Hello! It's the Friday before school vacation, and I can tell from a day full of very wiggly kindergarten and first graders that we are all ready for it! We didn't do an update last week because of the snow days, so this week's update is a two-week combo.
The goals of the last two weeks were to add to our repertoire of American folk songs, sing in the correct pitch, and continue to work on playing to and moving in a steady beat. Inspired a bit by Lady Gaga's intro at the Superbowl Halftime show, we worked on the song "This Land Is Your Land," singing the first first and chorus of this American classic. Then, we played along to the song with our djembes, which are small African drums, with one half of the group keeping a steady beat while the other sang the song. We then continued our exploration of the steady beat by continuing to play on the drums along with other songs we've learned, which gave us a chance to review "Oh Susannah," "Comin' Round the Mountain," "Down by the Riverside," "You Are My Sunshine," and others. We also played a game called "Lucy Locket" and also worked on moving in a circle in time to the beat with the song "Sally Go Round the Sun." As always, we frequently add in stories, other songs, and other games, as I see fit depending on any given group's energy at any given time! Lots of fun being had, while learning is happening underneath. In addition to the musical skills we're working on, we're learning about how to work as a group, cooperate, and express ourselves. And of course, by learning to move to a steady beat, we're making sure that we will eventually look great on the dance floor when that day comes! :) The goal: Let's banish those phrases, "I can't sing" and "I can't dance," from our vocabulary forever!!
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Hi all! This week, our new songs for kindergarten and first grade included a new circle game "Lucy Locket" and, in some classes, a ukulele club song called "Down by the Riverside," which is a traditional American folk song. Click the link about Lucy Locket to see a video of the game we play, though the version on that page shows you some music teachers learning the game. The objective of the game is to sing in tune, but more importantly to learn how to move in time to a steady beat. My favorite part of this week was the spontaneous conga line that erupted in one of the first grade classes, while kids were listening to and dancing to this version of "Down by the Riverside." Kids love it! You can get the lyrics and chords over here on our Classroom Songs page. |
Hi!Mrs. Lindsay teaches music to all of the kindergarten and 4 out of 5 first grade classes at NMES. Archives |