control from the school districts. It's bad for kids, bad for educators and bad for tax payers.
So...I'm opposed. :-) Take a look. Have a giggle. Hear the message.
